A desperate entrepreneur contacted me recently. "I need to get clients immediately," she said. "I've been trying for months with no success, and I'm almost out of money." When I asked her how she had been marketing herself all this time, she gave me the following list of what she had been doing:
* Attending networking events where she met people, introduced herself, and exchanged business cards
* Launched a brochure-style website describing her services
* Purchased ads in several directories where businesses like hers were featured
* Printed some flyers and posted them on bulletin boards around town
Now here's some of what she hadn't been doing:
* Never asked any of the people she met at networking events to have coffee, get better acquainted, or find out more about their needs
* Never looked around her community to see who might be a good referral source and ask them to consider referring business to her
* Never told her friends and former co-workers about her new business and asked them to let others know about it
* Never asked anyone else in her profession where they found their clients
In other words, she had never asked anyone for help, even though she was drowning.
I've heard sad stories like this many times over the 18 years that I've been helping entrepreneurs find clients. It seems there is a persistent myth that the "right" way to get clients is to do it all on your own. Yes, many entrepreneurs do tend to be Lone Rangers and enjoy their independence, but this determined avoidance of asking for help goes beyond ordinary self-reliance. It's almost as if these business owners had been told getting help was illegal.
Because of this pervasive do-it-all-yourself attitude, I hear from many entrepreneurs that they are embarrassed or ashamed to ask for any assistance. One business owner told me, "I was really struggling, but I couldn't ask anyone to help me, because then they would think I was a failure." Tragically, by refusing to ask for help, he was actually causing himself to fail.
Let's bust this myth wide open, here and now. Successful people ask for help all the time. It's how they become successful. That is how the business world works. Entrepreneurs do not build successful businesses all on their own. They build them with the help of their family, friends, neighbors, colleagues, networking contacts, customers, and fans.
Here are five approaches to get started with asking for help to build your business right now.
1. Ask and ye shall receive.
If you've been feeling held back by believing that asking for help is somehow weak, presumptuous, or taking unfair advantage, let those feelings go. Give yourself permission to ask for help, recognizing that all around you, people more successful than you are doing exactly that in order to succeed.
The people already in your life -- family, friends, colleagues -- truly want to give you their support. They just need to be asked, and shown how. If you have not yet told every single person you know about your business, now is the time. Tell them what services you offer, the type of clients you are seeking, and ask them to please spread the word about how you can help the people they know.
2. Make your requests specific.
First, make sure you are actually asking, and not just hinting. Direct requests are much more likely to produce results. Say, "Would you introduce me to your friend?" instead of, "It would be good to meet your friend sometime, but I know you're awfully busy."
Second, be specific about what you're asking. Saying, "Please refer me some clients," is nowhere near as effective a request as, "The best clients for me are people who care about their health and are suffering from back, neck, or joint pain. Do you know anyone like that?"
3. Offer something in return.
People are more likely to respond to your requests -- and you'll feel better about making them -- when you offer something in return. When speaking with entrepreneurs, ask who would be a good client for them, and how you can best refer likely prospects. When speaking with others, just ask them: "What can I do for you?" Simply showing your willingness to make the relationship reciprocal is often enough for both of you to feel comfortable about your request.
4. Make your request appropriate to the relationship.
You'd be amazed how often I get emails like the following: "I'm brand new in business, and I do exactly what you do. I imagine you get more inquiries from prospective clients than you can handle. Would you refer some of those to me?" I applaud these folks for taking the initiative to ask, but a request like this isn't appropriate to make of a complete stranger.
Spend some time getting acquainted before asking for a referral. Entrepreneurs who share your target market, but don't do the same work, are ideal candidates to become referral partners. When you encounter successful people who are essentially your competitors, ask them to share their wisdom about where to find good clients. You'll find that most other entrepreneurs will be happy to help you when you approach them with reciprocity and respect.
