Rain Making: Attract New Clients No Matter What Your Field

This book certainly has a lot of material that business people should look at, especially those who are 'sales' people. No matter what business you are in or what role you have you need to be 'selling'. This means you need to not only understand sales but importantly also how to generate new business.There aren't 'tricks' to this, there is simply proven systems that can help you achieve this. This book runs through a whole spectrum of options that are available and it would be truly impossible to say that someone to say that there wasn't something in this book that could help them with the 'sales' process. Surprisingly, I found there was a lot more information in this book than I expected and it also contained more details than I expected. That's what I liked about this when compared to other 'sales' books. It just doesn't merely talk about what 'sales' are it provides you with concrete steps and suggestions to go about generating more opportunities.Many business owners are not natural sales people and in fact tend to shy away from sales claiming that it really isn't their thing. To the contrary, for a business owner it is always sales first for without demand there is no business. The more you understand sales the better you have of being a success and keeping the income flowing to your business.The book is easy to read and surprising comprehensive and pragmatic in its approach. It is well suited to the 'no-sales' type who can learn a lot from the suggestions it brings forward. I would suggest that if you are in business, and especially if you are in business for yourself, then this book should be on your reading list.

I am familiar with Ford Harding's work from hearing him speak and attending his seminars. I am also an avid fan of his books. Ford is a marketing specialist in the area of professional services, and has advanced many careers by analyzing the techniques of many of the top "rainmakers" in their fields. I am particularly impressed that Ford's work is research based. Too many books on selling, marketing, or business development are simply anecdotal or in the personal-empowerment/encouragement genre. Ford's material is practical and based on his first hand interviews and observations with thousands of successful men and women. I highly recommend this and any of Ford's other books.The first edition of this book (1994) was a classic. You definitely want to order this book even if you have taken his seminars or have a dog-eared version of the original, since he has written 5 new chapters and substantively changed many others. An example of an added chapter "10 Increasing Network Quality".

I first came across this book at my local library. I decided to purchase my own copy after reading the first few chapters and realizing that the information was applicable to my consulting business. Overall I found it to be a very good book with many useful ideas and techniques to grow my business. The only thing I did not like was the authors use of simple diagrams scattered throughout the book. I found them distracting and often hard to interpret. This is a good book for any professional that may be good in their given field/profession, but maybe not so good at marketing or networking themselves.

Anyone with a small business will learn much from this book.

More than sales, this is a full business development field guide for professional service firms. I love two of his opening thoughts:Be "...a professional who sells rather than a professional salesperson" and "Selling is practicing your profession at the highest level."Most revealing is his analysis of why cold calls (and other types of outreach) works for some firms and not others.Highly recommended!

You should really buy this book if you want to learn what you need to do to become a top producer in your field. Pick what works for you and follow his advice. I have read other business books about similar subjects and he knows what he's talking about.

If it's not covered in this book don't bother doing it! Timeless advice for those new to their profession or senior staff trying to expand their book of business or coach their delivery team.

This is an excellent sales book every manager should read. It would also be good to have it for college business school students.

This book is excellent on so many levels. I am not a sales person but I need to use the art of persuasion to assure stakeholders that I know how to run digital media projects effectively. This book is packed with tips and examples on how to listen to client needs and ensure you have the right attitude to seal the deal in any competitive field. It is also an invaluable resource if you are preparing for a job interview, read Part III an adapt the pitch meeting and presentation guidance to an interview scenario so that you can market yourself more effectively. If you fear networking, then read Part II, it's easier than you think - we do it all the time but there is plenty of advice of how to make your presence memorable. Brilliant resource, I recommend this 100%.

Excellent book for law practitioners and other professionals who are traditionally averse to PR techniques.It sets out in a clear and practical manner guidance on how to build a network of referrals, promote your expertise and talents and many other ways to attract new clients and increase work from existing ones. I highly recommend it for those who want to build their own clientele or support their partnership/firm no matter what the market conditions.

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Jeder Berater in dienstleistender Freiberufler sieht sich in seiner beruflichen Karriere früher oder später mit dem Problem konfrontiert, auf dem Markt tätig zu werden und sich von Kunden bzw. Mandanten Aufträgen zu "verschaffen". Dieses Buch gibt all jenen, die sich - trotz ihrer zum Teil hervorragenden technische Ausbildung - nie mit den Problemen marketing sowie Schaffung und Entwicklung von Geschäftsverhältnissen mit Kunden auseinandergesetzt haben (bzw. ihre Versuche dies zu tun verbessern wollen) das notwendige Instrumentarium, um diese Aufgabe in einer rationalen und organisierten Art und Weise zu bewältigen.Das Buch ist leicht und flüssig lesbar und der Autor spart auch nicht mit in der Praxis konkret umsetzbaren Tipps. Dabei wird das gesamte Spektrum ab vom Aufbau eines Namens auf dem Markt, Verschaffung von Geschäftsmöglichkeiten bis zum konkreten Einholen von Aufträgen abgedeckt.Ein lesenswertes Handbuch, das einem mit Sicherheit auch in einem zweiten Moment (wenn es das Ganze dann umzusetzen gilt) wieder zunutzen kommen kann.