2. Your customer base is a goldmine. Until you see your client base as a genuine goldmine, you’ll never treat it with the seriousness and intensity it deserves. The people in your files are worth big money. In fact, they’re worth really big money over time. Could you imagine having a portfolio of investments that you didn’t take care of or pay attention to? Your customer base is the equivalent. And while there’s no doubt that if you stay in the business long enough, and never follow up, you will still luck into a repeat customer or referral from time to time, you’ll be reaping mere nuggets from an asset that is capable of producing Fort Knox. Remember one thing about a goldmine: even though it holds millions of dollars worth of gold, it’s all worthless until you work it and get it out of the ground. The same goes for your customer base. It will take work. Consistent work. And you’ll need to stick with it over time.

3. Keep the long view in mind. Many salespeople don’t work their customer base because they’re blinded by short-term thinking. They believe that since the customer walking through the door today is a more immediate sale, they don’t have time to follow up. You’ll never hit the big time until you can balance the need to make the immediate sale with the importance of building your long-term future. You can do both. It takes focus and commitment but the best salespeople find a way to do it. In fact, if you want to join the swelling ranks of salespeople earning six figure incomes, doing both is not an option.