5. Don't wait until you've made it.
If you wait until your business takes off to let friends and colleagues know about it, you will lose out on the most likely source of referrals most new businesses have. If you wait for clients to send you referrals instead of reaching out to likely referral partners, you may never have enough clients to make those referrals. If you wait for people you meet while networking to contact you instead of contacting them to ask how you can help, you may be waiting a very long time.
Asking for help is not cheating. It's how anything important ever gets done. Stop struggling all alone! Start asking for help, and you'll also start building your business.
Copyright © 2009, C.J. Hayden
Read more free articles by C.J. Hayden or subscribe to the GET CLIENTS NOW! E-Letter.
Thursday, March 4, 2010
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
Beware of Chile Earthquake Scams
In the wake of the earthquakes in Chile and Haiti, we wanted to remind you that whenever there is a major natural or other disaster, scammers begin sending out charity relief scams and other scams almost immediately. We've created special updates on what scams abound and how to protect yourself from Chile earthquake scams and Haiti earthquake scams, since the same scams will show up for the Chile earthquake.
Click Here to read the full article.
©Copyright Audri and Jim Lanford. All rights reserved.
Reprinted with permission.
Subscribe free to Internet Scambusters at
http://www.scambusters.org
Click Here to read the full article.
©Copyright Audri and Jim Lanford. All rights reserved.
Reprinted with permission.
Subscribe free to Internet Scambusters at
http://www.scambusters.org
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
NOTHING TO FEAR BUT FEAR ITSELF C.J. Hayden, MCC
There's no question that the economic news of the past few weeks has been alarming. The stock market has dropped, unemployment is up, and consumer spending is down. We're seeing banks and brokerage houses collapse, retirement account values plummet, and working families lose their homes. It's pretty scary stuff for independent professionals who rely on other people's budgets and spending habits to pay their own bills.
In the depths of the Great Depression, Franklin D. Roosevelt declared in his inaugural speech, "The only thing we have to fear is fear itself." He described that fear as the "nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror which paralyzes needed efforts to convert retreat into advance." FDR's message was that the real danger was not the economic conditions themselves, but the prospect that we would become immobilized by our fear of them.
Even in ordinary times, fear can be one of the most powerful saboteurs of marketing. When we fear rejection, we avoid making follow-up calls or asking for the sale. When we fear embarrassment, we avoid networking or public speaking. And when we fear failure, we avoid taking action that might also lead to our success. Believing that "nobody's buying right now" can turn those words into a self-fulfilling prophecy.
Instead of letting fear of an economic slowdown immobilize you, try using it to energize you. Here are six steps you can take to counteract fear and keep your marketing on track.
1. Step up your marketing instead of stepping back. Now is the time to do more marketing rather than less. If you've been attending one networking event per month, make it two or three. If you haven't been reaching out to likely referral sources regularly, contact them all, and stay in touch. If you have a stack of leads you haven't followed up on, pick up the phone. Identify which marketing approaches have worked well for you in the past, then start using them more often.
2. Don't let bad news wreck your day. One of my clients was completely derailed from following his marketing plan twice last week after reading the morning headlines before starting his day. I'm not suggesting you put your head in the sand; we should all try to be informed citizens. But if the news is getting you down, plan to work on marketing first thing in the morning -- and do it before reading the news, getting online, or checking your email.
3. Aim for a fuller pipeline. When more people than usual are saying no, you need to have more people than usual to ask for the sale. Ask your clients, colleagues, and friends to introduce you to likely prospects they may know. Make the acquaintance of influential people with large personal networks. Search out leads in the trade press, social networks, and professional associations you belong to. Cast your net more widely than you have in the past to identify new prospects.
4. Keep a positive attitude and a long-term perspective. Surround yourself with optimistic, proactive people and stay away from those who broadcast doom and gloom. Look for inspiration in stories, music, or films that make you feel positive and hopeful. Remember that economic downturns have happened many times in the past, and they don't last forever. You can't control the economy, but you CAN control your reaction to it.
