Graduate: Start attracting Big Clients, – Dickson Mushabe.

IF YOU WANT TO ATTRACT BIG CLIENTS, APPEAR BIG AND PROFESSIONAL.

I was invited to speak at the Elevate conference where I shared my startup journey.

After my presentation one gentleman asked me a question.
“ Thank you for this enlightening motivation , my name is .. and I do Welding and Metal Fabrication on a small scale.
How can I attract big clients ?”

I have been asked this question a number of times and would like to give some insights to any startup out there.

I know this is a common problem and It is a make or break point where the small companies seek to graduate from servicing small clients to big clients.
I faced the same situation at when I had just started Hostalite . We were known as a small Web hosting company and here we were, trying to forge our way into the corporate market.
I remember a particular scenario when i was called to present a website sample design that i was proposing for this big company.
I was shocked when the MD asked me to pause midway as she looked for tissue to first clean my laptop just because the screen was so dusty. I felt so small, I was embarrassed.
She showed me how dirty my laptop was, I don’t know what other assumptions she made ( may be she also thought/ assumed that I hadn’t taken a shower or brushed my teeth, who knows)

Well, I had walked in dust for about 1km, I waited outside her office to first cool down, I still don’t remember if I had had breakfast then…but that’s never a client’s Business.
I lost that business which would have paid all our bills for one year, you can imagine how I felt.
It was an eye opener for me and this is what I learnt,
IF YOU WANT TO ATTRACT BIG CLIENTS, APPEAR BIG AND PROFESSIONAL.
Avoid small but sensitive mistakes like.
1.Sitting before your host offers you that seat.
2.Reaching a Client’s office and you start narrating how you almost had fight with a taxi conductor because they never gave you your 500 shs balance forgetting that it’s none of their business. It even shows that you at the 500 shs level.. How will they discuss with you a business of 30m +
3.Reaching a client office, they ask you for an invoice and you instead request to use one of their Laptops and printer to download it and print it. ( That’s taking the client for granted)
4.Appearing shabby in front of your client
+To be continued..

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