Who is your ideal client? I am not talking about a potential prospect – someone who might be interested in your business. I mean the ideal client, the one who IS going to buy your products or services. Once you identify who this is, selling to them can be a lot easier, because you aren’t wasting time trying to find them.
Are They Clients or Partners?
Stay away from the people who don’t want to be your partner in business. These people are the ones that bicker over your price, don’t realize the value of the service you offer, and pay late. Get rid of them. You are in business to make money, not to send out bills and late notices. If they don’t do their part to make your business successful, then they will bring your business down. Stay away!
Where To Start Looking For The Ideal Customer
If you’ve been in business for any time, you can start to identify what your best customers have in common. Are they male or female? What is their age? What types of interests do they have? How did they find you? Where did you find them? These are all questions that you need to ask yourself. Why? Because it is similarities that hold the key to you finding ideal prospects for your future business. Be watchful. Be aware what your winning combination is to growing your business.
The Ideal Customer is Personal to Your Business
As stated, your ideal customer will have similar traits. If the similarities you discover is that your customers breathe air and are alive, then you need to narrow your focus. The more narrow your focus, the more successful you will be. The goal should be to fill a niche that isn’t available in the marketplace. Don’t copy someone else’s niche. You won’t be successful. If the guy down the street sells computer parts at a discount price and you start doing the same thing, all you are doing is bringing down the profits for both of you. Find out what he isn’t doing and fill that space. It is here that you will identify the ideal customer for you. Being ideal is a very personal thing that relates to the niche that you fill.
Reaching Out To The Ideal Customer
How does your ideal customer make a purchase from your business? Is it by location? Do they shop through the computer? Are they the decision makers or is it done by committee? Identify how they reach you and you will determine how to bridge that gap that makes them able to buy. This should guide how your advertising dollars are spent, how you communicate with customers and even how you make yourself available to them. Do you use email? Direct Marketing? The Telephone? Billboards? These answers should be driven by the customers you consider ideal.
Where Will Your Business Be In Five Years?
You always have to look to the future in your business. Think of it as a giant game of chess. Which customers fit into your category of ideal? Don’t be afraid to drop them as a client if they don’t fit that role. Trimming customers sounds counter-intuitive when you are trying to run a business, but that’s not what you are trying to do. You are trying to run a successful business. The way to do this is to maximize your time and you can’t do that when you have customers who are nickel and diming your time. It’s time to trim the dead branches to let your tree grow.
