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Quickstart - Attract and Qualify Ideal Clients
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Quickstart
Grow a Profitable Consultancy and Still Have Time for a Life
In this issue
Note from Beverley - Polyanna Paralysis - Your Solutions
One Step Further - Attract and Qualify Ideal Clients
What's Out There? - Career Fit Special Launch Programme
Personal Reflections - Packaging it All?
Note from Beverley
Thanks to all of your who took the time to share your solutions to last week's personal reflections on Pollyanna Paralysis. If you missed the section you can read it HERE
Here are just some of your solutions.
I do a half way between something and nothing. I'm sure "tackle nasties you don't want to do first" is one of the ideas in your time management thinking. If I do this (which maybe only once a fortnight, otherwise Pollyanna guilt might step in!), I reward myself for getting to the office early by going home early. Simple, but effective.
The way I cope with Pollyanna Paralysis is to catch up on some reading. It is something that I want and need to do but it's something I love doing and don't make real time for.
Love the phrase Pollyanna Paralysis. Here's what I do. Anything that gets me out of my office, away from the problem and the phone, email and anything that trips those feelings of guilt. It almost doesn't matter what I go and do and sometimes I only need 30 minutes and I feel better, go back and move on - simple really.
Have a good week.
Beverley
bev@onestepfurther.co.uk
www.onestepfurther.co.uk
+44 (0) 1344 625713
One Step Further
"Nothing can add more power to your life than concentrating all your energies on a limited set of targets." Nido Qubein
One of the most critical strategies for any consultancy and one that seems to generate the most attention and cause the most concern for many people is that of how to Attract Your Ideal Clients. So this article will focus on 2 things
1. Why you need to know who your ideal clients are.
2. Why you need to clarify and qualify your ideal client profile
Whether you are in big business or run a sole business consultancy ultimate success, from a financial perspective, comes down to profitability. Turnover is all very well but it is profit that matters. Profit = revenue – costs.
In order to generate a good profit you need to have the "right" kind of clients and minimise your costs. I make no apology for stating the obvious because I have found that although it seems obvious, when I ask people who their ideal clients are, they can't tell me or they say anyone! So why is it so important to know who your ideal clients are?
1. Trying to be all things to all people doesn't work
2. You are not a specialist in all areas and therefore unable to successfully serve everyone
3. You need a focus for all you sales and marketing efforts
4. Once you develop a specialism for successfully serving a defined group of people you become known by more of the same type of people
5. When you run your own business you only want to work with people you like, trust and respect and who like, trust and respect you - don’t you?
So step one is to define whom your ideal clients are. Step 2 is to clarify and qualify your ideal clients.
"If you chase two rabbits, both will escape." Unknown Author
* So how will your recognise your ideal client?
* What are the characteristics of your ideal client?
* What are the criteria by which you will choose to do business with someone?
Anyone with a pulse and a credit card is not the right answer!
Trying to be all things to all people is not an effective or successful strategy. It just puts you in the "me too" category and unless that is your intention - and I accept for some people it is, you perhaps need to get a bit more focused on exactly who your ideal clients are.
Of course there are many ways to define your ideal clients and many marketing books, courses and gurus that will tell and show you how.
"The foundation of your marketing strategy is an insightful understanding of your customers. It's a "three-legged stool" - who they are, where they are and how they think and behave." Michael Gerber
However, here are some simple starter questions you may like to consider. They focus first and foremost on what YOU want. When you run your own business, as many of you do, you can choose who your ideal clients are and how you work with them.
1. Who do you want to work with and why?
2. What are the problems you want to solve for your clients?
3. How many clients do you want to work with in a month or a year?
4. How much revenue/profit do you want to generate form those clients?
5. What criteria do they need to meet before you say yes?
6. What will make you say no?
7. What are the criteria you will use to prioritise clients?
8. How will you "sack" clients?
9. What are the socio/demo/psycho graphics of your ideal clients?
10. Where will you meet and connect with them?
Start with a clear profile of your ideal client and you can then align your client attraction (marketing) and client conversion (sales) strategies more effectively.
Once you have defined your ideal client use this simple test to qualify you actually have a viable niche market.
1. Can you find them?
2. Are there enough of them?
3. Do they have a problem worth solving?
4. Do you have a solution to solve their problems?
5. Are they willing and able to pay?
So I challenge you this week to take One Step Further towards clarity and set yourself the task of defining the top 5 criteria by which you select/will select your ideal clients.
