A passionate focus on making a difference and a contribution with Your Next Chapter Business is so very important. At this stage of life, that feeling of fulfillment and significance is vital – it’s soul food. But even the most passionate of business owners would soon feel deflated if they did not have actual paying clients to work with.
I’ve heard the lament so often – “if someone else could just take care of the marketing so I can just focus on doing what I love – the actual service, that would be heavenly”. I’ve felt that way some days and I’m a marketer by trade!
We both know the truth. Client Attraction and subsequently generating cashflow is essential for our business growth. And that means taking action. Consistently.
But the news is good! You can design your business model to complement your skills and preferred way of working and you can also choose the marketing activities that align with you and meet your potential clients where they are. You can be of high service whilst marketing, providing valuable and useful resources and experiences. You can have wholehearted sales conversations that are “elegant invitations to transformation”.
Nothing about client attraction needs to be out of alignment with your values or feel manipulative, pushy or uncomfortable. It does often mean you need to develop new skills or make changes to experience success but hey, you’re a lifelong learner, aren’t you?
In this episode, Kellie O’Brien, Kristy Smith and I discuss what we’ve learned, adopted, changed and introduced into our business models and lead generation strategies as we and our businesses have evolved over the years.
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Show Notes
- Your business model needs to fit your style and it will evolve with you, but one to one, one to many and margin based models are most common.
- You need quality clients, not just clients, This means different things to different people, but in essence, it means they understand and appreciate the value you bring to them and are committed to taking action.
- It’s vital that you listen to your market and client feedback and respond appropriately or you can be left behind as they both evolve
- The journey from discovery to engagement and purchase can be long – there is a buying cycle we all go through and this can take a few days to a few years to move through, depending on your product or service
- That buying cycle means you need to remain visible and provide education and nurturing to your audience
- Confidence is currency – having a clear framework, pathway, plan or system that takes your clients from where they are to where they want to be is very attractive and reassuring
- We often begin our sales conversation evolution with a script – there is no script shame!
- Data may not be sexy, but it is hugely valuable – understand where your clients are coming from now and do more of that!
About the speaker
Kellie O'Brien
Kellie’s mission is to teach you how to use social media, online marketing funnels and launching to increase your reach and revenue through storytelling.
As an online marketing strategist, she is one of those unusual breeds who can hear your big picture intentions (launch that program, share those unique skills, expand your visibility, increase revenue and ideal clients), craft that into a captivating story that shares your why and your invitation to the world in a soulful way and then break it down into the step-by-step framework to make it happen.
Using her skills from 16 years in journalism, blogging, social media coaching, public relations consulting and writing the biographical novel of one of Tasmania’s most prominent businessmen, Kellie lives and breathes story and strategy.
Kristy Smith
Kristy Smith is the founder of Virtual Elves, and has worked with many businesses helping them to develop the strategies, methods and tools for effective outsourcing. She shows them how, with outsourcing, they can scale, grow and be profitable.
She is known for her ability to see how businesses can operate in a more efficient way, and for walking business owners through the process. She uses her own business growth, mistakes and lessons learnt to give hands-on practical strategies that can be implemented immediately.
Virtual Elves started 6 years ago with just Kristy at the helm and now boasts an international team of over 25 virtual assistants, graphic designers, web developers and other various contractors and now growing at a rate of 5 assistants per month.
Prior to founding Virtual Elves, Kristy managed large teams and implemented front office processes and customer service training for private hospitals and 5-star hotels. A mother of two, she lives on Sydney’s Northern Beaches with her husband and family.
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