5. Evaluate your spending. Scaling back on marketing is the wrong direction, but make sure you spend marketing dollars efficiently. A therapist client of mine was paying for listings in multiple consumer directories. With a full practice, she could afford this. But when business slowed, she tracked where her clients were coming from, and cancelled listings that weren't paying off. You may be able to cut spending on ads, memberships, and promotions that aren't producing results.
6. Put in place a recession-proof plan for the future. If despite your best efforts, you find yourself with extra time on your hands due to a decline in business, use it to implement a new marketing plan that will serve you in good times and bad. Institute a regular networking and follow-up schedule, develop referral partnerships, build up your web presence, or focus on writing and speaking. Any one of these strategies, employed over time, can keep your pipeline constantly full.
FDR's advice to a fearful nation was that we should not "shrink from honestly facing conditions" but also remember that "it can never be helped merely by talking about it. We must act and act quickly." The best way to counteract fear of what might go wrong is to keep taking action that will make things go right.
Copyright © 2009, C.J. Hayden
Read more free articles by C.J. Hayden or subscribe to the GET CLIENTS NOW! E-Letter.
In the depths of the Great Depression, Franklin D. Roosevelt declared in his inaugural speech, "The only thing we have to fear is fear itself." He described that fear as the "nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror which paralyzes needed efforts to convert retreat into advance." FDR's message was that the real danger was not the economic conditions themselves, but the prospect that we would become immobilized by our fear of them.
Even in ordinary times, fear can be one of the most powerful saboteurs of marketing. When we fear rejection, we avoid making follow-up calls or asking for the sale. When we fear embarrassment, we avoid networking or public speaking. And when we fear failure, we avoid taking action that might also lead to our success. Believing that "nobody's buying right now" can turn those words into a self-fulfilling prophecy.
Instead of letting fear of an economic slowdown immobilize you, try using it to energize you. Here are six steps you can take to counteract fear and keep your marketing on track.
1. Step up your marketing instead of stepping back. Now is the time to do more marketing rather than less. If you've been attending one networking event per month, make it two or three. If you haven't been reaching out to likely referral sources regularly, contact them all, and stay in touch. If you have a stack of leads you haven't followed up on, pick up the phone. Identify which marketing approaches have worked well for you in the past, then start using them more often.
2. Don't let bad news wreck your day. One of my clients was completely derailed from following his marketing plan twice last week after reading the morning headlines before starting his day. I'm not suggesting you put your head in the sand; we should all try to be informed citizens. But if the news is getting you down, plan to work on marketing first thing in the morning -- and do it before reading the news, getting online, or checking your email.
3. Aim for a fuller pipeline. When more people than usual are saying no, you need to have more people than usual to ask for the sale. Ask your clients, colleagues, and friends to introduce you to likely prospects they may know. Make the acquaintance of influential people with large personal networks. Search out leads in the trade press, social networks, and professional associations you belong to. Cast your net more widely than you have in the past to identify new prospects.
4. Keep a positive attitude and a long-term perspective. Surround yourself with optimistic, proactive people and stay away from those who broadcast doom and gloom. Look for inspiration in stories, music, or films that make you feel positive and hopeful. Remember that economic downturns have happened many times in the past, and they don't last forever. You can't control the economy, but you CAN control your reaction to it.
5. Evaluate your spending. Scaling back on marketing is the wrong direction, but make sure you spend marketing dollars efficiently. A therapist client of mine was paying for listings in multiple consumer directories. With a full practice, she could afford this. But when business slowed, she tracked where her clients were coming from, and cancelled listings that weren't paying off. You may be able to cut spending on ads, memberships, and promotions that aren't producing results.
6. Put in place a recession-proof plan for the future. If despite your best efforts, you find yourself with extra time on your hands due to a decline in business, use it to implement a new marketing plan that will serve you in good times and bad. Institute a regular networking and follow-up schedule, develop referral partnerships, build up your web presence, or focus on writing and speaking. Any one of these strategies, employed over time, can keep your pipeline constantly full.
