One frequent mistake I see small business owners and entrepreneurs unintentionally make time again and again is this – putting all of their eggs in one basket (all in one source) to get new clients. Here is something I know for sure, I can’t tell you how many times I share with someone I’m in advanced client attraction marketing and what I often hear back is, “Cool, the only thing I ever need to do for marketing in my small business is referrals.”
At any rate, if you are counting on only one marketing revenue stream, and just using something like referrals, I can pretty much guarantee what your client attraction, impact and income looks like. Up and down like a teeter totter at the playground. What’s more, you’re most likely overwhelmed with work, and stressed out like a too tight violin string, as you use all of your precious time and energy pulling your hair out completing all the work flowing in, or you’re starving and wondering where your next client is coming from. You have nothing coming in; you’re worried about the bills that are stacking up and you have no way of paying them.
So how do you get out of a situation like that and more importantly never get back there again? By not relying on one type of client attraction revenue stream! Instead, branch out and have potential clients come in from several different sources.
When this happens, you start to create a much greater impact and income on a steady basis for yourself and as a bonus, if a client attraction revenue stream slows down or stops cold, you’re not out of business.
Here are some client attraction sources to get you started that both my clients and I use to fill our practices and something other than just referrals:
1. Speaking Engagements
This is a terrific strategy because it also positions you as an expert in your chosen field. You can speak at live events or you can speak on your phone for teleclasses. Or if you really want to ramp up your influence, impact and income, you can do both.
2. Blogging
Your potential clients are continually scouring the Internet searching for information, products, programs and services you’re already offering. Provide consistently great content and information, and then add
links to the places where they can find out more about you and what you offer.
3. Online and Offline Networking
You want to include them both. Whether it is on Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn, you’ll want a strong social presence. This includes media as well. Having great information and content in your articles, or being interviewed on radio or TV also increases your influence, impact and income. And something to keep in mind is to take your networking offline as well. Whether it is at events, seminars, or you’re local chamber of commerce, you want to get known locally as well.
4. Current or past clients
You can pick up the phone (yes, we still use it in business) and call current and past clients and see if their needs have changed, and how you can help them.
5. Strategic partners or affiliates
In this case this is where other people promote you to their clients for a percentage of any sales that may occur. The distinction between strategic partners and affiliates is strategic partners tend to have a more of a long-term relationship with you and affiliates can be a one-time or short term relationship, where they just sell whatever you are currently offering.
Now of course they are many other client attraction revenue streams and sources. This is just to get you started now. The good news is that all these sources will work together for you and grow off each other when implemented on a consistent basis. Guess what else? Your referrals will grow from this as well. For instance, someone might hear you speak, love what they are hearing, then meet you personally at an event, then go to your web site and find out more about you. Then they decide to contact you and buy whatever it is that you are offering. No matter how they find, it is like a trail, one thing leads to another and the first thing you know they are buying from you when you follow this type strategy called “being everywhere that counts.”
