Focus on the "Low Hanging Fruit"

Following up on leads is 90% of the game, right? At least that's what we hear. You spend all this time networking, marketing yourself, making cold calls, looking for the right client, but what's the point of it all if you don't follow up on the leads you DO have? This was a major obstacle for one of my clients this week and a shift was created when I shared the Low Hanging Fruit List with her

Let's think about Low Hanging Fruit on a tree for a moment, as it relates to its counterpart higher up on the tree. The Low Hanging Fruit is heavier, probably riper and because of that, easier to pick. Think of your warm prospects, those that have already expressed an interest in working with you, as this type of fruit. Ready for the picking.

Yet, many of us focus a lot of our energy on the higher fruit, the harder-to-reach fruit or prospect. We spend a lot of time working on far-fetched Client Attraction projects, when we really could be spending the time contacting and closing the deal with people who've already said they'd like to work with us but haven't been turned into clients yet. Logically, this doesn't make as much sense, does it?

Well starting today, you're going to change that by putting more focus on Low Hanging Fruit, while you continue to market your practice as a whole. Here's how…

Your Assignment:

Have a Low Hanging Fruit chart on your desk at all times. It should have several columns.

1. Name
2. Phone Number
3. Email Address
4. Referral Source
5. That Client's Particular Concern
6. Status/When to Contact Them Next

Leave this sheet on your desk at all times, in a place where you can refer to it several times per day.

Go through your mental Rolodex, day-planner and sticky notes to see who has expressed interest in working with you over the last 6 months to a year, but hasn't been converted into a client or patient yet. This could have been either in passing ("Oh, I should work with you one day," to "I want to work with you, but I'm not quite ready yet."), or more intently ("Let's set up a time to talk about working together") via email, verbally or third-party referral.

You'll want to list all of these people on this sheet. This can also include those who you met with for an initial consultation but who never signed up, for whatever reason.

This will be one of your more important documents you'll use for getting clients and you should plan on using it for the long haul. This method of keeping track of people who are closest to becoming clients (and then following up with them regularly, using different methods) is somewhat deceptive because it's so simple, but the good things usually are.

The bottom line is that when my clients use this list, they enthusiastically report that they convert more prospects into paying clients. When they stop using this list briefly, prospective clients slip through their fingers. That should tell you something.

Now, if you're not sure how to attract lots of prospects in the first place, or get them to say "I want to work with you!", then it's time to take action and invest in a step-by-step marketing system that will feel easy and authentic to you. The Client Attraction Home Study System™ avoids all the unnecessary stuff and instead gives you the most important things to do to get out there in a big way, set up simple, solid systems, so you consistently fill your pipeline and continually get new clients. It's all step-by-step, not a big mishmash of things. So, you do step one of the system, and when you're done with that, you move on to step two, and so on. So easy. All the tools, scripts, templates, and examples are handed to you on a silver platter. You can get it at TheClientAttractionSystem.com.

© 2007 Client Attraction LLC. All Rights Reserved.

Fabienne Fredrickson, The Client Attraction Mentor, is founder of the Client Attraction System™ and http://www.clientattraction.com/, the proven step-by-step program to attract more clients, make more m’oney being self-employed, while having more time off to enjoy it all. To receive your F.R.E.E. Audio CD by mail and get weekly how-to articles on attracting more clients, visit http://www.clientattraction.com/.

What Millionaire Entrepreneurs Have In Common (It's Way Simpler Than You Think)

Quote: "The biggest difference between an average income and financial freedom is… IMPLEMENTATION." - Bill Glazer

I recently spent four long days and nights with information marketing millionaires at the Information Marketing Summit and was astonished to hear that many of them, when pressed for THE secret of their recent 7-figure success, named ONE and only one. Best of all, I was able to witness this theme with most everyone I met, particularly the VERY successful ones.

These entrepreneur millionaires have ONE secret in common: IMPLEMENTING new ideas quickly. At first, it sounded so simple that I didn't believe it fully. Could implementation (getting things done) be so profound that those who've REALLY succeeded named it as their number one KEY? Then I started thinking about my own journey since attending this same conference last year.

I realized that in my own experience, I'd actually implemented a LOT of the ideas I'd gotten. I'd set up a new lead generation tool on the ClientAttraction.com website which converts on average of 36% of people who land on the website; I'd created a new program in which more than a hundred people now get value from talking to me twice a month; I'd created my first successful 3-day workshop and filled it to capacity in less than 6 weeks with people attending from all around the country; And then subsequently filled an elite coaching group to capacity out of the workshop.

Wow, when looking back at the list, it seemed like a LOT. But in the end, all I'd really done was systematically and steadfastly implemented the new ideas I'd discovered.

