One of the fastest ways to grow sales and profits in your freelance or service business is to go after high-end clients. They can afford to buy from you more often, and at higher prices. Having a regular client list of happy customers who come to you over and over again and pay you regularly, is the best way to run a successful service business.
But how can you connect with these high-quality clients? Here are several suggestions.
1. Make a List of All the Services You Can Offer
Choose the ones you do best, and ones that you can demonstrate through your portfolio, linking to good examples of that type of work.
2. Write a Profile of the Kinds of People Who Would Be Interested in Hiring You
Don’t make the mistake of saying "everyone" will want your services, because you will end up selling to no one. Instead, be precise about who you want to work with. For example, you might say:
"Small business owners in X niche or industry who can afford $Y per month in order for me to take over all the work involved with Z task. They are happy working virtually and will appreciate my expertise in reference to A, B and C software/programs."
3. Make a List of Their Main Pain Points
What do these people have the most trouble with? How can your services help? What can they afford to have you do this work?
4. What Is Your Competition Offering?
Search for other vendors offering similar services. Can you offer the same, or even more? Price yourself competitively based on your research.
5. Create a Great Portfolio Site
Your portfolio should contain examples of each service you wish to offer. Give each a name and hyperlink to it. If you offer a range of services, put the links into categories as well, such as website administration, content creation, and so on.
6. Spend Time Where Your Target Audience Does
Once you have created your ideal customer profile and portfolio, and have identified their pain points, it is time to look online for your target audience. What sites do they spend time at? Which groups do they belong to?
7. Make the Most of Social Media
Your social media posts should show you are a problem solver who gets things done. Make the most of your free postings to convey the impression that you are reliable and able to deliver the services you offer in a timely and professional manner.
Run Facebook and Twitter ads that target exactly the kind of client you are looking for. These ad networks are so targeted, you will spend a fraction of what Google AdWords would charge, and get better prospects to market to.
Make the most of LinkedIn too. Create a great profile that highlights the services you can provide. Use the professional services feature to find gigs that match your skills set.
8. Ask for Reviews and Testimonials
Once you have happy and paying clients, be sure to ask for reviews and testimonials to help market your services as a reliable worker who meets their deadlines.
9. Make the Most of Email Marketing
Create three lists of clients: prospects, current clients, and past clients. For prospects, you need to get them on the list to start with so you can begin to market to them regularly. A good way to get them to subscribe would be to offer them something of value related to your niche, such as an eBook, case study and so on.
For current clients, mail out to them a couple of times a month with useful content and anything new related to your company.
With past clients, consider sending out a newsletter, and special offers to get them to come back and use your services again.
Use these nine ideas to get the high-end clients you want from your niche.