How to find your ideal clients and build a tribe of raving fans

Who is your ideal client?

That’s the first question I asked women entrepreneurs at two conferences I attended this month. It’s the first question you need to answer in your business if you are going to attract your ideal clients and get referrals.

And, it’s the most important question you need to answer before you launch a product, program or build a website.

It’s those who think that they already know the answer to this that will click away right now,  but I encourage you to read on…

Your ideal client is not a demographic, a target market or a niche. She is not a persona or an avatar. She is a conglomeration of ALL of the people in your tribe who can’t wait to buy what you are offering.

You need to articulate your ideal client within the first five seconds of meeting a potential client, partner or referrer.

I’m amazed that 90% of the people to whom I posed that question didn’t really have an answer.

They would start out buy saying things like, “women over 40,” “people who want to heal themselves naturally,” “people who need help with their social media.”

Knowing your ideal client is the #1 most important strategy to get right in your business.

If you are not clear on your ideal client, your sales will suffer, your emails will go unopened, your marketing efforts will be a total waste.

You will build it, but no one will come.

To succeed as an entrepreneur requires that you create a tribe of raving fans who are your ideal customers.

You connect with them in a way that no one else can. When you speak to them, their eyes widen with recognition, “It’s as if she’s reading my mind!” I need what she is giving. Energetically, they’ll follow you anywhere.

“Have you been reading my diary?” A new client asked me in our very first conversation. I wasn’t making an offer or asking her to work with me. I was simply testing a concept for a new program I’m creating.

I had honed my ideal client with such perfection that she WANTED to work with me – even without me making an offer.

You are a magnet for your ideal client and in this digitally engaged world, you need to express your voice, your energy, and your unique genius in a way that attracts your tribe of loyal and raving fans.

I’m very proud of the fact that my clients stick with me. Many have been my clients for three years or more because we have evolved and grown together. As she has shifted and changed, I have shifted and changed. I continue to offer services that fit what she most needs.

As you embark on this entrepreneurial journey, start with first things first.

Get out there and hangout with your ideal client. Go where she goes. Think how she thinks. Read what she reads. Feel how she feels.

Then invite her to join your tribe – your community of others who share her passions and desires and who are seeking to learn and grow from you, buy your products, and be a part of your success journey.

Heading to the airport today, our Uber driver was a woman. In the back seat was a bottle of water, mints and a very clean car.

We said – “wow – she is an Uber driver, but she is a woman Uber driver and she provided us with a unique experience. “What if there was a tribe of women Uber drivers and you created your own feminine brand of Uber?” we asked. “You would have a built in tribe of busy, harried, successful women who crave for this pampered brand experience.”

Once you have identified your ideal client, write to her, speak to her, solve her biggest challenge, and you will have a client and raving fan for life.

Now create an experience where you can gather your tribe of raving fans together. They naturally want to congregate and learn from each other – cooperate, partner, and create together.

You, my friend, are in the center. The chief, the queen, the reason all of them have gathered in this room.

When you think that you know the answer… the minute you think you have nailed your market, identified your niche, targeted your demographic… You have lost before you even start.

I’m curious. Comment below and post who your ideal client is. I promise to answer you and probe you to dig deeper. It might be the reason why your business is lumbering along and not soaring. If you haven’t yet started, lucky you. We can take this journey together!