In the last lesson, I went over the basic principles of making money on the side.  If you followed the instructions, you will now have an idea of what you want to do.  If you did not follow the instructions in lesson one, it will be useless to read this.

 

Who Are Your Clients?

  They are people who can comfortably afford your goods/services.  Notice the use of the word “comfortably”.  Eliminate any ideas that may lead you to working with people who don’t know what they want or need to quibble about price. Don’t Make This Mistake:  I once had an online client, who was unsure of what he wanted.  After re-writing a speech five times, I gave up and told him to keep the money.  How much was I charging ? $25.

The high-end of most markets are not saturated with sellers such as yourself because few people are prepared to put in the necessary amount of work to satisfy the needs of the affluent.  The middle of the market is usually very saturated because most people will put in an “average” amount of work to find clients.

Where ever and how ever possible, try to attract high paying clients.

Why Should They Want To Be Your Clients?

Think of the benefits that you will provide your clients.  This is the major selling point.  Many people are  willing to compete on price but few will compete on quality.

Exercise: Sit quietly and write out a list of all of the benefits that you can provide for your clients.  Is the workmanship better, can you deliver it on time, or in a crisis situation?  Are you well informed as to your client’s needs and expectations?  If you  understand your potential client intimately, you will not have a problem finding work.

Where To Find Clients?

Here is the usual method of starting a business.  Get some business cards, put an add in the paper or on an online bulletin board like Craigslist, maybe start a blog and a twitter account, try networking events.  It’s B.S.  Here is a dating analogy. “I want a girlfriend.  I’ll stand on a busy street with a sign that says, “Anyone”, it couldn’t hurt!”  Yes it can hurt. Don’t Make This Mistake:  I put an add in the newspaper, advertising my writing services.  I got two phone calls.  One from a young lady who had no writing experience but wanted to started a magazine.  The second from an aspiring politician. How aspiring?  He asked if I could help with his (high school) homework.

Get specific about what kind of clients you want, find where they hang out, meet them there.  Not sure where your potential clients are?  Find someone in the industry and invite them to coffee or lunch.  Do not take advice from someone who thinks they know, since they are only voicing an opinion. And as we all know opinions are like _____________, everyone has one.

 

 What To Do

1. Write out a list of 50 potential clients (Leads).  If you can’t think of 50 potential clients, try 20.  If you can’t think of 20 potential clients, this probably is not an industry you should be in.

2. Know what benefits you are offering and then contact them.

3. Convert leads to clients.

4. Repeat steps 1 through three.

5. Keep notes or a spreadsheet on your progress.

 

Summary: Be specific about what you want to do and who you want to work for. Understand what your potential clients want before you begin contacting them.    Looking over your notes, you will notice trends and be able to figure out what works and what does not. You will know if your pricing is too low or too high, if you have the right client base, and most importantly if your pitch is good.

 

Next Lesson:  Case Study.  How I made  $800+ working 2 hours per day for 2 months.   A real world example of finding a niche, targeting clients, making sales.