We’ve all been there. This type of networking is frustrating and ineffective. Networking is not about meeting people and exchanging business cards. Networking is about making a true connection with people. It can be described as the difference between “met” and “net”. Many entrepreneurs avoid networking events because it has been associated with bad chicken wings — and even worse, self-serving sales pitches.

There is a much better way to network. Networking should be about meeting someone and positioning yourself in their mind as a solution. You are their answer to a problem, a source of pleasure or progress in some way. The goal is not meeting people. The goal is building a priceless business relationship. When networking is approached from an attitude of serving others needs you will find that you make real connections that serve as the building blocks for a relationship. The following tips will help you go from “met” to “net!”

1. Define your networking goals in advance.
Networking is about making connections. This is not confined to networking events. Once you have identified what you are trying to accomplish, who you need to meet and why, then you will find the best place to accomplish that objective. A networking event may have 1,000 attendees but you do not necessarily need to meet those 1,000 people. Know your target and then seek out the best place for open, face to face relationships.

2. Do not undervalue personal curb appeal.
Personal curb appeal is more than wearing nice clothes and having a great smile. Of course you should wear clothing that makes you feel confident, and make sure that your breath is minty fresh. The real value of personal curb appeal begins with believing that your product or service represents progress to people. You have to believe in yourself before you can communicate that belief to others. When you have self-belief you are happy to tell others how you can help them. Why wouldn’t they be thrilled to have the answer to a problem? Believe in yourself and share liberally with others!

3. Be interested in others.
Many people mistakenly focus their efforts on being interesting rather than being interested. People respond favorably to those that show a genuine interest in them. Creating relationships is not a one way dialogue but a genuine intent to create a give and take. Ask questions, listen intently, and consider ways that you can help the other person. Develop a “how can I help you” attitude rather than “what can you do for me” attitude and you will position yourself for a real relationship. Your interest will also uncover information about the person that can provide a true reason for follow-up. This is much more effective than calling someone after an event and having absolutely nothing to share!

4. Earn trust.
The first time you meet someone is an opportunity to make a progress-based impression. But it takes a series of progress-based impressions to go from “met” to “net.” A series of progress-based impressions will earn trust and build that priceless business relationship.

When you begin to approach networking from a helper’s perspective you reap immediate benefits. You will not only create a world class, solid network but you will also experience business growth. Having somebody truly in your network, not just somebody you met… well that is truly priceless!

A need is something you have to have, something you can’t do without. A good example is food. If you don’t eat, you won’t survive for long. You might not need a whole lot of food, but you do need to eat.

A want is something you would like to have. It is not absolutely necessary, but it would be a good thing to have. A good example is music. Now, some people might argue that music is a need but you don’t actually need music to survive.

It may sound completely counter-intuitive, but the fact is, wants are much more powerful than needs. Even though their needs must be fulfilled for survival, most people make their purchasing decisions based on their wants, rather than their needs. For example, people need to lose weight for health reasons. A weight-loss clinic might assume that clients would respond to a weight-loss program that is positioned to help them feel better and improve their health. But what most people want from a weight-loss program is not health, but to look better, attract more romance into their lives, to receive compliments from people and gain confidence. You may need a car to commute to work, but you want to do it in a BMW. Those are all emotional wants versus objective needs.

When marketing your product or service, stay away from focusing on promoting the need for it, because until you identify why clients want your product, you will never be successful selling to them.

Small business coaching experts agree that the secret to having a successful e-business is building a mailing list of potential clients, people who are interested in what you have to say and teach. Eventually, some of these people will buy from you; the key is to keep them interested in visiting your website, thus, with a mailing list, you can inform them about new information, articles, and offers you have in it. It will increase your visitors, and with an effective offer, your sales.

Your mailing list must be composed of people who truly care about what you offer and who are interested in creating a relationship with you. Those are the ones who most likely will buy from you at some point and will eventually become your clients.

Here are 10 effective approaches to build a valuable mailing list:

