FINDING THE ONE IN BUSINESS
There's no question that you need to attract the right clients for your business. But so many businesses don't make it clear who their services are for out of fear they'll exclude someone.
Let's say you're at a party and there are two people you’re interested in, one is drawn to people who are quiet and reserved while the other is attracted to life-of-the-party type people, which person would you naturally attract?
In this scenario, let's say that you are quiet and reserved and have been asked out by your match. However, you still want to entertain the other person so you try to mimic the extroverted people they're currently talking to in an effort to amuse them. In your opinion, what would happen if you were to take that step?
It’s going to be a disaster, right? Right!
You’re liable to struggle with what to say and how to act because you’re not being yourself. You’ll also end up throwing both people off because the person you’re a perfect match for is now wondering if you are actually a fit and the other person is skeptical of your authenticity.
By being yourself and showing people who you really are, you'll be more comfortable, attract the right people, make instant connections, and build long-lasting relationships.
The same goes for attracting the right clients.
When your services, branding, website and messages aren’t clear, you end up drawing clients who aren’t quite a fit for your business. This will make the ones who are question you.
Now, you might be able to make some sales by appealing to both sides, but will you see the growth and brand loyalty that comes from choosing one side or the other? Not likely at all right?
I’ll be using the following dating analogy to help you understand the importance of being authentic in your business and how it can help you attract your ideal client and make more sales:
LOOKS
IN DATING:
A person's appearance is what initially piques your interest in him or her. It's the way they dress, the way they style their hair, the way they look, etc.
BUSINESS:
Your logo, brand colors, imagery and even the fonts you use all speak to your business’ looks and they help clients decide whether you’re the right kind of brand for them. If they’re into soft colors, modern style and subtle accents and your brand embodies all of those elements, they’re almost certain to notice you from across the room and beeline it over. Even if your business's looks aren't to everyone's taste, they may still stop to see if they like your brand, but the initial appeal doesn't exist.
COMMON INTERESTS
IN DATING:
Once you see someone you find attractive, you generally initiate a conversation to learn some basic information about them. You pay attention to the way they talk (and the way they talk to you) and the topics they talk about to determine whether you have enough in common to build a relationship. If you’re looking for someone who is well-spoken, respectful and interested in a quiet social life, you’re going to be turned off by someone who is swearing, looking over your shoulder as you talk and telling you how they love to go out every night of the week.
IN BUSINESS:
When a potential client runs across your brand and you capture their attention, the next step is to investigate who you are by visiting your website, social media handles, the whole 9. And if they're looking for a particular service, they'll be looking for keywords within those touch-points. Say they're looking for a photographer to take their maternity photos, they'll look for keywords like maternity, motherhood, parenthood, maybe longer session times to accommodate their new bundle of joy that can make it challenging to switch outfits quickly. In the event that they find those keywords, they will likely consider purchasing or booking with you.
CONNECTION
IN DATING:
If you’re attracted to a person and have lots in common, the last thing you’re going to look for is a connection. Do they really get you? Do you trust them? Is there a spark? If everything lines up on paper but in person, something seems off or there just doesn’t seem to be anything there, you’ll either decide to just be friends, end the relationship before it starts or end it after a short period of time. There needs to be some sort of a connection for any type of relationship to last.
IN BUSINESS:
It's the same, if a client runs across your service page and is debating to purchase or book with you. The element that turns potential clients into paying clients is when they establish a connection. The service is exactly what they're looking for, it checks all their boxes, they feel as if it was made just for them! A little hint, curating your customer personas will help you get to know your client so well that when you're writing your service page you're going to be able to articulate their exact pain points and problems that their on your website to solve in the first place. Let's use the maternity photographer example again, suppose you do put "longer session times" in your service description their going to feel really taken care of and view you and your brand as a premium service because you're offering something that others don't offer and you spelled it out for them to find easily. They'll say finally someone understands me, let me hurry up and book before there are no more spots.
When you’ve built an authentic brand and attracted your ideal client, this is easy to do. When you’ve added a little-bit-of-this and a little-bit of-that, the client begins to wonder if you're really a good match.
MISMATCH
IN DATING:
If you’re a homebody but have met someone who loves to go out, how long could you pretend to enjoy going to bars every night? You may be able to fake it through the first conversation by recollecting every bar you’ve been to in the last year to hold up your end of the discussion but the fact that you just want to be home at night will come out sooner or later. If you have lots of other things in common, it might not be a problem. However, if you’ve based your relationship around pretending to be someone you’re not, it will eventually fall apart.
IN BUSINESS:
Let's use a product-based business for this example. Say you’ve added a line of face cream to your products for people who have oily skin but you’ve struggled with dry skin all your life. You're likely to have a hard time connecting with shoppers who have overactive oil glands. You struggle with flaky skin preventing your makeup from going on smooth while they deal with makeup sliding off. Creating an effective product is going to be hard since you can’t test it and personally vouch for its results. Shoppers with oily skin may buy one of your handmade creams but when they realize it doesn’t work as well as you say it does, they won’t be coming back for more. You’d be better off focusing solely on products for dry skin and expanding within that niche (hand cream, lip balm, face masks, etc.) You can effectively market to one type of person, address the specific issues they deal with and become an expert in your area.
You’ll gain way more sales through your focused efforts, word of mouth and returning customers. Businesses can of course attract more than one type of person but as their audience grows, so does their team. They bring on experts to help in areas they aren’t familiar with. As a handmade business, and likely a team of one, you need to work with your style, knowledge and experiences to build your company. If you have a partner who knows another side of your products or are able to work with a focus group and testers, you may be able to effectively sell products to people you don’t 100% connect with.
But trying to guess what someone with oily skin struggles with, what they want and what they find effective is difficult when you personally have dry skin problems.
It’s okay to not be a fit for some people; it’s actually a good thing. It means you’ve gotten clear on who your services are and aren’t for. Don’t ride the fence in business. Pick a side and make it known! Anddddd, if you need help always feel free to reach out!