Tips for a newbie?

Hi Wiskey,

I would focus on one service to start with instead of three. Pick the one you know the most about and are confident in your ability to provide to your clients.

Get good at it so you know every benefit both tangible and intangible that it offers the customer and so you can explain those benefits in a compelling way.

Then go sell the s*** out of it.

You must decide on how you are going to engage the market place. You read in here all the time that people want to be IM consultants but they don't want to talk to anyone.

That is simply not going to work. Small businessmen for the most part have face to face relationships with their customers. They expect the same thing from their vendors.

I would recommend the phone or in an person visit to make the initial contact. It's a little scary at first but the benefits are well worth it.

Not only will you sell more but you will develop confidence, you will hone your skills, you will get more referrals, and you will get to a point where you are so good you will be head and shoulders above your competition.

Two to four hours a day is plenty to get a few customers by the end of next month if you jump right in.

I agree with Nick for the most part, pick one thing you either know better or feel more comfortable with and start there. It is much easier to get started with something you know and are comfortable with as it will show in your confidence when dealing with the client.

The other thing is to just take action and get out there. Starting can be the hardest part.

Jake,
With 2-4 hours every day to work on this, you are looking at 10-20 hours per week.

There are 4.3 weeks in a month and you are looking at 2 months. So, realistically you are looking at 86-172 hours.

That works out to be a full 2 weeks to 1 full month's worth of time devoted to getting these two clients.

But here is a secret, so I will whisper...

you actually have way more time than you think

My guess is that the 2-4 hours a day you have to work on this is your time in front of the computer, right?

Every moment you are interacting with people is a chance to sell your services. When you are in line at Starbucks, chat up the people around you.

YOU: "Hey, what do you do?"
THEM: "Oh, I do this or that"
YOU: "Really?! How cool, I help businesses just like that get more customers. Small world..."

How about when you are at the Dentist, hanging with friends, meeting a distant cousin or getting frisked by the police (just kidding ).

Wherever you are, strike up a genuine conversation with folks and let them know what you do. You might be surprised at how many people will want you to help them, without you doing any real selling.

So, can YOU do it? I don't know the answer to that, really only you do.

But, can it be done? Absolutely.

Go get 'em!

-Scott

If your looking for a course "istreetfighter" just came out, it's pretty good.

Starting w/a plan is the right idea. And you seem to know what services you want to offer. So, who are you going to offer them to? And how are you going to find and contact those people?

You can start with who you know...or more importantly who knows you. Local restaurant owners, landscapers, roofers, house painters, your auto mechanic, your veterinarian, doctors, dentists, chiropractors, real estate agents, etc. etc. etc.

HTH,
ileneg

Hi Whiskey,

Good name, Ohh how I miss the days of many "jack n cokes".

I know you may not like this idea, and thats totally understandable. I didn't like this idea either when I heard it, and I didn't do it right away. (I wish I had) The advice is: Pick someone you know or can "get to know" that is active in your business community. This could really be any business owner in your area that deals with/networks with a lot of other people/biz owners in your area.

Now, help them out for free. Educate them for free. Get them more sales , leads, etc with all of the knowledge out here on the warrior forum - a lot of which is 100% FREE right here on these boards. Give them SEO, Facebook, Twitter or whatever it is that you plan on focusing on offering the area. Basically, work like a madman for them for 2 weeks. Get them results and make them happy. (usually does not take that much when biz owners finally "get it")

Have them write you up a nice referral letter, and/or an awesome 3-4 minute video testimonial explaining what you did for them. Now you have that to use as a portfolio of sorts, and you have credibility. And more than likely, if you impress them, you will have several new potential clients calling you asking about "the work you did with Rick", etc.

It is better to do this right away, than spin your wheels trying to get paying clients with no existing work portfolio/community credibility and getting discouraged/burned out right at the beginning.

Just something to think about anyways, hope it helps a bit.

- Jim

Thanks to everyone who posted. I should have looked for the big offline topic before creating this one as I now have my head bursting with ideas. If I have any questions or if you would like to hear about my process I will be posting in Dexx's new topic.

Thanks again everyone