Ready to STAND OUT in your industry and be recognized by soul-mate clients? Then it’s time to position your business for SUCCESS.
But before your followers recognize you as an expert, before you can attract the RIGHT clients right when they need you and are ready to invest, you need to get clear about 3 things:
WHO, WHERE & WHAT
You need to understand who your soul-mate clients are; where they are on their journey when they need YOU; and what they need at that moment to make a purchase decision.
By this point in your business, you probably already have the answers to all of this, so this exercise should be fairly easy. And getting clear on these items will set you up for success in the Positioning That Pays Challenge. So let’s dive in:
WHO do you want to attract?
Isn’t that so cool, that you can choose who you want to attract? By intentionally creating content from your zone of genius, you attract the right people while repelling people who don’t need your unique skills and would otherwise waste your time. So step 1 is to get 1000% clear on who you want to work with and specifically who you don’t.
ACTION:
Make 2 lists – one for your dream clients and one for people you will say NO to working with. For example, they might look like this:
Dream Clients:
Are excited to grow and do the work
Are dreamers AND doers
Have a business they’re wildly in love with, they just need help growing it
Understand basic tech stuff (know how to upload a video to youTube, etc.)
Prefer to look at solutions instead of complain about the problem
NOT willing to work with:
People who bring a lot of anger and negativity to sessions
People who blame others for why this isn’t working
People who aren’t interested in how the pieces of their business work
Dreamers who aren’t willing to do the work
Doers who aren’t able/willing to dream bigger
As you can see, nowhere on these lists does it mention demographics, what kind of car they drive, how many kids they have, etc. Most of that doesn’t matter for the work you do. When your business is bigger and you have a large list of clients, you can look for patterns that will help you build specific audiences for your ads to target. But until then, don’t worry about it.
You can tell from the lists above, that I care more about the energy they bring to their business and our work together. Their willingness to focus on solutions instead of problems is what separates ideal clients from not-ideal ones. THIS helps me attract my dream clients while repelling people on the NO list.
Now it’s time for you to get clear about who you will and will not work with by creating your own lists!
WHERE are they in their journey when they need YOU?
Think about what your soul-mate clients are experiencing at the point when they’re ready for the solution you offer. What kinds of questions are they asking? What are they Googling? Do they even know that your profession exists and that it has the answers they seek?
For example, not everyone who wants to change jobs knows that career coaches exist. Most people looking for the love of their life have no idea that dating coaches exist. Most dog owners have no clue that they can buy dog- AND people-friendly birthday cake mix. And so on.
Sure, it’s obvious to you, because you eat, sleep and breathe this stuff everyday. But if your potential clients aren’t specifically searching for someone like you, what are they looking for and how can you get on their radar?
If it helps, think about what obstacle they just encountered for the first time, or what problem has gotten so bad they can no longer ignore it. You can also focus on the positive side of things too. What milestones have they just hit that makes them ready for the next step – aka, what you offer! [Tweet This!]
💎 For example, a weight-loss coach might focus on that point when you can no longer button the last pair of pants you could still fit into.
💎 A wardrobe stylist might focus on women who feel like their closet no longer represents the person they’ve grown into – someone who has succeeded and up-leveled but hasn’t bought new clothes that reflect this (and every time she gets dressed in the morning, she feels less successful than she really is and that makes it hard for her to do her best work each day).
💎 On the flip side, a web designer might focus on the milestone of achieving your first $20k month and suggest that now is the time to invest in a website overhaul to reflect your more successful self.
Spend some time diving into what they experience when they’re looking for the solution you offer. Get familiar with what they feel like they need at that moment and where they’re going to find it. This will show you what you need for the next step.
WHAT does your soul-mate client need in order to buy from you?
Now that you know what they’re actively looking for when they’re at that magical point when they need you, you can reach them where they are and guide them on a journey towards your solution!
Meet them where they already are and give them the solution they’re looking for. Then use that connection to gently guide them deeper into your sales funnel.
But wait – most people don’t start off ready to buy! Your potential client might jump online to dip their toes in the water and get a sense for what they need, but they’re in research mode, not buying mode. They’re looking for information. Free stuff. Whether they’re looking for a house, a car, a pet or a new job, most people start by simply exploring what’s out there.
If they find your free stuff at this stage, they’re more likely to buy from you when they’re ready to make a purchase. And you can help them get closer to the purchasing stage by giving them what they need to feel ready to invest.
Beyond knowing what’s out there, what else do they need to make a purchase decision? Do they have doubts about whether they really need this thing? Are they risk-averse and trying to avoid buying anything, but feeling like it’s unavoidable in the long-run? Do they recognize that the solution is out there and they’ll get results if they invest the money, but wondering if they’re really the “kind of person who” really goes for that? Maybe they feel overwhelmed now and they’re afraid to add one more thing to their plate.
You can help them see that your product/service isn’t time-consuming (or worth the time investment), is affordable (or the benefits/value far outweigh the cost), will make their life easier in the long run if they get help now instead of waiting until it’s too late, etc.
For example, my success coaching services are all about helping people grow their business by differentiating themselves from the rest of their industry. Standing out and being recognized increases client attraction while decreasing the work needed to make money. It’s that simple.
My soul-mate clients KNOW they need help, because they’ve gone as far as they feel capable of on their own. They’ve DIY’ed this far and hit a wall.
But they’re also hesitant to invest in coaching for many reasons. Often, they’ve been burnt before. They invested in an expensive coach before they were ready and they didn’t get the desired results. Or, they invested in a coach who steered them in a direction they weren’t happy with and it felt like the coach did more harm than good.
Some are worried that if they invest the money, they’ll have LESS money to pay bills each month. That they won’t make back the investment before the coaching program is over.
So, knowing all of this, part of my job is to demonstrate how working with me is DIFFERENT than working with other coaches. That I help them strengthen their inner compass so they can find the path that’s best for them and then use that path as a bullet train to the kind of success they desire. Not the success other people want, the specific kind of success THEY want. Maybe they don’t care about how much money they make, but they care a LOT about how much time they have with loved ones.
My job is to show them that I won’t steer them anywhere. Steering is their job. I’m just the rocket fuel that will propel them forward. My coaching is the book of maps that shows them the surrounding area and helps them choose where they want to go and how they want to get there. Our work together is the GPS that helps them stay on course.
I also need to show them how working together will create more money without more work. That they CAN grow their business without sacrificing free time. And, how positioning their business to stand out and be recognized will attract new clients which means more money with less effort.
Can you see how this will work in your business? How you can show your dream clients what they need to see in order to trust you with their money?
Tell them what they need to hear to help them make a decision. And do it in a way that will build trust in YOUR solution, YOUR products/services. Help them see you as the cure for what ails them while washing away their doubts.
NOW you have a soul-mate client who’s ready to invest AND who’s found the right business to invest in!
Once you’re clear on these 3 points – WHO, WHERE & WHAT – you can start to position yourself as the #1 go-to expert in your field and be NOTICED by your dream clients.
Positioning your business helps you stand out in a crowded industry and be recognized.
It helps you differentiate yourself from everyone else in your field so that you attract the RIGHT clients while repelling the wrong ones.
And that saves you time and energy because you can focus on the people who want to buy, instead of spinning your wheels with people who just want the free stuff.
Positioning your business for success saves you time, money and energy.
It makes your marketing efforts easier.
It increases your conversion rates.
And fills your bank account.
That’s exactly what we’re going to do in the Positioning That Pays Challenge!
If you haven’t already signed up, now’s your chance:
Here’s to YOUR fun and profitable success!!
💜
~Mollie
