2015 - Page 8 of 10 - Small Business Coach, Women Business Coaching

Are you looking to attract clients and leverage your business? Students often ask me how I made the shift from working with private clients one-on-one to working with group programs. This transition is what the Leverage Track of The Client Attraction Business School is all about. So, I want to share with you the steps I took so you can plan ahead for how you too can make this shift.

1. Fill Your private practice. From networking in groups like Business Networking International (BNI), to sending out your warm letter to everyone you know, to speaking gigs, you need to market your business. The first step in this chain is to fill your business’ pipeline so you have a steady stream of clients and income.

2. Create your proprietary system. Next, I created my proprietary system. The system contained my 10 steps to attract clients and fill your pipeline. For your own proprietary system, this content should be all yours, which is what gives you total ownership of it and makes it proprietary.

3. Hold a one-day boot camp. I’m going to be really transparent with you. I had a hard time getting around to completing the writing of my proprietary system. (It actually took about three years.) So one day, I decided to promote a live, one-day boot camp event. That gave me a final date that I was forced to meet! The boot camp ended up being a big hit with 22 students present – and it was great for my business too.

4. Hold the boot camp as a teleclass. Once the system had been completed for the live one-day boot camp, I could offer the material by teleclass as well. The boot camp was 10 weeks long, one step per week, and I offered it several times a year. I taught people all over the country and actually outside the US as well.

5. Promote your system as a home study course. With everything prepared for the boot camp, I now had a package I could promote in other ways too. I began selling my system as a home study course with a downloadable PFD, which included everything I provided in the 10-week boot camp for just $127.

So as you can see, I worked with private clients, moved on to present my program live to the boot camp attendees, taught groups by teleclass and then sold the PDF for people who wanted to learn on their own or needed a lower price point. Everything was based on the same material, but provided in different formats to meet the needs of even more people.

Your Client Attraction Assignment
Have you created your proprietary system yet? As you can see, it’s the foundation for building your business and attracting clients. Your system will share your message and method with so many more people. Don’t wait as long as I did to complete this project – get going today!

This is just one of the many best practices we dive deep into with the students of The Client Attraction Business School, the premier training school for growth-minded entrepreneurs looking to quickly attract more clients and make more money. If you’re interested in finding out more, visit www.ClientAttractionBusinessSchool.com for more details. To speak to an enrollment coach, click here.

One of my biggest marketing strategies for people who are new in business is to send a “Warm Letter.” This is a letter that lets your contacts, family and friends know what you are up to. In this letter you explain:

• The service or products you offer
• Who your ideal client is
• Examples of customer successes with your offering
• How they can send you referrals

In the Warm Letter, you can also share testimonials for happy customers and clients, announce new offerings and share news with your list of contacts. The idea is to stay top-of-mind. Warm Letter campaigns can help you drum up business and increase your client base. These are people who already know and like you, so they feel safe referring others who could benefit from what you do.

Number one reason people don’t send Warm Letters
Surprisingly, you might think business owners don’t use this powerful referral tool for these reasons:
• They don’t feel comfortable with their writing skills
• They don’t know what to write about
• They don’t get to it on their list of to-dos
• They can’t afford the postage
• They feel the list of contacts is too small to bother with

However, these fears can be, not one is the main reason business owners don’t send a Warm Letter. The main reason business owners don’t send the letter is a fear of criticism, pushback, humiliation or rejection.

What is the opportunity cost of not sending the letters?
This fear of what other people will think and the risk of feeling humiliated can be almost crippling. It can keep you from building your business and hold you back from putting yourself out there. When you let the fear take over, you might not offer your amazing products or service to those who could really benefit.

The good news? You can get past this fear and move forward. Here are two empowering suggestions to overcome your concerns.

1. More people will like you than dislike you. Yes, a few people might not like what you have to say. I say, “So what?” Not everyone will approve of everything you do 100 percent of the time. Don’t hold back while worrying about a few naysayers who don’t get you.

2. Keep the people you can help in mind. Think about the people who will really grow and improve their situations based on what you have to offer. Don’t hold back due to fear, because you will be letting people down. They need your solution, so push yourself to share openly.