Let me say that again: Systematically and Steadfastly.

Returning to the same conference a year later, I realized a couple of things. There were several people who'd vowed they'd attend the following one but weren't present this time around. Had they given up? Had they not implemented the thousands of info-rich ideas and therefore didn't see it as fit to return for more?

This all got me thinking: What's keeping people from implementing, anyway? After some thought, I believe people get stopped from implementing new ideas for several reasons:

1. They don't organize the information they've received (it all seems so overwhelming that it stays there in that notebook and nothing gets done.) Have you been there too?
   
2. They don't have accountability systems in place (either a coach, mastermind group or other people to call them on their "stuff" when they're procrastinating and get them into gear again.)
   
3. Their focus is spread thin over many different projects and nothing ever really gets accomplished. It's time to focus on ONE thing and one thing only, until achievement.
   
4. They don't set deadlines for completion, so the task list keeps dragging on and on, until it just disappears.

Now, don't get me wrong. I'm no stranger to procrastination. I, like most, have things on my list that have needed to get done for YEARS. But what I've noticed is that the stress level of NOT getting something done, something important and re-venue generating, is far worse than actually taking the time to complete it fully. So, it's very much worth the effort. Not only that, it's far more satisfying. You'll see.

Your Assignment:

That said, how can you implement more effectively? I can only share with you my own formula, the one I've created and use personally on a daily basis. I especially use this after coming back from a high-content, multi-day conference with lots of brain-candy in my head:

1. Transfer all your notes into a Projects Tracker in Excel (I usually do this on the plane coming home).
2. Label each of these by "category" (Example: all to-do items related to creating a Workshop-in-a-box get labeled as such; Lead Generation items the same.)
3. Create a Mind Map of all the different projects (For me, seeing this all on paper helps me focus on what is most important.)
4. Once the steps are Mind Mapped, select three that you will work on over the next 120 days (4 months) and set a deadline. I choose the 3 goals based on their return on investment of time, energy and mo-ney, as well as how quickly and effortlessly they can be accomplished.
5. Note which steps will be delegated to your team or outsourced, then note that on your Projects Tracker. Start delegating and implementing.
6. Make time in your calendar and in each day to work on the tasks that are yours, TO COMPLETION.

I really see the key to this as being SPEED of implementation. Simply getting things done is great, and yet if you can implement QUICKLY, you will see returns on investment (especially, financially speaking) much faster. In essence, nothing should be more important than implementation.

My new mantra this week, taped on my wall above the computer?

"ACT WITH SPEED"

Do this, and I guarantee you will have more clients, make mo're mo-ney, with stress less. It's about taking that no-excuses approach to getting things done that I talk about so often. That's what millionaire entrepreneurs do. Are you up for the challenge? I know I am. : )

Hey, if you're not sure WHAT marketing techniques you should be implementing in the first place, then it's time to take action and invest in a step-by-step marketing system that will feel easy and authentic to you. The Client Attraction Home Study System™ avoids all the unnecessary stuff and instead gives you the most important things to do to find your niche, get out there in a big way, set up simple, solid systems, so you consistently fill your pipeline and continually get new clients. It's all step-by-step, not a big mishmash of things. So, you do step one of the system, and when you're done with that, you move on to step two, and so on. So easy. All the tools, scripts, templates, and examples are handed to you on a silver platter. You can get it at TheClientAttractionSystem.com.

© 2007 Client Attraction LLC. All Rights Reserved.

Fabienne Fredrickson, The Client Attraction Mentor, is founder of the Client Attraction System™ and http://www.clientattraction.com/, the proven step-by-step program to attract more clients, make more m’oney being self-employed, while having more time off to enjoy it all. To receive your F.R.E.E. Audio CD by mail and get weekly how-to articles on attracting more clients, visit http://www.clientattraction.com/.

Make Your Initial Offer Irresistible and You'll Be Fighting Off Clients

Pulling clients in is not only more fun than pushing hard to "get" clients, it's MUCH easier. Who wouldn't rather have clients call them instead of pounding the pavement? The concept is a no-brainer to grasp, but very few solo-entrepreneurs actually do anything about it. Most are wandering aimlessly, just waiting for clients to come to them, but with little strategy involved. That's when creating PULL marketing systems comes into play.

There are 3 powerful "PULLING-them-in" marketing techniques I recommend in my programs and use myself, still today. In this article, I want to share one of them with you. I call it the 'Irresistible F.R.E.E. offer'.

Irresistible F.R.E.E. Offers (IFOs) literally make people sit up and take notice and PULL them into your pipeline. There are many forms of IFOs. It could be an audio CD that you give away on your website and advertise on the web, a special report, an intro teleclass, a workbook, an e-course, a checklist or downloadable audio.

