Sometimes it can feel like you are just racing in place with your business – that the office is the one running you, rather than the other way around. Stopping for even a minute to catch your breath would mean falling behind the pack, yet you don’t have the energy to sprint to the finish line and pass competitors.
For entrepreneurs, it is necessary to look beyond survival mode to how you can guarantee sustainable and strong growth for years to come.
Have you spent the majority of your time racing just to keep up with your business? Are you too focused on the day-to-day responsibility of managing the firm to see the direction it is taking?
To build your business, you need to grow it by acquiring and retaining the types of clients who will help you reach your professional goals. A coach can help walk you through the steps of reorganizing (or creating for the first time) your business model and restructuring your approach to acquiring new clients.
In converting ideal prospects into clients, try using the You/Me/Us/We model to create an effective client attraction conversation that engages prospects in a dialogue and creates the opportunity for you to demonstrate you expertise and your services.
It is important to listen and understand the prospect’s needs and outline how you can achieve them together. Establishing trust is a key element in this process. Once established, you will be able to earn that person’s permission to move to the next point in the buying cycle.
First, focus on the other person. Before you get to the meeting, conduct background research to learn as much as you can. This will make asking relevant questions during the conversation more natural and lead to more revealing answers. As the dialogue continues, slowly transition to why you are there – the “Me” part of the conversation.
Proceed to the “Us” stage, giving examples of how you helped people in situations similar to the prospect’s. Finally, wrap up with the “We,” focusing on how, together, you and the prospect can work toward his or her goals.
Attracting new clients is paramount to growing your business and avoiding stagnation. With the You/Me/Us/We conversation, you may be more successful in acquiring ideal prospects and building long-lasting relationships with them.