FDR's advice to a fearful nation was that we should not "shrink from honestly facing conditions" but also remember that "it can never be helped merely by talking about it. We must act and act quickly." The best way to counteract fear of what might go wrong is to keep taking action that will make things go right.
Copyright © 2009, C.J. Hayden
Read more free articles by C.J. Hayden or subscribe to the GET CLIENTS NOW! E-Letter.
Scam Tricks and Spams: 20 Shockers to Keep You On Guard
Military strategists say your odds of beating an enemy are higher when you know the scale of their actions and understand their tactics.
When it comes to spam and scam wars, it's the same. Sadly, however, most people have no idea of the scale of the threat -- for example, that up to half of all PCs may be infected with malware.
Click Here to read more.
©Copyright Audri and Jim Lanford. All rights reserved.
Reprinted with permission.
Subscribe free to Internet Scambusters at
http://www.scambusters.org
When it comes to spam and scam wars, it's the same. Sadly, however, most people have no idea of the scale of the threat -- for example, that up to half of all PCs may be infected with malware.
Click Here to read more.
©Copyright Audri and Jim Lanford. All rights reserved.
Reprinted with permission.
Subscribe free to Internet Scambusters at
http://www.scambusters.org
Sunday, February 7, 2010
IF YOU DREAD FOLLOW-UP CALLS, SO WILL YOUR PROSPECTS
The classic approach to placing follow-up calls comes with some challenges. The usual image of a follow-up call is to pick up the phone and ask your prospects, "Are you ready to hire me?" When you're calling potential referral sources, the question may become, "Got any referrals for me? For most independent professionals, this process isn't much fun. In fact, it's disagreeable enough that we may avoid it entirely.
On the other end of the line, our prospects and referral sources don't like this approach very much either. While on some occasions, calls like these can be welcome reminders to take care of something that had slipped their mind, more often, they are considered somewhat annoying interruptions in a busy day.
Is there a different approach to follow-up calls that might make both the callers and the recipients happier? I think the answer is yes.
When I first started marketing my own business, one of the first things I noticed was how difficult it was for me to call people and ask if they were ready to hire me. But I'm no recluse; I enjoy interacting with people. In fact, I even enjoy talking on the phone. So what was it about these particular calls I found so distasteful?
Being the analytical sort, I decided to identify exactly what it was about these calls that I disliked and avoided. Here are the elements I identified:
1. Asking for a sale or referral.
2. Calling just to "say hello."
3. Making small talk about generic topics.
4. Fearing rejection.
5. Telling people how great I was.
6. Calling back someone who had already said no.
7. Feeling as if my call was an imposition.
Reviewing this list, it seemed to me that the secret to enjoyable follow-up (that would actually get done) was to eliminate these elements that I didn't like and replace them with ones I did. This reverse engineering didn't happen overnight, but over time, I began to find more and more ways to follow up agreeably. Here are the alternative approaches I discovered to make follow-up a pleasure instead of a chore:
1. Offering something instead of asking for anything.
Like many professional service providers, giving advice, making connections, and sharing resources comes naturally to me. Instead of focusing on what I wanted to get from the person I was calling, I switched my emphasis to what I could give them.
2. Calling with a specific, helpful purpose.
I've had many salespeople call me just to "stay in touch," and it always feels like a waste of my time. Instead of calling people just to chat, I would call to invite them to a networking event, introduce them to a new contact, or let them know about a book, article, or workshop they might find valuable.
3. Having meaningful conversations about what's going on in peoples' lives.
Making small talk about weather, sports, or entertainment news has never been one of my favorite pastimes. But hearing what's going on in someone's life, career, or business fascinates me. Those were the topics I began introducing in my follow-up calls.
4. Avoiding rejection by staying away from selling.
Phoning someone to ask whether they're ready to hire me feels awkward and pushy, and I'm sure my prospects often feel the same. I'd much rather help people than sell to them. Unless I was calling someone to follow up on a specific deal already in progress, I stopped asking for business and focused on having helpful, meaningful exchanges.