The list of possible IFOs is endless, but this strategy works best when the topic refers to what your prospect would do-anything and pay-anything to achieve or acquire. (As a side note, I do not typically recommend offering a fr.ee consultation. It is not only too time consuming, but it attracts too many tire kickers who waste your time.)

Even though you're not charging for the Irresistible Offer, it should absolutely be of high content and high value. Like me, you've probably attended a no-fee teleclass or received an ebook that left you severely under-whelmed. And like me, you've probably forgotten that person very quickly. The bottom line is, if your initial offer is not high-content, you've wasted the prospect's time and therefore, you've lost them for good.

When these F.R.E.E. offers have great value, you build your credibility instantly, people talk about you to colleagues, refer others to you, you get interviewed by joint ventures and strategic alliances, and the media begins paying attention, which all creates increased exposure and visibility, without any extra effort on your part. And best of all, your first impression (one of high-content, high-value) keeps them thinking of you, over and over, until they're ready to buy.

Now, before you start thinking, "Well, Fabienne, they WON'T buy from me if I give it ALL away at no-charge", that's not what we're doing here. I'm not suggesting you give away the whole farm. That wouldn't make good financial sense. Instead, I'm suggesting you give them the 'what', not the entire 'how' on these no-charge offers. That way, most prospects become intrigued with the high-content they received at no charge, and will look to you for the specific, pragmatic steps to implement them. That's key.

The mistake I see solopreneurs making in a first offer is pitching their high-priced services from the get-go. I personally think this is a waste of marketing real-estate, because very few people will purchase your higher priced programs or services without knowing a little more about you. Remember the Know-Like-Trust Factor? People don't buy from someone they don't know, they don't like, and they don't trust.

You can immediately start the K-L-T Factor using the Irresistible offer. Provided it's of high-content, high value, it starts people off slowly, establishes credibility, while positioning you as their problem solver. Priceless! Once prospects receive great benefit from your initial offer, they'll naturally move THEMSELVES up your Services Pyramid pipeline, without any work or hard selling on your part.

That's the beauty of this concept. You simply invite prospects into your funnel and they will naturally move up the funnel on their own, without effort on your end. The best part of this is this process feels AUTHENTIC to you AND to them. Your content does the work, and they don't feel the sales pressure. Remember: people like to buy; but they don't like to be sold.

All your F.R.E.E. irresistible offers are created to lead people to your ezine or other stay-in-touch marketing vehicles, where you continue to add high-content, high value over time. This builds the trust and the credibility, positioning you as their problem solver.

The goal is to consistently fill the pipeline, getting it bigger and bigger over time, continually stocking the pond with ideal clients who self-select and move themselves up the ladder of the services you provide. THAT is what I call 'pulling' clients in and you're going to love how easy it is.

Your Assignment:

Begin thinking about what your prospects would do-anything and pay-anything to learn or experience from you. Then, create an Irresistible Offer around that, giving them high content but not the entire 'how' and put it in your marketing materials. Set up systems for getting that F.R.E.E. offer to your prospects with no effort on your part and watch the leads come in, day after day. You won't believe how easy it is to fill your pipeline effortlessly and authentically!

Here's my formula for filling a pipeline effortlessly:

Compelling and authentic marketing message
+
Effective marketing techniques
+
Irresistible F.R.E.E. offers
=
A FULL pipeline of prospects who call YOU

If you're not sure how to create a compelling marketing message or set up effective marketing techniques in the first place, then it's time to take action and invest in a step-by-step marketing system that will feel easy and authentic to you. The Client Attraction Home Study System™ avoids all the unnecessary stuff and instead gives you the most important things to do to find your niche, get out there in a big way, set up simple, solid systems, so you consistently fill your pipeline and continually get new clients. It's all step-by-step, not a big mishmash of things. So, you do step one of the system, and when you're done with that, you move on to step two, and so on. So easy. All the tools, scripts, templates, and examples are handed to you on a silver platter. You can get it at TheClientAttractionSystem.com.

© 2007 Client Attraction LLC. All Rights Reserved.

Fabienne Fredrickson, The Client Attraction Mentor, is founder of the Client Attraction System™ and http://www.clientattraction.com/, the proven step-by-step program to attract more clients, make more m’oney being self-employed, while having more time off to enjoy it all. To receive your F.R.E.E. Audio CD by mail and get weekly how-to articles on attracting more clients, visit http://www.clientattraction.com/.

