If I had a dollar (or a rand) for every time I had a client tell me, “But Sharon, this is _________________ (insert city and country here) and they won’t pay that much” I’d be quite wealthy! Well, maybe not independently wealthy but I’d definitely be richer.
Do you ever make the limiting assumption that your clients can’t or won’t pay you higher fees? I’ve lived on the South Coast of South Africa for the past six years and I’ve heard this over and over again living here– and it IS a holiday area and it isn’t exactly a big business hub, BUT there are plenty of people who will pay higher fees than you’d guess for either highly personalized, VIP service or guaranteed results of some kind. I’ve received higher fees for my services living here as have my clients.
When I branched north this year to work with ladies in Umhlanga and Ballito (both of these areas are VERY wealthy!) guess what I heard right from the start? “But Sharon, this is Ballito, the people here won’t pay much”, and so on and so on.
Then just 2 weeks ago after watching the Springboks barely lose to Australia in Rugby in Bloemfontein, I was talking to a man who owns an IT company in Cape Town and guess what? He told me, “Sharon, I’d love to only have a few top level clients and give them VIP 24/7 service, but this is Cape Town and they won’t pay higher prices in Cape Town!” And if you live in America and don’t know, Cape Town is a very wealthy area in South Africa. There is plenty of money there!
My point is no matter where you live most people will assume people won’t pay more for anything. I’m sure I’ll hear it when I move to Dallas in October. But this type of thinking is wrong. It’s a proven fact that 20% of any population will pay MORE, in many cases, MUCH MORE for VIP service, personalized service, quicker information, quicker results, a pampered experience, and so on.
Most entrepreneurs charge lower rates than they should be charging and many times they are LOSING business by not offering a VIP higher level more pampered program to their clients. Is this you? I hear this from many of my clients. Start accepting only “A” clients in your business and begin releasing the clients who cost you money and time and are hassles to work with. You will be amazed at how freeing this is. I only work with clients whom I absolutely LOVE and my work is anything but work…..it’s a blast. I recommend you do the same.
Work on believing that the service you offer to your clients IS very valuable, stand by it and of course, deliver it. If you honestly believe in your service and what you are offering to your clients and you know your clients will get amazing results by working with you then you will be doing yourself a favour to increase your fees by 20% right away–at least to new clients.
If you aren’t being paid enough for what you do then it’s because you don’t believe people will pay you enough. As soon as you make the simple mind-set shift and start thinking that your clients WILL pay you what you’re worth you will be able to price your services accordingly and start receiving it.
One of the best things you can do for yourself and your business is to start sending out a bi-monthly e-zine. An e-zine is an electronic newsletter. You are missing out on building relationships with your existing clients and your potential clients if you aren’t sending one out.
It now takes 7 to 12 “touches’’ now before a potential client or customer will buy or invest with you.Several years ago it only took 3 to 5 touches. Make it easier on yourself and let your e-zine do some of your “touches’’ for you.
It doesn’t matter what business you are in you will benefit from sending out a bi-monthly e-zine. You could be a Real Estate Agent working for a big firm and still brand your newsletter as YOU. Remember clients and customers buy because of YOU not what company you are with.
Give your clients and potential clients excellent information in each issue. Make sure you are giving them information they can use in their business now. If you constantly provide your clients and potential clients with great information for fre* they will understand your commitment to them. They will then be more likely to purchase or invest in one of your programs in the future.
Put yourself and your wonderful personality into your e-zine. Your clients, customers and potential clients want to know more about YOU. In this age of craziness and hurriedness people want more than ever to connect with people whom they are doing business with. By putting pictures of yourself, your family, your clients and what you’re up to in your e-zine you are authentically showing who you are and what you’re about. I have a client who owns a furniture store and does an excellent job with this. Her clients phone her up if she is late with an issue they enjoy it so much.
Finally, don’t be scared to put yourself “Out There” by publishing your own e-zine. Don’t forget you are in business to help your clients, customers and potential clients by doing what you do and if you aren’t educating them with good information you can’t be of service to them. Publishing your own e-zine is just another way for you to be of service to your tribe!
