The top 5 reasons you aren’t booking consistent clients (and how to shift them ASAP!)
When I first started my design business, I felt like I was at the whim of everyone else.
Sure, I had landed a few projects here or there though referrals, but it never felt sustainable.
I’d lay awake at night mentally tallying how long I’d be able to keep myself afloat without another client.
Surely, I’d land something in the next six months before the well ran dry, I’d think to myself.
And it always did pick up again.
But I experienced this feast or famine in my business far more than I care to admit.
And the negative thought spiral was always the same.
I’d be over the moon excited each time I’d land a new project, only to be near tears (or let’s be real, full out ugly crying) when things weren’t looking so good.
The thing was, I was doing zero to market my business at that time.
Or rather, I THOUGHT I was marketing my business because I had a pretty Instagram feed and was writing a caption daily.
Little did I know at the time that those posts didn’t share at all about what I did, how I could help my potential clients, let alone how to take the next step toward working together.
Nor was I sharing anywhere else outside of my own Instagram bubble, so it was nearly impossible for new people to find me.
It was a lot of energy with very little to show for it.
And if this sounds just a bit too familiar to you, please know that I like to think that I struggled so you don’t have to.
Because I learned the power of marketing and started landing consistent clients.
And you can too.
If you’re ready to create a marketing plan to land consistent clients so you can put a stop to the stress, the overwhelm, and the feeling you have to be everywhere and do everything to create steady income in your biz, then this blog post is for you.
This week, I’m diving into the top five reasons you aren’t booking consistent clients in your biz and what you can do to shift it ASAP so you can land dreamy clients on repeat.
It isn’t clear what you do
I know what it’s like to be a multi-passionate entrepreneur.
In fact, when I first started my business, I was all over the freakin’ place.
I had plans for how I was going to include interior design, capsule wardrobes, and meal planning ALL into how to run a successful business.
I thought each of these tied to eliminating decision fatigue, but the irony of that was I was creating even more of it for myself and my potential clients in my marketing.
The further I got down that road, the more I realized that photographing, editing, writing, and sharing in each of those areas took an immense amount of time and energy.
Not only that, but it made it really freakin’ hard to become known for any ONE thing.
I was bouncing around more often than the screensaver on your tv.
I was confused about how my content was all part of my larger marketing plan and lead to my offers.
So, looking back, it’s no surprise that it wasn’t actually generating leads and turning them into paying clients.
Because here’s the thing…
Just because you CAN talk about something, doesn’t mean that you should.
But when I got really freakin’ clear that it was the MINDSET behind building a successful, thriving business that I was an expert at, it was so much easier to speak to that in my marketing and generate leads that were interested in what I had to offer.
And of course, once I started writing content that was suited to that, the clients came rolling in.
That’s why it’s so incredibly important to get clear on what you do first. What is the core message that ties all your marketing together? Are you actually talking about those things?
This is literally one of the first things I tackle in my Consistent Clients coaching intensive because if you’re not talking about what you do and how you can help, it’s almost impossible to hire you for it (and what I find to be true is so many people think they ARE talking about it and are barely scratching the surface).
You’re standing in your own way
“I just don’t want to come across as too salesy.”
“When I talk about my business people don’t engage as much.”
“I don’t want to annoy my friends who are following me.”
#beenthere
But I’ll be real with you, the same way I am with my peeps in my Consistent Clients coaching intensive.
All these excuses are stories you’re telling yourself that are holding you back from making money.
And in order for your business to be successful, you need to talk about your business.
I mean really think about it. Do you have an audience full of mind-readers? (Said with love!)
Chances are, your audience isn’t scrolling into the depths of Instagram to find the one person that promotes themselves the least and rarely talks about what they do.
Nope.
They’re hiring the person that’s front and center, constantly showing up, constantly helping, and constantly talking about how to work with them.
Because they trust that person.
They’ve built a relationship with that person.
And you better believe that person is top of mind when they’re looking for help.
Because our brains are too damn busy to hire someone that rarely talks about it or even remember them when it's time to make the next hire.
Which means that it’s your job to shift the story around talking about what you do.
It means showing up EVEN IF your promotional posts get less engagement at first.
It means embracing the possibility of being ‘too salesy’ because that likely means you’re actually selling enough to become known for something.
It means showing up AS IF you have the results you want (more leads, more clients, and more money) because that’s literally the only way to actually GET those things.
And to be honest, helping you shift your mindset around this is exactly one of the things I’m so amazing at in my Consistent Clients coaching intensive and is JUST as necessary (if not more) as the marketing plan we create.
So if you’re standing in your own way, holding yourself back from marketing, it’s time to do the mindset work and anchor into WHY you need to sell.
