How to Give Clients the Birthday Experience Using Science

“Give clients the birthday experience,” says Mo Bunnell, president of Bunnell Idea Group of how to win over clients and generate leads.

Focusing more attention on clients and prospects, he adds, can have a profound impact on connecting more closely with these individuals. He recommends tailoring lead generation efforts to a client or prospect’s preferred thinking style, via the Herrmann Brain Dominance Instrument (HBDI).

According to the HBDI people have four ways of thinking:

• Analytical
• Sequential
• Interpersonal
• Imaginative

Let’s say an attorney decides to use speaking as a lead generation tactic, explains Mr. Bunnell, that attorney will have the most success connecting with the entire audience by weaving all four ways of thinking into their speech.

“Over 3 million people have taken this assessment, and 95 percent of them have more than one thinking style” says Mr. Bunnell.

However, when dealing on a more personal level, it’s a good idea to look for clues as to how a client prefers to think and tailor BD efforts accordingly, adds Mr. Bunnell.

In addition to paying closer attention to a client’s preferred way of thinking, there are three lead generation blunders Mr. Bunnell often sees attorneys make. The good news, he adds, is they are all easily fixable. Consider the following:

• Not Focusing On the Client. Science show when taking the focus away from yourself and onto a client, it ignites the pleasure center of their brain. That pleasure center creates the same experience, for example, as eating a great meal. In other words, make client interactions more about them and less about, well—you.

• Ignoring Relationships Unless Billable Work is involved. Far too often attorneys don’t pay attention to relationships unless there is billable work involved. However, it is important to pay attention to all relationships because it may lead to business. Something as simple as sending an article to a prospect can make a difference. Ample research shows people spend more money with people they like. In other words, don’t discount people or prospects simply because they are not yet paying clients. There are many ways to stay top of mind with these prospects and ensure long gaps of time don’t pass in between interactions.

• Not treating BD like a Discipline. Attorneys need to treat business development with the same level of discipline as they do the practice of law. The only difference between an attorney and a rainmaker is 99 percent of rainmakers attack BD as a discipline and have a system in place that not only tracks their progress, but holds them accountable to it.

Fostering strong relationships with clients and prospects comes down to one thing—building trust and understanding that trust has a different definition to each person, adds Mr. Bunnell.

It’s the manner in which you approach the individual that makes all the difference.