One of the most important things you can do in your business is know exactly who your Ideal, High-Paying Clients are.If you are very, very clear about whom you WANT to work with you are 90% there. Most high-achieving entrepreneurs often make this deadly mistake: they think anyone and everyone who breathes is a client. This is almost NEVER the case unless you are Coca Cola or McDonald’s.
First, analyze your client list/database and note where most of your business is coming from. Really analyze exactly whom your profitable clients are. More often than not the clients whom you love to work with end up being your most profitable clients and customers. Ask yourself what do these profitable clients have in common? Where do they live? What age are they? What jobs do they hold? What cars do they drive? Where do they congregate online and offline?
Second, decide exactly whom you WANT to work with and serve in your business. Yes, decide exactly what type of client or customer you WANT to attract and work with in your business. For instance, I only work with high-achieving entrepreneurs who want to be at the top of their field. This doesn’t mean they ARE the best in their field right now, but that they have a burning desire to BE the best or in the top 10-20% in their field. Write down exactly what qualities you want your clients to possess. Do you want them to be decisive? Do you want them to listen to you and value your advice and follow your recommendations? Do you want them to be easy to work with? Write a list of qualities you want your clients to have.
Third, type up a VERY DETAILED description of your Ideal, High-Paying Clients. Based on where your current Ideal, High-Paying Clients are coming from and the qualities you WANT to have in your future Ideal, High-Paying Clients type a very descriptive essay (for lack of a better word!) as to who these clients are. Write down what type of homes they live in, how they are decorated and where they are located. Go into details of what type of clothing they wear. Where do they shop? Where do they vacation? What are the ages of their children or grandchildren? What sports do they like to participate in? What hobbies do they partake in?
Think of absolutely EVERY detail about your Ideal, High-Paying Clients’ life and environment and write it down. The more descriptive you can get with this the more easily you will be able to attract these Ideal, High-Paying Clients to you.
Fourth, give your Ideal, High-Paying Clients a name. Yes, I said a name. If you work with couples, then give them both a name, too. You can go as far as to give their children names and their pets. I know this sounds hokey, but please take a leap of faith and do this simple step.
Fifth, make a Vivid Vision Board consisting of everything you just wrote about your Ideal, High-Paying Clients. Post it in your office where you can see it daily. You will see this constant reminder and the vision of your Ideal, High-Paying Clients will be implanted in your subconscious mind.
I’ve personally done each and every one of these steps. Once I decided I wanted to work with High-Achieving Entrepreneurs who want to be the best and are decisive, motivated and implementers I immediately began attracting them to me. In less than a week of doing this I attracted a client to me via the internet who hired me immediately for some Branding work and then later as her Private Platinum Mentor.
My clients are all now Ideal, High-Paying clients whom I absolutely love to work with and are a joy to mentor. The same can be true for you. Try this deceptively simple formula and see for yourself.
Hindsight is always 20/20 and it’s no different for me in my online business journey. I recently launched my new website and ezine. For those of you who aren’t familiar with the term ezine, it just means newsletter sent by email.
Hindsight is always 20/20 and it’s no different for me in my online business journey. I recently launched my new website and ezine. For those of you who aren’t familiar with the term ezine, it just means newsletter sent by email.
It’s a term you should become very familiar with in the future, however. An ezine is a fantastic way to keep in touch with your customers, clients and prospects in a very inexpensive yet, powerful way. I’ve been advising clients on how to market themselves and their businesses for some time now without a website or an ezine. There is certainly nothing wrong with this. Just don’t expect a lot of new business from your existing clients, customers and prospects as they won’t be fully connected to you and your business as they could be through your making regular contact with them through your ezine.
I made a mistake. My mistake is your gain. DON’T WAIT FOR YOUR WEBSITE TO BE 100% OPERATIONAL BEFORE LAUNCHING YOUROWN EZINE. You don’t need a website to send your clients, customers and prospects an ezine.
