Your Ideal Client
"I don't know the key to success, but the key to failure is
trying to please everybody."--Bill Cosby
Have you ever had a client/customer that was more trouble than
they were worth? Maybe they were always late to pay, or didn't
do what they said they'd do. Maybe you just had a personality
clash, or they expected more than you were able to offer.
Whatever the situation, chances are you had an inkling when you
first met that client...a tiny voice that you didn't listen to,
that was probably overshadowed by the bigger voice that said,
"Hey, it's business; I'll take it!"
Learn to say no to those clients, before they start draining
your energy! The key to being able to do this is understanding
Your Ideal Client. Once you know how to recognize who is ideal
and who is not, you can practice turning down business from the
latter. If you have trouble saying no, you'll need to learn this
critical business skill...and what to do to get rid of problem
clients you already have; see the resources at the bottom of
this article. If you have a coach, ask them to help you complete
the Ideal Client exercise, or to role-play those "saying no"
conversations.
How to discover YOUR Ideal Client There are many ways to
approach the Ideal Client/Customer Profile. You can sit down and
imagine the best, most wonderful client you could have...whether
that is an abstract entity, a celebrity (what writer wouldn't
want Oprah as a customer, for example), or a specific
demographic profile. If your customers are more likely to be
companies, you could look at your current client list, and pick
the company that gives you the most business, the most joy, the
least heartburn.
The Ideal Client Profile Whoever you pick, start a profile
matrix with two columns: "My Ideal Client Is:" on the left; "My
Ideal Client is Not:", on the right. In the column on the left,
list all the characteristics of that type of person or company.
Use the questions below as prompts to get you thinking about all
the different aspects that client might have.
Then, either think of the opposite of all those aspects, or pick
the "client from hell" and fill in corresponding traits in the
right-hand column. Be really honest with this exercise! If you'd
rather only have clients who make over $500,000, put that down!
Your clients who don't fit your Ideal characteristics, whether
you write them down or not, will eventually "know it. May as
well get that over with early!
Prompts: Consider these aspects of your Ideal Customer or Client:
What career or business are they in? What demographics do they
fit? (age, sex, race, religion, income, marital status, etc.)
What do they think is important in business? In life? What do
they like most about you and your business, products and
services? What is the nature of their relationship with you?
(transactional, long-time customer, acquaintance, friend, refers
others to you, etc.) How do they do business with you? (phone/in
person/on the Web; quick transactions/takes time to negotiate;
pays early/on-time/at 30 days; etc.) What personality
characteristics do they have? What do you get from them (besides
payment)?
Now What? Compare your current client list to the two columns in
The Ideal Client Profile. How many have the characteristics of
your Ideal Client? If the answer is "not many," you may need to
work on firing some of your clients! Check out some resources
below on how to do this.
Next, post your Ideal Client Profile somewhere you will see it
often. Every time a new potential client comes along, start
looking for those Ideal characteristics...and beware the
non-ideal! If that little voice starts to tell you something
might be wrong, check in with the non-ideal list--and be ready
with some ways to turn away non-ideal clients. Offer them other
options--refer them to someone else who is a better fit, and
make two people happier!
Ideal Clients--For Life There are many ways to leverage the work
you have just done with the Ideal Client Profile. Here are some
ideas:
--Audit your marketing materials. Do your business cards,
brochures, ads and website appeal to your Ideal Client? Are you
sending the right message, to the right potential clients? Hone
your materials, and start seeing better-qualified potential
clients walk in the door. --Consider your marketing channels.
Based on your Ideal Client profile, where would you expect to
find these clients? Is that where your marketing efforts are
focused? If not, figure out a way to get in front of them!
--Review your contracts, policies, terms and conditions. Are
they set up to be friendly to your Ideal Clients? Do they give
you clear avenues for dealing with non-ideal clients? If not,
update them, and you might see non-ideal clients take care of
themselves.
Start attracting your Ideal Clients today! **********Find more
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