In How to Attract Ideal Clients we concluded that you must first clearly specify what kind of clients you want to have and what conditions they must meet for you to want to work with them.
It actually took me a few years to discover and implement an approach that allows me to almost always guarantee to attract the right clients, the ones we all want to work with: the ones who are exciting to work with and who pay on time.
Let me share these tips with you.
How To Attract The Ideal Client
Table of Contents
Let Your Prospects Know You Before Starting The Sales Process
My key tools have been my newsletter and my website. When people are seriously considering my assistance they already know a lot about me – how I think, my values, and my approach to marketing. They may have purchased the InfoGuru Manual or taken a teleclass or two. They already know me, they like me and they trust me.
Develop A Service Or Services With Clear Parameters
While you have to do custom work for some clients, you can often create a program or service that can present much the same for most of them. Whether you’re a coach, web developer, financial planner, or consultant, you don’t have to reinvent the wheel every time.
This does not mean that your clients are going to get solutions in series, it simply means that your approach to work is the same for all your clients. This approach must provide, above all, a desirable result for the client but, just as important, it must be able to set clear limits while allowing some flexibility.
Clearly Present Your Brand And Services
Look at the services page of many freelancers and all we have is a long list of technical skills and/or generic services.
Let’s look at an example: «We can help you with web development, search engine optimization, social media, blah blah blah, we can do all of this for you. Just give us a call.”
Well, a page like this communicates about zero and almost always guarantees that it will be called by prospects looking for generic services who will compare your prices with others for generic services. And that is the formula to get bad clients and that pay badly.
Instead, it is better to offer a broader package of targeted services. For example, someone recently recommended a person to me as a “Facebook Marketing Expert.” She touts him as the person who could greatly help me build my Facebook list. Now the message is clear and focused.
Provide A Lot Of Value On Your Website
When someone is looking for a service provider, the first thing they want is more information. Of course, the first thing he wants to know is if you can help him, but then he wants to know more.
Do you have the following on your website?
.A page that explains the type of clients you work with and what their themes are. It’s not about you on this page, it’s about them. You want them to think, “This person understands me!”
.A page in which you explain your approach to work. What are the type of results they can expect, what is the process of working with clients, what is your business philosophy, etc…. You want them to think, “I could work with this person!”
.One page with results-oriented case studies. You must have six or more stories of clients you have worked with, how you helped them, and the type of results you produced together. You want them to think, “This is awesome!”
.Page/s explaining your specific service or services. The idea is to expose the results, the benefits, the process, and the structure of working with you. You want them to think, “This sounds great, I hope we can afford to hire this person.”
Have Prospects Fill Out A Questionnaire Or Application
Now I know this may sound a bit strange. Don’t you want to get into the sales conversation as soon as possible when a prospect calls? My answer is, “definitely not.” I want to talk to them briefly and then filter them to see if they are an ideal customer or not.
A questionnaire with several questions to learn more about your business, situation, objectives, vision, and the challenges to face, allows me to know immediately if there is a possible match or not. I can quickly weed out those who don’t meet my requirements.
Those who give me monosyllable answers don’t get very far with me: “What is the main purpose of your business?” Answer: “Profit.” “His biggest challenge?” Answer: “Marketing.” Hmm…
This way, you only get to have productive conversations with those who are engaged, interested, and want to work with you. Clients appreciate that you have a deliberate work process. You will earn their respect.
Always Comment Who Your Ideal Clients Are
If someone asks you who your ideal customer would be, your answer should be more than, “A business that can pay their bills!” Sure, that’s obvious, but such an answer leaves little chance of moving forward.
Instead, be prepared to say something like this:
“My ideal clients are successful freelancers, such as world-class consultants, trainers, or instructors. However, up to this point, they have gotten most of their customers by word of mouth and therefore have a hard time breaking through a certain revenue threshold. They want to grow their business by $100K or more in the next one to two years through effective marketing strategies for their business.”
So start by thinking about who your ideal customers would be first, and then put these five practices to work as soon as possible.
Conclusion
Ultimately, you get the customers you want to get.
This process really puts focus and clarity into communicating what you want and only accepting clients who meet that criteria.
It’s not going to happen overnight, but if you keep that communication going, ideal clients will naturally and effortlessly be attracted to you.
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