3 Tips on How to Approach Potential Clients Who Have Rejected You Before

Just because a client has rejected your offer once doesn’t mean they will hold onto that negative stance forever. Therefore, even after a rejection, you should always treat the client with the utmost professionalism, leave your contact details, and keep the door open for future opportunities. These clients, who have already turned you down, or those who once worked with you but later left your company, can actually be a very good and valuable source for future sales. How can you effectively approach these potential clients and maximize their potential? Here are three tips.

1. Use a CRM system and the information or notes about the client

If you decide to reach out to someone who has previously rejected you, you should always come up with a personalized offer tailored to the specific needs of that client. Therefore, adjust your offer to precisely match the client’s needs and priorities. To do this, you need to have enough data and information about the client from the previous interaction. So, be sure to carefully store and manage this information for future use, even in cases where the client rejects you.

2. Provide a new incentive or reason for reaching out

INC.com suggests that when contacting clients who have previously rejected you, you need to have a valid reason. If you approach the client with the same offer as before, you can hardly expect to catch their interest. To successfully re-engage such a potential client, something must have changed since your last interaction, making it reasonable to assume that this time the client might be interested. For example, you may have expanded or changed your product range, or you could be offering a discount that appeals to a client who previously thought the product was overpriced.

3. Don’t be too pushy

It may sound like a paradox, but the less you push, the better your chances are. If you try too hard to convince the client or apply too much pressure, there’s a good chance they will reject you again. Your renewed contact with the client should be seen as simply informing them about new opportunities that might interest them, so you should avoid using overly aggressive sales tactics in all cases.

Taken from SalesNews, 18.12.2025