Many business owners make the mistake of not getting clear on who their ideal client is. They also often try and define their ideal client in very broad terms resulting in them wasting time and money when trying to find new clients.
The more specific you can be about who is your ideal client the better you can focus your attention and efforts on attracting, converting and retaining more ideal clients.
To get started think of an ideal client as someone you know you can help, that needs you, wants you, can afford you and who you can easily reach. There are a few other criteria but for now just think of these five key points.
This week make a list of your current and past clients that meet these criteria and start to build a profile of your ideal client.
Case Study
I was asked by a wealthy investor to mentor one of his potential partners in a new business venture. Him and his wife had come up with a service that was aimed at new mothers. Having had their own children and spoken to many of their friends who also had children, they established that this was something that would help mothers and it was something mothers needed. They had worked out how to make it affordable and they knew exactly how they could reach them.
I wanted to know if new mothers wanted it before investing a large amount of money into purchasing inventory, setting up systems etc. It was pointed out that economies of scale were needed and to get discounted rates, wholesaler stock had to be bought in bulk. I proposed that even if we make a slight loss on the first few sales at least we could establish if people were willing to pay for this new service. Unfortunately, after investing some money in marketing we established that mothers didn’t want this new service, and fortunately he didn’t end up spending a fortune on buying a whole lot of stock in bulk that he wouldn’t have been able to get rid of!
A great book to read if you are considering a new product or service is “The Mom Test” It’s all about how to talk to customers and learn if your business is a good idea when everyone is lying to you.