Focus your networking efforts on your ideal client

Before we move forward in your networking, we need to get really clear on who you want to meet. We’ll first focus on your ideal client. Now, to get clear on who your ideal client is, let’s first agree that there are several things that universally constitute an ideal client:

• Those you really enjoy working with

• Those who need your help, badly

• Those who recognize that working with you is essential

• Those who can easily be identified and contacted

• Those what will happily pay what you’re worth, without negotiating

• Those who will get great results from working with you (and write testimonials to prove it)

• Those who will tell others about you and refer other clients over and over again

Now, be honest with me. Don’t you want a practice FULL of these types of people? (Trust me, it’s a lot more fun and it’s not difficult to get.) To have a practice filled with these types of people, you need to stop networking with anyone and everyone and start targeting a specific target audience.

One of the secrets of masterful networking is knowing WHO your ideal clients are (the ones who’ll recognize that working with you is crucial to solving their problems, pay you what you’re worth and tell others about you), figuring out WHAT their particular issues are, WHY they’re having them and HOW you solve them.

Your Client Attraction Assignment:

Get very specific on who your best client is. To do this, you can start thinking of your most favorite current clients (the ones that fit the criteria we outlined above) and former clients.

Write it all down: For individuals, it can include their age, sex, and income group — even where they live, if it impacts your business. If you cater to companies, write down what industries you want to work with, the number of employees, and specific titles within the company.

Now, write down your ideal client’s particular situation that you can solve, their struggles, and any other common-denominator aspects that would be a requisite for being a “best client” for your services.

Get thinking about these and you’re on your way to crafting your ideal client profile. Once you have that, marketing can be a breeze.

This is one of the most important steps you can take in attracting all the clients you need. Do not skip over this part, even if you think you already-kinda-know who they are.