Mastering the art of client acquisition is the same as mastering anything else. It takes focus, discipline, determination and most of all implementation. Most people have the focus and motivation but when it comes to discipline and determination things tend to get a little shaky. And when there’s no discipline and no determination, you can be sure that there’s no implementation.
Client acquisition is the most popular topic in all of business. And for good reason. If you don’t have people purchasing your product or service, then you don’t have any revenue which means you don’t have a business at all.
However, most people miss the forest for the trees and don’t really have a well-defined sales process so that when they onboard new clients everything from initial contact all the way through deliverables works seamlessly.
Then you have the businesses that only have one product or service and no upsell or cross-sell opportunities. These businesses do one thing and often do it very well but are shooting themselves in the foot when it comes to opportunities to improve. There is of course the missed profits and revenues. And then there’s the problem of failing your client by not providing – or at least referring – complementary products and services.
When a client chooses you and your establishment to serve them, they are trusting you to not only do what you say you can do but also provide them with the tools and information to move their lives forward with anything and everything that is complementary to the original purchase.
Mastering the art of client acquisition comes down to defining what you can do for your ideal client and keeping their interests top of mind as you serve them. It is a mindset of providing the very best quantity and quality of service that you can provide.
Mastering Client Acquisition in 7 Steps
- Decide that you are going to provide the absolute best service in your industry
- Get emotionally involved by asking yourself how you will improve your clients’ quality of life with your new commitment
- Assess the tools and environment necessary to providing the absolute best service and start immediately with what you have right in front of you
- Delete distractions and anything that does not assist you in providing the absolute best service, no matter what it is. These are external forces.
- Identify any and every behavior and belief pattern that does not allow you to provide the absolute best service in your industry. These are internal forces.
- Learn and grow by studying best practices for your industry, put your spin on them and implement into your business immediately
- Commit to true mastery and continue to learn and grow despite how the implementation of the previous six steps has dramatically improved your business. Failure to do so will lead you to having to start all over again.
Mastery is not some hidden, cryptic, mystical thing that only the special among us can achieve. It is truly something that each and every one of us possess the ability to achieve. Mastering the art of client acquisition is your responsibility as a business person and will dramatically change the lives of you and your clients.
Your Turn
What are your thoughts on this update? Will it help you acquire more clients?
Let me know in the comments below!
P.S. We expanded on this topic with two exercises. Here’s the first part.