Client Pain Tip #1:
Dig Deep To Determine If It's Really Pain...Or If It's Just Interest Wearing a Cheap, Sleazy Disguise.
As you've learned, clients without pain are clients without motivation to do what it takes on their end to keep projects moving forward.
Clients without pain are clients who end up being late paying their invoices, late providing feedback, and are usually the ones who don't take their responsibilities seriously. (And who can blame them? If there really isn't anything wrong and if they're not actually in any pain, why should they expend energy to fix things?)
The fantastic news is that you save an abundance of time and energy by weeding out and saying NO to prospective clients who show up at your door with plenty of interest... but no pain.
"Interested" prospects without much pain are ones who say things like...
- I'm thinking about maybe hiring someone to...
- I'm just doing some research to figure out if I want to move forward with...
- All I need is a price for....
- What do you think about this idea I have for....
Statements like these are red flags that should immediately alert you to dig deeper and see if any pain exists. You need to find out what happens if these prospects *don't* move forward with hiring someone to take care of their problems.
And now you're thinking "So HOW do I do this??"
Good question.
What would happen if the client did nothing at all?
You simply need to dig a bit.
Ask questions that aim to find out what the personal impact on the client would be if he/she didn't move forward.
Questions like this work amazingly well: "Mr. X, I see you're looking to hire someone to develop a new logo for you. I'm looking at your site now and it seems you already have a pretty nice logo. I'm curious... what happens if you DON'T actually move forward with getting a new logo developed in the next couple months?"
A prospective client in pain will immediately respond with reasons as to why they MUST get a logo done. A prospective client in pain will have an answer like "If I don't get a new logo, I'm going to have to use my old one, which is unprofessional and done by my 6th grader, on the big presentation I have in front of 2,000 people at the end of next month. I CANNOT look like an amateur at this event!! I need to look professional! If I don't, I'll lose out on new clients and LOTS of money. I definitely need a new logo, it's not optional." Bingo. There's pain. There's motivation there. Desire to invest. Desire to move forward.
On the other hand, a prospective client with little to no pain—and only interest—won't be able to give you a good answer. A prospective client in little to no pain will have answers like "Oh, nothing much would happen if I don't move forward, I suppose. But I'm tired of the logo I have, and I just really want a new one."
As you know, it's easy to want something. I bet you could easily say "I want $50, right now."
But just because you want something doesn't mean you're committed to committing a whole lot of time, energy, money, and change to get it. If you're in pain and want to be out of pain, time, energy, money, and change are all worth it. If you're not, they're hassles you'll push aside.
Fish for pain BEFORE you choose to work with a new client
The better you get at asking questions to determine if prospective clients truly do have pains they're serious about solving.... or if they just have interest they're disguising as pain, the more time and energy you'll save by avoiding projects that slow down, fizzle, or come to grinding halts because there's little motivation for the client to move forward.
View Part 2 here >
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Email me at [email protected] if you have questions at all, or say hello to me at @timeforcake on Twitter.
Otherwise, I'll see ya next time with another tip on using client pain to better your business.
Make it an outstanding day,
Erin Pheil
[email protected]
On the web: www.ErinPheil.com and www.TimeForCake.com/blog |
