Small Business Marketing Lessons # 2 of 45 – How to Find Clients

Image by EmaStudios via Flickr

Welcome to the 2nd of 45 lessons on how to market your small business.

How to find clients is a question on the mind of every business owner and it is also one of the most important factors in a marketing plan. Without clients a business simply would not exist.. so how do you go about finding new clients?

In today’s lesson we are going to study how to find clients and how to market to them so that you have unlimited new prospects.

In order to know where to find your clients or prospects, you need to know all there is to know about them.

Who is your client?

Discovering the demographics of your business’s clients is essential for your business to develop and grow. Just for a moment consider your clients. Now answer these questions:

what income bracket do you think your customers are in?
what is their gender?
where are they located – in your local neighbourhood or across the globe?
why would they buy your product or service?

Once you build up a profile of your typical customer, it will lead you to them. You will know where to find more of them to sell to and you can raise your profits. Once you answer the above questions, you also need to consider:

what do they spend their free time doing?
where do they hang out – both online and offline?
what types of media and publications are they reading?
where do they live?

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What do your customers want?

In order to stay on top of what your clients or prospects are looking for, you should be reading whatever publications your customers are reading. Being current with trends in your business niche is key to knowing what your customers are looking for, so that you can provide it to them. Whatever your niche is, stay ‘in the know’ and look to your competition to find answers too.

Another question that will lead you to your market is to discover what key issues or problems your clients have. Put yourself in their shoes to think about this. Also visit the online forums for your niche to discover what questions are being asked. Offer something that is going to improve their life or solve their problem.

Use the following to discover what the needs of your customers are:

regularly visit the online forums for your business niche. Study what your prospects are asking in the forums.
find a way to host a question and answer session with your clients, even if it’s on your Facebook Fan Page – let them ask the expert what they need to know.

Don’t be a business that is caught up in prescribing the customer products without finding out what they need and want. There will be many missed opportunities and it could even lead to bankruptcy. Your profits will grow exponentially with selling customers what they do want, not what we want them to want.

Where to find your client

In order to find your clients online think about the following and make that a place that you are too:

what blogs do they read?
where do they go to discuss what I am able to sell to them – ie which online forums or review sites?
what publications do they read?
what communities or forums are there for this topic? (you could always create your own on your site)?
if you are working offline – where do they drink their coffee or shop or spend leisure time?

Once you know what your clients and prospects are up to – you will crack the code of successful small business marketing and reap the rewards of uncovering the answer to your business’s biggest question.

Here’s the link to Small Business Marketing Lessons #1 of 45 just in case you missed it first time around.

Case Study: Creating High-Profit Sales Videos For Free, In Just A Few Hours

It should come as no surprise that YouTube is the #2 search engine on the Internet. That’s why videos are such an amazing way to create awareness and generate killer traffic for your business.

With the instructions in this article, we’ll guide you step-by-step into making your own slick viral videos within just a few hours.

First, take a look at this completed example:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xxnH8QP3ZTE

This video was produced by Storagepipe Solutions as a means of showing the benefits of their enterprise online backup & archiving systems. And it’s an ideal illustration of how your final video will look.

Step 1: Write the script

Notice how the video is very entertaining, and doesn’t go into boring semantics or technical details. Instead, it’s very light-hearted and playful. The main focus of the dialogue is around the customer’s backup-related problems…. and NOT the company’s product.

You want to leave the viewer wanting more. Your goal is not to make the sale in the video. Instead, your aim should be to generate curiosity and get the viewer to ask for more information.

Also, the video should be brief. No more than 2 minutes at the most.

Step 2: Record the script

Go into a quiet room and record the script using your PC microphone. You can improve the sound by filling the room with large soft objects such as stuffed animals or pillows. This will help dull the background echo.

The best free audio recording software for this is Audacity.

