Rainmaker, Rainmaker, Make me Some Rain

My friend Ford Harding recently asked me to review the newly published second edition of his classic book, “Rain Making: Attract New Clients No Matter What Your Field.”  At the time of his request, I thought:  “Geez, I hold Ford in high regard, but how am I ever going to find the time to squeeze this in?” 

But I discovered how easy it was to open the book at random points, and flip pages to valuable nuggets, sensible tips, practical charts, simple forms and interesting anecdotes.  Literally, every single random page either reminded me of something I haven’t done, gave me a renewed perspective I haven’t considered recently, or illustrated a new insight into ways I myself could become a more effective professional services seller.

So, fear not, you potential readers who feel like you can’t clear the decks to read one more business book.  I’ll bet this one can actually make an immediate improvement in your revenue results.

Here are some of my reactions to some of Harding’s points throughout the book:

He says professional service firms do a poor job of training professionals to market and sell.  He declares: “If you don’t take responsibility for your own development, no one else will.”  My reaction? This statement suggests that professional service firms don’t have to take the responsibility to train their professionals; I believe they do have to take this responsibility (even however much we can debate the efficacy of training as a platform for productivity improvement).  Harding goes on to say “Don’t let the lack of a mentor stop you from learning.  Go out and take care of yourself.”  My reaction?  Yes, smart professionals should learn how to advocate for themselves as part of their own career advancement.  But that's not enough for an entire enterprise to succeed.  Harding (and others who point out the benefits of this kind of entrepreneurial action) should consider making a stronger case for professional service leaders to provide the kind of formal mentoring and training from which most professionals could benefit.   

Harding does everyone a tremendous service in that he speaks plainly throughout the book.  In my own work, I find that so much of what is not working in professional services marketing is the use of jargon that gets adopted from other business sectors, without the appropriate comprehension of the terms.  Take the term “lead generation,” for example.  Harding calls it “getting leads.”  He says, “You need to get face-to-face with a prospect in order to get the sale.”  How refreshing!

I wish the book did more to address the very real presence of the Internet, web-based social networking, or what some call “”conversation marketing.”  For example, in Chapter 8, Harding cites Rule 13: “you must be selective about who you network with.” Doesn’t this seem like a limiting mindset?  Doesn’t it ignore the importance of digital media channels and social networking?  Isn’t it a fallacy that one can be selective about networking, when indeed, especially when using digital marketing channels, a conversation takes on a life of its own?  Certainly, Harding is right to ask people to prioritize and be astute about their networking efforts.  But to assume that one person in a network is “better” than another is a one-way mindset.  Not for the digital age.

Harding offers several visuals, in Chapter 11, that illustrate what he calls the “structure” of networks.  At first, his exhibits made my head hurt!  But in fact, they appear to be quite helpful as segmenting and targeting exercises, as well as for mapping out networking relationships.

Also in chapter 11, exhibits Four and Five are excellent diagrams of the buying cycle for clients (even though that’s not what these diagrams were labeled; it’s what I perceived from them).

Toward the end of the book (on page 235, if you need to know) Harding states, “You will find pricing is the most persistently difficult part of selling.”  If that’s true, why is it addressed so late in the book?  I  understand that Harding is not positioning himself as a pricing consultant, but pricing is indeed the elephant in the room for many professional services sellers.

Ford, great job, once again, on providing real value to the field of professional services marketing and selling! 

Comments

[Tanya Middleton]

I think prioritizing your face time with certain connections is important, however, exclusion is not. Especially women in the business world, live mainly among a boy's club agenda. I think it is limiting to exclude perspective, concepts, and advice that seems out of the box, sometimes that can be the best approach. Women in the business world are better off connecting and involving themselves in community building and sustainable relationships across the board. I'd love to share some information with you and your readers about an upcoming event I find promising for women. I actually work with Microsoft, and right now I’m really excited to spread the word about the “Vision to Venture” tour they’re having between April and May, which will consist of five live events. Featured speaker, John Jantsch is a marketing and digital technology coach, award-winning social media publisher, and author of Duct Tape Marketing: The World's Most Practical Small Business Marketing Guide, as well as many other speakers offering industry tips. Our first event was momentous and we hope to continue on with our success. You can see more and register at http://smallbusiness.officelive.com/v2v/ so let me know what you think! And if you have any questions, I’d be more than happy to answer them !

[Teresa]

Wow! Are you sure that Ford Harding will still be your friend after this review?

And, by the way, it was an excellent illustration of the techniques described on Pierre Bayard's book:"How to talk about books you haven't read."