One thing you know about me or you will soon know about me is I am a no nonsense kind of person who isn’t scared to admit when I’m wrong. And I was wrong.
What is the biggest lesson I learned from my mistake? It’s more important to take action and GET OUT THERE than wait for everything to be perfect. Are any of you like this? Women, in particular, battle with perfectionism. We always want everything to be perfect before taking the next step. We need to get over our need for perfection and concentrate on taking ACTION. Action always gets us ahead at the end of the day.
I’ve also learned your customers want to hear from you. The faster you can get your ezine designed and in place, the faster you can begin staying in contact with them. Of course, this all leads to your being able to build the Like, Know and Trust Factor with your clients, customers and prospects– faster–which leads to more sales with you ultimately…..faster. And faster is always better than slower.
As you look at your client, customer and potential customer (prospect) base review how you are now keeping in touch with them on a regular basis. What you can do to keep in touch with them more regularly? Do you have an ezine (email newsletter)? Do you have a paper newsletter? Do you send your clients, customers and/or prospects text messages or sms’s? Do you phone them regularly or have someone from your office phone them to stay in touch, offer recent offers or specials, see how they are benefitting from your service or product?
If you don’t have a system in place to stay in touch with your clients, customers and potential clients, then make the decision NOW to start your own ezine. It’s extremely cost effective (no stamps, paper, or envelope stuffing costs!) and not labor intensive at all.
As a high-achieving entrepreneur it’s absolutely critical that you have what I call a “Brilliant Brand”–a brand that clearly represents you and the results you consistently deliver to your carefully selected niche audience.
Here are some tips that will help make sure your brand is “Brilliant” and represents you and what results you deliver to your clients:
Your brand is NOT your logo, tag line, or colors. It’s the promise of the experience they get by working with you. Your fonts, colors and designs are just means of conveying your brand but they aren’t your brand.
Make sure you speak to a specific audience with your brand and brand promise. For me it’s high-achieving entrepreneurs with 70% of them being women. You must have a focused, targeted niche for whom your brand speaks. You can’t be all things to all people and market to anyone who breathes. If you’re not Coca Cola or McDonald’s don’t try to market to everyone who breathes. You’ll go broke. Fast.
Make your brand PERSONAL. If you’re a high-achieving entrepreneur with a carefully chosen niche market it’s absolutely critical that you let your personality shine through all your marketing materials–from your website, business cards, ezine–absolutely everything. You have to get out there and let your potential clients get a feel about YOU. They don’t want to deal with a nameless, faceless company. They want to deal with YOU.
Don’t waste your money on “Image Advertising”–ever. If you can’t track your advertising results then it’s not worth your running an ad–ever. This premise is true for both on-line and off-line advertising. They may not be beautiful, but using a Direct Response style ad with an offer or promotion or fre* give away of some kind that can be tracked will yield you far better results. Once more, if you’re not Coca Cola or McDonalds don’t spend your money on Image Advertising. Ever.
Know WHO your business is for? (Tightly, Targeted Niche) Many high-achieving entrepreneurs know WHAT they are offering (Brand Promise) but they aren’t clear on their WHO which can weaken their Brand Promise. Don’t let this happen to you. Know both your WHO and your WHAT.
Check your brand for its Brilliance and see how you can tweak it or re-design it if necessary to have it really sparkle for you and help you attract your Ideal, High-Paying Clients.
In today’s business climate you absolutely must make your clients and prospective clients offers they can’t refuse in order to get their business. You are wasting your time putting any weak or wimpy offers out there. I mean really, is 10% off really going to get you to invest in that product or service? It’s not going to work on me for sure.
Here are some basic guidelines you must follow whenever you are making offers to your clients and prospective clients:
Make sure your offer has a very clear CALL TO ACTION. Yes, you need to instruct your clients and potential clients as to what action you WANT them to take whenever they are reading an ad, your website, a sales page, a brochure, you name it. Don’t just put your company name and a general blurb and your phone number. Be Specific. Instruct your clients to call in, sign up, invest, etc. Be very specific or you’re wasting your advertising dollars and time.
