Have You Worked Out Who Your Ideal Clients Are?
The decision to open the new account is yours as much as it is the client’s. Define your ideal client. Be selective and choose your clients with care.
Elite Advisors have the ability to identify and target a demographic that works best for them. They differentiate themselves from the competition by making their skills stand out as a perfect match for prospective clients. The best way to do this is to focus, laser-like, on specific ideal client types.
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What’s the ideal client?
The ideal client is akin to what marketers term their target market – just taken to the next extreme of detail. It defines a profile of a specific client niche. It should include the behaviors, challenges, problems, and goals of specific groups of people.
What should you know about your ideal client?
Drill down to the details when it comes to identifying your ideal client. Include their stage of life – e.g. working or retired, their profession, marital status, and level of education. Do they tend to live in a certain neighborhood? What are their likely assets? Interests and hobbies?
What are their financial challenges – is it having enough money for retirement? Increasing their tax efficiency? Ask yourself if you can provide your ideal client with real value in terms of your service and products. What solutions can you offer to match their needs and concerns?
Base your ideal client on your best existing clients.
A good starting point for pinpointing your ideal client is to consider your favorite current clients and why they are your favorites. Think about the clients you really enjoy working with – do they have any characteristics in common? Do they work at the same company, live in the same area, attend the same church, etc.? Clients who exhibit the same values and goals, and are clients you enjoy working with, are your potential ideal client types.
Once you’ve identified your ideal client you can focus your marketing materials on their needs.
What do you do once you’ve identified your ideal client?
Ask yourself – how are you going to meet new clients that fit the profile? Via referrals from existing ideal clients, by running seminars or other methods? Once you’ve identified a group worth targeting write out your ‘ideal client’ profile. Try to be as detailed as possible but keep to one page so you can easily reference it and pull it out to give to prospects that fit the bill.
You will find this is an excellent icebreaker. It also makes you look professional, and prospects will be impressed that you’ve obviously done your homework. By handing out your ideal client profiles you are aligning yourself with your potential clients’ values and showing them that you understand their goals.
Aim to only work with clients who fit the profile
Taking the time to pin down who your ideal client is will ensure that you only work with the right clients and the right number of clients. Make it your aim to only accept new clients who fit your profile. Only if you enjoy working with clients will you be able to build a close personal relationship with them and deliver them truly first class service they deserve.
And it’s OK to let clients go if they are the wrong fit for you. At the end of the day you are running a for-profit business, and you can’t work for clients who take up an unreasonable amount of time and attention or who fill you with dread. Your time is precious and you have lots of clients to look after so by losing a bad client you are preserving your business growth and ensuring you enjoy your work. So focus on keeping a healthy book of clients going forward.
While you may not have the ideal client base right now work towards this and focus on only seeing investors who are right for you. Both you and your business will be better off in the longer term.
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