Sales Tips: Bringing Clients from one company to a new one; how, do's & don'ts

Sales can seem like an ever changing job cycle. We have all had a new sales rep send us an vague email about being our new contact. Most of us here have sent that email. So what should we do when we are the sales rep moving to a new company? We spent a lot of time building relationships at our current company.

If you are moving to a company that is in direct competition with your current company, my advice is always to leave your clients where they are. If you can send a hand off email, do it. The best place to give them new information about the competing company is on social media. Post an article on LinkedIn about your new company and let them come to you. If you have a non compete clause with your old company, tread lightly here and make sure you understand exactly what your limitations are. 

Assuming you are moving to a company that does not compete with the company you are leaving. I would connect with all of your clients on social media. Most likely the company you're leaving will not allow you to take a client list with you. You can easily build your list again by getting the emails from LinkedIn and asking for their phone numbers again. I do not suggest taking a client list from an ethical stand point. However you decide to stay in contact with your clients and inform them about your move is up to you. Hopefully you'll be able to notify them and hand them off before you leave your current position. If you can't, that is ok and simply explained by letting them know your previous company has a policy against it. 

The last three companies I worked with have drastically different products, the common thread is they are all B2B sales. The great part of building genuine relationships with clients is they will always make time to listen to you. I was able to sell to the same contacts multiple times because of this. Most of my client base weren't the right fit for all three products or even two of them but there were enough to get me started with a client base and referral network at new companies. I've reached out to the same people with starting Perfrm as well. 

Here are my simple steps for bringing your clients with you:

1.) Let them know there's a change immediately. Whether this is a sudden change or a well planned out change won't matter to a client who you've done the work with to build a real relationship. The trust is already there, you want to continue to have that trust. You don't need to explain why you left, and they don't care on a professional level. 

2.) Ask for their time again. I normally wait one to three months to make sure I know the product well and how it will be a solution for them specifically. If you put in the time on this relationship with your last company, they will say yes. Don't worry about what has happened with the old company since you left, your clients know that has nothing to do with you. 

3.) Ask for referrals right away. I ask for referrals in my first followup. I have asked them for referrals previously, we have already built trust and a relationship, this is a natural progression. I have always received referrals from past clients even if they aren't a fit for my new product. 

Please let us know in the comments if you would like more tips like this from our team. We love hearing your tips as well. Have a great week!