Start Thinking Like A Client

Most business websites focus too much on “This is me.  This is what I do.  This is what our service is about.”  They forget about the most important person viewing the site… the prospect.  In fact, creating every page and every part of your website with your prospects and customers in mind is crucial.

My Sample Intro Paragraph

When a prospect comes to your site, these are the thoughts floating in their heads:

• Do they work with clients like me?
• Do they understand my situation?
• Do they know my concerns, issues, and problems?
• Do they really know their industry?
• Have they worked with people like me?
• Have they solved problems for people like me?

This page should first answer these questions so that the client knows immediately if he or she is in the right place.  They need to be reassured that you can meet their needs.  This can be done with a brief paragraph summarizing who you want to work with.  And then speaking to your prospect’s needs, desires, and concerns.

It’s best to focus on a specific client you want to serve rather than trying to serve everyone.  And in focusing on that client, you will be able to answer their questions and concerns before they ask them.  You will be able to write copy which will encourage them to want to do business with you.  Another benefit of focusing on a niche is that you will be able to charge more for your services because you will become a specialist in that particular area.

How do you focus on a specific client?

• Demographic- I am a Life Coach for Young Professionals 25-50
• Industry Specific- Serving Real Estate Professionals Worldwide
• Geographic- Full service plumbing for the tri state metro area
• Psychologically- If you are a professional willing to invest 5 hours a week, we will take your career to the next level.

In your mind, you should be focusing on the specific clients you want to serve.  Here are the four types of clients we work with.  The common focus is that they are all small business owners in various stages of online business growth.

• Perhaps you are just starting an Online Business.  Don’t learn by making every mistake in the book.  Allow our experience and expertise to give you a business boost.  We can provide services to get your business started right.  We can take care of everything from design to website hosting and e-commerce.
• Many businesses have a website, but it’s not really doing anything.  These companies wonder, “How can I get more traffic to my website?”  ”Should I focus my website on existing customers or new prospects?”  ”I hear a lot about Social Media, but I’m not sure if we can do anything with it right now.”
• People also talk a lot about blogging.  And companies wonder if blogging could help their business.  As with everything else in business, the answer depends on how well it’s planned and executed.  ”How can I come up with a strategy for my blog?”  ”How do I get new people to find my blog?”
• Companies getting 100-2,000 visitors to their website a month ask different questions.  ”What can I do to make my website more effective?”  ”Am I tracking the right data for my company?”  ”What changes should I be considering to increase sales, shorten the sales-cycle, and generate more revenue?”

Answer their questions and address their needs

You can see that as I have been talking about the types of clients I work with, I’ve been answering common thoughts and questions they might have.

Detail who your ideal client is

The final section on this type of page is to remind the client who your ideal client is.  Remember, you don’t want to work with just anyone.  I’ll show you my sample content and tell you why I envision this as my ideal client.

Any Small Business can succeed online but it takes time and dedication.  Just as it takes time and focused effort to run a normal off-line business, it will take time and concentrated effort to produce results online.  Your business must be willing to invest money into creating the best website and environment for their online business.

But most importantly, those  in your business who will drive this expansion of online business need to be qualified.  They need to be self-starters, hard-working, and willing to dedicate a minimum of 10 hours of their time each week to driving the online business.

I’m qualifying the clients I want to work with in two ways here.  First I’m telling them that it will cost them money to more their business forward online.  I do that because I don’t want to have a lot of negotiations about money or how much things cost.  I am very fair in my pricing and if these clients want to shop around, they are welcome to.  If they are looking for the best deal or the lowest prices, they can go elsewhere.  I am specializing my business in helping small businesses.  That’s my focus, that’s where I have a lot of experience, and that is why I have set my prices where they are at.

Secondly, I’m telling them they will need to commit time and effort.  I have worked with clients who continually wonder why they are not getting the results they want with their business, but they have yet to implement many of the suggestions I have made.  I’m not interested in holding anyone’s hand through the process of building their online business.  It’s much more exciting to come up with a game plan and watch as they start running with the gameplan and watching their business grow explosively.

The final item we need is a Call to Action

What should your prospect do with this information?  Do you want them to fill out a form to contact you?  Do you want them to order one of your products? Do you want to send them to another page with more information?  Tell your clients what they should do next.

What does your “Who we work with” page look like?

Leave your comments and a link to your “who we work with” page in the comment section below.