I see business owners make this mistake all the time.
When their calendar is booked with clients, they have no time to put into marketing their services.
It’s great that you’re busy with clients and have money coming in the door. But the problem is, as soon as those clients wrap up, you’re back to square one. No clients and no money.
And that’s when panic sets in.
You scurry to get referrals, send frantic emails, and pray for consults… until your calendar is full and the whole process repeats itself again and again.
This is no way to run a successful business. It’s inefficient, it limits your revenue potential, and it’s downright stressful.
So how do you avoid the feast or famine cycle?
Before I share my answer, take a moment to think about these questions:
- How can you set yourself up for a steady stream of clients and income?
- How can you permanently free yourself from the feast or famine cycle?
(Seriously, think about it for a moment. I’ll wait.)
Did you come up with an answer or two? Awesome. I’ll dive into mine, and we’ll compare notes at the end.
A More Advanced View of Marketing
Marketing is about communicating the value of what you offer to your customers. For online business owners, this usually means sharing ideas and helpful tips on a regular basis through a blog or newsletter. It can also include social media and leaving helpful, thoughtful comments on others’ blogs.
This probably sounds familiar to you, and it should. But there’s an even more nuanced way to look at marketing, and it’s important to know if you want enough clients to fill your roster and your waiting list.
Here’s what I mean…
Reactive Marketing
A business owner can market reactively or proactively.
Reactive marketing is promoting your business in response to a need, such as needing more clients.
Marketing in response to a need looks like sending emails to your list only when you need new clients. Spending extra time on social media when you’ve got open spots in your calendar. Blogging or sending newsletters only when you need to drum up business.
Reactive marketing isn’t necessarily bad, but it can be stressful to always pitch your list when you need clients. It’s also possible for readers to pick up on your needy energy when you email them, praying for a new client. And people generally don’t respond well to needy energy.
Wouldn’t it feel easier to send emails, write blog posts, and engage in social media without the added pressure of needing something? I think so.
That’s why I prefer proactive marketing.
Proactive Marketing
Unlike reactive marketing, proactive marketing doesn’t stem from a place of need. Proactive marketing is done as a part of normally everyday business operations.
It looks like crafting helpful blog posts every week, no matter what. Sending content-rich newsletters. Consulting with potential clients, even when your calendar is full. Writing thoughtful follow-up emails to prospects. Engaging in social media with the intent to give. Continuing to grow your list.
Personally, I don’t want to have to react every time I have an open client slot. There’s nothing more reassuring than having a full waiting list; it’s clients and income you can count on.
That said, it wasn’t always this way for me. I didn’t always have a long waiting list. Yet even when I needed more clients, I still acted like a proactive marketer, and that has everything to do with how I grew my client roster and my waiting list.
How to Be a Proactive Marketer, Even If You Need More Clients
Whether you have no clients or all the clients you can handle, proactive marketing will get you the clients you need or it will fill up your waiting list.
Here’s your proactive marketer checklist. Do these things regularly, whether you’re looking for more clients or have a full waiting list.
- Blog
- Send a newsletter
- Engage in social media
- Consult with prospects
- Follow-up with prospects
- Grow your email list
- Guest post
- Host free calls or webinars
- Share your knowledge and ideas as much as possible
Acting like a proactive marketer even when you need clients will bring new clients to you now and fill your waiting list for the future. And you’ll be doing it without the needy, graspy energy people run from. (How sweet is that?!)
What This Means for Your Client Load
Now, I know you’re thinking, “But Jenny, if I’m busy with clients how can I find the time to do all this marketing?”
This is a great question. It shows that you don’t want to spend every waking moment tied to your business. (Neither do I!)
Here’s what to do: Take a realistic look at your calendar and start making decisions.
Do you have time to market your business when you’re full with clients? If not, you need to take on fewer clients at a time and add some marketing hours in.
Are your clients pushing their boundaries, leaving less time for you to work on your business? Get clear on what you will and won’t do for your clients, and communicate your guidelines to them.