1. Offer more
   If people are genuinely interested in your products or services, they will love to sign up for your mailing list, however, most people receive too many emails and newsletters, thus, offer something different, offer them more value. It can be an interesting e-book or e-course. These are easy to create and deliver, and they are perceived as very valuable.
2. Use forms, and make sure they’re hard to miss
   There are plenty of places you might consider using a form to capture prospects’ information. The homepage of your website is an obvious choice, but other great options are: targeted landing pages, product/service description pages and your blog. Just be sure you don’t ask for too much information, or your prospects may be hesitant to complete it. Typically forms with only fields for name and email address receive the highest rate of completion.
3. Make it your signature
   On every email you send, below your name or signature, always invite people to join your mailing list. Don’t forget to tell them how to sign up, and make it easy. Never, ever, add someone automatically to your mailing list; let him or her decide if they are interested.
4. Make winning speeches
   Conferences are great ways to get acknowledged and to collect valuable names for your mailing list; you just have to give good speeches. While you’re talking, pass a sign-up sheet around, or have people sign up to receive a free gift. If you aren’t comfortable on stage, consider having a booth or table at the conference to promote your product or service and encourage people to sign up for your list – a free gift or giveaway is a great way to do this. Also be sure to mention your offer or website in any interviews you may do.
5. Newsletter it
   Many people may forward your newsletter to others who may not know how to subscribe, thus, make sure you specify the way to join your mailing list in every newsletter you send out.
6. Promote your offer to your Social Media networks
   If you’ve built a network of followers, fans, friends, or other connections on your social media networks, make sure you’re giving them the opportunity to join your list. Hard selling may not be effective, but inviting your connections to receive your gift, content, etc, by joining your list may prove to be a great strategy.
7. Put your business card to good use
   On its blank side, post an offer for a gift and the instructions on how to sign up to get it.
8. Write about yourself
   When you write an article or contributing blog, include an “about the author” paragraph to explain what you’re all about; make your offer there and give easy instructions.
9. Make it a habit to thank
   Every time someone buys something from you, send him or her a thank you email or note, and ask if they would like to join your mailing list. You could offer them a discount coupon or giveaway as an incentive.
10. Leave it in the message
    When you record your voicemail message, include your newsletter offer and tell them where they have to go to sign up.

Do you have other great list-building tips? We would love to hear them…please share them in the comment box below!

Here’s what your fellow business owners are saying about this revolutionary online program:

“I would just like for you to know that the audio and video have made such a significant difference in my life that I personally know that my business will never be the same again. The Business Momentum Club has given me so much insight that I now know that I can resolve the difficulties that I have been experiencing in my business and take it to new levels of success. They have opened up a new world for me!”

Judith C.

“AWESOME STUFF! Finally, after all these years and so many businesses that I’ve started I’m finally getting great information with the Business Momentum Club that actually helps build my business at a ridiculously low cost.”

Jim J.

The Business Momentum Club is a very affordable way to gain access to the strategies and tactics used by business experts all over the world.

Plus you can try the Business Momentum Club for only $1 for the first 14 days, and you can cancel at any time! There is no risk for you.

Click here to learn more about the Business Momentum Club!

1. Find out who your ideal client is and make sure you’re marketing to them.

For any business to succeed, knowing your ideal target market is an absolute must have. Who are the ideal people to purchase your products and services? Why do they want to come to you instead of your competition? Which group of people would you love to work with? Take some time to interview some of your top clients to create an “ideal client profile” and adjust your marketing so that it will speak to them and their wants and needs.

2. Find the time to work on your business, not in it.

When was the last time you evaluated your business operations? Are you too busy dealing with customers, answering phones, creating invoices and running your company? Acquire the necessary infrastructure so that you won’t have to rely on yourself to do everything. Get help in the areas where you don’t excel so that you can spend more time on the things you’re good at. The goal is to have your business perform well without you so that you can spend time on the things that will make your business move forward and grow. Create a model that will ensure things get done right from top to bottom.

3. Create a long-term plan.

What is it that you want from your business? Where do you want your business to be next month? In a year? In five years? Set step by step goals that are achievable. For example, figure out how many sales you must have in order to meet your revenue goals. That way you know what to aim for. Find out what is working and what isn’t and make sure you’re spending time daily to reach toward your goals. Find the right people to help you get the proper strategies in place and keep you accountable. This will help you avoid mistakes and prevent having to rebound from any major setbacks later.

4. Build strong social media channels.

Every business should have a strong presence in social media. It’s not going away. For example, a few months ago Facebook was close to 300,000,000 users. It’s now accounting for more than 70% of the entire Internet population. What’s more is that social media will significantly increase in 2010. Your clients are out there. Whether you’re a dog trainer or a business consulting, it’s very important to start engaging with your target market online.

5. Seek help.

We know that running your business can be difficult and growing your business is even harder. You’ve put all your time and energy into your business and you’ve sacrificed time for yourself and with your family. That’s why at OneCoach, we help our clients take the right steps, in the right order to grow their businesses. We’re committed to helping you achieve your business goals and to live the life you’ve always wanted. If you’re ready to take your business to the next level, we’re here to help. Click here to learn more about our Business Coaching programs that are specifically designed to help your unique business succeed.

Is this the year that you and your business will grow to extraordinary levels? That’s up to you.

That is a staggering number of casualties, and the ironic part is that not one person thinks they will be one of the many who fail. Even when they do fail, they will blame it on almost anything else but themselves. This doesn’t have to happen.

In working with thousands of small business owners worldwide, I will share with you a few of the classical errors we consistently see business owners make. Avoid these mistakes and you’ll share some of the big bucks.

Mistake #1: Not knowing exactly who your customer is.

This is what we refer to at OneCoach as your “Ideal Client Profile.” If you are thinking that anyone and everyone is your client, stop immediately and get real. For every product or service, there is a very specific personality that is just right for it. As a business owner, your job is to identify the characteristics of your perfect buyer and then craft all your marketing and sales efforts to meet their needs. Do not try to be everything to everybody.