UNDERvaluing What You Offer? You May Be Losing Clients and Mo-ney

There's a question in my intake packet for new clients titled, "What is holding you back or slowing your progress?", as it relates to attracting all the clients they need and having a full practice. Having worked with hundreds and hundreds of clients over the years, I've seen it all. Other than "no knowledge of marketing," one thing seems to come up over and over again, and it happened again this week, with a brand new client.

The client answered this: "Sometimes, the ‘Little Voice' inside me asks, ‘Who needs my program anyway? This is basic information that I offer. People already know this stuff!'" This is so common, but in most every case, this is absolutely not accurate.

I have to admit, in the past, I too have taken for granted what I already know and teach everyday and started questioning my value in the marketplace. For example, when I was teaching holistic nutrition years ago, I sometimes wondered why people were paying me (or WOULD pay me) to teach them about whole foods versus processed foods. To me, it was a no-brainer that brown rice was more healthful than white. But to a person who grew up on Twinkies, it was crucial that I explain it to them in detail, and then the shortcuts to fitting in those brand new foods into their busy life.

I would also question the value of the cooking classes I gave once a month to 15 or 20 people crammed in my living room. As I was stirring carrots and onions on my Coleman grill in the middle of my tiny apartment, I couldn't help but think "Are these simple recipes REALLY of value to them?" (I'd been through serious Boot Camp at the French Culinary Institute, so this came naturally to me.) But they kept showing up, asking questions, and referring friends. Go figure!

Even in the early years of my business coaching practice, I sometimes wondered about my value. Clients asked me daily about the secrets of getting clients to call THEM and making a lot more mo-ney with smart marketing techniques and even smarter systems. For me, it was now ingrained and like second nature. I took for granted that I knew it, and because I'd been doing it for so long and knew that it worked, I thought everyone knew it too and that it was common sense.

On the contrary! What's common knowledge for us, is a secret to someone else. Because we "bathe" in our information all day long, and for years, we start taking for granted what we know. We forget what we know is actually a secret many others would do anything and everything to discover. It becomes the answer to their most pressing problem. It becomes the solution others have been praying for. And that's when they call us.

If you're in this situation, you are probably OVER-estimating what everybody else knows. The more common what you teach is to YOU and the longer you do what it is you do, the more you tend to undervalue what you know.

The irony here, as I've discovered, is that the more we teach things to our clients in SIMPLE terms, the happier they are, the more referrals we get and the more we make. It's not the convoluted teachings that people are looking for. It's the practical and simple solutions.

The real shame about the whole undervaluing what you know is that as a result, you may be undercharging for what you offer. This is actually one of the major reasons why most people don't have enough clients. Because they don't see value in what they offer, they don't charge enough, and there is therefore a low perception of value from the prospective client's point of view. They then go somewhere else for the same exact information. Talk about a self-fulfilling prophecy!

Some entrepreneurs even go so far as discounting their services, or offering a sliding scale, because of their lack of confidence and low perception of value in what they offer. In my book, discounting is a BIG no-no. Again, it portrays a devalued product or service and it's NOT Client Attractive.

Your Assignment:

• Notice that your clients came to YOU for the information you take for granted. Sometimes, they may even have known some of what you know, but didn't have the discipline, accountability, resources or structure to do it on their own. Many of my clients KNOW how to attract other clients, they're already somewhat successful, but they don't have the discipline or accountability to do it consistently on their own. So we do it together. This is actually my favorite type of scenario, because these clients are very driven and since we're not starting from scratch in the learning process, we move at warp speed.
  
  
• Be confident in what you offer. Read your testimonials over and over until your confidence comes back.
  
  
• See yourself as their problem solver. Charge accordingly and never discount your services. Ever.

If you're not sure how much to charge or how to position your value in the marketplace, then it's time to take action and invest in a step-by-step marketing system that will feel easy and authentic to you. The Client Attraction Home Study System™ avoids all the unnecessary stuff and instead gives you the most important things to do to get out there in a big way, set up simple, solid systems, so you consistently fill your pipeline and continually get new clients. It's all step-by-step, not a big mishmash of things. So, you do step one of the system, and when you're done with that, you move on to step two, and so on. So easy. All the tools, scripts, templates, and examples are handed to you on a silver platter. You can get it at TheClientAttractionSystem.com.

© 2007 Client Attraction LLC. All Rights Reserved.

Fabienne Fredrickson, The Client Attraction Mentor, is founder of the Client Attraction System™ and http://www.clientattraction.com/, the proven step-by-step program to attract more clients, make more m’oney being self-employed, while having more time off to enjoy it all. To receive your F.R.E.E. Audio CD by mail and get weekly how-to articles on attracting more clients, visit http://www.clientattraction.com/