How to Win Client Business When You Don't Know Where to Start

CHAPTER 1Things Rainmakers Do That Most of Us Don't: The Five Rainmaker Skills: Universities Don't Teach Us and Our Firms Don't Train Us

Every professional firm needs more people who develop new business. Accountants, actuaries, attorneys, engineers and management consultants are all familiar with this problem. Bright, young, technical talent is always available. Seasoned project managers usually are. But never are there enough rainmakers.

—Ford Harding, author, Creating Rainmakers

If you're old enough to remember John Grisham's 1995 novel The Rainmaker, you understand what we mean by the term rainmaker. Grisham's novel was a huge hit, rapidly stepping into the number one spot on the New York Times best‐seller list. According to Grisham's publisher, Doubleday, it was the fastest‐selling hardcover book ever at the time. Francis Ford Coppola's movie that followed a couple of years later starring Matt Damon was a box‐office hit. If you were born after, say 1985, you may be thinking to yourself, “I have no idea what we're talking about here.”

What Is a Rainmaker?

What is a rainmaker? A rainmaker generally refers to a partner in a professional services firm who is skilled at bringing in client business. Rainmakers:

• Generate leads for new business
• Turn leads into new clients
• Are skilled at turning existing clients into referrals and repeat business
• Keep many people in their firms employed
• Are highly respected and frequently have a lot of influence in their firms

According to ...