Mistake #2: “The Vanilla Syndrome.”

What this means is that you must discover as soon as possible how to separate and differentiate yourself from your competition. It doesn’t matter if you are a lawyer, dentist, direct sales expert, or a dry cleaner. If you look and feel like everyone else, that is what your potential customers will think. Set aside some time and figure out if you are faster, cheaper, environmentally safer, more knowledgeable, etc., until you determine how you can be and feel different to potential and existing clients. Think about the reasons you choose companies’ products or services to use, and then create compelling reasons that appeal to your ideal customer.

Mistake #3: “Money Matters!”

It never ceases to amaze us how many small-business owners operate their business without having an understanding of their cash flow (or lack thereof). The days of running “by the seat of your pants” are over. It is imperative to know exactly how much is coming in, how much needs to go out for basic operation costs, and how much is needed to invest in the growth of your business. Each expenditure needs to have with it an anticipated return of investment (ROI). You must understand the financial details in your business or they will bite you in the bum before you know it!

Follow these three simple suggestions and you’ll shave a bunch of percentage points off your chances of being a negative statistic.

To learn more ways to grow your business, sign up for a complimentary Business Growth Assessment.

Why?

Most marketers don’t provide any value! But if you’ve been following some of our previous posts about identifying your ideal client, mapping out their decision making process, and developing an elevator pitch, then you already have all the tools to create a killer marketing message that crushes your competition.

These tools will allow you to clearly inform your prospects on how you benefit them and you can establish yourself as an expert they can trust and respect.

Take the information you previously created for your elevator pitch, and use this to write your marketing message.

Write compelling headlines that hit the “hot buttons” of your ideal clients. If you’ve worked on your ideal client’s decision-making process, this should be easy.

Ask your current ideal clients to review your headlines and marketing message. Ask them if it compels them. It’s better to hear their feedback than to assume their perception of your marketing.

It sounds simple, but it is important to consistently use these steps to develop value-based marketing that gets results. If you don’t target your ideal clients and their hot buttons, then your marketing will sound like your competition’s and you will forever compete on price alone.

If you’ve already learned about your ideal client profile and their decision-making process from our free videos on business strategies, then you can easily create a 30-second elevator pitch that articulates the exceptional value of your business.

When you create an elevator pitch, you need to know who you are talking to and what they want. Otherwise, your marketing message will fall on deaf ears. This is where the ideal client profile and the decision-making process will really come in to play.

First, state a problem that your ideal client is often dealing with. Start with “Do you know how…” and describe a problem that they are likely frustrated with.

Next, state what you do. “What we do is…” and then share how your product or service is a solution or benefit to your ideal client’s problems.

If you’ve already worked on your ideal client profile and decision-making process, then you’ll be able to easily come up with a good elevator pitch that…

• Has a powerful and compelling message
• Commands the attention of your ideal prospects
• Pre-Qualifies your prospects
• Helps you gain rapport and respect

An elevator pitch with these qualities will save you time, effort and expense. This blog is just a brief overview of this process, so if you haven’t yet, then sign up for our seven free videos and learn how you can take your business to the next level. If you have already seen them, then be sure to check out our Business Momentum Club. You can join now for just a buck!

People are looking for experts they can trust, and with our proven process you’ll be able to create an elevator pitch that clearly and succinctly makes you the right choice for your prospects.

Your job as a business owner is understanding the solutions your ideal client is looking for. Then you must take the time to apply this knowledge to your own business, to separate yourself from your competition and make your business the obvious choice.

Here are the basics of how you can do this:

Create a list of your ideal clients’ hot buttons. What problems, frustrations and concerns do they have when buying what you sell? Think about the hot buttons across all the businesses in your industry.

Analyze your business. What is your business’ current solution for these hot buttons? Is it ideal?

Brainstorm potential innovations. How can you innovate your business to solve the hot buttons and exceed your ideal client’s expectations? These ideas can be totally out there, but write them down anyway. You never know – the wacky ideas can turn into genius innovations!

Record the benefits associated with your innovation. Once you find an innovation that you can apply to your business, make sure you know the benefits. You can then use these benefits in your communications to your ideal clients to hit their hot buttons and stand out from your competition.

These steps are just the start of laser targeting your audience to stand out from the crowd. We go more in depth about your ideal client’s decision-making process in our free business strategy video series. If you haven’t already yet, you can check out the series here.

It is very important that you as a small-business owner identify your ideal client, so that you can develop innovative, niche products or services that provides for the wants of your specific client. Here are some basic steps you can take to find your ideal client:

Who NEEDS what you sell? Identify the demographics (physical attributes) of your client base. This can be age, gender, income or revenue level, number of employees, etc. This will vary greatly depending on the type of business you have.

What do the people who need your product or service WANT? Identify the psychographic profiles (emotional attributes) of your clients. What are their biggest problems, concerns or challenges?

Now, which one of these groups of people meets your passion? That’s your ideal client. You have to be the person that they turn to for their wants, and in return, they will continue to buy from you and send you referrals.

