Posted by JuJuan Buford @JSBUFORD
Who is your target market? Your ideal client? Or buyer persona?
Understanding who your ideal customer really is, or what many refer to as your buyer persona is critical. It doesn’t mean you dismiss potential clients, but you need to know who is already seeking or predisposed to patronize you, don’t need much in the way of education regarding your value proposition, and can easily afford your services. Your branding, marketing and prospecting techniques, and how you execute your client services should all be geared to attract and retain your ideal client.
Besides, not being willing to do the work. This unarguably kills a small business faster than anything else. There is a famous axiom out there about money not being everything. Well, it is, if you don't have it. Capital is the lifeblood of your business. The following questions are designed to help you put together a process to help you consistently enjoy cash flow.
In order to curate processes that work, you must identify the habits that work. This lays the groundwork for you, the self employed entrepreneur, to grow from a team of ME to a team of WE. In other words, transition from being a practitioner or creative that is owned by their business, to becoming a business owner, building an asset (organism that breathes, produces, and re-produces) that generates revenues independently of you having to do everything.
Let's begin!!
CREATE A LIST The list is your starting block. In the previous questionnaire you were asked to identify your niche and the 3 unique characteristics that set you apart from the rest of the field. Now it's time to identify those individuals or business entities that will be most receptive to both. At some point you are going to establish a database/CRM of all your prospects and clients, so you can track your progress and quickly identify where your process may be failing you, or serving your interests.
How big should the list be? Big list. Big checks. Small list. Small checks. No list. No checks. I encourage you to start a Project 100: build a list of prospects until you reach 100 names on your list. For those working in the B2C market (to a lesser extent the B2B market), the following memory jogger may be helpful.
WRITE DOWN YOUR PROCESS Your process is the track you run on. Every professional, entrepreneur, and business has a process. If you don't have a process, that is your process. Processes allow you to inventory your RGAs (revenue generating activities) systemically, and the predictability of your business is found in your RGAs. It is where the fodder is found to begin to make projections about your profitability in the future.
Not having a proven process is tantamount to waking up, jumping in your car, and attempting to drive to an overseas destination you've never visited before without a map or a compass. For the purposes of this exercise, I'm going to provide a simplified process that applies to most business models generally.
- How do I ensure that new people are learning about my business on a daily basis?
- Social Media Campaigns,
- Inboxing Prospects Online,
- Cold Calling,
- Referrals,
- Email Campaigns,
- Door Knocking,
- Networking Events,
- Open Houses,
- etc.
- How many new people do I need to introduce to my business on a daily basis for it to be viable?
- What kind of tools or marketing artifacts am I going to use to introduce my business offerings?
- Once a new prospect is aware of my services or products, how do I help them make an educated buying decision?
- Landing Pages & Sales Funnels
- Invitation to a Zoom Presentation or Webcast
- Schedule a One on One Appointment
- Social Media Tutorial or Presentation: YouTube, Instagram, SoundCloud, etc.
- Website
- Invite to a Demonstration
- Seminars
- etc.
- How many guests (people who have seen a presentation of some kind) must learn about my presentation in order to onboard a new client?
Here is a simplified formula I still employ to this day, when I’m attempting to assess the amount of work and resources I will need to employ to reach my target.
Simplified Formula for Sales Success
Your income goal per month:
Average compensation / NOI (net operating income) per sale:
What is your closing percentage?
Days per week (52 weeks/12 months) = 4.33
Number of days per week you will work building your dream:
Example:
Income Goal $8,333.33 divided by,
Average Compensation $300 divided by,
Closing Ration 30% divided by
Days per Week 4.33 divided by
Chosen Number of Work Days 5 = 4.5 presentations daily
- Once I’ve taken on a new client, what steps am I going to take to make sure they are a happy client?
- What is the System for Following Up to Confirm Their Satisfaction?
- How Do I Confirm or Deliver the Guarantee?
- How Do I Ensure Services/Products are Meeting Expectations?
- How Do I Continually Engage My Client After Their Purchase?
- What process do I have in place to obtain referrals on a consistent basis?
- Email Campaigns
- Phone Calls
- Text Messages
- CRM - Automated Messages
- Do I have a Script/s?
- Social Media Group, Membership Club, Subscription
- etc.
Over the course of time you want to be very intentional about documenting your scripts and inventorying what tools you are using. WHY? When it’s time to grow from a team of ME to a team of WE, this process will reduce your hiring, training, and supervisory expenses. Plan with the end in mind.
Give your process or approach a name. In one of my organizations, I refer to it as Our Uplifting Service Agreement. Once you’ve named (branded) your process, at some point you’ll want to create some type of marketing artifact, logo, symbol, or image that people can identify with your process (prospects, clients, and employees alike).
Company Site > https://thebufordco.com/
Who is JuJuan Buford > https://bit.ly/JuJuanBufordOfficial
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