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Today I want to talk to you about ways to get out of a marketing rut. Sometimes clients come in and things are going well, but then something shifts and before long you find yourself in a rut. Maybe you’re not doing as much marketing, maybe your marketing is not working as well. Something has shifted and you’re seeing that not as many clients are coming in.
It happens to everybody at whatever level, believe me. I have seen it. I have experienced it. It doesn’t always feel that good and very first thing that we do is we blame ourselves. So I’ve got three ways to help you get out of your marketing rut. Ready?
Step One is to realize that you’re not the only one. When things don’t go our way, we tend to think, “Well, everybody else is progressing. Everybody else is doing well. Everybody else is getting clients. Nobody else is struggling. I’m the only one.”
Well, that’s simply not the case. Why? Because people always put their best foot forward.Does it ever happen with you that when something is not going well, you don’t let anybody know about it? I see it all the time―entrepreneurs around the country, around the world, it happens to everyone.
Understand that even though it looks like everybody else is progressing and you’re the odd duck that’s not, that’s simply not the case. Understand that and have some compassion for yourself.
Step Two―it’s time to build your confidence back up. When a rut happens, it sometimes makes you feel depressed or has you doubt your ability. The number one thing that needs to happen, in fact this one thing―building your confidence back up―touches every single aspect of your life.
Confidence touches how you will get out there and talk to prospective clients and referral sources. Confidence affects how you close the sale. Confidence affects the programs that you put together. It affects everything about your client attraction so it’s important that you really keep your confidence way high. I don’t mean arrogance. I don’t mean conceit, but confidence―just knowing that you’re doing a good job.
Maybe you’re just starting out and ramping up your business. Maybe you’re leveraging or creating an empire. You’ve got to protect that confidence. The way to do that that sounds really funny, but I suggest reading your client testimonials over and over again every day. Perhaps the first thing you start doing each morning is to read your testimonials, read your case studies.
Keep a “kind words” folder on your desk top and whenever you get a nice note from a client, who has gotten great results from applying what you do, drop it in there. I have mine. I have a pink basket that my team puts kind words into and I also have one on my computer that I slide emails into so whenever I want to feel just a little boost of confidence, I go to my “kind words” folder. I read my client testimonials. It doesn’t happen often anymore, but everybody has a bad day. I did this a lot when I was starting my business and at key junctures in growing it.
Next, think about some things that once seemed impossible that are now easy for you. Do an exercise where you pull out a sheet of paper and you write down “once impossible; now easy.” For example, once impossible to tie my shoe; now easy. Once impossible to ride a bike; now easy. Once impossible to feel like I could learn English; now easy (although I trip up once in a while.) Once it seemed impossible to have a very successful business; now easy. Once impossible to speak in front of 1,200 people; now easy! When you write all of this down down, you understand that it may seem impossible right now to get yourself out of that rut, but you will get the confidence to get back out there and take action.
And Step Three is that we have to have you move your feet! You have to take some action. If you stay home and sulk and woe is me, there comes a point where that’s done. You realize that you’re not the only one, that it’s temporary. You’ve looked at the “once impossible; now easy” and you’ve read your testimonials to build up your confidence, now it’s time to move your feet and take massive action.
Think about this―what did you used to do that got you results, meaning more clients, that you have somehow stopped doing? Did you used to network and you stopped? Did you do this one particular talk and now you stopped? Did you get arrogant about doing this? Listen, we’re putting it all out there on the table. Did you get lazy? Did you start resting on your laurels? Notice what you used to do that you’re no longer doing and then do that again, meaning do the thing that you used to do that you’re no longer doing.
Now I’d like you to think about what you are resisting. You know that there is something that you should be doing and if you are watching my videos every week, I am certainly giving you plenty of stuff to do. What have you been resisting? Have you been resisting going to that networking group? Are you resisting joining that mastermind? Are you resisting writing that book? Are you resisting doing that talk? Are you resisting reaching out to that strategic alliance that scares you just a little? Write the things down that you are resisting and then take action on those.
Your Client Attraction Assignment
You can have all these great ideas but you do not get results from things you do not implement. This is what I tell my students and my clients all the time. The difference between a successful person and a person who struggles is that the successful person will do what others aren’t willing to do. This is part of the mindset to get you past your current rut, out of your rut, past your obstacles and producing results again.
Take the three steps we just went through and put them to work. I’ve used this process over the last 12 years whenever I’ve hit a stumbling block in my business. It works. Once you understand that you’re not the only one who gets in a rut, then build your confidence back up and start moving your fee again, you’ll see everything start to happen for you. Give it a try and good luck!
