The other day I said to Wendi, “I got this fun freebie from Fabienne Fredrickson, 151 Ways to Attract Clients.”
“You mean clients just don’t fall out of the sky?”
“No.”
We laughed, because Wendi was being silly. But there’s some truth to that. How many times have we seen new entrepreneurs who expect their clients to magically appear on their doorstep? How many offers and posts boast you too can have clients banging down your door with very little effort?
Far too many to count.
We live in a society of instant gratification. Pop some food in a microwave and it’s ready in seconds. Need an answer, find it in an instant on the web. Want to watch a movie, open up Netflix or catch the latest and greatest on On Demand.
Unfortunately, gaining clients is hard work. Much more sweat goes into building your client list than the get rich quick experts would have you believe. Those thousands of followers you see on their lists? They didn’t happen over night. What you didn’t see were the years and years of relationship building that went on behind the curtain.
Oh, and for the record? Fabienne is not one of those get rich quick experts. She’s a great coach with very sound advice—and her advice can work for you as long as you’re willing to roll up your sleeves and do the required grunt-work.
In fact, any good coach will do that for you. They will show you the tools you need and they will teach you how to use those tools, but the actual house-building is all in your hands.
Wendi and I work the same way. Our business is very well rounded. We can give you coaching, we can help you clarify your goals and priorities. We can build you a website and design products, sharpen your copy, help you produce your book and get you on Amazon.
What we cannot do is market your business, build your community, or make your book famous.
So, today I have ten tips for you:
- Make a rate sheet or services/pricing catalog. Having a rate sheet clarifies your pricing structure for yourself and your clients. Creating a catalog of your services and products also shows you exactly how much you’re offering. Is it too much? Have you strayed too far from your original goal? Are you confusing your clients with overwhelm rather than helping them? Sometimes too many choices are as bad as too few.
- Don’t be a secret, stop hiding. Are you blowing your own horn loud enough? With so much competition out there, the internet is full of noise. Having a website or a social network account isn’t enough. You have to be visible, you have to be interesting, entertaining, informative and creative if you want to be seen. You can do what other people are doing, but do it YOUR way. Your own uniqueness is what will make you stand out.
- Set up incentives. Do you have referral incentives? Do you offer some kind of affiliate program? Are you known for giving back or paying forward? Not every incentive has to be a free ebook or an audio or a video. Your blog is your biggest freebie of all. When offering incentives, give the highest value you can, give information people can use right away.
- Join a Meetup or make one of your own. I’m lucky I live in a town where concerts, shows and conventions are always five to ten minutes away. There are a few relevant Meet Up groups in the area that offer some good workshops and seminars. I’ve attended a few and met a lot of new friends this year. Nothing beats face to face networking. What if you can’t find what you want? Start your own!
- Start doing workshops/interviews/webinars. Wendi and I started an interview series called The Blue Sun Studio Expert Series. In it, we interview other coaches/designers/writers who live a Heart Centered lifestyle. We’ve also started Journey to the Center of Your Heart, an intimate group coaching program. We also started Ask Blue, where anyone can write in with questions about any of the things we cover here at Blue Sun Studio. All of these are great ways to spotlight your expertise and make them fun at the same time.
- Get testimonials. Part of our project wrap-up consists of asking for a testimonial the moment a job is completed. Good or bad, we want to hear the feedback, whether it’s for a project or a book review. Help your clients get started by asking a few questions, especially when it comes to writing book reviews. So many people say “I don’t know what to write.” What they don’t realize is, a review or testimonial is very easy if they write it from their heart and talk about their experience. It doesn’t have to be a literary work of art. A couple sentences will do.
- KEEP LEARNING. Go to conferences, take a class, learn something new or brush up on existing skills. Stay on top of what’s happening in your chosen niche.
- Don’t sell, tell a story. Build your relationship with potential clients through stories they can relate to. Don’t swoop in with something that looks like a story then club the reader over the head with “BUY ALL MY THINGS!” When you tell a story, you’re saying, “This is my experience, it worked for me. Would you like to have this work for you too?”
- Keep an idea file. There’s no such thing as wasted ideas, only wasted opportunity. You don’t have to do all your ideas at once. Start a file, keep a running list. Get it out of your head and onto paper. You can always come back to it if the time doesn’t feel right when it comes to you.
- Surround yourself with like-minded people. This is very important. Be choosy when it comes to who you hang out with. We’re not saying be a snob, just be selective. You want to surround yourself with people who will inspire you, who are willing to share their experience and expertise as much as you are. Pay attention to the kind of energy you’re surrounding yourself with. Do you feel drained or invigorated after being with these people? Is it mind-numbing hard work or do you look forward to seeing them again? I know I want to be with the folks who make life exciting and I hope I do the same for them.
- BONUS: Celebrate. Take time out to celebrate even the smallest successes. Many people, especially women, buy into the mindset they’re only as good as their last accomplishment and feel a need to keep pushing without giving that last accomplishment the recognition it deserves. This isn’t to say you have to stop and wallow in glory for months on end, rather, take a little time out before moving on to the next great thing.
What’s your favorite method for attracting clients? Tell us in the comment section.
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