What’s the key to attracting clients who are the perfect fit? I use a three step process to achieve my goal of attracting, and ultimately working with, clients I LOVE.
Step One: Create and maintain an energetic prospect/outreach list.
In my last blog post I discussed step one: creating and maintaining an energetic prospect/outreach list. I encourage you to read that post HERE to get up to speed.
To sum it up: I shared about creating that list of all of the people who you’d like to bring into your business world.
- Past clients who already appreciate you and your work
- Past prospects you enjoyed talking with but the timing wasn’t right at the time
- People you know you’d love to work with
- People who already work with your ideal clients, with whom you can develop a relationship and may refer business to you.
- Groups you could research, explore, and join to find potential clients you love.
Step Two: Inviting the RIGHT people in to have effective conversations.
Once you have that solid prospect/outreach list, it’s time to take action. This isn’t just about the phone call you make or email you send, although that is part of it. I’m talking about creating rapport and building strong relationships with people through outreach, connection, and conversations.
To some people the outreach process may be entirely intuitive. There’s no problem just sitting down and sending natural messages or making phone calls as part of their outreach marketing.
But I found that for more people than not, this process does not come intuitively. They may have a general idea but could use some help in improving their messaging or coming up with new ideas for messaging. When it comes to reaching out to these ideal clients with the ultimate goal of having a conversation, they need a little help. That’s why Step 2 is so important!
OUTREACH SPECIFICS
WHERE to outreach. The digital age offers many options for outreach. Whether it’s email, Facebook Messenger, LinkedIn messaging, texts, or phone, make sure to use the platform that’s most appropriate for you and the other person. Use what you both have been most comfortable with in the past, if applicable. I prefer email as, to me, it’s easier to go back and find/track messages.
HOW to outreach. When it comes to the content of the outreach, I follow this simple 3 part process:
- Always tailor the start to your message to the individual. Start with a point of connection.
- State the intention of the message, including that you will be sharing about your work.
- Invite to a conversation.
**Message me or comment if you would like some templates for this messaging.**
TIME on outreach/biz development. If you are serious about attracting those clients you LOVE, you have to put in the work. When developing a growing business where clients rely on the “knowing, liking, and trusting” factor, I typically suggest my clients schedule at least one conversation each day. Some general outreach guidelines for achieving that goal are to spend one hour to send five to ten messages per day. Between outreach and the actual conversations, a couple of hours each day of biz development will get you there.
If your business is newer, you’ll spend more time here. Established businesses with a pretty steady flow of clients don’t need as extensive of outreach but still need to do it. Never take your foot completely off the gas when it comes to outreach marketing and finding your ideal clients.
TRACK your outreach. After spending so much time and effort attracting quality clients, it is important to keep tabs on the progress. It may be helpful to use the existing prospect/outreach list to house all the data, unless you have a robust CRM that will store the information.
- Who, where, when, how did you outreach?
- Was there a response?
- Did a conversation take place?
- Notes from the conversation
- Follow-up necessary
- Converted to client or closed?
I like to remind clients not to take it personally if someone doesn’t get back with them. In my experience, if my list is robust, the majority of people contacted will respond. Focus on those prospects.
As you are in conversation, potential clients (or people who may refer you) are deciding if they like and trust you. You should be doing the same thing! Never feel that you have to take on a client. If you get warning signs someone will be tough to work with, they’re going to fight your fees, or you just don’t like them – say no! Don’t wait. By doing so, you’re opening up space for the right client to come to you. You’re respecting yourself.
There you have it! Now you know how to invite the RIGHT people in to have effective conversations so you can attract the clients you LOVE.
Now is time for action. Refer to your prospect/outreach list, identify the three top people you really want to work with, then reach out to at least those three 3 people TODAY.
Need help with the conversation? How do you prepare? What is your message? How do you make your offer? I’ll be sharing those tips in Step Three for attracting clients you love in my next blog post. Stay tuned!
I recently discussed Step Two in a Live for my private Facebook group, Streamlined Business Strategies. Here’s the recording if you’d like to give it a watch:
3 Steps for Attracting Clients You Love – Part 2: Connection