We share more about this in the second video of our new business strategy video series. If you haven’t seen these exclusive videos yet, you can access them now at www.OneCoach.com/videostrategies.

You can receive them for free by going here.

Here’s what you’ll learn in these seven FREE videos:

• The Right Mindset To Grow Your Business – Using The Natural Laws of The Universe
• Attract More Clients – Discover The Ideal Client That Will Make You Wealthy
• Automatic Wealth – Using The Unlimited Potential of Your Sub Conscious Mind
• Your Client’s Decision Making Process – Finding The “Hot Buttons” That Compel Your  Prospects To Buy From You
• Accelerating Your Manifestation – The Neural Reconditioning Process
• Elevator Pitch – What To Say In Less Than 10 Seconds That Move Your Prospects To Buy What You Sell
• Marketing That Works – How To Create Competition-Crushing Marketing

Get Started Today with these Seven FREE Videos Today!

The Big Mistake is:

NOT having your phone number prominently displayed as a call to action on each and every page!

On most websites you have to hunt for a phone number by clicking on a “Contact Us” page or it’s hidden at the bottom of the home page in small font.

Let us give you a tip: If your prospect has to work at finding a way to contact you, they’ll leave your site faster than you can believe.

You wouldn’t think of hiding your phone number on a newspaper ad, a piece of direct mail or in the yellow pages – so why do it on your website? Make it really easy for prospects to call you and watch your leads increase with no more effort or expense.

Here’s what to do…

Have your 800 or local number prominently displayed on EVERY page in the header section with a call to action. (i.e. Call Us Today: 800-xxx-xxxx)

This may sound obvious but let me assure you, if you took a look at 20 local websites today you’d see that 90% of them do not use the above simple but proven strategy. This small distinction creates a significant advantage for you.

So while most companies are trying to drive more traffic with search engine optimization or paid search, if they miss the basic purpose of their website – lead generation and conversion – then they’re wasting their marketing dollars.

Take this simple step and let us know how it positively impacts your bottom line.

There’s no doubt about it, we have some serious challenges facing us. But what concerns me is how a steady diet of negative news can become self-perpetuating. Seriously, if you begin to buy into all of the negative news, pretty soon that’s all you see, and you become bogged down with pessimism. Stuck. In the ditch. And before you know it you really are down and out.

Here’s the truth: You can break all of your records for sales, revenue and profits in 2009.
I truly believe that. In fact, I’m convinced that there has not been a better time in the last 70 years to go out and build a business.

And here’s the best way to get started: Attend the Mind, Marketing & Millions® business conference!

You’ll immerse yourself in two days of world-class business-building expertise, including the extensive networking, hands-on workshops and life-changing keynotes that only OneCoach can deliver. Then you’ll come back to your business with all the confidence and certainty you need to:

• Connect with and engage your ideal prospects and convert them to clients
• Achieve records in sales, revenues and profits in 2009
• Secure your financial freedom 
• Begin to live the extraordinary life you’ve always wanted

Join us at the fabulous Westin Gaslamp Quarter in San Diego, Feb. 28 to March 1. You’ll start 2009 with a powerful infusion of positive energy, ideas, skills and resources – and set your business up for the best year you’ve ever had!

Find out more here — and start making plans to break all of your records in 2009!

Here’s the truth: It could be the best of times!

And here’s why: A study by McGraw-Hill Research found that companies that maintained (or increased) their marketing throughout the 1981-82 recession saw an average sales growth of 275 percent over the next five years! But those companies who cut their marketing saw paltry sales growth of 19 percent over the next five years.

Now is not the time to retreat. It’s time to move forward with more confidence and certainty than ever, and that’s why we’ve decided to assemble a new OneCoach Millionaire Mastermind Program.

It’s your chance to join Murray Smith, me and the rest of the OneCoach senior executive team in an intimate, intensive business-growth program that could be worth a fortune to you. Murray and I discussed what this program is all about in a teleconference earlier this week.

It was so well-received that decided to post it here so that you can listen to it, and gain insight into the strategies and tactics that will help you grow your business in 2009 – regardless of the economy!

You’ll hear us describe the benefits of the proven mastermind process, which has helped many of the greatest business people of all time reach their goals faster. There’s no doubt that participants in this program are going to gain powerful help in growing their businesses in 2009. If you’d like to be among them, go and listen to the call now! 

“My first quarter net income in 2008 is 347% of my first quarter
income in 2007 — that’s right, over three times the income in the
same time period last year. I had initially set a goal to double my
net income, and now I plan to quadruple my net income this year
compared to last.”
–Milan Shannon Moore, MD, MPH
Orthopedic Surgeon and Clinic Owner

“My business revenue last year was triple what I thought it would
be. I can directly attribute that to OneCoach… I am working fewer
hours, having more fun — more life.”
–Guy Sohie
Valeo, LLC
 
“My annual income was $30,000 and with OneCoach’s great program,
I now earn well over $30,000 in a single month. I have taken more
than 2 months off in the last 12 months and have vacationed all over
the Americas.”
–Jean-Guy M. Francoeur
FCA Capital

Want results like these – regardless of the economy?

