BUSINESS ADVICE NOW: GUIDELINES FOR QUALITY MENTORING

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1 BUSINESS ADVICE NOW: GUIDELINES FOR QUALITY MENTORING March 2014 Heather Hendy, Director of Learning

2 THANK YOU! A group of volunteers was selected to help with this project, based on having an average of 3 sessions or more per client, as well as high NPS scores (indicators of client satisfaction). We sincerely appreciate your help and commitment to quality online mentoring. Mentor John Amdall Dennis Brinly John Bury Gustavo Garcia Ekkehard Grampp John Goldman Dennis Haase Hal Jacobson Andrew Kazimierczuk Dan Laemont Mark Lowenstein James Maltry Lee McFadden William McLeod Mike O Malley Jeneen Perkins Michael Sarka Michael Thompson Chapter Peoria IL SCORE Treasure Coast Springfield IL South Broward SCORE Naples/Collier SCORE SE Massachusetts SCORE Little Rock SCORE Dallas SCORE Fox Valley SCORE Lake-Sumter SCORE Cape Cod SCORE Greater Cincinnati SCORE Fox Valley SCORE Northeastern Massachusetts Fairfield County SCORE SE Wisconsin Santa Cruz County Northeastern Massachusetts

3 INTRODUCTION Vision: Business Advice Now Clients have expert business advice at their fingertips at a time and from a location that best suits their needs. This is a tremendous opportunity for SCORE, to reach those outside our communities and to connect with those nearby in a new way. But we have to do it right. The following are guidelines for quality online mentoring that we ask everyone who is an online mentor to follow. Pledge to follow these guidelines to ensure a quality experience for all clients.

4 1. RESPOND TO EVERY QUESTION We ask that you have the same respect for clients that you would for face-to-face clients and respond to them even if to explain why you think you might not be the best fit and to guide them to someone who may be in a better position to help. Quick Tips If you receive a spam message, and it not a mentoring request (this is the most common) you can simply delete it. Very rarely, you might receive a spam mentoring request. If this is the case, please forward it to help@score.org so that they can delete it. If you do not think you are a good fit for the question, please remember that the client found you and selected you for a reason, even if that reason is not apparent to you. Please respond and ask questions to determine who might be better able to serve the client. This is how you would treat a face-to-face client, so we ask that you give the same respect to clients. In some cases, the question might not be interesting to you. Not every client knows the right questions to ask., but you can guide them in the right direction for a much more enjoyable and rewarding experience for both of you. Please respect that client s interest in working with you and answer to the best of your ability, with the other guidelines listed here in mind.

5 2. RESPOND AS SOON AS POSSIBLE Within 24 hours is preferable, but definitely within 48 hours -- even if just to say you need a few days to read and research. Your profile will be set to Vacation Mode and the client will be reassigned if you do not respond through the CORE system within 48 hours. Quick Tips If you cannot answer during the weekend, make sure you set your availability to Sun-Thurs only. If you are getting more requests than you can handle, reduce the number of requests you can receive in a day, week, or month. If the type of requests you are getting are not in line with your areas of expertise, edit your profile to more closely align with the type of requests you would like to get.

6 3. THANK THE CLIENT, AND EXPRESS YOUR DESIRE TO HELP In your first to the client, make it clear that you are willing to help the client as long as they need you. Taking the first step can be difficult for the client, so a show of support will make a big difference.

7 4. ASK QUESTIONS Dig a little deeper into what the person is envisioning and what he or she has done so far. A question that is too broad or seems outside your area of expertise could turn into a rewarding client relationship. Quick Tips Here are some sample questions you could ask. What are the biggest challenges for your business right now? What are your goals for mentoring? What is the purpose of your business? Have you had previous experience in the industry? What research/planning have you already completed? Do you have any business partners?

