It's a phenomenon that happens to most people in business for themselves after a few years. When solo-entrepreneurs first get started in marketing their business, they have gusto, they have energy, and many take a no-excuses approach to getting clients. They're WILLING to do what it takes, and they do it often (most of them). But after a few years, they begin to rest on their laurels, they get lazy, and after a while, they stop doing what they used to do to get clients. Some stop networking; some stop doing free intro classes, either in person or over the phone; some no longer do as much speaking as they used to. They've slowed down their marketing, and then they wonder what's happened to their pipeline: it's empty. Oh, and I hear a whole bunch of excuses as to why they're no longer doing these things, too. There's always a YEAH-BUT... "I don't FEEL like doing that anymore," or "I've already done that, it won't work again," or even "I'm tired, I don't want to work that hard." Some even begin to wonder if they should stay self-employed, ready to give up. As a result of the excuses, the well continues to dry up and they find themselves digging the well when they're thirsty (Not fun: it creates sleepless nights and financial troubles.) Then, the fear sets in and they scramble for NEW things to do. Ever done that? It seems they want to reinvent the wheel. They're looking for new ways of doing things and this creates a sometimes frenetic, frantic approach to getting clients. I believe this ties into the "Bright Shiny Object Syndrome" we talked about last week, always looking for something new to do, something exciting, while leaving behind the proven stuff. However, what I've learned over the years is, doing something new doesn't always create results as quickly. The systems aren't as easy to put in place and there's always a learning curve for new stuff. What clients are surprised to hear is that, instead of creating BRAND new strategies, sometimes, we begin by going back to doing the tried-and-true, proven things that worked very well for us in the past. We go back to the basics: Marketing Pie 101. Why reinvent the wheel when you can go back and do the simple things that are proven to work? YOUR ASSIGNMENT: My thoughts on this: You either have EXCUSES or you have RESULTS. So, my questions for you are: What have you been UNWILLING to do recently to get clients that USED to work for you? Have you stopped doing something that you did regularly in the beginning? Where have you gotten lazy? What used to work for you in the early days? Are you doing this now? Are you WILLING to do this now? If now's the time for you to ramp up your client load, then stop everything and take a look at your Marketing Pie. Which slices of the pie are you implementing regularly? Are you not being consistent with your marketing? It's time to go back to the basics. And, it's time to recommit. The funny thing is, when you recommit and you start doing these things again, they WORK. And what happens is, you start getting clients, more mo'ney starts pouring in, and you begin to LIKE doing these things again. Marketing becomes FUN again. Your whole demeanor changes. And, you instantly become more Client Attractive as a result. THEN, once the foundation is in, you can start adding in all the new stuff. Try it. It always works for me and my clients. Copyright (c) 2007 Fabienne Fredrickson
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