How,Get,the,Right,Clients,and, marketing How to Get the Right Clients and Avoid the Wrong Ones

Awhile ago, I got an email from one of the "gurus" I follow and it shocked me. The gist of it was this person wanted to trade services for a household item.To say it floored me would be an understatement.What was worse was a few days later t Automation technologies represent a fundamental aspect of any modern industry. The major types of industrial automation solutions, such as DCS, PLC, SCADA, and MES, are used on a large-scale in process and discrete industries.DCS technologie

If you are like most service professionals and small business owners one of your primary concerns isgenerating as many leads as possible. And that may be your biggest mistake, resulting in wasting time onunqualified prospects and working with too many clients you wish you didn't have to.Bill is a financial advisor looking for clients. Working from his stack of leads he picks up the phoneand starts making calls. The first person he gets on the phone has lots of questions and it turns out isjust looking for free advice. After a half hour Bill finally gets him off the phone. Bill's next callfinds a highly interested prospect. After forty-five minutes, he's ready to sign her up, when hediscovers she only has a couple of hundred dollars to invest.At the end of the day, Bill has spent eight hours on the phone and still hasn't signed up any newclients.Do you ever spend time chasing leads that are just a waste of time?Martha is a graphic designer who has plenty of clients but her profits have been shrinking instead ofgrowing lately. One of her long-term clients calls her daily with a question or a complaint. Just whenMartha thinks a project is done, this one client changes her mind and wants it redone. And while thecustomer is always right, this customer's lack of respect and professionalism is starting to get underMartha's skin.Have you ever had to deal with clients who waste your time or are unrealistic in their demands?A common mistake is to try to appeal to everyone, with the result that you attract too many people whodon't want to pay for your services and clients you'd rather not work with. A more profitable marketingstrategy is to position yourself and your firm to attract just those clients that want to work with youand who you'd enjoy sharing your expertise.Imagine that every lead you pursued turned into a client, one who you could be honest and direct with, aclient who you looked forward to working with. You'd make more money and have more fun.Wouldn't it be nice if you could pick and choose your clients?While you can't completely control who contacts you, you can use your marketing to position yourself toattract promising prospects and people who would make good clients. Here's how.Define Your Ideal Client If you want to attract the perfect client, you need to know who they are. Takeout a piece of paper and write a couple of paragraphs describing their characteristics.- What business is your ideal client in? - What is their role in the organization? - Where are theylocated? - What type of person are they? - What is their situation? - What are the problems they wantsolved? - What are other characteristics that are important to you?Use Your Marketing Message People are far more likely to contact you when they have a clear idea of whoyou help and how. Increase the number of qualified prospects who contact you with an effective marketingmessage and you'll reduce the number of "tire kickers" who waste your time.Use Articles Write and distribute an article and/or provide it on your web site, to help peopleunderstand your approach, who you help and how you can help them. Prospects who like and agree with yourthinking will want to contact you and work with you.Use Questions to Qualify Prospects You can't be everything to everybody and it's a waste of time to try.Create a short list of questions to qualify prospects. Use these questions when you call them on thephone and in the service inquiry forms you provide on your web site. If prospects don't meet yourcriteria, you can keep them on your mailing list, but avoid wasting your time by calling them.If you've called one of them and they don't seem like a good prospect, get off the phone in 3 minutes orless and move on to a more promising prospect.Clarify Expectations It is tempting to want to sign up every prospect that wants to work with you. Thisis particularly true when you are just starting up your business or when business is slow. But beforeyou close a deal or sign an agreement, make sure they clearly understand what you will do and when. Youdon't want them emailing you every five minutes or expecting you'll answer their phone calls at two inthe morning or provide additional services for free.Make a short list of questions to ask that will help clients define what they are looking for. When youtalk with clients use these questions to clarify their expectations. If you can meet these requests, usetheir answers to provide a summary of services. That way you will both be working from the same script.Get Rid of Problem Clients With only a limited number of hours a day and years in your life, you'll behappier and more profitable if you focus your marketing on clients that understand and appreciate yourexpertise. They'll be far more likely to return and refer you to others. If you have clients who areunpleasant to work with or are taking up too much of your time, find a way to tactfully get them to lookelsewhere.Use these marketing strategies to position your firm to attract the prospects you want so you can pickand choose your clients. You'll have more fun, increase your profits and be more successful.2004 © In Mind Communications, LLC. All rights reserved.