Starting your own business is a big job in itself—you become the marketer, the creative designer, the editor, the accountant…and the salesperson.
Stepping into the role of selling can be the biggest challenge for entrepreneurs and new business owners for so many reasons, but the most common issue I hear from my clients is that it feels “icky.”
In other words, they can’t find a way to sell that feels authentic and that actually works. Every tactic that they’ve tried has resulted in far more no’s than yes’, and they aren’t quite sure how to turn those objections into learning opportunities.
Today, I’m sharing five of my top tips to help you attract more paying clients, and start hearing more YES responses!
Stop Selling and Start Story Telling
If selling is something you hate doing, then stop. Hear me out, though—there is a way to sell tactfully, in a way that doesn’t make you feel as though you sound like a pushy used car salesman.
Take a look at how you’re talking to potential clients. Do you sound like every sales rep you’ve always run away from yourself…or are you talking exactly how you’d talk to someone in line at Starbucks?
Approach the conversation with the mindset that you’re talking to a friend vs. someone you’re trying to turn into a client and you’ll undoubtedly start to see their responses towards you change.
Stay Focused on Solutions
What are you focusing on when you’re talking to your potential clients? Are you pushing your new product, your new service, your new course, your new webinar? It’s time to STOP focusing on the product!
You can attract potential clients to your product by focusing on the problem-solving solutions it offers!
What people want more than anything is a solution to the pain points in their lives, something that’s going to make their day-to-day simpler and better. So, identify the solutions your product offers, and make that the focal point instead!
Be Genuine
As I’ve said countless times before, the energy you emit is the energy you attract, and if you’re trying to bring in new, paying clients coming from a place of scarcity or desperation will NOT bring in the conversions you want.
Your energy and mindset around your own offering can also hugely impact your ability to attract paying clients. If you are feeling unsure of yourself and your services, and do not truly believe you’re your ideal client would be crazy to pass up on what you have to offer, then you are going to repel people.
If this personal energy and mindset is something you’re struggling with, I have an exercise for you to try. I want you to write down FIVE specific reasons why your ideal client would be crazy not to work with you—and tell yourself those five things EVERY day until you truly, deeply believe it.
Practice Active Listening
There’s a trick in sales that tells you that you shouldn’t actually start the ‘selling’ conversation until you’ve spent at least ONE minute just talking to your potential client.
Engaging in a genuine conversation that isn’t immediately jumping into selling is going to help you break down the guard walls clients put up.
BUT, it’s entirely useless if you’re not actually engaged in the conversation.
If you’re asking potential clients questions about their lives, actually listen to what they have to say and RESPOND to their answers instead without steering the conversation back to YOUR point or whatever you are selling.
Having these conversations can actually help you understand how you can better serve them, and position your product or offering in a way that will truly appeal to their wants and needs.
Remember Your Purpose, Not Your Product
Why did you create your offering, service, product, etc. in the first place? My guess is your goal was and still is, to help people. When you approach selling with a people and purpose-first mindset, things will change dramatically.
Sometimes it’s as simple as bringing it back to your ‘why’. Maybe you wanted to help small businesses with their digital marketing strategy or help recent college grads develop career confidence as they start their job search—whatever your driving factor is, keep reminding yourself of it, and don’t let it get lost in your peripheral view as your business grows.
Teaching people how to sell from a place of integrity and authenticity is something I specialize in. If this selling is a huge pain point for you, but you know it’s essential for you to get comfortable with it in order to grow your business, I’m here to help.
Booking a 90-minute one-on-one session with me is a great place to start—together we will work to create a strategy that works for you and your business to help you reach your goals!