How to make that “yes” in the pitch meeting binding.
We’ve all been there. The presentation is done finished, heads nod in agreement; you’ve knocked it out of the park. The decision maker tells you, “Okay, let’s go. Send over the power of attorney and we’ll get started.”
You float out of the office. You call your spouse, kid, parent, random stranger you met on your last trip through that podunk airport to tell them that you landed that account!
And we’ve all seen what comes next.
Credit: on-site.com.
You send over your power of attorney and other on-boarding documents, and suddenly all goes quiet. As if a wormhole opened in space; they’re not there anymore. Or their feet are cold. They stop returning your calls. Your emails go unanswered. If you go there in person, they either don’t see you or sheepishly admit that the previous service provider who you so excellently pushed out the door made amends and they’re willing to give them another chance.
Not getting them to sign the power of attorney then and there might not have been the only reason that it fell apart, but think about how much more committed they would be to the change process if they signed on the dotted line before you parted company?
There are plenty of ways to avoid giving them a chance to stall the process or find an excuse to not make the change because of the perceived effort to do so, but why not take this opportunity to use tablet technology to your advantage? Imagine whipping out your tablet and having them sign the power of attorney, then snapping pictures of the necessary supporting documents, binding it all up into a neat .pdf and sending them a copy for their records.
You can do this. You should do this. You need to do this.
There are solutions out there with companies like Docusign, or iOS apps like PDF Expert. Get something spiffy for them to sign with, like a Cosmonaut or a Lunatik Pen. Power of attorney and customer record templates can be pre-loaded, populated with company data and signed on the screen.
And people shouldn’t be afraid of signing a screen. Think of all the places it happens already, especially in the mobile payments space. This photo shows how someone can sign a lease on a tablet.
There. Feels a little more permanent when you leave not just with a handshake, but with a legally binding document as well, doesn’t it?