Business not Busyness
Every part of getting your work out there and getting properly paid for it means being willing to have a busy life. Because creating a successful career getting paid for doing work you love means there are lots of things that need doing. The trick is to be busy doing the things that will advance your business.
The Ladder of Loyalty
I find it useful to keep in mind the “customer journey” from the moment you become aware of them (note: not necessarily them becoming aware of you), right through to them becoming part of your unpaid salesforce. Here’s an example of what that journey might look like, for work like mine (I call it the Ladder of Loyalty):
- Lead
- You have their contact details (GDPR-compliant, of course!)
- Needs to be qualified, can you help them?
- e,g. Lead magnets, simple downloads
- Suspect
- Has the characteristics of someone you can serve and could enjoy working with
- Needs to be made aware of you and what you do that is special
- e.g. Talks, webinars, group posts
- Prospect
- Has shown an interest, is motivated to act and has the means to pay you
- Needs to be engaged in a conversation about how their life/business will be better if they buy from you
- e.g. 1-to-1 discovery calls or coffee meetings
- Purchaser
- Has made a one-off purchase
- Deliver value, value, value – blow their socks off with the value they get
- e.g. Group coaching, online courses, workshops – with follow-up groups
- Customer/client
- Repeat purchaser, has experienced you and come back for more
- Needs to be nurtured and made to feel part of your tribe
- e.g. 1-to-1 work, VIP days, premium courses, client groups
- Loyal customer
- You are their trusted source, they come to you first and only go elsewhere if you refer the there
- Needs to be honoured and made to feel special, part of your inner circle
- e.g. intensive 1-to-1 work, mastermind group, VIP online group
- Raving fan
- Actively and proactively tell other people all about you and wax lyrical about how special you are
- Needs to be rewarded with special attention and goodies, made to feel part of your family or team
- e.g. dinners, exclusive events, personal calls, unexpected freebies, invitations to events as a team member (with visibility/promotion)
Income Generating Activities
When I sit down and plan my business busyness each week, I am careful to distinguish between what I call “Income Generating Activities” (IGA’s) and “Resource Consuming Activities” (RCA’s). RCA’s are the stuff that needs doing but doesn’t lead to money – things like doing the accounts, tidying my office, general admin stuff. Important, but not the life-blood of the business. And IGA’s are the things that lead – directly or indirectly – to me getting paid.
That’s where the customer journey comes in. I find the best way to identify whether something is an IGA is to ask myself “Does this help move someone along to the next step?”
So an email to someone I met networking, inviting them to take a look at my website might move them from Lead to Suspect. Following up on an email enquiry, inviting a Prospect to book in for a phone call or to meet for a coffee can move them to become a Purchaser. Or setting aside some time to create great content for my VIP online group could move them from Loyal Customers to Raving Fans. IGA’s are not just about acquiring clients, or even about upselling them, they are also about serving them beautifully. Powerful delivery is just as important as professional marketing.
Invest in yourself for income
There is a temptation to view the personal development work you do on yourself as just consuming resources. After all, it does take time, money, attention and energy, that you could be spending on getting more customers or creating new products. And it’s often difficult to see how it’s going to lead to you getting paid for doing what you love.
But what if it’s the work you do on yourself that makes the biggest difference? What if the best way you can move someone along their journey with you is by getting so connected to your genius that it starts exuding from your every pore, resonating in every word you speak or write, flowing out and touching the hearts of all the people who need you, attracting them to you like bees after honey.
What’s more likely to turn a prospect into a buyer, clever marketing or a natural connection with your authentic energy? And how are your customers most likely to become fans, because you present them with the perfect logical business case, or because they identify with the essence of who you are and what you’re out to achieve for the world?
Attracting the right clients
As an aside here, if right now you’re thinking you’d rather have the clever, logical, reasonable argument for working with me, that’s fine, I’m not the provider for you. Because an important part of knowing who you really are, and BEing who you really are, is that you won’t attract the people who’d like you to be something else – and that’s a whole lot less hassle for everybody!
So yes, make sure that your busy-ness in your business is focussed on moving that next customer along the Ladder of Loyalty, but also do the work to make sure your IGA’s are focussed on finding and serving those ideal loyal customers and raving fans that you can serve with ease from your natural genius.
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Photo by Trent Szmolnik on Unsplash
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