It‘s your duty to send your Warm Letter and share your brilliance with others. The more people who know about what you do, the more who will benefit. There is a point in life when you have to face the fear and do it anyway.

Your Client Attraction Assignment
It’s time to get over the fear of self-promotion. Ask yourself, “What is the worst thing that can happen?” Your feelings might be hurt? Yes, that is possible. But, if you’re speaking the truth in your letter and it can help a handful of people, then you must do it.

Some entrepreneurs are doing everything right to attract their ideal clients. But, for some reason, they aren’t closing the sale with as many potential clients as they would like. Even though they create excitement and prospects seem jazzed about working with them, they don’t get enough people to sign up. You may know exactly what I’m talking about if this is happening in your small business.

If you are hearing, “I can’t afford it” from your potential clients, try these two tactics to get more clients.

1. Address the idea of investment in your “Interview with…” Be sure you have a section in your “Interview with [your name here]” about investing in yourself. Investing in yourself is a mindset. Ask potential clients to read the interview before your “get acquainted” call so they discover answers to many of their potential objections, including affordability.

2. Talk about how you’ve invested in yourself. When speaking to a prospective student, I’ll say, “You know, in my own life, the only thing that’s gotten me where I am today is that I’ve been willing to invest in myself. Without that, I wouldn’t even be close to this level of success.” I share how I belong to two mastermind groups, have three mentors and continue to get coaching. I tell people how these investments pay for themselves in the form of increased revenue.

The truth is a lot of people say they can’t afford something, but then they buy a flat screen TV and can somehow afford that. So, it helps for potential clients to read about this piece on mindset and investing in your “Interview With…” ahead of time. Of course, they need to see the value of working with you and be clear on what they can achieve as a result.

All of these ideas will help you get clients as they better understand why investing in themselves is necessary to achieve the results they want.

Your Client Attraction Assignment
Have your written your “Interview with…” yet? This is an important page on your website which addresses frequently asked questions (FAQs) and also responds to common sales objections BEFORE you speak to your prospects. If you haven’t prepared this document and posted it on your site, make time this week to get it done.

As your business grows, you need to create programs that serve multiple clients at the same time. Doing this helps you serve a lot more people then you can with one-on-one services.

In addition, you want people to work with you over time, often six months to one year, because that is how your clients get the best results. This is called “The Continuity Model” (it’s similar to the popular “Book of the Month Club,” where you get something new every month). I used this model with my Inner Circle group, which ran for years.

The Continuity Model

The Continuity Model works on a subscription basis. Clients sign up to receive something from you every month until they decide to stop. Most companies that offer this sort of program usually have an incredible first time offer that is high-value and irresistible. If the offer is free, you still want them to pay for shipping so you have their credit card on file and can begin the subscription payments after the initial period is over.

For example, I started a program that offered a CD every month. The initial offering was for two free months, if they paid for the CD shipping. Then, a new CD would go out to every month from then on.

I sent an email to them near the end of two months, letting participants know if they liked the CDs, their account would be transferred to full membership with automatic monthly billing for each new CD. However, if at any time they no longer wanted to receive the CD, they could cancel and we’d take them off the list.

Continuity programs worked very well for us, and sometimes clients would stay for two or three years. The majority of people stayed for about three to four months. At one point we wanted to build greater longevity, so we offered an incentive for participants to stay an entire year. People need to feel like there’s a good reason to sign up for the long haul.

Continuity Incentives

Think strategically about how to motivate clients to step up to the yearly payment. After one or two months, send out an email with a really juicy bonus to lock in for one year. Here are a few incentive ideas:

Provide a price incentive that makes the full year cheaper than the 12 months added up individually.
Explain how you’ll be raising your rates, so they can lock in now at the lower price when they agree to one year.
Offer a special Q&A call for all those who make the one year commitment.
Conduct a special one-day workshop for members who subscribe for the full year.

Your Client Attraction Assignment
A continuity program, like group coaching, works great when you don’t have enough time in your business anymore for one-on-one services. However, if you’re in the start up phase, the fastest path to cash is still one-on-one services. To generate enough participants and cover your setup costs, you’ll need a good sized list and joint venture partners.