Did you know there is a way of BEING that literally makes or breaks your ability to attract clients in large numbers? The sad thing is, many self employed people don’t use it and, as a result, are literally letting prospective clients slip through their fingers, day in and day out, even if they’ve done a lot of marketing and networking, even if they have lots of prospects. It’s almost like they destroy their chances of winning, at the very end of the cycle.
To avoid letting prospects slip through your fingers, you need to have serious CONVICTION about what you offer. If you don’t, if there’s no certainty on your end, then a prospect is simply not going to be certain either that working with you is the answer to their problems. They’ll question whether you’re really good at what you do and then decide they’ll keep looking.
I’ll give you an example of what occurred to me recently, after going to the dentist.
For months, I’ve been meaning to get some light cosmetic dentistry done to improve my smile and during a recent routine dental checkup and cleaning, I asked my dentist (let’s call him Dr. Smith) if he performed cosmetic dentistry.
Now, before I tell you what happened, let me explain his typical behavior. He’s naturally very outgoing, charming, and does great work (as far as I can tell from the routine cleanings.) He tells jokes, is jovial and seems pretty confident all around. But something happened when I asked him if he did cosmetic dentistry.
Dr. Smith’s behavior changed, almost on a dime. He looked away, mumbled something about being in business for 20 years and of course he did cosmetic dentistry, and that he did it well. And then that was it. Nothing else. The strange thing was his words were no longer enthusiastic and confident. They turned empty and uninspiring, and I wasn’t sure how to read the whole thing.
Whatever had happened, my gut feeling told me not to work with him. Right then and there, in just one sentence, he lost tens of thousands of dollars worth of potential business. I knew by the WAY he spoke that I wasn’t going to be using my own dentist for cosmetic dentistry. He simply had not convinced me, not even close.
Here’s what I’ve discovered from that experience and countless other experiences I’ve had, just watching entrepreneurs talk about their abilities:
- Prospects want to work with people who are CERTAIN about their abilities.
- Prospects want to work and learn from an AUTHORITY on a subject.
- Prospects are looking for someone CONFIDENT about the results they offer.
- Prospects are silently begging to be LED!
Your Assignment:
From this moment forward, you cannot afford to be wishy-washy about what you offer. You’ve got to have total conviction about what you do. Not only that, you’ve got to express that conviction in a way that makes the prospect feel confident about your abilities.
You see, your job is not to sell. Your job is to convince prospects to get out of their own way to achieving success (or whatever it is that they want and could use your help with). The way you do that is by building trust, showing authority on your topic, and expressing your capability about the results they’ll get with you. And it’s all in your way of BEING.
Now, a caveat.
This doesn’t mean that you become OVER zealous. That’s just a ridiculous turnoff and will send them running in the other direction. Just be yourself, but speak with conviction and certainty.
One more thing. Don’t (ever) tell a prospect you can do something that you can’t, just to close the sale. Some sales “gurus” will tell you to do this, and then figure it out later, but I don’t agree. It’s out of integrity and we’re looking for authentic selling here. It’s better to turn away that prospect and move on to the next one.
So, be yourself, be a leader, and start speaking with conviction from this moment forward. It doesn’t take much, and yet I guarantee you’ll start attracting more clients than you are now. It works!
OK, so you’re now going to speak with conviction, but the problem is, you need to fill your pipeline more quickly. If that’s the case, get yourself the Client Attraction Home Study System™. It includes everything you need to know to create a marketing message that will appeal to the best clients for you. You’ll learn how to decipher what makes your business remarkable, how to create Raving Fans so you get clients to call YOU, and lots of crucial techniques to help you fill your practice quickly, including how to put together a simple marketing plan that gets you clients and then put it on autopilot so you can have fun again. (Why struggle when you can just attract clients easily?) Get more details at: http://www.theclientattractionsystem.com/
© 2011 Client Attraction LLC. All Rights Reserved.
The quote, "The opera ain’t over until the fat lady sings" originated with San Antonio sports broadcaster Dan Cook during a television newscast in April 1978. He coined the famous phrase after the first basketball game between the San Antonio Spurs and the Washington Bullets during the 1977-78 National Basketball Association playoffs, to illustrate that while the Spurs had won once, the series was not over yet.
And it’s not just for basketball. In Client Attraction, it’s just as applicable, especially when you’re closing the sale. You see, many self-employed professionals believe that once they’ve gotten an "OK", they’re home-free. And ideally that’s the case, but not in every situation.
Many times, you’re confident that this new working relationship is "good to go." Your prospective client signs on the dotted line, gives you their credit card information, you send them your welcome letter or package, and everything seems honky dory. But that’s not always the case.
