The Monday Morning Building Product Advisor
​Issue #122

Sometime last year, I attended a lunch-and-learn at one of our firm’s offices.

[I work remotely from home, so I only get to those in-person a few times a year.]

Anyway! The rep was good, their presentation was valuable, and they answered every question. But after they left, 3 months passed, and when one of our project architects needed what they offered, no one could remember the rep’s name.

That story sums up the problem pretty well.

The presentation itself wasn’t the issue. The real problem was the complete lack of follow-up.

If you want to know the truth about lunch-and-learns: The 50 minutes in the room are just the audition. It’s the follow-up that decides if you become a trusted rep or just another business card we lose by lunchtime tomorrow.

If you focus all your energy on the presentation and see the follow-up as just a formality, you’re taking the wrong approach. We’ve already seen plenty of good presentations. What stands out is when you follow up like a partner, not just someone ticking a box.

So this week, let’s focus on improving the follow-up. Not just to be polite, but because this is how you actually earn “first-call status.”

Think of the room as the audition and the follow-up as the callback.

A lunch-and-learn gives you something rare: 50 minutes of an architect’s attention. But attention isn’t the same as trust, and it fades quickly once we’re back at our desks.

The follow-up is how you turn that borrowed attention into a working relationship. That relationship is what matters, because that’s how product decisions are made. When a project architect runs into a problem late in the workday, they don’t look through a binder. They text or call the rep they trust. The follow-up is how you become that trusted contact, even before the right project comes along.

Remember the rep from the top of this email, the one nobody could name?

Here’s the other kind. A few months later, a different rep gave the same sort of presentation, but that afternoon she emailed one of our project architects a built detail that answered the exact question asked at lunch. She wasn’t selling anything, just getting us the answer.

When that detail came up on a project 2 months later, she was the one who got the call.

Takeaway: See the follow-up as the beginning of the relationship, not just a thank-you note to close the loop.

Speed is a trust signal

Don’t wait 2 or 3 days to send a polished email.

Acting quickly says, “You matter to me.”

If you wait 3 days, it tells me, “You were just a reminder that popped up on my calendar.”

If your email arrives that same afternoon, while I still remember the sample you passed around, you keep the momentum going. If you wait until Thursday, you have to reintroduce yourself to people who have already moved on to other deadlines.

It’s not about how long your message is. Four sentences sent at two o’clock are better than four paragraphs next Monday. If you can quickly send, “Great questions today, I’ll send that parapet detail within the hour,” before even leaving the parking lot, you’re already being helpful.

Takeaway: Send something specific within a few hours, even if it’s brief.

Refer to the meeting, not just your line card

If you follow up by attaching your full product list, you sound like every other vendor.

But if you mention something that happened in the meeting, you can stand out. Maybe someone asked about a flashing condition or mentioned a renovation going into CDs. Call it out. For example: “You asked about the transition at the parapet; here’s how we handled it on a similar roof condition across town.”

That shows you were listening, and not just hanging back waiting to make a pitch.

We can spot a templated thank-you from a mile away. A generic “thanks for having us” tells us you sent the same note to six other firms, and we file you with the rest. A specific follow-up shows you paid attention to our problem, and that’s what earns that next meeting.

Takeaway: Anchor every follow-up to a specific moment from the conversation.

Give before you ask

Most follow-ups ask for something, like a meeting, a call, or a vague “next step.” If you want to build trust, offer something first.

Give me something useful that relates to a current project. Maybe it’s a built condition that matches a detail I’m working on, or a quick comparison that saves me time. When you start by giving, the rest falls into place because now I want to keep the conversation going.

Notice the difference this makes.

Saying, “Let’s set up a follow-up call,” puts the work on me and usually gets ignored. But if you say, “You mentioned the Riverside canopy; here’s a built detail from a similar condition. Want me to walk through it with your team?” the meeting often happens on its own, because you offered value before making a request.

Takeaway: Make your follow-up valuable, even if we never end up specifying anything.

Become the one we remember

Getting first-call status isn’t about sending one perfect email.

It’s about being consistent. If you always follow up in a helpful, specific way, you become the name we think of when a need comes up.

We remember reps in two ways. Some only call when they want something. Others are the ones who help. That second group is small, and those people get specified without us worrying about price, because trust is the one thing that can’t be engineered out.

That’s what really pays off. When the GC tries to swap out your product, the architect who trusts you is the one who fights to keep you in the project. That loyalty comes from two years of good follow-ups, not from the sandwiches you brought.

Takeaway: Follow up often enough that “being helpful” becomes your reputation, not just a one-time thing.

What to try this week

Write your follow-up before you leave. Open your notes app in the parking lot and draft it while the questions are still fresh. Don’t wait until tomorrow or Thursday, because by then the details will be gone and your message will be generic.

Keep a log of each meeting. After every presentation, write down who spoke up and what they asked. These notes help you make your follow-ups more specific now and give you ideas for future presentations.

Set a rule to follow up within 24 hours and always offer something useful first. Every lunch-and-learn should get a same-day follow-up, sent individually to each participant. Don’t send group emails. Group blasts feel impersonal and undo all the good you did in the meeting.

Final thoughts

Think about your last lunch-and-learn. Did your follow-up make you the first consultant we call, or just another vendor we forget?

Reply and let me know. Even better, send me the follow-up you’ve been using, and I’ll show you the one change that would help us remember your name when things get tricky.

That's it for this week!

Here's to building more than just buildings, and see you next week,

Neil Sutton
​Architect | Speaker | The Product Rep Coach

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P.S. Do you really want inside an architect's head?

When you’re ready, there are 3 ways you can start working with me:

Product reps: If you want to be better at connecting with architects, reply, and let's chat.

Business owners or Team Leaders: You can book an Architect Connections Training for your team. Reply, and I'll send you the details.

Speaking: If you need me to present at an upcoming group meeting, get in touch, and let’s talk!

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