From time to time, we all struggle with mindset problems. I remember one on my students, Cindy, talked about feeling like a magnet for bad luck. Her daughter was in a car accident. The car was out of commission and needed a lot of work. Her roof started leaking. You know the drill.

Cindy was having a hard time seeing the good in her life. She knew she still had plenty to be grateful for, yet felt overwhelmed by everything that was pulling her down.

I shared what Derek and I do to create a positive focus. You don’t have to follow this exactly, but this is what works for us. After the kids are in bed, we pour a glass of red wine, take a seat, look at each other and one of us says, “Positive Focus.” The other says, “Positive Focus: we got a new client today.” Then each person adds another item that went well or that is something to be grateful for. “I got my hair cut today and it looks great.”

If it’s a hard day and there’s a struggle to find something, we help each other to get the ball rolling. Derek might say to me, “You‘ve got to think of something.” So I respond with, “I’m married to a great guy.” Often we start with the basics, which are great to lean on when funky things happen:

You’ve got your health
Your car is running well
You had a yummy lunch
You are breathing and alive
You own a home
You have great kids
You paid the rent

You get the idea, right? These fundamental elements of life are frequently taken for granted, but are worthy of your appreciation. Focusing on them will shift your energy back to a positive place.

This is also a good exercise to use for times when fear shows up. For example, a funky thing happened with our finances once and woke me up in the middle of the night. I wrote in my journal and made a list of all the things I was grateful for. This was really like counting my blessings, and it definitely shifted my energy so I could calm down.

The Positive Focus exercise is about gratitude. Share this with your business partner, life partner or do it on your own. This practice is not just lip service. I promise you that doing this will shift your energy and give you the positive focus to help you feel more optimistic. Derek and I do this every day.

Your Client Attraction Assignment

Get a new notebook (or simply pull out a piece of paper) and make a list of everything for which you are grateful. Or, try the Positive Focus exercise with your partner every evening as you wind down from the day. This is a powerful practice and a strong affirmation to the Universe that you appreciate all the good things that come your way. It will set up your energy for greater success and on a tough day, will help you get through it.

Rebranding your business is a very big step and sometimes it’s a little scary. You’ve made a name for yourself in one area and that has taken time, money and plenty of blood, sweat and tears. You’re invested in your core story and the services that fit with it.

Yet, new ideas come to you that you want to try. You are getting feedback from clients that they want help with this new area of business. What do you do? How do you know when it’s time to rebrand?

There is no question this is a difficult decision. Even if you listen to your inner guidance, you might feel uncertain about how to go about this. I’ve been in your shoes and will tell you how I handled this shift myself.

For years I focused only on Client Attraction. While I used a number of attraction techniques that improved my mindset to grow my business, I didn’t share that in my marketing materials or even at my events. Then, one of my friends challenged me and said I should tell my clients I use these methods and start incorporating them into my work.

I was very concerned, and to be really honest, terrified of how people on my list would react. Would they think I was unprofessional? Would they think I went off the deep end?

Rather than taking the plunge and just moving into this new area cold, I decided to test the waters first. I offered a teleclass to my list and said something such as, “I’m doing a teleclass for something I’ve never shared before. Please come if this makes sense to you. It’s called ‘How to Manifest All the Clients You Need’ and I’m not going to be talking about marketing.”

How surprised was I when this was the most attended teleclass I had ever held at that point? The success gave me a lot of validation and strong confirmation, because the people on my list signed up like crazy. Plus, I got great feedback from clients who told me this was the best class they had ever been too.

That’s when I knew rebranding to incorporate mindset was the right way to go. The experiment showed me that my list was not only open to the mindset and attraction material, but was actually hungry for it.

Your Client Attraction Assignment

Taking the step to test the waters before rebranding is a smart business move for several reasons.

You will know if your list is interested in a new offering or direction.
You can “play” with the messaging until you get it right.
You’ll get feedback about the product or service so you can tweak that too.