Step 3: Create the storyboard

You don’t have to be Picasso to illustrate your video storyboard effectively. Just make the nicest, cleanest drawings you can on paper. There should be one image for every 10 to 15 seconds of the movie.

Take each of these drawings and scan them as image files on your machine.

Step 4: Compile the movie

When you bought your computer, it probably came with some form of video editing software.

Windows users can create their own movies for free using the built-in Windows Movie Maker. All you need to do is import your audio and image files into your Windows Movie Maker session, and rearrange them however you like.

Step 5: Publish the movie

Once you’ve published your video using Windows Movie Maker, you can open an account with YouTube and upload the video for the world to see.

Extra Tip:

If you don’t feel very confident about your voice talents or drawing abilities, there are many outsourcing sites online that will help you find a professional artist or voiceover actor at a reasonable price. Getting the components of your videos professionally made should cost less than $250, but the results will be much nicer.

The best thing about this video-making technique is that it can be applied to just about any product or service. If viral videos can make big-business backup and archiving sound interesting, just imagine what it can do for your exciting business ideas.

About The Author: Patrick Jobin works for Storagepipe Solutions. This company uses viral videos to promote their line of server online backup products and their online backup partner program to businesses.

Small Business Marketing Lessons # 1 of 45 – Elevator Pitch with Example

Welcome to the first of 45 free lessons on how to market your small business.

Each post will take the form of some theory and guidance followed by a task.

What is an elevator pitch?

An elevator pitch is an overview of your business that can be conveyed within 30 seconds (30-80 words) during the ride of an elevator. It should leave your listener wanting to know more. Elevator pitches can be written for products, people or businesses.

Why would you want an elevator pitch?

There are a variety of advantages in defining your elevator pitch or mission of your small business and much of your marketing efforts will be based around this. Without one there is a chance to miss out on vital opportunities for business when you network and it’s very easy to miss the point with your marketing copy.

Imagine unexpectedly meeting a hot prospect at the gym or in the mall and him or her asking you what you do. This is your prime chance to tell them, and you don’t want to leave yourself in a position where you are not prepared to make the most of this opportunity. Remember the proverb ‘He who fails to prepare, prepares to fail.’

Even if you don’t feel like you need to do this with your business, if you haven’t done it already, go through the exercise anyway just to cement your mission again. There could well be something that you learn from this that hasn’t been obvious in the past.

Advantages of defining the elevator pitch

you will be fully prepared and will know what to say if for example you meet an old friend or if an unexpected business opportunity arises in conversation
you will be crystal clear about what you business is about – and this is at the core of all of your marketing efforts
business cards, email signatures, profiles, articles and your about page will all have clarity
easier to create your tagline
it will be easier to write content for your website or blog
optimising your site for the search engines and gaining traffic will be improved if you know what your keywords are and who you are writing for
media contact will be improved
business partners and other bloggers will have clarity

How to Define Your Elevator Pitch

Solve a problem or need - basically the internet is a huge answer machine. Which questions and needs will your business answer?

Who are your audience - what is your demographic? Consider what they need to know.

Why would your client choose your business or want to know about it – what will they get from you or how?

Be clear and precise - don’t leave people wondering what you mean.

Be passionate and convey some energy

If possible inject some humor or personality into your pitch.

And once you have your pitch?

What else do people need to know – ready yourself with the next level of information so that if people ask more, you already have it ready.

Write your pitch on a card and keep it handy next to your computer.

Example of an elevator pitch

I’m not a big McDonalds fan, but I thought I’d use them for the example of an elevator pitch. It could no doubt be improved with a touch of humour or personality injected.

For people who are in hurry, McDonalds provide food quickly for a small budget, with a selection of meals for children and adults, even for those with a preference for healthy choices.

Task: Write your pitch

Once you have done this print it out. You may also want to look for opportunities to include it in your blog or material. Keep it handy at all times when you are working.

Please do add it to the comments below – it’s another marketing opportunity and a backlink to your site after all!