Training Tip Tuesday: Who is Your Ideal Client?
Here we are, nearing the end of the second week of 2022 and we ask the question: Have you identified your Ideal Client? Is your New Year - New You mantra holding strong or has life interrupted your flow? The good news is that no matter where you lie in that space, the calendar still says January and there are 50 more weeks ahead to refocus. And what a coincidence, it’s Training Tip Tuesday, so read on for a skill you can practice today to improve your conversations.
Many of our gym members’ work responsibilities include business development, even if their title indicates nothing about sales. The feedback we receive from these members regularly describes a frustration about meeting sales goals. They feel under-equipped to manage this role and never anticipated needing to learn about sales. One common frustration is the amount of time they can spend with a potential client to then watch them end contact and do business with another organization. They thought the process was going so smoothly and they nurtured that relationship. What went wrong?
Too often the problem is that this client was never their Ideal Client.
Example: You may sell widgets and this suspect needs to buy widgets to manufacture their product, but this does not mean they are your Ideal Client. Perhaps you have been speaking to the wrong person the entire time. You should be speaking to the decision-maker. Maybe your widgets are the incorrect size, the wrong color, or they are currently doing business with their second cousin’s daughter. Do they have a problem that you and your company are uniquely qualified to solve? Of course, it could be purely economical. Your widgets may be priced too high for this suspect to consider buying from you. Do you know their budget? Lastly, this suspect may not be interested in making a decision this month or this quarter. They may not even know when they would like to change providers for their widgets. Knowing when the suspect will be ready to take action is crucial.
Until the suspect meets all four criteria, you have not found your Ideal Client.
Take a moment and identify the four key attributes of your Ideal Client:
Decision Maker
The problem you/your company are uniquely qualified to solve
Budget
Timeline
Once you clarify WHO your Ideal Client is, you will suddenly find them everywhere! Have you heard of the Baader-Meinhof Phenomenon or Red Car Syndrome? That’s when you see, buy or learn something new and suddenly you see it everywhere. Harness this to help you discover and engage the opportunities that are important to you, in this case, spending time with your Ideal Clients.
Today’s practice focuses you on these 4 Key Attributes. Now that you have identified them, record yourself repeating them on your phone and listen daily. The goal is that within a few days, you will be able to recite them from memory.
You may just find that you have been focusing your sales efforts on the wrong people.
With a clear vision of whose problems you are uniquely positioned to solve, your new energy will attract Ideal Clients.
One of the programs we offer at The Communication Gym is our coach-led Ideal Client Professional Practice Group. We have groups with non-competing peers in various business sectors in addition to exclusive groups for company teams. In these groups, our members learn and practice communication skills to attract, earn and retain the business of their Ideal Clients. Learn more here.