Why do people need what you’re offering? Why did you create this business in the first place? And why is making this business work more important than any excuse that may be holding you back?
You aren’t talking about the results people want MOST
Chances are, you’re going to hire the health coach that talks about feeling effing AMAZING in your body.
You’re going to hire the real estate agent that talks about finding you the picture-perfect house at the price-point that won’t break the bank.
You’re going to hire the photographer that talks about capturing how stunning, beautiful, and confident you’ll look in photos even if you’ve never felt that way before.
Because these are the results people want THE MOST.
Yes, you may be thinking that it’s boring. It’s been done before. There are so many other people doing that.
But quite frankly, that’s because it’s what sells.
When I start working with clients, they’re often wishy-washy on the results their people want MOST.
So it’s no surprise that they’re not exactly talking about those results or generating leads that are interested in those results. (Yet another thing we get clear on in my Consistent Clients coaching intensive by the way!)
Think of it this way. You’re not buying a multivitamin because of how great it will be to know that you can hold yourself accountable to taking them daily. Sure that might be a nice benefit, but it’s just not THE THING you want most.
You’re buying vitamins because they’re going to make you FEEL healthier and happier than ever before, even if there are THOUSANDS of other brands and supplements out there.
THAT is what people want so that’s what’s marketed.
One of the things my Future You clients rave about most is the vision board I create for each and every one of them to help them step into the bigger vision they have for themselves and their biz. But at the end of the day, that is only one tiny piece of a much larger puzzle.
What I ultimately help them create (and what they want THE MOST) is the beautiful, balanced life and the successful, thriving business made possible by cultivating the mindset they need to take more of the right actions in their life and biz.
So do yourself a favor and get really damn clear on what the result is that people want MOST.
Then give the people what they want and do your business a huge favor by actually talking about it!
You’re not marketing consistently
When I went off to college, my grandmother imparted advice that I’m not sure I fully grasped the gravity of at the time.
“The most important thing you can do is show up.”
Oma has herself a truth bomb right there.
There isn’t a secret to business. I don’t believe there is one magical thing that is going to make your business work. But if there was it’d be this…
Marketing consistently is more important than anything else you do in biz.
Because this is where I see most people drop off.
This is the part that most of us over here on team human-being struggle with.
Because when you’re showing up, again and again, and still hearing crickets, it can be so hard to do the mindset work to actually stick with it.
But if you think about the people you admire most, the people you most want to BE in one, five, or ten years, what do they all have in common?
They’re showing up again and again and again.
No matter the engagement. No matter how their last program went. No matter how many ‘off’ days they’ve had.
They keep showing up.
Think of it this way. Chipotle doesn’t take down the billboard if sales dipped last quarter. In fact, they’re probably even MORE committed to their marketing.
Starbucks doesn’t close earlier simply because there isn’t a line out the door.
That’s why in my Consistent Clients coaching intensive, we’re doing the mindset work to find what consistency looks like for you and actually show up and take action in your biz.
Your people need to see you open for business again and again and one of the single best ways to do that is to create a marketing plan and commit to showing up for it consistently.
You aren’t inviting them to take the next step
I’ve had so many clients that want to go from zero to 100 with leads faster than you can blink an eye.
Or zero to thousands of dollars if you want to be more specific.
But the same way you likely wouldn’t ask someone to marry you on the first date, there’s a process to building relationships in your marketing before making a sale.
So while so many creatives that I work with (and I’ve been there too!) love to hide behind their computer without ever having to get on the phone, know that it’s IN those phone calls that you solidify that relationship.
The same way that it’s IN dating that you build that relationship and decide if they’re the one for you.
Because the chances that someone is going to see one Instagram post and then all of a sudden hire you for thousands of dollars, on the internet, without talking to you first or hearing more, is slim to none.
So think of marketing as a way to solidify that relationship and invite your people to take the next step with you.
Now, that next step isn’t the same for every industry and could be hopping on a call, inviting them to your newsletter list, having them join you for a webinar, or whatever feels good to you to build that relationship.
But you have to do that work to build the relationship FIRST!
Ready to book consistent clients?
Sure, you may have gotten a referral here or there or maybe you were like me and they sustained your business but constantly left you in feast or famine (and tears!). Or landed a client after a newsletter you sent that one time. But that’s left you feeling like your business is at the whim of everyone else, making you worried and stressed about money pretty much all the time. That’s exactly why I created this intensive. If you’re ready to create a consistent, repeatable process for generating leads and booking consistent clients so you can finally have a business that supports you and the thriving life you crave, this intensive is for you.
Tell me in the comments below:
Showing up is half the battle—agree or disagree?
Photography by Jennifer Morgan Photography
