Get Clients Like an Extrovert
If you are a solopreneur — which means, a business owner who is a one person show, responsible for service delivery, bookkeeping, client attraction, admin, billing, everything! — no matter how shy, unself-confident, or nervous you are, the reality is you will need to do some level of marketing like an extrovert.
How do extroverts get clients?
By:
aggressive networking - continually making personal connections
referral partner building - asking others to send them clients
word of mouth - impressing clients so that they talk about you
public speaking / workshop teaching - taking opportunities to be in a spotlight
media publicity - generating favorable attention
Most counselors, coaches, intuitives, and NDs I have worked with cringe at the thought of most or all of those methods. My clients tell me it feels like begging, or that they find it unethical to engage in self promotion.
Some admit to fearing rejection, or believe that they have nothing any more special to offer than any other professional of their type, so they don’t know what to say to get clients from these methods.
I understand. I’m not an extrovert either.
But take another look at that list and see if there is at least one strategy there that you can adapt to fit your personality. Mine has been teaching. What will yours be?
Perhaps:
Making Personal Connections
go to at least one networking meeting each week
join a leads group, such as BNI or LeTip where members refer to each other
talk about your work at every social event, have your cards ready to hand out
follow up with people you’ve just met, learn about them, make recommendations to them, provide resources, stay in touch
Ask Allied Professionals to Send Referrals
target professionals who serve your ideal clients, visit or call, ask for referrals
follow up on a regular basis, provide a useful resource like rack cards or tip sheets, or take office goodies to help be remembered
get releases to talk to clients’ primary care physicians, send them update letters of clients’ progress
Get People Talking About You
go out of your way to be a helpful resource
offer incentives or complimentary brief sessions
throw an open house or appear at a health fair to talk with many people in one day
Stand in a Spotlight
give presentations at conferences
host a workshop series
organize a MeetUp
offer in service trainings to allied professionals and other referral sources
sponsor a radio show in exchange for getting 30-60 minutes of your own show
Generate Favorable Attention
Do something newsworthy and send out media releases about it
sign up for www.HelpAReporter.com and get interviewed
get a media agent and become a TV star on local news and talk shows
Whatever extroverted method your select, the trick to getting clients is to figure out what marketing methods you can do easily and happily, and make sure you have enough of those strategies in your weekly and monthly marketing plan.
If the thought of extroverted marketing make you queasy, or gives you thoughts of ending your practice and driving a cab, you probably will find the more introverted methods of getting clients a better fit for your personality.
No matter what marketing methods you are comfortable with, or willing to try, nothing works if you don’t take action every day in some way. What actions are you taking in the next 3 weeks to fill your client pipeline next month and beyond?
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