Niching helps you save money and here is how…

I used to get calls from magazines trying to sell me a deal on their space. If they are a magazine I haven’t previously used my first question to them is  going to be: “What’s the demographic and psychographic profile your publication aims at?”

Knowing who your client is will help you talk their language.

You would be amazed how many publications have no idea about this. And if they don’t know, then may be handing over your hard earned money for no return.

When you know who your niche is you’ll know where to advertise, because you will know where your followers spend their time.

Working with a business recently revealed how they were losing money.

They thought they were getting bargains on their advertising. The salesman  had given them 50% off an advert in a sister paper, 30 miles away. One question I asked revealed that this was money wasted, because most of that businesses clientele came within a 5-mile radius – walking in off the street or coming through referral.

So knowing who your client is, is really going to help you be clear on who you work with and this is going to help you talk their language and package what you do to that market and it also helps you know when to advertise and who with.

When you’ve understood who your client is I promise you are going to leverage your expertise, and your networking and market yourself much more efficiently.

The way I look at knowing who your client is, is nothing more than a respect and appreciation for who they are. After all they will be investing their hard earned cash with you, so it makes sense to know who they are, because knowing who they are leads to another understanding.

When you know who your client is, you’ll really understand what they need, and when you know this you can serve them with a great-fullness and a real appreciation of what they need and want.

To not know who… to not define who… is where so many people struggle. Resolving this, will make a huge difference to how you communicate online and in front of people.

Clearly knowing who your client is helps you resonate with them.

Best wishes finding your who,
Neil

Neil Fellowes shows conscious entrepreneurs, coaches, consultants and complementary therapists how to make a difference AND a profit. Visit his website at http://www.communitysoul.co.uk

Do you want people to become your clients, but too often they don’t become your client?

This is where so many people come unstuck. And there is a reason why…

You only have to look at many of the websites on-line to know why. The trouble is, so many people write websites that are about themselves and what they offer and the history of their service since the year dot.

They write this even though that’s not what the prospective client wants to know.

What the prospect wants to know is what’s in this for me? They want to know you understand their problem… they want to see how they can benefit from buying into a relationship with you.

The part that’s missing is the gratefulness – the great-fullness – the appreciation of who the client is and what their real needs are.

So the great-fullness you want to show your customers is a great… appreciation of who they are and what their needs are.

This is where knowing your niche becomes so important… it really helps you narrow down who someone is and what their biggest problems are. From there, packaging a solution becomes quite easy.

When you know who your client is, you get a clearer idea of what they want. If you don’t know who, your package and your marketing is aimed at no-one in particular and that’s often why no-one buys and so many people struggle to attract new customers.

Let’s say you’re about to go along to a networking meeting and you don’t have a niche. So when someone asks you what you do, you say “ERM… errr…” And immediately you’ve sent out a vibe that will make people ask questions about you.

Now imagine the same scenario and now the answer is say: “I show entrepreneurs with principles how to make profits.” Can you see how it sends out a vibe of clarity.

People will then be able to see you have your act together. They will trust you. They will be more likely to refer their best friends and best clients to you. You will also leave them with a very vivid picture about what you do, so you will pop into their mind the next time they meet someone and you then get referrals.

Simple. Get simple! Know who your client is and what they want.

Neil

http://www.communitysoul.co.uk

A number of people are struggling to find the flow of clients they want, and they need to learn how to have clients come to them more easily.

Entrepreneurs know they need to niche, but they resist it because they have a fear of narrowing focus to a specific niche and perhaps losing income.

Others may have heard that they should niche, but just don’t know where to start. And that’s okay.

Consider the word gratefulness – that’s two words great-fullness… so this is like an overflowing cup.  And this is an overflowing cup of possibilities.

And you’ve probably heard the saying that what we appreciate, appreciates. So there is a great-fullness and approach to niching as an appreciation – or with a mark of respect.

With great-fullness we appreciate who and what we want to come to us. So through niching we really are activating the law of attraction and we are also beginning from a starting point of abundance, rather than lack.

The person, who truly appreciates and honours the potential customers bringing business, is the person who invests upfront in creating a great-fullness of opportunities for those customers – much the way our Insiders Secrets group works.

Now I know this is where many people come unstuck. You want people to respond to your offers. You want customers to return. You want referrals… And what’s missing is the appreciation and the clarity that attracts these possibilities.