These are not isolated stories. In fact, hundreds of members of the OneCoach
Business Growth Network are getting phenomenal results like this – in the
middle of a recession!

It’s not rocket science – they are growing their businesses by leaps and
bounds (while others struggle and fail) by taking the right steps, in the
right order. And you can too!

Listen, we know the recession is a challenge, so we have created a special
program for those who are seriously committed to growing their businesses
in 2009. There’s limited room in this program and it’s going to fill up fast,
so go here to find out about it now.  

Seriously, do not lower your expectations for 2009. This is not time to settle
for less, it’s time to go out and get more – more clients, more sales and more
profits. See this quick video to find out how to grow your business faster now.   

To your success!

John Assaraf

OneCoach CEO John Assaraf hosted a webinar on that topic Tuesday. More than 2,100 people registered – and they got some action steps that they are putting into place right now to find more clients, and increase their sales, revenues and profits.

The response to this event was so overwhelmingly positive that we’ve made our recession-proofing webinar available here.

There’s no charge, and you will definitely gain some practical tips and tools that will help you grow your business (and sleep better at night) through the tough times and right into the economic recovery.

When you have the right mindset, you can see opportunities where others see only challenges. This could actually be the perfect time to build your business — while your competitors are retreating. Check out our recession-proofing webinar, and then plan to make 2009 your best year yet.

The third question that every business owner should ask themselves every day is: How do I get more customers?

John and I have spent years learning the answer to this question. In fact we have taken this it to a whole different level by adding one critical word that, when you add it to this question, can skyrocket your business growth and help you achieve a whole new level of success.

Ask yourself: How do I get more of my ideal clients?

Serving more customers is not nearly as critical to your success as serving the right customers. In order to obtain more ideal clients you need to have a clear marketing campaign and all of your strategies and tactics should be in sync. For example, your marketing and sales tactics need to be cohesive with your sales process.

Further, you know exactly who your ideal client profile is, what they look like, their demographics, their psychographics, etc. This is your target audience, and all of your marketing campaigns and sales processes should be aimed at appealing to this group of people.

Don’t be afraid to test out different methods of marketing. There are hundreds of market tactics to choose from, whether it be direct e-mail campaigns, Web banners, or postcards. Try some out and see what method has the highest turnover rate for your ideal customer. Then try different things. It’s about testing and continually refining so you get better and better at reaching your ideal clients, speaking to them in the language they understand.

The sooner you have identified your ideal client, and know the most effective way to reach them, the sooner you will create the business of your dreams!

Today we’re going to look at the second of the three crucial questions that every business owner has to ask themselves every day, and that is this: How do I get more sales per customer?

After all, you absorb substantial cost and expend a lot of effort to obtain your customers, so why not try to sell them more?

First, there are several things to think about. You need to consider:

• The frequency of interactions you have with your customer
• Their lifetime cycle (how much they will buy from you over the five years or so of your relationship)
• Their value per transaction.

In order to optimize your relationships with each customer, you have to tell them about every component of your business. Your customers should be aware of all the products and services that your company provides. You can achieve this through back-end sales or “upselling” a client with a particular product or service that compliments what they are already buying. This can be as simple as asking at the point of sale, “Do you want to super-size that?”

Another for-instance: Many small businesses have taken an example from airline companies by starting their own frequent buyer rewards card. This is smart. Offering rewards to loyal customers will not only increase their frequency of purchase, but also extend their lifecycle.

Other alternatives include expanding your product line or range of services to accommodate a more diverse customer base.

The ultimate goal is to first get more profits per sales, then engage your customer to buy more!

In my next post, we’ll look at the crucial question: How do I find more customers?

One of the most basic concepts of economics is want vs. need.

They may sound similar, but they’re as different as day and night. As a small-business owner, it’s important to distinguish between the two in order to attract more clients and grow your business. By learning the specific wants and needs of your clients, you can learn how to better market your product or service in a way that speaks to your ideal client and leads them to buy from you.

A want is something you would like to have. It is not absolutely necessary, but it would be a good thing to have. A good example is music. Now, some people might argue that music is a need but you don’t need music to survive.

A need is something you have to have, something you can’t do without. A good example is food. If you don’t eat, you won’t survive for long. You might not need a whole lot of food, but you do need to eat.

It may sound completely counterintuitive, but the fact is, wants are much more powerful than needs. Even though their needs must be fulfilled for survival, most people make their purchasing decisions based on their wants, rather than their needs.

For example, people need to lose weight for health reasons. A weight-loss clinic might assume that clients would respond to a weight-loss program that is positioned to help them feel better and improve their health. But oddly enough, what most people want from a weight-loss program is not health, but to look better, attract more romance into their lives, to receive compliments from people and gain confidence. Those are all emotional wants versus objective needs.

