One of the most discouraging things in business is when your most’ looked-forward to’ meetings are entirely unproductive. Why? Because nothing comes out of them, and it feels like time wasted on both ends. So, how do you fix that?
It’s simple. Just follow these five steps to have a productive meeting:
- Advanced Schedules!
Girl! Quit scheduling meetings on the fly! Not only does it screw up your entire day to squeeze in an extra ‘meet,’ but you will never be as prepared as you could be if you scheduled in advance. Instead, set boundaries and have dedicated days for biz meetings. Don’t compromise if someone wants to meet off schedule. Your time is valuable, and you deserve to call the shots!
- Have an Agenda Prepped!
Everything’s better when you have a plan. So prepare a list of questions and prep an agenda before your meetings to know exactly what you need to do to have a productive consultation. Not only does this allow you to be prepared, but it gives your meeting structure and keeps the conversation on track. Anytime you start to veer off with chit-chat, you can always turn back to your plan and feel confident that things will go smoothly.
- Follow Up With Expectations!
The best way to end a meeting is to send all your clients a follow-up email recapping what was discussed during your time together. We always recommend to keep notes and formulate them in a bit of a message to send off that establish:
- Goals
- Solutions
- Creative Brainstorms
- And more
The more organized you leave a meeting, the better future ones will go.
- Establish Timelines, stat!
There is a tendency to set lofty goals in creative and inspiring meetings, but frequently there is never an actual action plan to get there. That’s why timelines are essential.
Discuss timelines with your client on how you will achieve their goals or their requests – and make sure that they’re real! There’s nothing worse than over-promising and under-delivering. So be sure to communicate and always be honest about how much time something takes!
- Set-Up Time Limits!
Got a chatty client? Set up time limits! Especially right now, so many people require connection and are super lonely. Hence, if there is any source of human contact, there is a chance that the conversation could lag on longer than planned. However, you really should not let that throw off your day. So be firm with your time and stick to the allotted availability prepared for your meeting… and don’t go over!
Remember, they don’t know your daily schedule. So if you have to say you have another call or a project to get back to, don’t feel bad! Your time is valuable too.
So now that you know our favorite formulas for fruitful meetings – go out there and be the most productive lady boss you can be! You are perfectly capable of killing it in the online business space, and we believe in you.