There is no hurry to rebrand. Do your homework to be sure the time and money you invest in a new direction will go over well with your market so you can continue to grow your business.

Do you have a story inside you, waiting to be shared with the world? Many people have something to say and writing a book is a wonderful way to share that information with your audience. Being an author can help build your business in several powerful ways:

• Build credibility in your chosen field
• Establish yourself as a thought leader
• Set yourself apart from other business owners
• Open doors for speaking opportunities
• Achieve a passive revenue stream
• Work as a highly valuable Irresistible Offer

Since there are so many benefits to becoming an author, you can see why people take on this project. Once written, you’ll need to decide how to publish your book. There are two main ways to go:

1. Traditional publishing through one of the big book publishers (like Random House)
2. Self-publishing on your own or through a professional service

Traditional Publishing
The traditional route requires finding an agent to represent you. Once on board, your agent will pitch your book to publishers. They will edit, design, print and advertise your book to merchants who will buy it for their retail stores.

If you get accepted, this method will get your book on-shelf at the major books stores across the country. However, there are some drawbacks to following this path. For example, it can take years from the time you get an agent, land a publishing deal and see the book in stores. Publishing companies tend not to give big advances, especially for an unknown author, and your piece of the profit for each book is relatively small. Most authors don’t earn a living from their books.

Self-Publishing
With self-publishing, once your manuscript has been written, you can choose to work with a service like Author House which will help you get the entire design and printing process done as well as gain some distribution, all for a fee.

Or if you have resources to do it yourself, you can open a Create Space account, which is an arm of Amazon, to print your books for a very low fee and help with distribution as a separate cost. You will make more money per book, although you may sell fewer books since the distribution will not be as substantial as with traditional publishing.

The big advantage is timing. It takes only a few months to get from a finished manuscript to a printed book in your hands. So, if you have a message that is timely, self-publishing could be the smartest way to go.

Now that you know the two main methods for publishing, you can investigate which route will work best for you.

Your Client Attraction Assignment
Thinking about writing a book? If you have a message you want to share with the world, my advice is to find time to write every day. Even it it’s just 30 minutes, five days a week, you’ll get it done. The main roadblock is that the process requires consistent effort. So, little by little, your book will come alive. Have fun with it!

Maybe this has happened to you: you take a few classes, read a book or two or attend a conference and feel completely overwhelmed. You’re overflowing with new ideas, but feel drained by all the options.

This has happened to me. I’ve been on the seminar circuit and I return home with notebooks full of great ideas, tips and strategies. But there is no time to implement anything. I’ve been depleted and wonder where to start because there is just so much to do.

This situation can actually give you marketing paralysis. Here’s what I have done to combat overwhelm that will help you too.

1. Make a list of everything you need to do
Instead of a simple list, I make a map of everything on my plate. Take out a piece of paper and turn it horizontally. In the center, draw an oval and label it “My Projects.” Next, draw an oval for everything you have to do, including personal items. Connect each oval to the center one.

2. Review your to-do list and ask four questions
Your list will be way too big. To remedy that, look at each item and ask yourself these questions. Which three things can I get done that would:
• Bring in the most money quickly
• Get completed in the least amount of time
• Take the least amount of effort
• Have the greatest long-term impact

Put stars next to the three projects you select.

3. Work on chosen projects and follow through
Make a plan for how you will get the three items done. Schedule time on your calendar and set the intention to follow through until they are complete. You will need to push the “pause button” on all other items and hold to your commitment. This gives you the time and space to feel less overwhelmed.

4. Celebrate what you did do every day
At the end of every workday, note five things you are happy about finishing. They could be:
• I’m happy I closed that client
• I’m glad I wrote that letter
• I’m glad my desk is organized

Approach each day feeling satisfied that you accomplished something. Otherwise, every day will be another day you “didn’t get enough done,” which diminishes your enthusiasm, optimism and confidence. Even if you only get one thing done each workday, that’s 260 tasks you’ve completed in a year.

5. Take a Break
Sometimes you just need a day off. Don’t email, answer the phone or write anything. Fill your day with activities you love. Do you like to meditate, run or cook? Choose joyful activities that help you relax.

