Having a few ideal clients is better than having loads that don’t fit with you and your business. It’s tempting when you start out to take on whatever work comes your way, but as your business grows, you’ll find you need to be attracting clients that better suit you.
Content your audience is looking for
Prospects are looking to see that you can solve their problem, so when you start your business this means a non-specific statement of what your business offers so that you don’t turn away any potential work. As your business grows, you’ll want to be more specific, and your content should reflect that.
Your website is a great place to start with this, as it tends to be the core of your brand online. The copy on your landing page, the blogs you write and the social capital you can leverage all have a home on your website. In your content such as blogs and videos, you can speak to your ideal client’s pain points. Your copy can outline your services as they would be of benefit to your ideal client, alongside any testimonials you have that demonstrate your ability to provide quality service.
Of course, content isn’t just what you put on your website, it’s what you say at speaking opportunities, and it’s what’s on your flyers or posters. Wherever you describe your business and what it does you need to carefully curate what you’re saying to be specific to your ideal client.
Where’s your audience?
Great content is just one tool you need to successfully attract more clients. Once you’ve written a blog that speaks to your ideal client’s needs, you need to get it in front of them.
If you have an established digital presence, then that’s great – you can share your content with your followers. Don’t worry if you don’t have much of an audience right now, there are a lot of things you can do to build one. Offer to write guest blogs for businesses in your network. See if there are any online communities you can participate in or look for opportunities to share your expertise through speaking.
When you’ve reached the point where you’re looking for higher-quality clients, it’s because you have less time to handle difficult or low-return clients. You can be smart about your approach to communicating with prospects by knowing where they are. Digitally this means choosing the appropriate social media platform, but not all of your audience is online.
Networking
The old marketing adage “The Rule of 7” says that prospects need to hear from you at least seven times before they will engage your services. You need to appear routinely, but those appearances can’t be purely electronic.
Networking is a really powerful tool that gets you face-to-face with your ideal clients – if you attend the right events. Do some research and find out where your ideal client base is likely to be. Some of these will be networking-specific events, such as Network My Club and Ladies Lunch Clubs, but conferences and exhibitions are great places to check out as well.
Once you’re there, you’ll need to have a strong pitch that communicates what you do and who for quickly, ideally under 60 seconds! This is another area in which you should think carefully about the content. You want what you’re saying to be specific to your ideal clients.
Consistency is Key
Maintaining the attention of your prospects is key to converting them into clients. You’re unlikely to get their attention at the same moment that they need your help, so they need to be able to keep you in mind.
You can help move a prospect through the sales funnel by demonstrating that you understand them and their current situation – the one that you can solve with your services – when you tailor your content to speak directly to your ideal client. By consistently providing content of value to them, you’re reminding them that you’re a reliable source of relevant and helpful information.
Marketing such as newsletters and social media schedules are really great ways to build up touchpoints. If you’re in a community, make sure you’re engaged in a meaningful way. People who only post advertisements to a group page on Facebook are considered spammers – when people think of you or your business their reaction will be negative.
Overall, you’ll have better success if you remember that social media and content marketing strategies are long-term. They demonstrate your value to prospects over a consistent period of time.
Great follow up
A lead is a lead until they say no. If you’ve been in communication with a prospect, make sure to follow up. This is commonly linked to interactions like sending a quote, or an email conversation going silent, but that’s not the limit of when and where you should follow up. Phone calls can be returned, and networking events and conferences should be followed by connections on LinkedIn.
Building touchpoints doesn’t end when a prospect converts, and you’ve provided your service. Asking your existing clients for referrals will get you more of the same kind of clients – once you have your ideal client, a referral makes it easier to get more.
Need assistance?
If you’re not sure where to start when it comes to revamping your communications, we can help. The team at Consortium can support you as you work to attract new business, with everything from training to strategy, so get in touch with Lara today.