Fifth Article in the Series: Attracting Your Ideal Client This is a favorite of many financial advisors; those wonderful Centers of Influence (COI) who are already known, liked and trusted by your Ideal Prospects. A referral or recommendation from them to you can be golden. But how do you stand out among all the others who would love to be recommended by this Center of Influence? Here are a couple of different ways: Know your …
Fourth Article in the Series: Attracting Your Ideal Client We all want referrals, yet few of us have as many as we would like. Why? We don’t ask. We don’t ask because it is awkward and uncomfortable. We think that if the client is truly happy with our service, they will share that with people they know. Sometimes referrals happen spontaneously and the prospect is a great fit for our business. More often than not, …
Third Article in the Series: Attracting Your Ideal Client Here is where the rubber meets the road. It’s one thing to be active, get involved, contribute content and educate your Ideal Prospects. It is another to be consistent in those activities so that you build the bridge of trust that converts prospects to clients. Many people start off with great ideas, full of energy and commitment to finding prospects and getting known. You have all …
Second Article in the Series: Attracting Your Ideal Client Now that you have identified your Ideal Client communities, how do you get known within that community? Obviously you can attend meetings and conferences hosted by the community. You can join the organizations and clubs of your Ideal Client Community and you can hang out where they socialize. In doing this, you will find a great deal of your valuable time being eroded away with few …
First Article in the Series: Attracting Your Ideal Client The groundwork is laid. You hold the keys to begin reaching out to your Ideal Client. Now where do you find them? Go back to your detailed description of your Ideal Client that you prepared a few weeks back. This came out of the work you did on analyzing your current client base. That detailed description will provide the first clues as to where you can …
Sixth Article in the Series: Marketing that Works You’ve invested six weeks in developing a marketing plan that works. Let’s recap some of the key components. Mindset: You know specifically the type of client you want to attract, you enjoy serving them and you like being around them. Guess what? The feeling is mutual. Unique Value: Your work with Passions, Strengths and Values and identifying your Ideal Client made you aware of the gift you …
Fifth Article in the Series: Marketing that Works Early on in this series I said that most marketing plans fail because they are never executed. The difference between the plan you are creating and most other marketing plans is that yours is created around your passion and strengths, your unique service and the value you bring to your clients that you love working with. Many “marketing plans” are a knee-jerk reaction to the sudden realization …
Fourth Article in the Series: Marketing that Works Last week we looked at one component of earning mindshare with your client and that was creating a consistent message or brand. The other component is to message consistently. It is great to have a nifty logo and great name, yet if your prospective client does not encounter your brand on a regular basis, then you will have invested too much in graphic design! Getting your message …
Third Article in the Series: Marketing that Works The last two messages focused on the importance of knowing your Ideal Client and the value your service brings to them. Okay, great! You know all of this. How do you begin sharing this in the marketplace and more specifically, with Ideal Prospects? With all the work that you have done thus far, you know what your Ideal Clients need from you and you have the solutions …
Second Article in the Series: Marketing that Works Last week’s message brought a new concept to your work and marketing efforts — that you have a gift to share and that you will do so only with those who appreciate and value your gift. Your gift is your product or service that you provide, combined with your passions, strengths and values. Think about that…how many others bring the same unique value to your Ideal Client? …
First Article in the Series: Marketing that Works The last series of messages focused on “Making Work Play”. Most of us need to earn a meaningful income from our daily work. Yet work need not be the drudgery that we associate with the term. “Making Work Play” focused on utilizing your passions, strengths and values with a goal of 75% of your work time being spent doing what you do best with clients you love …
Ninth Article in the Series: Making Work Play Now that you know who your Ideal Client and thus Ideal Prospect is, how do you create a message that speaks to them? Think of the advertisements on television that get your attention, beyond the outlandish ones! The ads that cause you to stop and listen on an emotional level. They may share a story of fun and laughter with friends and family, or be a touching …
Eighth Article in the Series: Making Work Play What did you learn from identifying your Ideal Client? For most of my clients, this type of in-depth work on your current client base is very revealing. You see common linkages between your clients you never knew were there, and you learned something about why they are your clients. More importantly, you learned something about you. In analyzing your client base, you begin to understand what attracted …
Seventh Article in the Series: Making Work Play If you participated in last week’s message, you are now ready for the last step in your work on your Ideal Client. Pull out your worksheet and look afresh at that list of clients that provide 80% of your revenue. To help you see common linkages between the clients, add columns to your spreadsheet to identify various characteristics. The following column headings will give you a start: …
Sixth Article in the Series: Making Work Play From last week’s message, you’ve prepared a worksheet that ranks your clients based on revenue from highest to lowest. We are now going to look at this list a bit more deeply. First, you want to know the breakdown of revenue generation in your client base. What percentage of your clients provide the majority of your revenue? The Pareto principle is a good rule of thumb; that …
Fifth Article in the Series: Making Work Play If you have been in business or in your career long enough, you’ve heard plenty about working only with Ideal Clients. Yet the majority of professionals and business owners reject this idea, instead pursuing every possible prospect that just might become a client. Why limit yourself, you ask? Well, are you tired of that hamster-wheel yet? “Market, market, market.” “It is a numbers game.” We have all …
Fourth Article in the Series: Making Work Play Doing the things you do best for 75% of the day is a sure-fire way to light you up, as well as your business. In the past couple of weeks, I have asked you to imagine your ideal day and identify the resources you need. If you have been following along, you may now be at a bit of an impasse. A realization that the business you …
Third Article in the Series: Making Work Play The last message asked, “What if?” What if 75% of what you did in a day reflected your passions, utilized your strengths and was in alignment with your values? What could you accomplish? Did you give some time to that last question, “What could you accomplish?” If not, then do it now. Consider all the possibilities if you could do the things you do best for most …
Second Article in the Series: Making Work Play In the message a few weeks back, “Living a Day Full of Passions, Strengths and Values,” I shared how a recent busy day energized me as I spent the day engaged and doing the things that make my heart sing. This series, “Make Work Play,” will address building a work life that inspires you to hop out of bed every morning, leaves you feeling energized after a …
First Article in the Series: Making Work Play Knowing your Passions, Strengths and Values give you powerful tools for living the life of your dreams. Yet making a living is what most of us desire to do on a daily basis. The premise behind knowing your passions, strengths and values is to build a business that reflects those elements, allows you to spend 75% or more of your time working in them and provides a …