What's Out There?
SPECIAL PROMOTION
Are you or do you know someone who has shown a commitment to reflect and review your/their career either through circumstance or a sheer desire to finally do want you have always wanted, I would like to recommend that you attend this unique, new programme from Career Fit.
Why? - because you will benefit not just from some great tools and techniques which will start you on a journey to clarity and focus in your career but will also give you lifelong support, on your terms, to help you plan, review and refresh your career at intervals to suit you.
Career Fit is offering a special investment programme for a select few people and I highly recommend you take advantage of this offer. Oh and by the way, you'll receive a complementary appraisal of your CV - worth it just for that I would think!
Below are the details and more information on how you can take immediate advantage of this special offer for the launch programme. Reserve your place today or give Andrew Hoon a ring to find out how you can benefit.
CAREER FIT - Master Your Career, Master Your Life
* Are you in the wrong job?
* Are you struggling with career direction?
* Are you unexpectedly seeking your next role?
* Are you considering running your own business?
* Are your ready for nothing and overwhelmed by everything in your working life?
* Are you just plain bored, discontented or unfulfilled in your current role?
* Do you think that you should be planning the rest of your working life?
If you answered "yes" to any of these questions, CareerFit is for you.
Career Planning Strategies for Life - Our strategies will give you
* A clearly defined personal career target (PCT)
* A clear and focused plan to turn your PCT into reality
* Ongoing short, medium or long term support tailored to your personal career objectives
* Tools and techniques for you to successfully manage all aspects of career development and change
The Benefits You Get From CareerFit's Approach
You will improve your performance in today's highly competitive work market to be the best you can be. You will be clear about what and where you are today, what you might be in the future and how to systematically achieve your objectives. You benefit through:
* Small groups, enabling close personal interaction with tutors and peers;
* A set of proven techniques for identifying and pursuing employment opportunities to expand your horizon;
* Methods and skills that can be honed to particular opportunities that are right for you
* Practice and appraisal in the skills taught so that you can apply them under pressure
* A team of experienced coaches who provide you with personal support on your terms.
* Our independence, working exclusively in your interest; we have no special relationship with recruitment agencies or head-hunters. You may rely on us to give impartial advice on whom to approach and how to deal with them.
To learn more about how you can create your own personal career target, and to receive a free CV appraisal send your CV and a short statement about your current circumstances and aspirations to:
info@careerfit.co.uk
or contact: Andrew on 07866 729465 or Richard on 07810 562556.
For futher information on the programme go to Career Fit Programme
Personal Reflections
I had an email this from someone who had signed up to my ecourse. His biggest challenge is "I guess one of my main difficulties and considerations is how to package these different experiences & skills into valuable service propositions that I can market and create demand for."
Here is my short reply
1. Define what your CORE proposition is
2. Define who your IDEAL clients are
3. Define how your core proposition meets a need, want or desire of your ideal clients
4. Create an attractive marketing strategy to get them to come to you
I see so many new consultants with so much experience trying to "sell it all" and then wondering why very few people buy. It's because a confused mind rarely buys. Therefore you need to be very clear about the 1 or 2 things you do best and position those. That doesn't mean that you can't introduce other propositions and services, it just means that you have a clear focus for people to make an initial purchase and refer you when you start out.
This is a common challenge many new consultants face when they start how - "How can I sell everything that I can do?"
It's interesting, I constantly get reinforcement of my belief that the more you focus the more you attract, the more selective and specific you are in what you tell people you do, the more you seem to draw business to you.
I know when I started One Step Further, 3 ½ years ago, I asked myself the same question, with all my years of experience, with my range of skills and knowledge, how do I package it all up and let people know about it.
It wasn't too long into running my own business that "I got it", I can’t. Now maybe it's just that I wasn't able - and other people are - but I became frustrated with a lack of real business and so I decided rebranding was in order. As soon as I did that, 2 things happened. I got more focused and I started to have better conversations which has lead to better clients.
Now again this may be just the way I have needed to develop to get my business where it is but I wonder if some of you, who may have the same challenge, might try it. Be specific, get focused and be one thing to one group of people and not all things to all people.
What do you think?
Best Regards
Bev
bev@onestepfurther.co.uk
www.onestepfurther.co.uk
+44 (0) 1344 625713 |
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