I was doing a bit of surfing on the ‘net and Facebook the other day and I realized that what I was doing I needed to share with you!
I was doing research for my clients – not in a billable, time-tracking way – but I was noticing things in my Internet travels that might be interesting to them.
One of the things that is really important for you to do in business is to master your craft. Just like your clients, it’s essential that you know your business inside and out.
Part of that mastery is learning about your clients and their businesses too.
It’s not particularly necessary to work with a target industry or niche (although that helps!), but success is something that will come to you when your name comes to mind in conversations that you aren’t even a part of.
Your clients will give you referrals when they are in conversation with their colleagues, if you make sure that your name comes to their mind often, and in the right context.
So here are 3 ways you can become the go-to expert for your clients:
Learn about their industry. Knowing what your clients do and who they interact with makes your life easier as a business person. If you want to build a referral-only business, you can do that so easily when you know every detail about your potential clients. So if you focus on working with business coaches (or real estate agents, or lawyers, whatever!), then learn about what they do – look at what others do. Understand the programs and services they use to run their businesses.
Learn more about their clients. When you know about your own clients, learn more about their clients. Where they find them, how they work with them, how they network with them. Remember if your clients don’t have clients, they won’t need you. So if you can get a good idea of where they are connecting with their audience, you can keep an eye out for potential clients for them anywhere you travel.
Gather ideas, resources and suggestions for them.Like I was explaining earlier, be on the lookout for things that might help your clients in their business. If you are surfing Facebook and you see a sponsored ad from a colleague that might be an interesting model for you client, send it along. If you come across an interesting tool or resource that might make your work easier with them – or their work easier with their clients – pass it along. A little research can go a long way. I know my clients love it when I send off a new resource that I think might help them in their business.
There are many things you can do to help your clients keep themselves busy (which keeps you busy!)
And I’m not suggesting that you surf the web for an hour for them each day, free of charge (this stuff is not billable!). I’m talking about being aware in your everyday travels to look for things that might be of interest to them.
It’s research that can pay for itself ten-fold (or more!) when your clients talk about you with their colleagues!
Have you done this type of thing for your clients before? I’d love to hear your stories! Email me or leave them on my Facebook page!
I get excellent feedback from my clients when I give them something that will help them do their jobs better, and you can too!
And never forget – the busier your clients are, the more work for you!