Make sure your offer is appealing so your clients and potential clients will want to take you up on it quickly! Most offers out there are boring, bland and basically blah. A strong offer will cause your potential client to rush to do business with you as soon as possible.
Make sure you list a deadline for your offer. An offer isn’t really a proper offer unless it has a deadline. Where’s yours?
Whenever possible make your supply limited and tie it into the deadline. For example……only the first 20 customers get “x, y, z” so invest now!
Give a reasonable reason for your deadline and or limited supply. Maybe you want to keep it exclusive for only a few, maybe it’s a promotion tied to a national or international or even local holiday. Maybe it’s tied into a story about a celebrity. You can even make a reason if it’s funny or clever.
Entice your potential clients to do business with you using premiums and bonus gifts. You can give a gift (even an e-book or a fr*e mp3 with great information on it), for purchasing early. You can offer multiple gifts or a choice of gifts.
We’re living in a very different age from even two years ago. Our client’s buying habits have changed for good. What are you doing to make sure your clients and potential clients will take advantage of the wonderful services and products you have to give to them? You’ve got to be Big, Bold and a little Out There these days and create irresistible offers or your potential clients will pass you by for someone who is offering them something they can’t refuse.
Here are a few top secrets to help you experience more clients and cash flow abundance in your business. They are simple yet powerful strategies to help you pull in more money and clients immediately.
START MARKETING! This sounds so obvious, I know. BUT, there are plenty of High-Achieving Entrepreneurs who don’t market their businesses, products or themselves at all. They wait for the phone to ring or for the customer to walk in the door. Passivity and inaction will not work in our new economic reality.
“Always keep your pipeline (or marketing funnel) FULL of potential prospects and customers.”This tip comes from my Dad, Sledge Killion, who is a Master Sales Genius.
He’s been in sales or sales management for 46 years now–by choice. I don’t think he’ll ever retire. He enjoys helping people too much. The best sales advice my dad ever gave me as a raw rookie in sales is to always keep my pipeline overflowing. No matter what. Period. You may love what you do, but your number one job now is to market yourself and your business.
Take time out of your business every day to market your products, services and even yourself to help you keep your pipeline full. This means blocking out time each day to promote your products, services or yourself. Don’t neglect marketing and promoting yourself in your efforts because, remember, clients and customers buy YOU first.
Spend time writing by hand — yes, by hand — notes to clients. Send clients and prospective clients relevant or interesting articles in the mail with a note you think this might be of interest to them.
Use this time to call at least 5 prospective clients a day. Send follow up emails to current clients and customers as well as potential clients. Use this time to plan your next email or snail mail campaign. Use it to write your newsletter. Use it to plan your marketing plan for the next 3, 6, or 12 months.
Make sure you do some type of activity to promote your products, services or yourself every day no matter what.
Systemize your marketing. Begin by systemizing your marketing time by scheduling marketing time in your diary or in Outlook every day–and stick to it!
Schedule follow up calls to clients and potential clients and keep the marketing appointments you make. Invest in an auto-responder system either through your shopping cart or on its own such as aweber or icontact. Auto-responders are a great way to stay in touch with your “list.”
INVEST in marketing your business. No one says it better than the brilliant Direct Marketer, DanKennedy:
“If you are spending on marketing; you’re doing it all wrong; you need to be investing in the acquisition, nurturing, retaining, upgrading and multiplying of customers as assets.”
Personally, I believe there is no better place for me to invest my money than in the marketing and growth of my own business. I hope you will too. In our new world economy investing in your business by growing it through Smart Marketing & Soft Selling™ is a smart decision.
We’re living in an age of rapid growth & development in the world. As a result of this speed and hecticness you need to implement mindset tools to help you excel to Brilliant Success. Here are a few tips that will empower you in your life and business if you will internalize them:
You and you alone are responsible for the results that manifest in both your business and your life. This is hard to recognize at first because we want to blame somebody or something else most of the time when we don’t manifest the results we want. For instance, it’s easy to blame “The Economy” when business dips. After all the entire world is in a depression, right? In fact, there are many entrepreneurs experiencing their best year ever (seriously!) because of smart planning and manoeuvring when others are languishing and complaining.
