Why should you bother to establish a niche market? Because of the great advantage of being alone there, other small businesses may not be aware of your particular niche market, and large businesses won’t want to bother with it.

Here are the Best Characteristics of an Ideal Niche with Affluent Clients:

• Personal interest in topics within the niche. You enjoy reading, learning and writing about these topics.
• Networking foundation. You are already active in several networking groups or forums within the niche or can easily become networked.
• Moderate to high search volume. The niche has a moderate to high search volume, meaning that people actually do search for more information on the topic.
• Potential for Monetization. You want to make sure that people will pay you for the information.

I speak all over the country on a regular basis.  It is one of the major methods I use to build my list.  At the end of a show I will end up with hundreds of business cards stuffed in my briefcase from people who asked to subscribe to my newsletter. Another way I get a ton of contacts is through networking. When I take a person’s card, I ask if it is okay if I add him, or her, to my list to contact. If they say “no,” I write a big NO on the back of their card.

Below is the simple process I use to get my contacts into my system immediately when I am at an event. In addition, every Friday I will send any other contacts that I’ve accumulated over the week to my assistant.

Step 1: I bring an envelope to the event, with the event name and date written on the exterior.

Step 2: I bring a FedEx envelope with the shipping label pre-addressed to my assistant, put the event envelope in the mailer, and mail it.

Step 3: My assistant, who has my card scanner, proceeds to scan the cards into the system.

Step 4: She then exports the cards to a CSV file and imports them into three databases which takes about 5 minutes each: my Primary Contact Manager (Outlook), my Shopping Cart (oneshoppingcart.com) and my Email Newsletter (iContact.com).

Step 5: She also emails the CSV file to my sales team so they can send a welcome email to the contact and offer him or her a complimentary 30-minute strategy session and let them know about upcoming events.

Step 6: My sales team and I keep in regular contact with our list by offering them valuable information, like free teleclasses, autoresponder e-courses, low cost resources, articles and hot news.

If you do not have an assistant, I highly recommend that you plan to do this activity once a week at a minimum.  This is not something you want to fall behind on, because not only will you be losing hot prospects, but you might also end up in overwhelm.

When you receive a lead, the person sending it your way thinks they are sending you to a prospect that may need what you offer.

A referral is a warm contact. The person referring you has confirmed that the prospect not only needs, but wants what you offer and the prospect is ready, willing and able to talk with you.

Most important for your success is laying a foundation to build your referrals on, by:

• Learning the right way to ask for referrals from your affluent clients.
• Identifying regular contact activities with your customers so you “stay on their radar screen.”
• Educating and maintaining contact with your key referral partners.

There are four main steps to creating a systemized referral program.

Step 1: Design Your Program
Step 2: Design Your System
Step 3: Educate your Clients
Step 4: Ask for Referrals…again and again

Tired of Competing on Price? Try charging the Highest Prices in your Field – THEN EARN THEM! Here’s how…

Too many service providers try to grow their business by continuously focusing on price – in fact FOCUSED on convincing the market that they are indeed the Low Price Leader…

LEADER?

How in the world can someone claim to be the LOW PRICE LEADER. Doesn’t the very fact that they claim to be the lowest price in the market mean that they have researched the market and RESPONDED? And isn’t responsive positioning in the marketplace a textbook trait of a FOLLOWER rather than a LEADER?

By definition, leaders LEAD.

And that means finding that pricing that will allow you to provide the absolute BEST level of support within your market and educating the marketplace as to why it is in their best interests to retain you at a clear premium.

Join Kelly and Kevin THIS Thursday, February 4^th on a free telecall where they will teach you how it’s actually EASIER to bypass the ‘Slow Growth’ phase of your business and GO BIG right NOW! This is the ULTIMATE Success Shortcut and we’re gonna share the details with you on this FREE Call. It happens at 1 PM PT (2 PM MT, 3 PM CT, 4 PM ET) Click Here to Register!

You have heard me say it a million times.  There is almost nothing more important to your affluent clients than exceptional service.  VIP Customer service and client appreciation campaigns can transform your clients into raving fans who build your business for you.

Here are the three pivotal steps to creating that result.

1. VIP Customer Service From The First Moment They Encounter Your Company
2. Systemized and Personalized Client Appreciation Campaigns to Build Loyalty
3. Systemized Client Referral Programs

The key to profitability and success rests in a company’s ability to differentiate itself from its competitors through creating a world class customer experience. The greatest missed opportunity for most companies is in creating more profitability from the customers they already have versus consistently replacing lost customers with new ones.

While a growing business needs to constantly capture new customers, the focus and priority should be on pleasing your existing customer base and growing your profitability through them.

There was a teenage boy on the corner near my favorite grocery store.  He had a sign that asked for money so he could go to his prom. Now, my head told me he should really try getting a minimum-wage job at that grocery store right around the corner instead of asking for handouts. My gut told me otherwise. When I asked him why he was doing this he said that he was already working two jobs and that his parents were both laid off and he had taken his money he had saved and put it toward his SATs.   I have to tell you; I gave him $20.  Is it possible he was making it up..yes, but my gut told me otherwise.  And frankly, I thought it was brilliant that he had the courage to go out and ask for what he wanted.    I appreciate that he was “working” toward an end goal and his story had emotionality to it, which appealed to me.  You’ll see a lot of the panhandlers who communicate their story in a similar such way.  It’s these folks that you may be able to relate to because their story touches you in some way.  Importantly, you’ll notice that their story ISN’T based on price.