When marketing your product or service, stay away from focusing on promoting the need for it, because until you identify why clients want your product, you will never be successful selling to them. Here are some tips to help you identify your client’s wants and develop effective marketing messages that will help you generate more revenue.

Hot Buttons — Price vs. Value

Depending on your industry, clients will have different wants and needs, called “hot buttons.” Hot buttons are the problems, frustrations and concerns that most clients consider when they do business with companies. Many business owners feel that price is always the number-one hot button that impacts their clients. In reality, price is one of their last considerations. Most clients are more than willing to pay a higher price if you offer enough value to warrant the higher price.

Unfortunately, most marketing and advertising looks exactly the same and ignores these hot buttons. Everyone uses the same old phrases and platitudes such as, “We’re the fastest, we’re the best, we have the lowest price, we do excellent work,” and so on. And since everyone says this, your clients become desensitized and don’t believe any of it. If you market this way, as most businesses do, your clients can’t determine the true value you provide, so they default to lowest price as a differentiator. Whatever you do, don’t fall for this trap!

Fortunately, the idea that price is most important exists only in the mind of the business owner. All you need to do is provide more value than your competition, and promote it. Your marketing messages should highlight the parts of your business that meet the wants of your ideal clients by addressing their hot buttons.

Below is a short list of industries and their corresponding hot buttons. Select the industry category that your business belongs to and then prioritize your customers’ hot buttons in order. This exercise will help you identify your ideal clients’ wants in order to create the proper messaging that will appeal to them.

Common Hot Buttons for:

Service Industry:

• Fix it right
• Fix it fast
• Be on time
• Provide quick resolution
• Be honest

Professional Industry:

• Expected results
• General customer service
• Price or affordability
• Guaranteed results
• Trustworthy

Retail Industry:

• Product options
• Variety
• Selection
• Product quality
• Product results match expectations
• Customer service
• Advice
• Knowledge
• Price

Opportunity/ Entrepreneur Industry:

• Make money (return on investment)
• Easily transition into ownership
• Validation
• Proof of support
• Resonates with beliefs and values

Wholesale Industry

• Make more money and higher margins
• Less hassle
• Easy to do business with
• Low risk
• Reliability
• On-time delivery

Overall, these hot buttons apply to most businesses in each industry category. Occasionally, other hot buttons may be more appropriate than those listed. If you honestly believe your specific hot buttons need adjusting from those that are listed, make those adjustments now by either rearranging the priority sequence or removing and replacing any hot buttons you feel may be more appropriate for your business.

By using these guidelines, you can create persuasive marketing messages that address your ideal clients’ needs and motivate them to buy from you.

If you do this really well, you will find yourself attracting more clients in a short amount of time.

When it comes to finding your ideal client, there is a basic principle that you must remember:

Your prospects buy what you sell because they have specific needs or wants.

Your job as a business owner is to know, understand and deliver the solutions for those needs and wants, which will differ depending on each specific business. Therefore, it’s critical that you know exactly what your prospect’s needs and wants are. This is the essence of marketing: to create a match between your buyer and your product or service.

There are two primary categories of information that will help you with this determination.

The first category is demographics. These are the characteristics that identify the ability, need and interest of a client to purchase your product or service. Demographics define those clients who need what you sell.

The second category is psychographics. These are the factors that identify the motivation or reasons why someone wants to buy your product or service. Psychographics define those clients who want what you sell.

As you identify your prospects’ wants and needs, based upon their demographic and psychographic characteristics, then compare this data with your own wants and needs, you will gain greater insight into your ideal client. And once you accurately target your ideal clients, you’ll spend less time and money to acquire them.

To start, you must research your current clients – the ones you presently deal with day in and day out. Select at least three of your current clients to interview. Perform the demographic research by personally interviewing these clients either on the phone, or in person.

Business to consumer: If you sell to consumers, take time out of your routine to survey them. Find the answers to questions like these:

• Are your current clients mostly men, mostly women, or do they represent a 50/50 mix?
• Is there a certain age group or range that tends to buy from you? (If so, write it down as a range.)
• Are most of your typical clients single or married?
• Do you know their approximate income level?
• If not, do you know what zip code they live in? (Most zip codes contain homes or apartments that represent specific income ranges.)

Business to business: If you sell to businesses, interview at least three typical businesses you sell to. Find out the number of employees they have and their location to learn about their company culture and the number of subordinates you may have to speak with in order to get your sales message to the decision-maker.

When you sell to other businesses, there’s a mindset to consider that may be different from your own. For example, you may need to position your product or service differently when selling to a New York-based business compared to a California-based business. In some cases, that difference can be day and night.

Look for patterns

When you have completed the interviews, compile all of the information to determine commonalities among your current clients. Collecting this information will help you find the traits they have in common, which will help in future marketing.

Having all of this demographic information will help you create a mental picture of your current client. By identifying this client with demographic information, you can later begin your lead-generation efforts, and create a marketing message that is laser-targeted toward your ideal client. So take your time and be as specific as possible when completing these interviews.