Learn from the past, plan for the future and live in the present. Many of us tend to wallow too long in our past mistakes or perceived failures. Make it a practice of quickly acknowledging where you made an error, correct your error and move right along forward. Our mind likes to play tricks on us and likes to keep us down for some bizarre reason. Ignore your mind when it sends you these false messages. Say, “Thank-You for that” and move on.
Look around you every day for opportunities. Opportunities are all around us each and every day. When you are clear, focused and have a vision in your mind and on your Vivid Vision Board of what you want and where you are going you will find yourself seeing opportunities that are just waiting for you. When you are hurried, negative and toxic you won’t see the opportunities all around you.
Be ready to learn the lessons given to you every day (or almost every day) in your life. Life throws us lessons almost every day. It’s up to us to accept the lesson brought before us so we can move on or we’ll keep receiving the same lesson over and over until we get it. If you live life knowing this and begin to look forward to the lessons that are given to you it will cause you to live more excitedly, joyfully and purposefully.
You have the answers inside of you. All the answers to life’s questions are inside of you. You KNOW what to do. If you will get quiet once a day and listen to that still, small voice inside you and follow your instinct you will do the right thing that you should do at the right moment. All you need to do is get still, quiet, listen and trust yourself that you KNOW the answer to whatever situation you are facing.
Practice these mindsets and see how they will keep you on the path to Brilliant Success.
I know in the last issue of Brilliant Success I asked you if you’re ready for a Coach or Mentor. I hope you said “Yes” to yourself. When you say “yes” to yourself your journey to Phenomenal Abundance and Success has already begun.
Now, the next issue is about Platinum. You’re probably asking what do you mean by Platinum? Well, what do you think of when you think of Platinum? Most of us think of words like “Rare” “Special” “Exclusive” and “The Best” because platinum is such a rare and expensive commodity. Here in South Africa where it’s mined; it’s definitely in the news often.
Platinum is a state of mind. In both your business and your life.
Any service oriented Female Entrepreneur can add a Platinum Style Program or VIP program to their already existing business. Even retail stores can do this. You already have Platinum Clients. You just haven’t acknowledged them as such more than likely. Normally your Platinum Clients or VIP clients will be in the top 20% of your “list” or database who bring you 80% of your revenues. All businesses experience this, it’s the decades old “Parato Principal” you hear me speak of time and again.
Take a look at ways you can make your best (and most special) clients feel valued, pampered and appreciated. Studies have been done, and get this–that reveal that at any given time there is 20% of the population who will PAY MORE for Platinum and VIP treatment. Yes, you read right. These clients will pay YOU to treat them like the Platinum Clients and VIP clients they already are.
Let me give you an idea in my own business of how I’ve structured it. In my coaching and mentoring programs I only work one-on-one with my ideal clients who have been accepted into my 2010 Brilliant Success Private Platinum Program. These are clients who understand the value I bring to our coaching relationship and who want time with me on a one on one basis. Because they desire one-on-one time with me via coaching calls and private one day intensives with me over the phone or in person, I give them uninterrupted laser focused time on them and THEIR business.
There is an application process and a commitment the client makes to me and I make to them at this level that ensures amazing success in the client’s business. When a client invests in themselves at a Platinum level, transformation begins to take place for both the client and the coach. I’m not going to let my Platinum Clients slide and not live up to their full amazing potential as the Phenomenal Woman Entrepreneurs they are.
There is still plenty of access to me in my Platinum Group Programs, as well as the Workshops and Classes I’m conducting in 2010 both live and via teleseminars. I’m not out of the picture; I’m just not available for one on one coaching and mentoring unless you are in my Brilliant Success Private Platinum Program.
As you know I try my best to always “Walk my Talk” and I personally have TWO Private Platinum Coaches for 2010 as you know from my last newsletter. I believe in investing in myself to get the best results I can as fast as possible. I can’t do it alone. No one can. Why not indulge and pamper myself as I grow my business globally?
