You want more clients.
To get more clients you need to connect with more people.
“Succeeding in business is all about making connections.” Richard Branson
The mistake many business owners make is to focus most of their attention on making connections with strangers.
Strangers don’t know you so it will take more work to get their attention than it will to reach out to people who are more familiar to you.
Plus, it’s more fun to connect with people you already have something in common with.
Who are these people already in your sphere and where can you find them?
Where to Find Kindred Spirits
They are all around you. Think about all of the groups and communities you belong to.
This includes online as well as offline groups.
They could be networking groups, groups on meetup.com, Facebook Groups, LinkedIn groups, organizations, associations, conferences and more.
Grab a pen (or Evernote) and jot down all of the places you are a member. How many are there? How many people are members of each group?
Let’s be super conservative and say you have five groups and each one has 200 members. That is 1,000 people.
Do you know them all? No.
Do you have something in common with them all? Yes.
At the very least you are both members of the same group.
And because of that, there are probably other things you have in common as well.
Things like common interests and mutual connections with other members of that group.
See where I’m going with this?
How to Connect With Them
Go back to your list and pick one group. Scroll through the list of members and reach out and select the people you see a connection with.
Choose a platform that the person you want to connect with is already using: email, Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, WhatsApp, etc. and connect with them there. And then continue doing this with people in your other groups.
And by connect, I don’t mean pitch, sell, or make offers.
I mean connect and say hello and ask how they are or about their work.
Get to know each other and ask how you can help them?
Yes, give first instead of asking to get something first.
And of course not everyone you connect with will become a client; that is normal. In any case, you’ll probably make some new friends.
“You can make more friends in two months by becoming interested in other people than you can in two years by trying to get other people interested in you.” Dale Carnegie
Build Relationships
Keep in mind, this is the just the start of a relationship.
Relationships develop over time as trust is built.
Because of that, you’ll want an efficient way to keep track of your contacts and interactions. Find out more about how to do this in my post, Why You Need to Keep Track of Your Connections & How to Do It.
“Build trust, build trust, build trust. Then you can worry about the rest.” Seth Godin
So after you reach out the first time, be sure to continue to pay attention to, and nurture, the relationships you have started.
I hope you’re starting to see how many people are in your orbit and would be happy to connect with you.
So instead of spending time and money trying to reach strangers, make time to connect with people that you are already in close proximity to.
© Stephanie Ward
Stephanie Ward is the Marketing Coach for Entrepreneurs who want to create meaningful and prosperous businesses. Grab your FREE copy of the special report ’7 Steps to Attract More Clients in Less Time’ plus business building tips, at: https://www.fireflycoaching.com.
Are you willing to reach out to people who are already around you? Share your thoughts and questions below in the comments section. I respond to every single one.
Love this! “Yes, give first instead of asking to get something first”. It feels so icky to go and ask for something first because it usually comes from a place of scarcity and desperation. People feel that and like a subconscious automatic response, are repelled. I have noticed that building trust takes time so does making a connection. They go hand in hand. My clients come from my tribe, usually. If I look over my roster usually I have “known” my clients at minimum 6 months. I, too, am happy that the cold front is almost over. Have a great weekend. x
Thank you for your feedback, Susan! So happy you picked up on that, giving first is always a good idea. Indeed, building trust and relationships takes time so it’s important to be patient. Love that you are looking at where your clients come from and how long you’ve known them. Knowing this supports you in growing your business. YES! Go away Siberian cold front and don’t let the door hit you in the freezing ass wind on the way out. ;0
Love this article Stephanie! I have never better a better and more genuine networker than you, your advice are priceless. Can’t wait to see you at FIGT!
Thank you so much, Amel! That means a lot coming from you. Indeed, I’m so excited to see you next week. Got a bunch of hugs for you. xo