5. Telling people how great my clients were.
While talking myself up feels uncomfortable, talking about my clients' successes comes easily. I began describing my work by sharing my clients' accomplishments instead of my own (honoring client confidentiality, of course). These success stories turned out to be much more effective than simply telling prospects what I could do.
6. Letting go of sales that were too hard to close.
It's important to be persistent and follow up multiple times with prospects who don't respond or say they're not ready, but calling back someone who has actually said no can be pretty confronting. I realized that if I had a long enough follow-up list, I didn't really need to call those prospects at all. I could spend my time instead with people who were more likely to be interested.
7. Designing a call that anyone would welcome.
If making a call just to push for business isn't a good experience for me OR to the person I'm calling, why make it? I'd much rather spend my time having conversations both sides can enjoy. I discovered that if I contacted people in a spirit of friendliness and generosity, instead of acting like a salesperson, plenty of sales and referrals resulted without asking for them directly.
Now, I'm not talking about using these principles as a way to avoid answering direct questions or provide needed clarity, when those are called for. If prospects ask about your ability to do the job, by all means, you should tell them about your skills and experience. If you've submitted a proposal, and are waiting for the prospect to tell you whether he or she has accepted it, asking whether you got the order is completely appropriate and usually necessary.
But what I am suggesting is that you can design much more pleasurable, helpful, and relationship-oriented reasons to pick up the phone and call your prospects and referral sources, just once or many times throughout the year. And THAT can transform making follow-up calls from a dreaded task into a welcome activity – for both you and the people you call.
Copyright © 2009, C.J. Hayden
Read more free articles by C.J. Hayden or subscribe to the GET CLIENTS NOW! E-Letter.
On the other end of the line, our prospects and referral sources don't like this approach very much either. While on some occasions, calls like these can be welcome reminders to take care of something that had slipped their mind, more often, they are considered somewhat annoying interruptions in a busy day.
Is there a different approach to follow-up calls that might make both the callers and the recipients happier? I think the answer is yes.
When I first started marketing my own business, one of the first things I noticed was how difficult it was for me to call people and ask if they were ready to hire me. But I'm no recluse; I enjoy interacting with people. In fact, I even enjoy talking on the phone. So what was it about these particular calls I found so distasteful?
Being the analytical sort, I decided to identify exactly what it was about these calls that I disliked and avoided. Here are the elements I identified:
1. Asking for a sale or referral.
2. Calling just to "say hello."
3. Making small talk about generic topics.
4. Fearing rejection.
5. Telling people how great I was.
6. Calling back someone who had already said no.
7. Feeling as if my call was an imposition.
Reviewing this list, it seemed to me that the secret to enjoyable follow-up (that would actually get done) was to eliminate these elements that I didn't like and replace them with ones I did. This reverse engineering didn't happen overnight, but over time, I began to find more and more ways to follow up agreeably. Here are the alternative approaches I discovered to make follow-up a pleasure instead of a chore:
1. Offering something instead of asking for anything.
Like many professional service providers, giving advice, making connections, and sharing resources comes naturally to me. Instead of focusing on what I wanted to get from the person I was calling, I switched my emphasis to what I could give them.
2. Calling with a specific, helpful purpose.
I've had many salespeople call me just to "stay in touch," and it always feels like a waste of my time. Instead of calling people just to chat, I would call to invite them to a networking event, introduce them to a new contact, or let them know about a book, article, or workshop they might find valuable.
3. Having meaningful conversations about what's going on in peoples' lives.
Making small talk about weather, sports, or entertainment news has never been one of my favorite pastimes. But hearing what's going on in someone's life, career, or business fascinates me. Those were the topics I began introducing in my follow-up calls.
4. Avoiding rejection by staying away from selling.
Phoning someone to ask whether they're ready to hire me feels awkward and pushy, and I'm sure my prospects often feel the same. I'd much rather help people than sell to them. Unless I was calling someone to follow up on a specific deal already in progress, I stopped asking for business and focused on having helpful, meaningful exchanges.
