There's a question in my intake packet for new clients
titled, "What is holding you back or slowing your
progress?", as it relates to attracting all the clients
they need and having a full practice. Having worked with
hundreds and hundreds of clients over the years, I've seen
it all. Other than "no knowledge of marketing," one thing
seems to come up over and over again, and it happened again
this week, with a brand new client.
The client answered this: "Sometimes, the ‘Little
Voice' inside me asks, ‘Who needs my program anyway?
This is basic information that I offer. People already know
this stuff!'" This is so common, but in most every case,
this is absolutely not accurate.
I have to admit, in the past, I too have taken for granted
what I already know and teach everyday and started
questioning my value in the marketplace. For example, when
I was teaching holistic nutrition years ago, I sometimes
wondered why people were paying me (or WOULD pay me) to
teach them about whole foods versus processed foods. To me,
it was a no-brainer that brown rice was more healthful than
white. But to a person who grew up on Twinkies, it was
crucial that I explain it to them in detail, and then the
shortcuts to fitting in those brand new foods into their
busy life.
I would also question the value of the cooking classes I
gave once a month to 15 or 20 people crammed in my living
room. As I was stirring carrots and onions on my Coleman
grill in the middle of my tiny apartment, I couldn't help
but think "Are these simple recipes REALLY of value to
them?" (I'd been through serious Boot Camp at the French
Culinary Institute, so this came naturally to me.) But they
kept showing up, asking questions, and referring friends.
Go figure!
Even in the early years of my business coaching practice, I
sometimes wondered about my value. Clients asked me daily
about the secrets of getting clients to call THEM and
making a lot more mo-ney with smart marketing techniques
and even smarter systems. For me, it was now ingrained and
like second nature. I took for granted that I knew it, and
because I'd been doing it for so long and knew that it
worked, I thought everyone knew it too and that it was
common sense.
On the contrary! What's common knowledge for us, is a
secret to someone else. Because we "bathe" in our
information all day long, and for years, we start taking
for granted what we know. We forget what we know is
actually a secret many others would do anything and
everything to discover. It becomes the answer to their most
pressing problem. It becomes the solution others have been
praying for. And that's when they call us.
If you're in this situation, you are probably
OVER-estimating what everybody else knows. The more common
what you teach is to YOU and the longer you do what it is
you do, the more you tend to undervalue what you know.
The irony here, as I've discovered, is that the more we
teach things to our clients in SIMPLE terms, the happier
they are, the more referrals we get and the more we make.
It's not the convoluted teachings that people are looking
for. It's the practical and simple solutions.
The real shame about the whole undervaluing what you know
is that as a result, you may be undercharging for what you
offer. This is actually one of the major reasons why most
people don't have enough clients. Because they don't see
value in what they offer, they don't charge enough, and
there is therefore a low perception of value from the
prospective client's point of view. They then go somewhere
else for the same exact information. Talk about a
self-fulfilling prophecy!
Some entrepreneurs even go so far as discounting their
services, or offering a sliding scale, because of their
lack of confidence and low perception of value in what they
offer. In my book, discounting is a BIG no-no. Again, it
portrays a devalued product or service and it's NOT Client
Attractive.
Your Assignment:
Notice that your clients came to YOU for the information
you take for granted. Sometimes, they may even have known
some of what you know, but didn't have the discipline,
accountability, resources or structure to do it on their
own. Many of my clients KNOW how to attract other clients,
they're already somewhat successful, but they don't have
the discipline or accountability to do it consistently on
their own. So we do it together. This is actually my
favorite type of scenario, because these clients are very
driven and since we're not starting from scratch in the
learning process, we move at warp speed.
Be confident in what you offer. Read your testimonials over
and over until your confidence comes back.
See yourself as their problem solver. Charge accordingly
and never discount your services. Ever.
If you're not sure how much to charge or how to position
your value in the marketplace, then it's time to take
action and invest in a step-by-step marketing system that
will feel easy and authentic to you.
----------------------------------------------------
The Client Attraction Home Study System avoids all the
unnecessary stuff and instead gives you the most important
things to do to set up simple, solid systems, so that you
consistently fill your pipeline and continually get new
clients. It's all step-by-step, not a big mishmash of
things. So, you do step one of the system, and when your
done with that, you move on to step two and so on. You can
get it at http://TheClientAttractionSystem.com
No comments:
Post a Comment