The idea is to have one day that’s 100% about you. Maybe take the whole weekend off, and then come back refreshed on Monday to start working on those three items.

Your Client Attraction Assignment
Give yourself permission to get the rest you need without guilt. Don’t berate yourself for getting nothing done because that is counter-productive. Enjoy your down time as much as possible, knowing that your projects will be waiting for you.

Speaking is one of the best ways to meet new prospects and give them a taste of what you offer. When you speak, people have the opportunity to learn what you do and see you in action. People tend to do business with those they know and like, which is what makes speaking such a strong marketing tool.

Sometimes, the meeting planner or event organizer doesn’t want you to sell anything during your presentation. That’s okay, because there are ways to get around this and still connect with potential clients in the audience. Here are two surefire methods that have worked great for me.

1. Offer a free item. Weave into your presentation that you have a free item to share that people can get on your website. Encourage people to visit your site and get this amazing free report. I have a free CD on the ClientAttraction.com website that people can sign up for. This way, you can capture a name and email, or even a physical mailing address, which can be added to your list.

This is a wonderful list-building tip. I also call this “dropping a seed,” which means you are giving them a low pressure, valuable reason to look at your offer online by telling them about the benefits. There is nothing manipulative or tricky about your free offer, and this is not a sales pitch since you are providing great content and value.

2. Do a Drawing. I recommend that you first check with the organizer about doing a drawing. Find out if you can give away something at the event. Be sure to tell your audience towards the start of your program that you will be giving away a free session (or whatever your offer is) at the end of your talk. Tell them to place their business card in the basket you’ll be passing around. Then at the end, draw the name of the winner. Let the audience know that everyone will get something like your newsletter. This provides an incentive to participate in the drawing.

Your Client Attraction Assignment
Have you been getting speaking gigs to talk about your business and share what you do with potential clients? If you are new to this, one good place to start is with your local Rotary Club. Every week they have a speaker at their lunch meeting, so they always look for a new face. Many other networking groups need speakers for their monthly meetings as well. Get yourself booked and start filling your business pipeline.

When you are a business owner, saying there is “a lot to do” is an understatement. Working with clients, creating products, networking and speaking can keep you incredibly busy. So how do you stay on track so your marketing materials get out there on a regular basis?

1. Hire someone to do your writing
Some people recommend that you let go of writing and hire someone to do it for you. This frees up your time to focus on other income-producing tasks. Sometimes it’s difficult to give up this control, but you can provide your writer with notes and your materials so he or she can emulate your voice and follow your formulas.

2. Schedule a recurring appointment in your calendar
For marketing pie projects that need to be completed on a regular basis, schedule them into your calendar. For example, Thursday morning from 9 a.m. – 11 a.m., you’ll write your ezine for the next week. Just book the time for the entire year and you’ll never forget to do these projects.

3. Respect your calendar
Scheduling tasks in your calendar is one thing – following through is another. You need to honor appointments with yourself for this system to work. You also need to not go past the time allotted. So, if you are on a roll and want to keep going, you need to look at what is next in your calendar to be sure you are free to do so.

As entrepreneurs, stopping when you feel like you are on a roll can be tough. Most business owners don’t want to be restricted. We like to be free and don’t want to do what anyone else tells us. That’s why you have your own business right? Yet, you’re going to have to work on projects simply because they are scheduled, even if you don’t feel like it. Otherwise, you may not find the time.

4. Systems Provide Freedom
This is about commitment, scheduling and staying within your boundaries. Your schedule needs to be systematized and non-negotiable. If you do this, you’ll discover that systems provide you with freedom.

People avoid them because they think it’s too much structure and routine, but those two things are what give you the freedom to make sure you’re not working at 1:00 a.m. Instead, you’ll get your projects done during the workday in the time you’ve scheduled.

Your Client Attraction Assignment
What are the standard marketing pie items you do weekly or monthly? Make a list of these tasks and determine what days and times are best to accomplish them. Next, schedule them into your calendar. Follow this schedule to stay on track with marketing efforts.

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