This comes because you need the bit of the puzzle that will help you create that appreciation or because you are stuck, in fear, or coming from a place of lack where you think if you niche you will lose clients or opportunities or income.

The first thing to do is drop your resistance to niching and start with an open and abundant heart that will really serve others.

Love and best wishes
Neil

http://www.communitysoul.co.uk

In writing any good marketing copy there are 7 essentials you have to take care of – without getting overly technical. I’m going to give them to you here, because I want people reading this newsletter to write copy that engages readers and finds them a stream of clients.

So, let me take you through the 7 essentials:

1. Title – this has to make a promise about what you’ll deliver and it must speak to your audience

2. Sub-title – the subtitle builds the picture up more – it expands on the title

3. Rapport/Credibility piece – Speak in the language of the people who will buy from you and let them know why they should listen to you.

4. Benefits – put these in a bullet point list… it makes it easy to read and suggests value, value, value

5. Social proof – testimonials, show other people what they got from you. Use names where you can. Use pictures if you can get them. And the more specific you can be the better.

6. A call to action – this is about telling them what to do next.

7. Contact details (either get theirs using a contact form on your website or give yours if you are using flyers or another advertising method.

For an example of a webpage using these all 7 steps visit: www.communitysoulbusiness.com

When I first wrote the copy in the link above, I had it critiqued by a group of people I mastermind with. Then I rewrote it. I invested around £3500 in hard cash in that copy and then a further £1000 in my own time writing it.

So you can see, it’s not something I just threw together in a few minutes. The title took several attempts and yet when I look at it now it looks really simple. And that’s the way you want it to read. Simple.

The copy was hacked and rewritten. But that page has resulted in around 2000 people signing up for the offer we make.

Just using the seven essentials will give you better results in from your marketing efforts, but that’s not the be-all-and-end-all in copywriting. There is a lot more for you to learn… and it never stops!

Best wishes
Neil

http://www.communitysoul.co.uk

When I first became self-employed I needed new clients and repeat business. What I was offering was a service to householders.

In order to have them buy from me I had to knock at their door and ask – cold calling and door knocking… something most people might like to run away from…

And it gets worse…

Each month I was knocking on a thousand doors and what that meant is that pretty soon I ran out of doors to knock on… and you know what that means…

Yes. I had to start again and re-knock on the doors who said no to me the first time round. But there was something surprising about this…

You’d be amazed to know that the second time around I got more yeses than the first, and the third time was about as good as the second. By then I was calling on every 2nd or 3rd house in some streets and that’s when something magical started to happen.

What happened was – word began to get around, and that meant referrals began coming to me. And this is what we call client attraction.

Attraction is simply when you pull customers to you, rather than push. Advertising is a form of push marketing, recommendation and referral is a type of “pull” marketing.

Attraction happens where you’re not projecting your business out there, yet you’re drawing business to you. And there’s something else you should know…

Before I enjoyed people coming and asking if they could be my customers, I had to undergo something.

Before attraction happened, I first had to go through rejection. Had I given up after my seventh straight no, I’d have never got to number eight and had them be my first customer.

If I’d given up too soon, I’d never have built that company. I set a goal, I found a strategy that worked and I kept working it.

Sometimes I fell behind my goals. But did I give up? No. And that’s the spirit people who succeed carry – on-going… never giving up…

Something all of us Conscious entrepreneurs have to keep in mind is that our source of wealth is created where our customers needs meet our ability to serve. When we have a great service and are 100% in our conviction about that service, customers can’t wait to get that service. When we can’t wait to give and we ask for opportunities to give, customers can’t wait to receive. What goes on on the outside of your business will be a perfect reflection of what’s going on on the inside.

Best wishes

Neil

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Neil Fellowes shows conscious entrepreneurs, coaches, consultants and complementary therapists how to make a difference AND a profit. To find out more, visit his website at http://www.communitysoul.co.uk

I see so many people marketing themselves in costly ways. They spend money on a website. They get the business cards and brochure or flyer printed. They advertise and network, all of which bring enquiries. But what happens to those enquiries?

Usually they go cold and you end up losing possible business.

