Where do the first 10 customers come from?
Note: Below is a translation of the article “Getting those first 10 Clients,” in which the author discusses how to attract first customers for an emerging Internet business.
In my first note, I asked my readers what things I should write about. Some of them asked some absolutely incredible questions, including marketing, and how I managed to get my first orders from scratch.
Immediately justify, I cheated. I have been working in the Internet industry for several years, so I already had a number of friends. And the first thing I did was to establish contacts with several freelancers, in particular, developers (I started as a designer) and offered to help them with any tasks that they do not have time to do.
In the end, I had a couple of clients and some urgent work, which I, however, also liked. I expected that I would do it under the “brand” of these developers, but they trusted me quite strongly, and I, in fact, conducted business directly with customers and gave a certain percentage of the payment to the freelancer himself. Magically! They not only provided me with work, but also trusted me that I was doing it well, and in the end, I did it with guarantee.
')
The key point in this approach to make connections is the ability to not step on one's heels. I have never negotiated with clients from previous employers or friends without their direct consent.
Secondly, I met several charity groups who, as I knew, needed a website, and offered them my services practically for free (well, half the price looks much more attractive). In exchange, they were supposed to recommend me to their friends, but only if they liked the result. In this case, it was my competitive advantage, since I was more motivated by such charitable organizations to work with me, however, the money for my work was both the money itself and my clients' contacts with other enterprises and companies.
The essential point in this case was the following scheme: I showed my offer to clients, in which my usual full price was written for the agreed amount of work, then I offered alternative conditions, where all the discounts and additional services were written in black and white. As a result, customers could always be sure exactly what kind of discount I offer. I was sure that they fully understood that this was a very limited offer and that subsequently the prices for my services would be completely different. I had to establish contact with only two or three such organizations before I had enough work both from them and from their friends.
Honestly, I hate sales on the phone, and after cold ringing, cold sweat breaks through me. I avoid any aggressive selling methods, and each of my new orders comes from the acquaintances described in one of the scenarios above. My only desire was to negotiate with people who already have sufficient qualifications and are either acquaintances of my acquaintances, or they have heard about me from organizations for which I have done something in the past.
So, the most important features of my approach:
This is true: if you are doing something very well, then you have the right to ask the customer to recommend you to someone of his acquaintances. These friends have already heard enough about your completed projects, so they are interested in your services. In this case, you absolutely do not need to resort to any energetic methods for selling your services: rumor does its job. You just need to offer your customers alternative payment methods and take work, which would not be ashamed to tell everyone.
It seems very simple, but it really works. I spent only $ 50 on a couple of bottles of wine for my favorite customers in the first year, and it was all my advertising budget. Leave large advertising costs to your competitors, there is nothing harmful or shameful about it.
Thank you very much for your attention. It would be great if you share your thoughts on the development of your business from scratch or a kind of viral marketing.
Web Optimizator: checking the speed of loading sites
In my first note, I asked my readers what things I should write about. Some of them asked some absolutely incredible questions, including marketing, and how I managed to get my first orders from scratch.
Immediately justify, I cheated. I have been working in the Internet industry for several years, so I already had a number of friends. And the first thing I did was to establish contacts with several freelancers, in particular, developers (I started as a designer) and offered to help them with any tasks that they do not have time to do.
In the end, I had a couple of clients and some urgent work, which I, however, also liked. I expected that I would do it under the “brand” of these developers, but they trusted me quite strongly, and I, in fact, conducted business directly with customers and gave a certain percentage of the payment to the freelancer himself. Magically! They not only provided me with work, but also trusted me that I was doing it well, and in the end, I did it with guarantee.
')
The key point in this approach to make connections is the ability to not step on one's heels. I have never negotiated with clients from previous employers or friends without their direct consent.
Secondly, I met several charity groups who, as I knew, needed a website, and offered them my services practically for free (well, half the price looks much more attractive). In exchange, they were supposed to recommend me to their friends, but only if they liked the result. In this case, it was my competitive advantage, since I was more motivated by such charitable organizations to work with me, however, the money for my work was both the money itself and my clients' contacts with other enterprises and companies.
The essential point in this case was the following scheme: I showed my offer to clients, in which my usual full price was written for the agreed amount of work, then I offered alternative conditions, where all the discounts and additional services were written in black and white. As a result, customers could always be sure exactly what kind of discount I offer. I was sure that they fully understood that this was a very limited offer and that subsequently the prices for my services would be completely different. I had to establish contact with only two or three such organizations before I had enough work both from them and from their friends.
Honestly, I hate sales on the phone, and after cold ringing, cold sweat breaks through me. I avoid any aggressive selling methods, and each of my new orders comes from the acquaintances described in one of the scenarios above. My only desire was to negotiate with people who already have sufficient qualifications and are either acquaintances of my acquaintances, or they have heard about me from organizations for which I have done something in the past.
So, the most important features of my approach:
- I did my job beyond praise.
- I had confidence that all clients highly appreciate my work.
- I directly asked my clients if they had any acquaintances who would need my work.
This is true: if you are doing something very well, then you have the right to ask the customer to recommend you to someone of his acquaintances. These friends have already heard enough about your completed projects, so they are interested in your services. In this case, you absolutely do not need to resort to any energetic methods for selling your services: rumor does its job. You just need to offer your customers alternative payment methods and take work, which would not be ashamed to tell everyone.
It seems very simple, but it really works. I spent only $ 50 on a couple of bottles of wine for my favorite customers in the first year, and it was all my advertising budget. Leave large advertising costs to your competitors, there is nothing harmful or shameful about it.
Thank you very much for your attention. It would be great if you share your thoughts on the development of your business from scratch or a kind of viral marketing.
Web Optimizator: checking the speed of loading sites
Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/31355/
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