Are you being a productive procrastinator, working inefficiently toward your goals, or just plain wasting time? Call yourself on the BS and deliberately shift your habits immediately.
Marketing your business is just as important as serving your clients. Adjust your calendar and workload so you can be sure that you have time to put yourself out there and tell people about the amazing work you’re doing.
Click to TweetMarketing your business is just as important as serving your clients.Your turn
I’d love to hear from you in the comments below. Tell me…
What was your initial answer to what you can do to keep a steady flow of clients?
What are your thoughts now? How have they changed from reading this article?
What other insights do you have on this topic?
I can’t wait to hear what you’ve got in the comments below.
Love it Jenny and it is an affirmation to me that the foundation I’m building now (sans waiting list!) is going to help me “go pro” in the long-run (or rather start pro and stay pro!).
I engage in all of the activities you mention now with the exception of hosting free calls and webinars…but that’s on the horizon, and I’m SO excited to share my knowledge, experience, and tools with others in this way!
Yay to “start pro, stay pro.” Love that, Sabrina!
Totally sounds like you’re on the right track. Woo-hoo!!
I once heard a metaphor about this that I really liked. It’s been awhile, so I’m a little fuzzy on exactly how it went, but the general idea is that reactive marketing is like being dependent on a rainy day for getting water to your crops. At times there’s a lot of rain. Other times there’s not enough. It’s uneven and unpredictable.
On the other hand, proactive marketing is like setting up a system to capture as much rain as you can every rainy day. Then you’re in charge of distributing the water. The dry periods go away.
When you’re set up to always be building your list you’re filling up your storage unit of potential clients. You can draw from this resource whenever you like. So empowering!
You always have great insights and examples, Ali! Great analogy with the crops and the rain–explains it perfectly.
Thanks for sharing that here along with your always-great attitude!
Love this article, Jenny!
My first response was – it’s smart business to keep growing your waitlist. Who wouldn’t want to do that?
But what I love about your focus today is that proactive marketing is best built-into your business. It makes connecting with your people a habit rather than a spur of the moment need-based decision. The latter doesn’t feel like a healthy sustainable place to run a business from.
I also LOVE how you point out that your potential clients will be able to feel your “needy” energy. I feel honest and empowered when my actions are part of a routine rather than when I need something. I strongly feel that I’m in business to be of service and you can’t only be of service when it’s convenient for you to get more clients. Serving is a 24/7 job. Thank you for this awesome read!
Sara – You said it better than I did!: Proactive marketing is build into your business.
You also make a good point that making service part of a routine habit removes the needy energy from it. Nice work.
Thanks for your insightful comments (and everyone else, too). Loving the clarity and depth you all are adding to the conversation!
Dear Jenny,
Brilliant blog…your proactive list is very helpful to me and building my “1000” list. Although the steps seem like a no brainer, they are so simple that we could miss them. You have outlined exactly what it takes in the list. Do I do them all…nope…and will as I build muscle in this process.
Thank you for being spot on…you constantly inspire and amaze me.
Love,
Susan
Always happy to see you here, Susan!
I love that you’re going after your first 1000!! You are on the right track, and I know you’re doing the things that are helping you move in the right direction — I know that about you!
Love your list Jenny- it is simple and clear. I guess my biggest problem is that I can understand all of that theoretically, but it is hard to squeeze it all into my calendar while still working FT (and slowly transitioning into my own biz). I struggle with doing it all consistently! Would you say there are any of these suggestions that should have more priority over another for someone like me who can suffer from overwhelm trying to do it all in my evenings/weekends?
I love that you bring up the fact that prospects can feel your ‘needy energy.’
One coach told me she knew someone who emailed everyone she knew saying she was having a tough time finding clients and was wondering if anyone wanted to be coached. I know her heart was in the right place but no one wants to be coached out of desperation.
Thanks, Jenny!