It will pay off when you have a steady stream of ideal clients, increased sales revenues, and more profits.

• Attract more clients.  
• Create more profits from existing sales 
• Generate more sales from existing clients.

So simple, you hardly have to give it any thought, right? That would be a mistake.

Two of these three basic components of growth have a common thread, and it’s key to growing a business; so I’d like to take some time in my next couple of posts to raise the discussion of lifetime value (LTV).

One often stumbles upon the concept of LTV, especially at Web sites about marketing, but I think there’s not enough emphasis on what LTV really is, or how to enhance the average LTV across your customer base.

Simply put, LTV is the net contribution to the bottom line that each customer adds to your business.  There is often a debate over what the true definition of “lifetime” really is, and while important for consideration in fancy predictive models, we can simplify the definition of “lifetime” to mean one of two things:

• the average length of time your customers remain actively with you; 
• or a fixed period of time such as a year, or five years. 

Regardless of how you define ‘lifetime,’ you’ll need to create a definition that makes sense for your business.

LTV is calculated as the total gross profit that you accumulate from a customer over their lifetime (based on the definition of lifetime you pick as noted above), less the original customer-acquisition cost and the subsequent marketing expenses over their lifetime.  I won’t go into the details of this calculation here, but you can refer to these in the OneCoach Attract More Clients program.

(We’ll also be examining this topic this week in our OneCoach Momentum Call. Register for the call here to learn more about how to attract more clients.)

What I want to address here is a couple of ideas as to how LTV can be enhanced.  In a future posting, I will discuss the impact of enhancing LTV on your overall customer-acquisition efforts.

LTV is central to the second of the three principals of business growth noted above.  Yet we often don’t concentrate on how to get more sales from existing customers.

One rule of thumb that most business owners know intuitively is that it is much easier to make an additional sale to a current customer than it was to make that first sale to acquire that customer.  Yet, I see time and time again when working with consulting clients, business owners don’t do enough to figure out how they can sell more to their customer base.

It is important to understand that a customer who has had an exceptional experience with your product or service is naturally going to look to you to help them fulfill their other needs with more or new products.  They now trust you, and are happy with the relationship they have with you.  So you should take advantage of their trust and make an offer of another product/service immediately after the initial purchase, and schedule frequent campaigns to offer more to your customer base.

When your customers recognize that you provide them with value, they will continue to purchase from you, until you disappoint them.  But, you can’t assume they will just call you up and ask you to sell them something.  You have to make the effort to ask for the order.

The result will be an increase in how your customers engage with you.  And, that will result in a more robust LTV.

I often hear from clients that they don’t want to “bother” their customers with lots of sales messages, and there is a concern that these sales messages will repel their customers.  But your customers are human, and there’s a loyalty that you can earn and you can harvest with creative marketing.

So, let’s look at some ways you can make more money from your existing customers, and enhance the second of the three ways you can grow your business as noted in the first paragraph of this posting:

I had a client who was selling books, and he increased the LTV of his customers by merely sending an e-mail to his customer base every time he got a new shipment of books.  He would send a message to customers who read biographies when he received new biographies; customers who had bought books on Buddhism were sent messages about his latest shipment on new Buddhism titles and so on. His goal was to send every customer at least one message a month.  His customers loved the personal touch, and relied on him for the latest information on their area of interest.

Twenty-five years ago, I ran a large catalog business, and inherited a significant amount of unsold inventory from my predecessor.  Rather than dump that inventory at cost, I would have the people taking the orders first ask for the products that were being ordered.  While they were entering the shipping and billing information, the computer was working in the background matching up excess inventory with the category of product being purchased.  Once the match was made, we would make the offer right as the sale was being consummated and give a small discount on the excess inventory product – you see Amazon and other retailers do this today, making personalized recommendations as you go through the checkout process. This technique was so successful for us, we were able to deplete our $1.25 million excess inventory in just four months, and once accomplished, we continued this process to upsell customers at the time of sale.

The next time you go to your favorite supermarket with the intent to buy some apples for a snack, when you walk into the store, stop and look around at how the store has been laid out.  Look at the displays found near the entrance to enhance quick decision making.  You’ll see displays that are there to break your pattern, interrupting you to encourage you to buy something that you had no intention to buy.  And, as you check out, do another quick visual sweep to see what the store has done to encourage you to add small, last-minute items to your purchase:  candy and gum, magazines, books, etc.  Little, apparently insignificant items that increase the size of your order.  Be creative and think about how this technique can be applied to your business.

I had a client who felt that once a customer had made an initial purchase, they would come back on their own to buy more.  We did a test where we isolated new customers into two groups.  One group was treated as they had been normally, passively expecting them to repurchase.  The second group was sent promotions and messages once a week to encourage new purchases.  As you might have guessed, the second group, when evaluated a year after the test was launched generated roughly 25 percent more LTV, even taking into account the additional costs of those weekly communications.

In my next post I’ll talk about how LTV can make an impact on your new-customer acquisition efforts.  Until then, look at each of your customers as a valued asset, and be creative and aggressive in your efforts to increase their LTV, one at a time. 

