We all love working with our Ideal Clients. They value what we offer, communicate well, are forward thinking and reasonable, have a good sense of humor, and will give the time, money, and resources to make our business projects successful.
When we have an Ideal Client, our sales time collapses, productivity soars, deals are larger, and these Ideal Clients are thrilled to refer us to other Ideal Clients -never to a P.I.T.A. (pain in the ass).
Create the Profile
Create a crisp profile of your Ideal Client so that you can recognize perfect opportunities when they arise. These Ideal Clients are those you want to serve and the ones you will bend head over heels for. Think of yourself as a sketch artist: the more color, lines, and detail you present, the easier it will be for others to recognize and identify with your Ideal Client and refer them to you.
For some salespeople, being super-specific in describing their Ideal Client may feel confining; as if they’re leaving good business on the table. We often think that if we don’t mention everything we offer we’ll miss a sale. The opposite is true. The more specific we are, the easier it will be for someone to refer us. You want to be recognized as the expert. Clients buy expertise, not one-size-fits-all. So be specific, targeted, and concise.
Create a description of your Ideal Client using the following categories:
- Industry: Which industries do you want your clients to come from; where does your business have a track record? In which industry (or industries) are you interested in doing new business?
- Geography: Where would these customers be based? (Regions of the United States, North America, Europe, Asia, Middle East, or Africa?)
- Company Size: How large would the company you would most like to work with be and how do you measure its size (number of employees, revenue, length of time in business, or geographic coverage)?
- Business Unit or Function: What group of people within the company are your ideal contacts-CEOs, CIOs, COOs, HR employees, or sales or marketing teams?
- Type of Person: What are the personality traits of your Ideal Client (a client who is responsible or dedicated or someone with integrity or a sense of humor)?
- Situation/Need: What kind of situation makes your help necessary to your Ideal Client? Some ideas:
- “My sales team isn’t performing”
- “Our teams are not working together”
- “We’ve just acquired another business”
- “We have difficulty recruiting the right talent”
- “We don’t have enough clients”
- “Our systems are at capacity”
- “We’ll be acquiring more businesses”…
…you get the idea.
It’s not difficult to find an Ideal Client and they know others just like themselves. Referral to the Ideal Client is within our reach! We get what we ask for, so ask for exactly what you want.
Grow Your Business
A winning sales system isn’t about the number of proposals we write or the number of clients we have. It’s about getting and keeping the right clients-those Ideal Clients who will produce the revenue and profits we want, and those who will readily refer us to others just like themselves.
In asking for and receiving referrals from your Ideal Clients, you’ll be in touch with exactly the people you want to meet and who want to meet you. You will see that you can actually have fewer leads and get more business. Your biggest challenge will be managing the follow-up on your new clients. Now, there’s a productive and exciting way to spend sales time.