Interesting! I’m certainly not against emailing people to encourage them to work with you. In fact I think it’s a great idea even if you have a full client load or waiting list, but going in with “I’m having a hard time finding clients,” probably isn’t the best way to get them.
Thanks for the reminder and for your continued support and insights here, Jenna!
great post Jenny! good tips for all business owners 🙂
I will be working my way through that list in 2013. I’d say I’ve only been doing about half of them so far…
Thanks for this Jenny. Been taking some time off for maternity and been very reactive and just starting my proactive marketing again – it feels so much more empowering for me and better for my potential clients too.
Love it, Caroline! Sometimes it’s good to have the contrast of doing what we don’t like to see how much we love the other approach. Have fun and enjoy the rewards of proactive marketing!
Great article – such great reinforcement from MIWO! This rings so true to me – my #1 challenge. While I truly do have a full plate, I think my lack of action is procrastination from fear – freezing? I think I’m afraid of greater success! Anyway, I’m going to get serious about this and start taking action. Thank you!
One of the things you can do is get curious about why you don’t take action (when that pops up). Sometimes it’s fear, sometimes it’s that we have questions. (Remember the 4 Tendencies? This is so true for Questioners!) And even if it is fear, remember that discomfort is okay!
Check this out: https://jennyshih.com/2016/08/stop-playing-safe-getting-comfort-zone-will-lead-highly-successful-business/
Keep up the action-taking and you’ll get the results you want. I’m cheering you on!
I was 100% a reactive marketer before! Especially as 1:1 service provider with my clients, and the time client work would take, I would fall off completely from my social media and email marketing client-getting activities. And then when my 2-3 months of contracted work would end, I’d have to go deep into client getting mode, and this kept happening over and over. I finally made it an official weekly priority to be of service on social media on M,W,Fs and to be 100% committed to sending a newsletter and blog to my list every week – even when I’m fully booked with client work. And so far I’ve been famine free for the past 3 months!
I can’t recommend the system Jenny’s outlined above enough. And as she recommended, just choose 2-3 of them to be wholly committed to doing. It works!!
I LOVE THIS, Jessica! It makes me so happy to hear that the new habits stuck… and I bet they’re paying off massively!
It’s been so fun to watch you make all of these awesome pivots in your business, taking you squarely into your zone of genius and stepping into the great work you do for your clients (and all those future clients). Woot!
What’s the best way to follow up with prospects without sounding pushy/needy etc.? And what if I’m not sure if I really want to work with someone with whom I had a sales call?
You have me chuckling, Shifra, because this reminds me of our chat on the coaching call where the answer is truly “it depends” 🙂
There’s a lot that goes into follow-ups, including (but not limited to):
* how warm the prospect is
* where they are in your sales process (eg, just finding out about you versus having had many conversations with you)
* the tone of your conversations so far
* where and how you’re following up (eg, in Facebook messenger after they saw a comment you made or over email after a sales consult)
… you get the idea.
One of the things I love to help my clients with is tailoring these responses to the prospect, the situation, and the offer so they get it “just right.” When they give me all of the context, I can give much more targeted input.
I do have a download with follow-up scripts for after sales consults. You can check it out here: https://jennyshih.com/follow-up-email-samples/
And on your last question, you totally should NOT work with someone if they’re not the right fit. I have a whole section on that in my consult script (https://jennyshih.com/consults). Here’s what it says:
///
ASK YOURSELF, ARE THEY THE RIGHT CLIENT FOR ME?
If they’re not a good fit…
“Sell” them on not working with you and find a way to take care of them anyway (because they’ll love you for it)
I get the sense that I’m not the best [whatever you call yourself] for you because [your reason why]. And I don’t want to take your money if I can’t get you the results you’re looking for.
[pause to let it sink in and see what they think — they may agree with you!]
How about this? As soon as we hang up, I will email you some other resources/ coaches/books that I think can help you with what you’re up against, so you can get what you need. Would that be okay?
[close out the call however feels good to you.]
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Good luck!