You’ll be amazed with what your efforts will uncover.

However, the only way to attract more clients is through effective and compelling marketing. Unfortunately, marketing is expensive these days. So when you do it, you want to make sure you’re getting the right message out to the prospects who are most likely to buy what you sell. And if you get the right message to the “right” prospects, they’ll not only buy from you, they’ll keep coming back and buying from you forever. They’ll tell their family and friends to buy from you as well. And they’ll spend more money with you than your typical client.

So your number-one priority is to find out exactly who your ideal client is.

A massive volume of clients is not nearly as important as serving the right clients. When you match your business with the right clients, you’ll increase customer loyalty, decrease complaints, and have fewer returned items from dissatisfied clients.

Here are three areas to look at when marketing to your ideal client:

Wants vs. needs — why they buy
Attracting your ideal clients through marketing requires you to discover the specific wants and needs of these clients. These wants and needs are often referred to as “hot buttons.” Keep in mind that there is a big difference between wants and needs. They may sound similar, but they’re as different as day and night.

A need is something you have to have. A want is something you would like to have. You need a new car but may be broke at the time. Therefore, you don’t want a new car, because you feel you can’t afford it. On the other hand, if you want a new car, you will probably find a way to get it, even though you may not need it. Wants are much more powerful than needs. Therefore, your marketing message should focus on your ideal clients’ wants.

Hot buttons — what they want
Hot buttons are the problems, frustrations and concerns that most clients consider when they do business with companies. Many business owners feel that price is always the number one hot button that impacts their clients. In reality, price is one of their last considerations. Most clients are more than willing to pay a higher price if you offer enough value to warrant the higher price.

Unfortunately, most marketing and advertising looks exactly the same. Everyone uses the same old phrases and platitudes such as, “We’re the fastest, we’re the best, we have the lowest price, we do excellent work,” and so on. And since everyone says this, your clients don’t believe any of it. If you market this way, as most businesses do, your clients can’t determine the true value you provide, so they default to lowest price as a differentiator.

Whatever you do, don’t fall for this trap! If you can only compete on price, it’s time for you to get completely out of that business. It has become a no-win situation for you because there will always be someone willing to undercut your price. Fortunately, the idea that price is most important exists only in the mind of the business owner. All you need to do is provide more value than your competition. When you do, you can actually increase the price you charge for your product or service.

Decision makers, influencers and users — who to target
There’s one more area that needs careful consideration. In most business transactions, there’s a decision maker, an influencer, and a user. Here’s a typical example for the service industry. When ordering a pizza, the parents are the decision-makers, the kids are influencers and they’re all users. If you’re in the pizza business and want to sell more pizza, give the kids (influencers) candy for dessert when you deliver the pizza. Then they will continue to influence the parents to order your pizza.

This example serves to highlight a critical point — that the end user of your product or service may not be the only person involved in the buying process. This is especially common in business-to-business transactions, where you may find that there are influencers or decision makers that are not the user.

When selling to another business, you will often find yourself dealing with subordinates that require the approval of their bosses before making a purchase. Knowing that in advance allows you to be prepared to market to — and then train — these subordinates so they can “sell” your product or service for you, since you won’t have the opportunity to do it yourself.

Remember, you’ll need to take this information into consideration when you begin your marketing program. Once you identify these three roles, you will actually notice a huge difference in your numbers when you begin lead generation and lead conversion.
 

Your sales, referrals and revenues all go up – which is why you’re in business in the first place. And once you build a solid base of clients, you can grow your business as big as you want.

So if someone could show you a proven path to attracting more clients, you’d want to hear what they have to say.

Well, here’s your chance. This Saturday, OneCoach Founders John Assaraf and Murray Smith, and Managing Partner Scott deMoulin will address this topic for about 45 minutes.

These guys have been in the trenches. John and Scott previously teamed up at Internet startup Bamboo.com, which they grew from six employees to 1,500 in just 14 months – and achieved the fastest IPO in NASDAQ history, creating a $2.5 billion valuation for the company. Murray has led 13 companies in the last 25 years, and helped thousands of others increase revenues, profits and value.

So they are worth listening to if you want to grow your business. They are going to outline the 10 essential steps you have to take to begin attracting more clients. 

Here are the first five:

1. You must have a clear vision of where you want your business to be in three to five years.
2. You must achieve the right mindset, which has more impact on your potential for success than any market conditions.
3. To maximize your results and make the most of your marketing dollars, you must be able to first identify your ideal client.
4. You must also know your client’s decision-making process.
5. You need to know the lifetime value of your client over the term of your relationship with them.

John, Murray and Scott will cover these points and the remaining five that will help you gain a very clear picture of what you need to do to grow your business now — regardless of what’s happening in the market. 

There are a limited number of lines avaliable so you must register to hear the call. It’s scheduled for Saturday, March 15 at 10 a.m. Pacific. Register for the call now, and get ready to start attracting more clients.