How Many Touches Does It Take to Get A New Client?

When I started cold calling potential clients, I had already read that it may take as many as 7 touches to land a new account.  In my early years, this knowledge helped me to take rejection less personally. It gave me the confidence to keep calling and encouraged me to find creative reasons to call again.  It gave me the energy to show up with coffee or to hop aboard an airplane to introduce myself.  And, having considered the necessity of "multiple touches," it also gave me hope, as I would pour over lists of opportunities that had yet to blossom.  Had I yet reached 7 touches?  Had I yet been turned down?

After 20 years in sales and marketing, I believe the number of touches it takes to land a new client is generally 2 more than most believe or want it to be, and in my industry, it is usually no fewer than 7. Most sales people stop short of having a new target tell them "NO," and thus they are far less likely to close a sale before they give up.  It takes a lot to get someone's attention, and then it takes additional, positive touches to convert them to a new client, as well.

Especially today, where it is hard to connect with prospects on the phone and where all of us are bombarded with digital messages and pitches, I not only believe it essential to "touch" prospects repeatedly, but I also believe it is generally more effective to use "multiple methods" to do so. In this regard, I now have years of case studies and experience using promotional giveaways effectively.  

Branded giveaways can introduce a new brand logo or message; compel a passerby to learn more, watch a demo, or try a taste; create repeat touches when a gift is used repeatedly or shared; encourage a sign-up, etc.  As a part of a marketing strategy to touch prospects repeatedly, using promotional products is a powerful means to create memorable impressions and "touches" that will yield results.

For more on this topic, check out this blog by one of our partners, Greg Berardi, CEO of Blue Marlin Partners. Greg included me in this post and quoted nine others about what it takes to get a new client. A good read.

Blue Marlin Partners is a San Francisco-based marketing firm that specializes in PR, social media, content creation, website optimization and lead development.