How To Find Your Ideal Client

This year I’ll be sharing exactly what I do in my own business; quarter by quarter, month by month and week by week.  My hope is that you will follow along and apply the same schedule to your own business and it will help you in the same way that it helps me.

Every year I strive to grow my business and be as successful as possible.  And I want the same for you!

Which brings me to today's post.  We can't talk about setting you and your business up for success without talking about how to find your ideal client first.

Read any marketing book, or listen to any business pod-cast and you will hear the term “ideal client”. Knowing who your ideal client is is the key to just about everything.  It helps you with website design, what images to share in your portfolio, your marketing plan and even how to figure out your pricing.  

But figuring out just how to identify your ideal client can be hard!

This is what I recommend.

Who Are Your Favorite Clients?

Go back over the past year or two.  Look through your contracts, go through your emails, and identify a handful of people who were amazing to work with.  

Look for the clients who had great style.  Who were fun.  Who you connected to.  Who totally got you and your work.

The clients who bought your most expensive package, loved every single image you gave them and then told all their friends about you.

Find those people, and ask yourself, what do they have in common?

• What is their age. Gender. Income level.

• Are they married, in a relationship or single?

• Do they have kids?  If so, how many?

• Do they work?  If so, where?

• What is their style?

• How do they dress?

• What are their values?

The more information the better.   

When you look back at who your favorite clients have been, you will begin to see common traits.  

Write those traits down.  

Imagine The Kind Of Client You Would Love To Work With

Now add some ideas of your own.  Think about the kind of person you would love to work with, your dream client.  What makes them so dreamy?

• Is it how they look? Their style? 

• The way they interact with their kids?  

• The fact that they value your work and are willing to pay for it?

Write it all down.

Next, merge your two lists…. the common traits from your favorite clients, with the list of your dream client.  

That is how you come up with your ideal client.

Think You Already Know Who Your Client Is?

You may be right, but do this exercise anyway!  I'm going into my 18th year of business, and I do this every January.  Remember, as your business grows and evolves, your ideal client may change.

Once you’ve identified who your ideal client is you can start crafting all of your marketing plan to speak to her (or him)…. and that is when marketing gets fun!!

Will start putting this information to use next week when we talk about your website, and how to optimizing it for the New Year!

And if you need some extra help figuring out who your ideal client is, download the Find Your Ideal Client PDF worksheet here!

See you next week!