8 5. RECOMMEND OUTSIDE RESOURCES When applicable, outside resources can help illustrate an idea, or get the person started on the right track. Be careful not to send out templates without having spent the time asking questions and getting to know what the client truly needs. Quick Tips SCORE.org for tools, templates and online workshops, as well as a blog updated daily with articles from small business influences and experts (including SCORE mentors!) SBA.gov for loan information, as well as webinars, articles and a library of resources Client s State Business Website (see a list here: Your SCORE Chapter s website

9 6. FOLLOW UP If you do not hear back within a week, follow up and check to make sure that person received your . Follow up with clients who you haven t heard from in a month or two to see how they are doing. Based on the experiences of other mentors, they will be happy to hear from you. Quick Tips We know that you currently do not have an easy way of viewing requests chronologically. The IT team is working to bring back a report that would allow you to sort your mentoring requests in this way, however we do not have a date set for when that will be completed. In the meantime, you may want to set reminders for yourself to follow up learn how using the guide Setting Up Reminders to Follow Up with Clients.

10 7. ENHANCE THE EXPERIENCE Create an engaging profile, including a tag line and profile picture. Think carefully about the type of keywords you d like to include in your career summary. Make sure you are specific and only include keywords related to your areas of expertise. Include Personal Touches to build rapport. Sometime it is difficult to get a read from someone over , so including light messages such as How is the weather in your area? can help show that you are interested in that person. Use alternate methods of responding if needed, such as setting up a phone call or Skype session.

11 QUICK REFERENCE LIST 1. Respond to EVERY question 2. Respond as soon as possible 3. Thank the client, and express your desire to help 4. Ask questions 5. Recommend outside sources 6. Follow up 7. Enhance the experience

12 RESOURCES You can find the following resources on the SCORE Support Site s Knowledgebase: Best Practices for Mentoring Reading & Responding to Client s Changing Your Availability Turning Vacation Mode On & Off Setting Reminders for Client Follow Up Check out the Support Site s Knowledgebase for even more resources!

13 CLIENTS SURVEY 2013 CONDUCTED BY RISHMA PARPIA 2839 clients surveyed, 24.2% response rate After submitting your question to a SCORE mentor, did you receive a response? 76% indicated Yes 24% indicated No Of those client that did receive a response: 86% indicated that the response was received in a reasonable time frame 14% indicated that the response was not received in a reasonable time frame 47.8% indicated that the mentor attempted to contact them following the initial response 52.2% indicated that the mentor did not attempt to contact them following the initial response 69.8% indicated that response they received elicited a willingness for them to continue seeking advice from SCORE 30.2% indicated that the response they received did not elicit a willingness for them to continue seeking advice from SCORE When asked if they need further advice from SCORE: 56.5% responded Yes 43.5% responded No When asked whether they would they would be willing to visit their local SCORE chapter to speak with a mentor in person if their question could not be answered via % indicated Yes 79.3% who indicated that they are willing to visit their local chapter, did receive a response from a SCORE mentor to their initial question 22.5% indicated No 64.6% who indicated that they are not willing to visit their local chapter, did receive a response from a SCORE mentor to their initial question

EMAIL CLIENTS SURVEY 2013 CONDUCTED BY RISHMA PARPIA Client comments: Service is phenomenal. Keep up the great work!! every interaction with SCORE reps has been of value and benefit to my undertaking.

14 CLIENTS SURVEY 2013 CONDUCTED BY RISHMA PARPIA Client comments: Service is phenomenal. Keep up the great work!! every interaction with SCORE reps has been of value and benefit to my undertaking. I received excellent help on several questions/issues. Keep up the good work. My score mentor was awesome, I will be contacting her again, and I want to give her a gift as well for being so helpful. I know she volunteers her time, but she was such a blessing to me. We are doing well in many cases, but we can do better. More timely responses, better follow up. I had 2 requests, 1 never received a response, the other was a generic textbook answer with no effort to engage in a conversation. My experience with your organization was poor. Take the time to mentor, not just throw too much texted documents at me to read. I've read a lot about how to start a business, besides, the same info is readily available everywhere. What I need is a mentor. Provide the services to all people. When a person finally contacted me after repeatedly inquiries from me and I stated I was a woman, with a physical disability, African American and interested in seeking grant funding for starting a business, the person never responded.

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