In this second part of the “How to get customers” episode we continue discussing the water wheel metaphor by taking a look at the second step: filling the pipeline.
Fill the pipeline
At this step you are visible as an entrepreneur and as a company and you built a following who knows about you and your products. The challenge at this stage is to bring this group closer to a purchase by concretizing offers and clarifying how you can help them. Practical steps can include gathering contacts at a networking event, growing your newsletter subscribers list, or increasing the number of followers on social media.
In my water wheel metaphor, this stage is the equivalent of getting the water from the pond to the wheel - people who have seen you are taking a step closer to your business. Your job here is to be clear about what you offer and how. Capture those who know you and express interest and meet them where they are. The more of those who generally know you who also actively take part in what you do and what you can offer, the greater the chance that they will become a customer.
Be sure to deliver value to those who follow you. Whether it's via your blog, your newsletter, your social media pages, or where you are now gathering your audience, be sure to provide valuable information to those who follow you. This phase is about connecting with the people closest to you and becoming more available in their memory. Then, when they actually need your services you will be the first one to come up to mind. Give examples of what you do.
Depending on your industry this can be done through short clips, articles, or live streams. You can also offer freebies that give your followers a sense of what they get as your customer and therefore create the basis of a relationship with those who are interested in you. One way for entrepreneurs and freelancers to be visible is for them to be generous.
Extra tip
Set goals for yourself about how many new followers you want to have on your social media or how many subscribers to a newsletter and then use your networking occasions to build that follower base. Having objective metrics and basing your work and decision making on those can take your entrepreneurship to the next level. Follow up on the (digital) business cards you collect and ask them if they want to follow your newsletter for a while. Set reasonable goals here so that you challenge yourself and at the same time reach them often enough to keep your motivation high. Three new contacts every week? 13? 30? Figure out what works best for you.
You need to think about what you will offer those who are interested in your products. What can make your service visible and concrete to them? How are you going to convey that? Set aside an hour and make a plan week by week for the next three months in which you figure out what you want to say to those who follow you and how.
Come to a conclusion
The third step in the water wheel metaphor is coming to a conclusion. To come to a conclusion is to take that step when the potential customers leave the transport route and make a decision. Often, a trigger of some kind is needed here. It can come from the customer themselves. Someone may have read your blog for several years and now something is happening that makes them feel it is time for a change. They know what you are doing and how you can help and decide to purchase your product. It can also come from you - suddenly you communicate something in a way that makes them place an order right away.
If you feel like you have a lot of people around you, many of whom think what you do is interesting but still there are too few sales at the end of the month, this is probably the stage where you are stuck. You need to be better at helping your customers make a purchasing decision or better at communicating with the customers who are ready to buy your services. Successful entrepreneurs and freelancers constantly refine their communication skills.
Let’s look at how you can do this!
Put yourself in your customers’ shoes
Think about what it is that prevents those who think what you do is interesting from actually placing an order. Here are a few questions you can ask yourself:
What do the customers need to know to make a decision?
Would a custom offer entice them?
Would they need to try out the product before purchasing?
Do I fully understand their struggles and does the offer of my product address that enough?
Is it clear to the customers that my product addresses their struggles and can help them?
Use discounts
Discounts are a common method used by entrepreneurs and companies to motivate clients to make a purchase. However, here you are faced with a tradeoff. On one hand, discounts can be that extra nudge that your customers need. It depends a lot on the product. However, generally speaking, if you overdo it, clients might begin purchasing your product because it is cheap, and not because they want to make a solid investment. Consider carefully what your discount and its frequency will signal to your clients.
Take ownership - invite your clients to make a decision
From your follower base, only a small portion of people will consider making a purchase. However, you need to remember that you are not powerless. You can approach prospective clients yourself and invite them to make a decision.
For example, if you decide to offer some freebies to one person a day from those who follow your newsletter or on social media, and do it consistently for 30 days, you have soon increased the flow of potential customers close to a decision with 30 people. Follow up each freebie give-away with a concrete offer. Even if you lose 60%, you have ten new customers in one month. Of course, how big these numbers are depends on your industry. Make sure to adapt the numbers to suit your product and market.
Similarly, think about approaching other companies. If you contact one company a day which might be interested in your product/services you have drastically increased your chances of any of them deciding compared to if you sit and wait for them to approach you themselves.
Extra tip
Just do it. Approach potential customers with offers. Set a goal for how many people/companies per day or week you should actually make a concrete offer and then make sure to stick to this goal. Dare to ask and make offers with confidence in yourself and your product once a day for 30 days and your sales are likely to go up. Here’s a tool to help you stay on track, our 30 days action plan.
In the next episode we take a look at the last stage of the water wheel metaphor. See you there!