Are Clients Just Trickling In? The 4 Questions You Must Ask Yourself Before You’ll Fill Your Client Roster

How confident are you about the long-term viability of your business?

If you’re like many business women I hear from, you may have some serious doubts. You’re full of great ideas and good intentions but there’s one major problem…

Clients are dripping in slowly—if at all.

You knew getting into this that your business would be a labor of love. But holy moly this is a lot of labor!

Maybe you’re just starting out and you’re doing everything you think you should be doing, but it doesn’t seem to be paying off.

Or maybe you’ve been at this for awhile and your clients aren’t coming as steadily as you’d like.

Or maybe the clients you get aren’t the right fit, so you’re starting to feel resentful.

Whichever sounds like your particular situation, know that you’re not alone.

You’re working long hours, reading all the blogs, and trying so many things. But at the end of the day, you don’t feel like you have anything to show for it.

You’re wondering what the heck is going on and what to do about it.

Today I’m going to help you solve this problem in two ways:

First, I’m going to tell you why the marketing advice you’ve likely been following isn’t working for you. (It’s not your fault!)

Second, I’m going to share the right advice that will finally help you attract your right people, whether you’re new to your business or have seen some success and are ready for more.

This one shift could change the trajectory of your business.

What Traditional Marketing Teaches You

What I love about you—and all of my clients—is that you’re proactive. You’re trying to run your business the right way, so you learn as much as you can and take action on it.

But there’s a problem.

Most of the marketing advice you read says something like this: “Figure out what your customer wants and give them that.”

Although that’s a sound approach, most business owners don’t know what that really means.

Let’s break it down this way:

When you’re trying to figure out what your customer wants, you’re probably putting yourself in your client’s shoes and asking these kind of questions:

• Do you want private coaching or a group program?
• Do you want a class about THIS or about THAT?
• Would you like 2, 3, or 4 sessions a month?

It makes sense that these questions are your initial instinct. After all, you want to make sure you’re giving your clients exactly what they’re looking for.

In essence, this is what you’re asking:

• What will people buy?
• What should I charge?

Again, it seems logical! You don’t want to waste your time creating an offer, package, or program that people won’t buy.

Right?

No. Here’s why.

Why What You’re Doing Is All Wrong

As logical as those questions seem, they are NOT the questions you should be asking!

When marketers say that you need to figure out what your customers wants and give them that, what they mean is that you should focus on the RESULTS your customers want and give them those results.

But as for HOW those results are delivered, you know best! You’re the expert, not your clients!

When you ask the questions mentioned earlier, you get useless answers because your clients don’t know HOW to get the RESULTS they want most.

If your clients knew HOW to get the results they wanted, they’d already be doing it.

Click to TweetYour clients don’t know HOW to get the RESULT they want, or they’d already be doing it!

So you need to ask different questions.

The Right Questions to Ask

To get more clients, it’s important to ask yourself the right questions.

Question #1: What results do my clients want?

What do your clients want to have, do, be, or feel after working with you? Remember to focus on the outcome and benefits of working with you rather than the exact process.

Question #2: What skills do I have to best give them that result?

What are you uniquely or especially good at doing that helps your clients get results? Do you ask deep, insightful questions? Do you pinpoint strategies better than anyone else?

Question #3: How am I best equipped to give them that result (or better)?

How is it that you work best with clients to give them the results they want (or even better results)? For example, do you thrive in long, multi-hour intense sessions, or short, quick sessions where you’re “in and out”? Or, do you do best with clients when you have a structured approach to your programs, or are you best when going off-the-cuff and freeform?

Question #4: What would I love to do that will give them great results?

When you combine your answers to questions 1, 2, and 3, what offer or package emerges that is unique to YOU and your clients’ desired results, ones that you’d LOVE to deliver?

Yes, you should focus on the results your clients want, AND you also have to look at what YOU love to do and how you love to deliver it. (Because you as an unhappy service provider working at the whim of your client is a terrible idea!)

While the advice is still the same—figure out what your customers want and give them that—the approach I’m suggesting is very different from what your instinct might be.

And for good reason! There are three important reasons to do it this way:

1. You’ll love your business and your clients. No frustration or resentment. (And who doesn’t want that?)
2. You’ll provide phenomenal results that people will be thrilled to rave about.
3. This is what will actually help you get clients, because you’re aligned with yourself and what people want and talking right to the results they want to get (that you’re thrilled to help them get)

One Strategy for All Levels of Business

One important note: This isn’t just a strategy for beginners. This is THE strategy whether you’re new or advanced.

That means, this is the right approach for you if you’re trying to Make It Work Online by getting your business off the ground and making a steady income.

And this is the right approach if you’ve been running your business for awhile and you’re ready to make $10k/month.

This is THE strategy that will get you started AND get you to the next level. It’s the one I use for my clients and for my own business. It’s the strategy you should be using, too.

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