How to Position Yourself to Get More Clients in 2017

It’s been a while since I’ve written a pure marketing article – one that addressed exactly how to get clients.  With the new year looming, I decided that today was the day.

It stemmed from a question I got from one of my RISE Business Academy clients:

“Monica, I see so much out there on everything!  Some say write a book.  Others say do a podcast.  Others say that speaking is the most important.   Some say videos. I don’t know what to do!”

I totally get it.  As someone who is a personal development and growth junkie – I would buy every course out there if I just had unlimited time to do them all!

But the truth is that you SHOULD NOT be buying them all.   Because you want to focus on one thing at a time.  And because you’ve got to build your basic business first.  I’ll explain.

Each of these tactics falls under a category I like to call Positioning.  Positioning is how you put yourself out into the marketplace so that others can find you and learn from you.

If you sell products – then positioning your product is all about making sure it stands out from competitors.  Tom’s shoes is uniquely positioned to serve a greater good (you buy a pair of shoes, and the company gives a pair of shoes to someone who needs them).  Today, there are tons of brands that have copied that positioning.

If you are a service practitioner – you must position yourself as the expert in your marketplace.  You must build the know, like and trust factor.

And the best way to be seen as an expert and increase demand is to teach, educate and inspire people through your work.

Then as people know, like and trust you – they will be inspired to want to work further with you by buying your products and services.

There are lots of vehicles through which you can get in front of people for such positioning, such as:

• Speaking
• Sponsorships
• Videos
• Podcasts
• Webinars/Teleseminars/Livestreams
• Books
• Virtual Products
• Blog Posts

And here’s what you should know – every marketing expert out there has built their business differently.  Some have built their empires on speaking, others on blogs and videos, still other on videos and launches, and others through webinars.  So there is not one right way.

In fact as a seven-figure business owner – I consistently use ALL of these positioning tools to build relationships with new clients.

But let’s get back to how you should start if you are confused.

First – you’ve got to get clear on the basics of your business.  What are you selling?  What are your prices? Who is your target market?  How do you talk to them?

Second – realize that anything you are doing online requires you building an online list.

Third – learn one skill at a time!  Please don’t try to master everything at once.

I teach a program called RISE Business Academy where I teach all the elements of positioning over the course of 12 months.  And even 12 months is not enough, I believe that it takes about 3 years to really get all of it – which is why most of our RISE Members stay with us for 3 years.

Where to start?  Well, speaking is the cheapest, usually free and it requires no technical know how.

Local sponsorships can be anywhere from $200 – $4,000 and can be a great way to get in front of lots of people.   As you get more comfortable with sponsorships you can invest in bigger events as well.

Blog posts are easy, fun and free.  They are necessary for consistent education and inspiration, but they serve more as the glue that holds all of your other marketing activities together.

Webinars & Teleseminars are very low cost as well.  Eventually you’ll need to add list-building to your repertoire as well as Joint venture partners and/or Facebook Ads to really make these fly.

For the other positioning activities – they all have their place.  But they do require an investment of money and time.    So get to them as you build your business over time.

Remember – there’s not just one silver bullet to get more clients this next year.  The key is to take your time.  Learn each one, implement it and then learn to master each area one by one.

Would love to know how this has helped you – leave me a comment below.

Photo: flickr; oh, Katherine