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Passion, People and Principles

Getting Hired by New Clients – new client videocast & audiocast

post # 423 — August 27, 2007 — a General post

The 21st episode of this series, Getting Hired by New Clients, will focus on the challenges involved in building a trustworthy reputation and the importance of demonstrating rather than asserting your capabilities. As you will see, as with any relationship, it is up to you to go first.

Audio Timeline

00:39 — Introduction

01:03 — A personal account of the power of recommendations and reputation

03:37 — The cycle of mutual recriminations the client/provider relationship

05:31 — How to “go first” as a provider

12:11 — Demonstrate, don’t assert

14:22 — Conclusion

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2 Comments

Ed Kless said:

David, neat video.

I am sure this will not surprise you coming from a VeraSager, but one of the key problems that you describe in this video is that of a relationship which is adversarial in nature. When professional firms bill by the hour this is always the case because it is in the best interest of the client to reduce the hours and in the interest of the firm to increase them. (See Tom “Bald Dog” Varjan’s excellent post on responding to a client who wants hours.)

In addition, you mentioned an example of a lawyer quoting you a fee of $30,000 or 10% whichever is higher. I hope your viewers do not confuse this with what we would call a value price. What this attorney did, however poorly, was offer a test price which may or may not have been successful. He certainly got you to hang up, which may have been his strategy all along.

posted on August 27, 2007

Jonny C said:

Excellent, informative and thoroughly useful.

Particularly in my industry – PR – which can be dogged by adversarial relationships.

posted on September 11, 2007