So let’s take a brief look at the 6 typical problems people have gaining and keeping clients:

1. What to do with “prospects” – the people who might eventually buy but are not yet ready…

2. The longer you’re in business the harder it is to stay in touch with everyone who shows an interest in your service and hasn’t bought…

3. How to keep these people interested and warm them up to you

4. Then when all your hard work pays off and someone becomes a client, how do you encourage them to hang around and see more value and buy second and third purchases, so that when they think of a problem they only think of you as the solution?

5. Then there’s the time it takes to implement the following up and this is where the busy people need to focus on the mechanism that builds the relationships and promotes your natural warmth and your authentic voice

6. And finally there’s the cost to do all this

These six reasons have a lot to do with why so many businesses are not getting the results they want.

When I began CommunitySoul, the first thing I put in place was a communication strategy and a system that would measure the results of that strategy. (I always want to measure, because then if part of the process isn’t working I can fix the problem).

To be honest if you have no way to communicate to your customers, clients, and people who are interested but not yet committed, you really are missing out big time.

The system we use is a great way to honour our customers and market to them with complete integrity. You can have the same effect – adding heaps of value and helping people in ways that only you can.

I believe that having a way to speak to people has been the cornerstone of our business.

If you don’t have away to communicate with your people, then I recommend you find a way.

Neil Fellowes shows conscious entrepreneurs, coaches, consultants and complementary therapists how to make a difference AND a profit. To find out more, visit our website at http://www.communitysoul.co.uk

Part of being attractive to new clients is learning who you are.

The first thing to realise is that by taking the path of self-employment you’ve become a  hero.

Anyone running a business is a daring soul. By being self-employed, you’ve  decided to take life’s adventures to warp speed. Because running your business – making your difference in the world and making money – will cause transformations in you.

I used to think I would be the person who would grow my business, but what is now apparent is that my business grows me; and as I change, the business moves on.

We know the 5000 or so business owners we now connect with are all on that journey with you. I hope it’s kind of reassuring to know that there are others like you – inspired, caring, forward thinking entrepreneurs who want to profit and make a difference.

How we make our difference in the world, and a profit, is largely down to our values, passions and purpose. There are many ways to do it…

A business can also be a lynch-pin in a local community, no matter how big or small it is. Whatever the size of your business it can have an impact on the environment, it can also do good for the people around you – maybe by giving some of the profits to a local charity or cause, or by setting up your own foundation, or by giving an investment opportunity to the under-privileged in your community.

What’s important is that your business feels good to work in on the inside. When it feels good on the inside, it becomes attractive to others and these people then become your customers, your fans and your advocates and supporters.

I hope it’s reassuring to know this. I say this because you have chosen a path that only real heroes could walk. I mean, it’s a double-whammy – because you’ll only settle for business success if it comes with helping people or the environment or creating positive change in some way.

So there are two things for you – profit and making a difference.

Traditionally business has only focussed on profit, so you’re one of the first of a new wave of businesses. You’re a leader. And because you’re a leader, you’ll have the challenges leaders have, especially if you’re trying to do it all.

That’s why we have created business groups and Insiders Secrets, so you can have support from peers and from me.

I welcome you on this huge  journey of personal discovery and I’m pleased to let you know that support is available to you through CommunitySoul.

Neil Fellowes shows conscious entrepreneurs, coaches, consultants and complementary therapists how to make a difference AND a profit. To find out more about Insiders Secrets, and how you can join our support group, visit our website at http://www.communitysoul.co.uk

There’s a question I always feel compelled to ask when I hear people say they are looking for new clients.

My question is: how, specifically, do you want to get your clients?

That might sound like an odd question, especially if you feel you’ve tried everything and it doesn’t work, but there are so many options that can work.

A few weeks ago I heard an amazing story. It was amazing because I had a belief that what this lady had done was not possible – yes, I occasionally have limited thinking too!

Let me explain a bit more…

The Marketing Roads to Rome

There are many ways to market yourself: Networking, social media, flyers and leaflets, advertising, web sites, talks, joint ventures, article writing, news media etc.

And with so many different ways to choose from, it can be confusing to know where to start.

The idea is, of course, that you have many different routes to your market, but sometimes you just need one that works well – for example,  a networking strategy where you cultivate a number of advocates who then bring you clients on a consistent basis.