5. Telling people how great my clients were.
While talking myself up feels uncomfortable, talking about my clients' successes comes easily. I began describing my work by sharing my clients' accomplishments instead of my own (honoring client confidentiality, of course). These success stories turned out to be much more effective than simply telling prospects what I could do.
6. Letting go of sales that were too hard to close.
It's important to be persistent and follow up multiple times with prospects who don't respond or say they're not ready, but calling back someone who has actually said no can be pretty confronting. I realized that if I had a long enough follow-up list, I didn't really need to call those prospects at all. I could spend my time instead with people who were more likely to be interested.
7. Designing a call that anyone would welcome.
If making a call just to push for business isn't a good experience for me OR to the person I'm calling, why make it? I'd much rather spend my time having conversations both sides can enjoy. I discovered that if I contacted people in a spirit of friendliness and generosity, instead of acting like a salesperson, plenty of sales and referrals resulted without asking for them directly.
Now, I'm not talking about using these principles as a way to avoid answering direct questions or provide needed clarity, when those are called for. If prospects ask about your ability to do the job, by all means, you should tell them about your skills and experience. If you've submitted a proposal, and are waiting for the prospect to tell you whether he or she has accepted it, asking whether you got the order is completely appropriate and usually necessary.
But what I am suggesting is that you can design much more pleasurable, helpful, and relationship-oriented reasons to pick up the phone and call your prospects and referral sources, just once or many times throughout the year. And THAT can transform making follow-up calls from a dreaded task into a welcome activity – for both you and the people you call.
Copyright © 2009, C.J. Hayden
Read more free articles by C.J. Hayden or subscribe to the GET CLIENTS NOW! E-Letter.
Online Surveys: Can You Actually Earn Any Money?
You've very likely seen pitches like this that you receive via spam:
"Earn $140 per week! Earn $560 a week! Earn $6,270 a year! All by just sitting home, sipping coffee, and filling out surveys."
Is this too good to be true?
Yes. Although it does make sense that a few companies are willing to pay for market research by using online surveys, we believe this is not a good way to spend your time.
Here's how the scam works: Scammers use spam and promise you quick money for little effort. They claim that you only need to spend a few minutes and you'll earn excellent money. Of course, you have to pay the "low" price of $34.95 to learn how to do this.
Click here to read the full article.
©Copyright Audri and Jim Lanford. All rights reserved.
Reprinted with permission.
Subscribe free to Internet Scambusters at
http://www.scambusters.org
"Earn $140 per week! Earn $560 a week! Earn $6,270 a year! All by just sitting home, sipping coffee, and filling out surveys."
Is this too good to be true?
Yes. Although it does make sense that a few companies are willing to pay for market research by using online surveys, we believe this is not a good way to spend your time.
Here's how the scam works: Scammers use spam and promise you quick money for little effort. They claim that you only need to spend a few minutes and you'll earn excellent money. Of course, you have to pay the "low" price of $34.95 to learn how to do this.
Click here to read the full article.
©Copyright Audri and Jim Lanford. All rights reserved.
Reprinted with permission.
Subscribe free to Internet Scambusters at
http://www.scambusters.org
Online Surveys: Are They All Scams? Plus 2 Real Alternatives...
Paid online surveys frequently are not all that they seem. Instead of making money, you end up spending it.
Even when you're just trying to be helpful, scammers and smooth-talking sales people use a fake online survey as a cover for pulling other tricks.
Click Here to read the full article.
©Copyright Audri and Jim Lanford. All rights reserved.
Reprinted with permission.
Subscribe free to Internet Scambusters at
http://www.scambusters.org
Even when you're just trying to be helpful, scammers and smooth-talking sales people use a fake online survey as a cover for pulling other tricks.
Click Here to read the full article.
©Copyright Audri and Jim Lanford. All rights reserved.
Reprinted with permission.
Subscribe free to Internet Scambusters at
http://www.scambusters.org
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