I don’t know about you, but every conversation I’ve had over the past several weeks has centered around lead generation. Everyone struggles with it. Coaches. Consultants. Service Providers. Course Creators. The list goes on. Nearly 70% of all online businesses spend endless hours and countless dollars each year trying to get in front of their dream customer. I feel your pain. I’ve been there. Over the past 14 years, I have tried all the things to grow my coaching business. And, none of the cookie-cutter programs worked for me. To be honest, they didn’t work because they felt pushy and invasive. (Fear of sounding like a used car salesman!) I know we’re all here to make money by selling our products or services, but jumping into a chat with a complete stranger seems inauthentic to me. As an introvert, I need time to warm up to a person before I even think about sharing details about my life or business. (I know that makes no sense to extroverts. LOL) Not long ago, a health and wellness coach PMed me. She immediately started out “prequalifying” me for her upcoming challenge. The questions were all geared to meet her needs, not focused on my health goals. I probably was her ideal client, but the way she came after me was so aggressive. It was a real turn-off. She kept pressuring me to say “yes” to her invitation. I shared with her that I really like to do business with people I have a connection with, and her response back was that her product/challenge wouldn’t do me any harm so I should just say “yes.” Needless to say, that tactic didn’t convince me to join her challenge, and I never heard from her again. I want to do business with genuine people who are heart-centered and have a desire to serve, and I bet you do, too. As consumers, and humans, we all want to feel seen and heard on our buyer’s journey. But, time just doesn’t allow for it if you’re focused on prequalifying cold leads day in and day out. Imagine what your dialogue would look like if you were having conversations with people who were already prequalified? Would your mindset shift from selling to serving if you knew your leads were interested in your product or service, if you had relevant background information about them, and you knew they could afford to buy from you? Of course, it would! We are in the business of solving problems for our potential customers. That’s literally why our businesses exist, but in order to do that, we need to have three elements in place:
Right messaging
Right offer
Right audience
Sounds simple, doesn’t it? It is! But…it’s just not that easy with the systems we have to work with on social media ads platforms. Most of my entrepreneurial clients have #1 and #2 in place, but they can’t seem to nail down #3. I’ve been attending masterclasses, having one-on-one conversations with small business owners, and listening in FB groups and the information and tactics being discussed are overwhelming. Just this month I’ve heard these tidbits of advice on lead generation:
Manifest your leads
Show up as who you need to be and your potential clients will be attracted to you
Create systems so you’re prepared to receive new leads
Use contests
Use challenges
Use lead magnets
Grow a FB group
Create a funnel
Run paid ads
Get referrals
Ask your friends and family for leads
Go back to past clients
Use CTA posts and emails
Buy lists or directories
Don’t get me wrong, we need to use many of these methods in business building, but the majority of these tactics will not generate high-quality prequalified leads. And, that is what we need to increase our conversions, isn’t it?
I believe there is a better way to connect with your dream customer so you can focus on connecting and converting more leads into paying clients so you can change their lives through the work you do. Your dream customer is out there searching for you, but in this sea of digital marketing, it can feel like two ships passing in the night.
I’d like to suggest that small businesses can use BIG business tools to build their businesses. Using data to create a well-defined avatar can set you up for success in ways most small business owners can’t even imagine. More than 5,500 data points are collected on each person who is on social media platforms daily. Why should only big businesses with deep pockets benefit from that information?
That is why I started working on making this powerful tool available to small business owners like you. Check out results from a recent service-based client:
In the 90 day period before they started working with us, they sold 11 of their $1,500 offer. When they started marketing to their own curated audience, they sold 215 units of their offer and produced a 6-figure increase in their revenue. Magic happens when you get your message in front of the RIGHT people.
Leveraging data, regardless of your product or service, gives you the power to convert more sales in your business, change more lives through the work you do, and bypass all of the extraneous activities that have robbed you of time and money.
We have a framework to help coaches, consultants, and service providers determine who they want to work with on a deeper level. Because we know firsthand how powerful data is in predicting buying behaviors, we have partnered with some of the best data analysts in the world to help us define and refine audiences that convert.
Creating a detailed avatar is the step that most coaches skip over or only dedicate minimal resources to. I can’t say enough HOW much it matters. Everything hinges on this one ingredient in the recipe. If you don’t know who you’re talking to, then you may as well not be talking. No one will hear your message anyway.
I’m sure you’ve heard the old saying, “The Devil’s in the details.” Well, it’s true. The more details you know about your dream customer’s life the more targeted your messaging can be, the quicker you’ll connect, and convert potential leads into happy paying customers.
If you’d like to learn more about building a successful coaching/consulting business by leveraging big business tools check out my weekly Lunch and Learn workshops. We offer FREE training about lead generation, marketing strategies, dialing in your message, and tweaking your offers so you have the tools you need to reach your dream customer!