Now, you can do something “Platinum” for your own clients. It can be as simple as hosting a cocktail reception or dinner once a year for your most valued clients. I know of one Real Estate Agent who throws a big dinner party at a very popular Mexican food restaurant each year for every client who has bought a property from her in the past year. It’s always a resounding success.
Try getting creative with your own business and see what you can do to make your clients feel special, pampered and appreciated–Especially the top 20% who bring you 80% of your revenue each year. You can’t do too much for these valuable clients–especially in today’s economic climate.
Why Are YOU in Business and WHY Should Your Clients Do Business With YOU Over Anyone Else?
If you can’t answer these two questions easily and effortlessly, you may want to shut your doors until you can answer them. Seriously! Clients are choosier than ever and they want a valid REASON to do business with you. It’s your job to give your clients and prospective clients every reason you know of that differentiates YOU and YOUR service from the rest of your competition.
Can you list 5 reasons (minimum!) WHY your clients should do business with YOU over everyone else out there?
Remember you may be in the exact same business as someone else, but only you are YOU. Silly, I know, but true! Think of things unique about you, your experience and the experience you deliver for your clients that makes doing business with you compelling. Here are some possibilities to consider if you can’t think of any (and you SHOULD be able to think of some!):
Are you tops in your field? If not at the top of your field are you dedicated to becoming one of the best in your field through investing in further education and gaining additional experience? Are you MORE committed to being the best or one of the best in your field over your competitors?
Do you offer a service that no one else offers? I know one of our dear friends here in South Africa owns a jewellery shop and employs the best Goldsmith in the province (state in the US!) and possibly the country. To me that is a very important reason to have jewellery made from them over anyone else.
Do you provide better and/or faster answers to your clients’ “pain” than your competitors do?
Do you provide top notch client care that is second to none? Do you and your team do what it takes to soothe unhappy clients or do you not worry about unhappy clients so much?
What do you provide your clients that no one else can?
Do you WOW your clients? How do you WOW them? Try saying that 10 times in a row, whew!
Well, you get the picture. Take some time out to think about YOUR business and as many compelling reasons you can think of for your clients to do business with you. Write them down on paper. Get them out of your head. Save this list for later to help you update your website and to help you craft your irresistible offers for your clients. You won’t be sorry to take the time to do this!
If I had a dollar (or a rand) for every time I had a client tell me, “But Sharon, this is _________________ (insert city and country here) and they won’t pay that much” I’d be quite wealthy! Well, maybe not independently wealthy but I’d definitely be richer.
One of the best things you can do for yourself and your business is to start sending out a bi-monthly e-zine. An e-zine is an electronic newsletter. You are missing out on building relationships with your existing clients and your potential clients if you aren’t sending one out.
Hindsight is always 20/20 and it’s no different for me in my online business journey. I recently launched my new website and ezine. For those of you who aren’t familiar with the term ezine, it just means newsletter sent by email.
As a high-achieving entrepreneur it’s absolutely critical that you have what I call a “Brilliant Brand”–a brand that clearly represents you and the results you consistently deliver to your carefully selected niche audience.
In today’s business climate you absolutely must make your clients and prospective clients offers they can’t refuse in order to get their business. You are wasting your time putting any weak or wimpy offers out there. I mean really, is 10% off really going to get you to invest in that product or service? It’s not going to work on me for sure.
Here are a few top secrets to help you experience more clients and cash flow abundance in your business. They are simple yet powerful strategies to help you pull in more money and clients immediately.
We’re living in an age of rapid growth & development in the world. As a result of this speed and hecticness you need to implement mindset tools to help you excel to Brilliant Success. Here are a few tips that will empower you in your life and business if you will internalize them:
I know in the last issue of Brilliant Success I asked you if you’re ready for a Coach or Mentor. I hope you said “Yes” to yourself. When you say “yes” to yourself your journey to Phenomenal Abundance and Success has already begun.
Why Are YOU in Business and WHY Should Your Clients Do Business With YOU Over Anyone Else?