Encouraging Statistics

Recently one of the members of the mastermind group I attend recently told me how her leaflet selling NLP converted into £15000 of business.

A client was recently telling me how they have a nice stream of business coming in from articles they place in the media.

At a business group one of our members was telling me how they’d gained almost 20 referrals directly from our group.

The results don’t always come overnight. The results come from making small, consistent, habitual steps that take you on a journey to making your difference and earning the profits you deserve.

SO, if you want more clients, don’t try to do it all. Start with one marketing strategy that will bring you clients, make tweaks until you get results and then when that works for you, move on to the next.

Neil Fellowes shows conscious entrepreneurs, coaches, consultants and complementary therapists how to make a difference AND a profit. Register for his free newsletter at http://www.communitysoul.co.uk

A lot of marketing is about push. Some of it is about “pull” or attraction. But what I love is marketing that creates safety.

I know from what people tell me through emails that many people are still challenged by marketing.

Last summer 76% of people registering for one of my tele-seminars told me they were looking for new clients.

Before we look at new customers, though, let’s think about about customers you might have lost, because every customer has a lifetime value. So, let me expand on this.

The profits are not where you might think they are

When you find a new customer, that customer has a value. There is a cost to you of finding that customer and you rarely recoup that with the client’s first purchase.

That’s why one of the things I teach is how to build a system so clients return to you on an ongoing basis.

If through your marketing you create safety, the first purchase becomes easy. If you continue to build that safety, the second and ongoing purchases become easier.

The way you create safety is through a process and a system. And this is what really creates your profits – not finding new clients.

The reason a client doesn’t stay

It’s important to notice that a client rarely leaves because of price or service. They tend to leave because someone else entices them or they forget the value you offer them.

So this is where what I call the Client Multiplying Machine works. This builds lifetime customer value that repays you the marketing costs of finding the clients. So while we like new clients, they’re not the holy grail.

However, having a machine that multiplies clients so they have the potential to become loyal buyers is the answer, especially if that machine promotes your natural warmth and authentic, humane voice.

Neil Fellowes shows conscious entrepreneurs, coaches, consultants and complementary therapists how to make a difference AND a profit. Find out more at http://www.communitysoul.co.uk

I see so many people marketing themselves. They spent £500 upwards on a website and spend a lot of time fiddling to make sure they come up high in google. They get the business cards and brochure or flyer done. Advertise and network, all of which brings a trickle of enquiries. But what happens to those enquiries?

Usually  they go cold and you end up losing possible business.

So let’s take a brief look at the 6 typical issues people have gaining and keeping clients:

1. One of the issues is “prospects” who might buy but who are not sure. Most people will call them once, maybe twice and then give up.

2. The longer you’re in business the harder it become to stay in touch with everyone who shows and interest but who isn’t ready to buy.

3. The challenge you have is to keep the possible people interested and warm them up to you

4. Then when all your hard work pays off and someone becomes a client, how do you encourage them to hang around and see the value more and more often, so when they think of the problem they only think of you?

5. Then there’s the time it takes to implement the following up and this is where the busy people need to focus on the system that builds the  relationship for you

6. And finally there’s the cost to do all this

The Golden Rule…

A golden rule of enlightened entrepreneurship is to have more people coming back to you and increasing their spend with you, and  recommending you to friends and colleagues.

Imagine 77% of your customers returning, and then finding a steady increase of 23%, with this, your business grows. And if you’re happy customers recommend you and you make it easy for them to do that, you can spend less on your marketing.

Imagine that happening to your business!

So let’s look at what to do.

Well, you need a strategy that encourages new clients and you want a strategy that encourages repeat buying. Now that may sound like two different projects, but actually it’s not. It’s one.

What you need is a scalable strategy that does both jobs. When I say scalable this is what I mean: What’s needed is a system that takes a short period of time each week or month – and a system that works, whether you have 100 or 100,000 customers.

So, every successful business venture, no matter how big or small, must have this strategy.

So you need this strategy to welcome in new customers and to encourage repeat buying; and the way you do this is through finding a method of how to stay in touch.

Neil Fellowes shows conscious entrepreneurs, coaches, consultants and complementary therapists how to make a difference AND a profit. If you need help developing a system, read about our Insiders Secrets programme and Mastermind group: http://www.communitysoulhbg.co.uk/insiderssecrets.htm