Winning Clients with Ease – Part 2: The Things that Make The Difference!
Whilst I cram my morning with a couple of conference calls and put the finishing touches to my second book before Wimbledon gets going at lunchtime (I love the sound of the ‘thwack’ of tennis balls and the grass courts always look so perfectly manicured!) I wanted to share with you what I’m finding is making a real difference when it comes to attracting clients.
The thing is when I first started out running my own coaching and training business a few years back, after I did my ‘formal’ training (certified NLP Trainer), I was advised by well-meaning experienced business-people or colleagues at the time that I had to ‘behave’ in a certain way to get clients, “Desi you need to be more pushy” OR “Desi you’ve got to learn how to sell …hard!!” …Er, WHAT?! I loathe the whole concept around ‘hard-sell’ and that is the quickest and easiest way to rub me up the wrong way! And I’m sure you don’t like ‘hard-sell’ either! You don’t have to be a ‘different person’ nor ‘pushy’ in order to win more clients.
I’m not suggesting that I’ve got all the answers and of course, different methods work for different people but what I can say is that the methods I’ve adopted – which fit with my values and levels of integrity – mean that I don’t actually ‘sell’ (yep, I don’t sell. Just make it easy for people to really want buy – abit like deciding to buy that new pair of shoes, handbag or the latest gadget, and that feels good!), I only seem to attract nice clients and those who I actually enjoy working with. That way everyone is happy and attracting new clients and nurturing existing clients boils down to just a few simple straightforward concepts that fit with who YOU are and enable you to increase your client base whilst being authentically you. These are the concepts that I have found to work really well:-
*the clarity of your message and how concise it is (your elevator pitch and what you stand for)
*how your message is received (are people inspired, educated, buzzing and curious by your message?)
*how well you come across (how you present yourself)
*a call to action and close the deal (what would you like people to do and how do you make it easy for them to say ‘yes’ without ‘selling’)
*your internal thoughts and beliefs (are they supportive and encouraging or doubtful?)
*confidence in yourself, your product & your service (it will be transmitted unconsciously!)
*your credibility, charisma and likeability (the magnetic X-Factor!)
*passion, enthusiasm, focus and tenacity (keep going!)
*how authentic you are (are you comfortable being YOU?)
*how trustworthy and sincere you appear (when you are speaking, does your body language and your verbal language match?)
*whether prospects believe (often unconsciously!) that you can deliver the results they want
You’ve heard the term ‘people buy people’… Well, this is purely deconstructing the process! And it gets even better – people will make a snap judgement about you in less than 3 seconds! So how you come across is key! You don’t get a second chance to make a good first impression! No pressure! 😉
In the meantime you can download my FREE mini e-booklet “10 Ways to Make a Magnetic 1st Impression” which is available for a limited time on my websiteand you can claim your copy by entering your name and email address on the boxes on the right-hand side and press the subscribe button!
Until then, I’m off to enjoy a bowl of freshly-picked strawberries and cream (and catch an hour or so of Wimbledonbefore client sessions this afternoon!) and know that the sun is only a moment away from shining brightly… And that means, that you too, are only a few thoughts, beliefs and behaviours away from attracting clients much more easily 🙂
Bye for now
Love,
Desi x