Building a healthy client list can seem like an overwhelming task.
Try these 7 steps to help get more clients for your business.
A good business owner, must no doubt be keenly aware that client base is the
lifeblood of a company. A steady stream of new clients allows a business to grow and fulfill company vision.
Realizing the
importance of a strong client base for all small businesses, including virtual
ones, is why consultants asks the business
owner: "what is your best approach in creating a client base for your
online business?"
These seven-step approach works best for attracting
new clients.
1. Identify
Your Ideal Client
It’s easier to
look for customers if you know the type of consumers you seek. Without a
composite of your ideal customer, you probably wouldn’t know where to start
looking.
Have a crystal
clear picture in your head of exactly who you're targeting. Think about what makes those
types of people :
i. Happy
ii. Sad
iii. Scared
iv. Relieved
Then think about how you can make their lives a little easier.”
Narrow down the
focus of your ideal client and
avoid making broad target market statements, like every woman, every man or all
baby boomers. Note that few products appeal to that vast of a group of people,
and overstating your market will prevent you from developing viable targeted
strategies for attracting clients.
2. Discover Where Your Customer Lives
Once you have
targeted customers in mind, identify those places where they are likely
to be found (media, online, offline, mail, etc.). Then create messages for them.
Remember that the
place you look for customers will depend
on the nature of your business. Some good online locations include forums and
social media pages, including your own and those of similar or complementary
businesses. Offline, you can meet plenty of potential customers at conferences
and conventions in your industry.
3. Know Your Business Inside and Out
Thoroughly
understanding your industry and having a firm knowledge of your product or service is critical to being able to
attract interested clients. When you know your product inside out, facts comes
through. The people who would be interested in your offerings can see how
knowledgeable you are and will seek your assistance.
4.
Position
Yourself as the Answer
Your first step to making them loyal customers is
to give your potential clients you come into contact with a good reason to try
your services.
Provide value and
establish yourself as having an in-depth knowledge of the problems they are
looking to solve. This takes the form of creating content via webinars, blog
posts, guest blogging, and getting out there and physically networking with
people. From all this you will start to attract a following, and as long as you
have a structured sales funnel setup, you will be able to convert the followers/fans
into paying customers.
5. Try Direct
Response Marketing
One best bet for reaching out and touching
customers is to use tactics to encourage them to complete a specific action, such
as opt into your email list or request more information.
Creating messages directed at your target market is one
best strategy. Therefore you must learn to
create ads that attract your ideal clients by giving them something of value
for free to get them started in your funnel.get as much knowledgeable as much
as you can about direct response marketing practices, because you will learn to focus on results that matter. Create
compelling messages that tell your ideal audience why they'd have to be a fool
not to work with you. Show them you understand their pain, and can make it go
away faster and cheaper than they could without you.
6.
Build
Partnerships
Forming alliances with businesses that offer complementary
services affords you the opportunity to take advantage of synergy, which can be
very effective in building a business.
Thus, nurturing
relationships, either with other business owners or customers, helps create a
client base, Focus on building human relationships. The stronger your
relationships are, the more likely customers will be to tell their friends
about you. And, the more likely they'll be to come back.
7. Follow Up
Always remember to close the loop after your efforts
to bring in business. Remember to set follow up tasks (follow up to sample
sent, etc.), and execute your plan. So many leads and great conversations are
wasted because you forget to follow up.
Doing this simple step is sure to get your client base to grow.