In business, this story is your brand and in order to relate to your potential clients, you need a compelling and relatable hook with emotionality that connects them to you. Just like in the story above, the brand of your company should reflect the personality and character of the product or service it provides, both physically and emotionally. The image you are aiming for makes your product or service more desirable than your competitors’.  Your brand image should be trying to meet your affluent target customer’s expectations, needs and aspirations, it is important to try and reflect exactly what they are looking for.

Now is the time to take these lessons to heart.  Do NOT settle for less than what you want and deserve. Decide now to create the results you desire, design your plan accordingly and then focus your passion and aspirations on success!

Would you believe it if I told you that many clients come to me earning incomes less than $50K?  Here is what baffles me…passionate and brilliant entrepreneurs who are putting everything they have into their businesses are choosing to settle for earnings less than a panhandler.

As I previously mentioned, a recent article* indicates that an active panhandler in the city can earn $50,000 on average (tax-free). Here is an important take-away we might all want to consider in our business and in our lives:  You must ask for money.

Do you think the people on the street are embarrassed or scared to ask for money?  Well maybe they were the first few times they did it.  But now they clearly understand that the only to get what they desire is to ask for it.  So, why would clients pay you premium prices for your services unless you felt you DESERVED and ASKED for it?

In fact, asking the RIGHT price for you services is key, especially for the affluent. When your work costs more, people value it more highly. There are many “bottom feeders” scurrying around to get the cheapest work. If your work costs more (and you deliver more value) it will be worth more to the buyer.

Research shows that many times the affluent buy on prestige.   Prestigious products and services are bought for the image as much as the product itself — and a key component of the image is the price. They are too expensive for most people, ergo the one who can buy them is rich, successful, upper class, elite — or all of the above.

Would you believe it if I told you that many clients come to me earning incomes less than $50K?  Here is what baffles me…passionate and brilliant entrepreneurs who are putting everything they have into their businesses are choosing to settle for earnings less than a panhandler. According to a recent article*, an active panhandler in the city can earn $50,000 on average (tax-free). It was calculated using survey results which gauged how much and how often the population gives to panhandlers projected across the known panhandling population in the city. Now, I’ll admit, this number may be soft.  Most researchers will agree that respondents often exaggerate how much they contribute to charity. That aside, confidential interviews with panhandlers even back up this number indicating that they make between $35,000 and $100,000 tax free per year and view panhandling as the equivalent of a job or a profession. Clearly, there is something to be learned from results-oriented panhandlers.

The folks earning a sizeable amount of money in this article are consistent in their actions.  They get out there day-in and day-out.  If a location isn’t working, they adjust.  Similarly, you must dedicate yourself to consistent marketing and sales efforts. Jay Conrad Levinson once told me, “It is unfortunate but true that bad marketing done consistently is better than good marketing done inconsistently.” Create consistency in your marketing program and you will create over time, a steady stream of incoming leads, as well as stabilize your revenue generation.

*”Brother Can You Spare $4.6 Million?” by Dave Navelle as published on the BC, Blogcrtics.com

Without marketing you would not have prospects or leads to follow up with, but yet without a good sales technique and strategy your closing rate may depress you.  Ready yourself to master selling to affluent clients with the last steps of my Sales Mastery for Marketing to MillionairesÔ Blueprint System checklist:

Assemble your sales support tools – Are your tools setting you up for success?  At very least you need a sales kit which is a package of information that talks about your product offerings.

Get in the right mindset – Remember – You are the Expert.  Focus on the solving the prospects problems, not on closing the sale.  So the choice is really yours – you get to decide what type of salesperson you want to be. At the end of the day we all buy the things we need from the people we like and trust.

Make the calls – Now it is time to pick up the phone.

In today’s business climate, there are more hurdles and challenges to obtaining and keeping clients than ever. To obtain and keep clients in this market, businesses need to get “back to basics.” To get back to basics in regards to sales, we must re-establish the fundamental approach of selling. Sales Is a Science – there are methods and processes that if put into practice on a consistent basis will lead to increased business, even in the most challenging of economies.

In this transitioning economy where many entrepreneurs relied on mass online marketing methods, most are starting to see their revenues plummet.  The reason is simple!  Marketing is not intended to do sales. Without marketing you would not have prospects or leads to follow up with, but yet without a good sales technique and strategy your closing rate may depress you.  Here are 2 more steps to get started mastering sales to the affluent:

Prepare your database – Database sounds like a big and scary word doesn’t it? It’s really not. A database is just the place where you keep track of who, why and when you are going to call people. The best thing is that you don’t even have to know anything about technology to have one. Just use the tools that came with your computer, or sign up for one online, or buy a basic package. It’s not rocket science and anyone can do it.

Prepare your scripts including being prepared to overcome objections – It is often a misunderstanding that people think they need some sort of elaborate script. Simple scripts are always best. You are not the only person calling so you need to be quick and to the point. Step back for a moment and think about the people who call you… how does a lengthy presentation script feel on your end of the phone? Do you even listen or just wait until the end and say politely “I’m not interested.”

Scripts need three basic ingredients:

1. Who are you
2. Why are you calling
3. What is the action you want them to take

Yes, it is really that simple.