Five strategies to acquire new ideal clients in a tough economy

FIVE STRATEGIESTO ACQUIRE

NEW IDEAL CLIENTS

IN A TOUGH ECONOMY

PLAN. BRAND. EXPAND.

Introduction 3

Strategy1:BuildOrUpdateYourIdealClientProfile 6

Strategy2:AnalyzeYourExistingMessagesAndPromises 11

Strategy3:IdentifyGapsWhereChangesShouldBeMade 17

Strategy4:BuildAClientAcquisitionPlan 24

Strategy5:ExecuteTheStrategyAndTrackResults 29

Conclusion 31

AboutTheShattuckGroup 32

AboutTheAuthor 34

Table of Contents

FiveStrategiesToAcquireNewIdealClientsInAToughEconomy

2

Five Strategies To Acquire New Ideal Clients In A Tough Economy

ByRandyShattuck,CEO,TheShattuckGroup

©Copyright2009,TheShattuckGroup.Allrightsreserved.

TERMS & CONDITIONSAllcontentcontainedinthisdocumentistheintellectualpropertyofTheShattuckGroup.Byusingthisdocument,youagreetothefollowingtermsandconditions.1.Youmaydownload,print,andcopythisworkbookonetimeforyourpersonaluseprovidedthatyouretainallcopyrightnoticesanddonotmodifytheworkbookinanyway.2.Thisworkbookisprovided“asis”withoutanywarrantiesofanykindwhatsoever,includingwarrantiesoftitleorfitnessforaparticularpurpose.TheShattuckGroupmakesnowarrantiesofanyresultsthatmaybeobtainedfromtheuseofthisworkbook.3.InnoeventwillTheShattuckGroup,RandyShattuck,oranyofficers,employees,oragentsofTheShattuckGroupbeliableforanyindirect,consequential,special,incidental,orpunitivedamagesfromtheuseofthisworkbook.

Ifyoucannotabidebythesetermsandconditionsthanyouagreeto,andareherebychargedwith,destroyingallcopies,bothelectronicandphysical,ofthisworkbook.


3

Neverbeforehavewe,atTheShattuckGroup,witnessedsomuchinterestamongprofessionalservices(PS)firmsinacquir-ingnewclients.Asweallgrapplewiththeworstrecessionthattoday’sworkingadultshaveeverseen,ahungerforclientacqui-sitiongrowstoalmostdesperateproportions.

Thishungerputsmanyfirmsatriskofmakingpoordecisions.

Introduction

Infact,TheShattuckGroupconductedmarketresearchwithmorethan200PSexecutivesinearly2009.Weaskedthoseexecutivestoidentifyprioritiesamongawiderangeoftopicsthatwereofimportancetothem.Theresults?

“Acquiringnewclients”wasthenum-beroneconcernoftheseexecutives,with77.3%reportingthatthiswas“veryimportant”tothemand17.7%statingthatitwas“important.”

“Retainingexistingclients”wasthenumbertwoconcernoftheseexecu-tives,with70.6%reportingthatthiswas“veryimportant”tothemand22.3%statingthatitwas“important.”

Theirnumberthreeconcern,notsur-prisingly,was“generatingleads,”with66.5%reportingthatthiswas“veryimportant”tothemand23.9%statingthatitwas“important.”

Nowyoumightbewonderingwhythesestatisticsaresignificantenoughtowarrantbeingonpagethreeofthisdocument.Therearetworeasons.

First,ifyouexaminehowthesecon-cernsranknexttootherlegitimateconcerns,thereisasizablegapbe-tweenthem.Topicssuchas“develop-ingeffectivemarketingplans,upgrad-ingbrandidentity,differentiatingfromcompetitors,increasingbrandaware-ness,conductingresearch,productizingservices,andpricingservicesappro-priately”wererankedasmuchas50%lowerinimportancecomparedtotheclient-revenue-orientedconcerns.

Second,ifyoucomparethissurveytoprevioussurveysaboutthesesametop-ics,thereisfarlessdistancebetweentheclient-revenue-orientedconcernsandtheotherconcerns.Thissuggestsadramaticshiftinmentalityandpriori-ties,ashiftwhichmayhaveunhealthyconsequences.

Analysis

Whatdothesestatisticstellus?Wethinktherearethreeobservationsofcriticalimportancehere.

1. PSexecutivesareundertremen-douspressuretogeneratenewrev-enue.Unfortunately,humanbeingsarepronetomakehastydecisionsthatmaynotbeintheirlong-termbestinterestwhenfacingtheseconditions.

2. Weareconcernedthatexecutivesareobfuscating“revenuegenera-tion”and“clientacquisition.”Tous,thetwoarenotoneandthesame.Newclientsoftencomewithhighriskandmaynotremaingoodclientsovertime.Newclientsarefarmorelikely,inourexperience,tonegativelyimpactprofitabilityandcreatemanagementheadaches.Moreoftenthannot,existingclientsarethebestsourceofquicknewrevenue.WhileclientretentionwasatopconcernofPSexecutives,thetechniquesthatempowerfirmstogrowrevenuesfromexistingclients(researchandproductizingservices)wereatthebottomofthelistofpriorities.

3. Whileacquiringnewclientsandretainingexistingclientswereoftopimportance,thetechniquesthatmakethesegoalspossiblewereoflowestimportance.ThisagainsuggeststhatPSexecutivesarenotthinkingentirelyclearlyinthesestressfultimes.Inourexperience,

conductingmarketresearchtobet-terunderstandidealclients(only22.3%rankedthisasveryimpor-tant)andproductizingservices(only17%rankedthisasveryimportant)aretwooftheverybestwaystoimpactrevenuequickly.Agreatnewidea,packagedupandreadytoselltoafriendlyexistingclient,canhaveahugeimpactonquarterlyearningsreports.

A Big Mistake

ButourbiggestconcerntodayisthatPSexecutivesaremovingstraighttotacticswithoutunderstandinghowandwhythosetacticswilldelivertherev-enueresultstheyseek.Itseemsalmostasiftheyreadaboutanewtacticthatamarketinggururecommendsandtheyareonlytooeagertotryit.

Webelievethisdistractsfromsoundstrategyandamethodicalapproachtotouchingthemarketandgaininggreat-ermarketshare.

Executiveswhofailtoputstrategyinfrontoftacticswillsoonfindthem-selveswithalotofactivitybutnottheresultstheywerehopingfor.


4

How To Use This Workbook

Theremainderofthisworkbookad-dressestheseobservationsbyofferinganalternativeapproachtoclientac-quisitionandrevenuegenerationthatisthoughtful,basedonbest-practices,andthathasproventobehighlysuc-cessfulforTheShattuckGroupandourclientsovertime.

Itisoursensethattherehasneverbeenabettertimetobeinprofessionalservices.Whilebudgetsaretightandclientsandprospectsscrutinizeeveryprojectforvalue,therehaveneverbeenmorebuyersofprofessionalser-

viceswhoarethisopentonewpro-viders.Traditionalloyaltiesbetweenbuyersandsellershavebeenshat-tered,openingthedoortonewfirmsandnewideas.

Theremainderofthisworkbookshowsyoustep-by-stephowtoexploitthesenewopportunitiesandeffectivelygrabmarketshare.Eachchapterinthisworkbookiscomprisedofaconceptandanexercise.Theconceptwillex-plainwhatyoucandotoacquirenewidealclientsandtheexercisewillaskyoutoputtheideaintoactionforyourfirm.Readytogetstarted?


5

N = 199 Professional Services Executives.

Acquiring New Clients

Retaining Existing Clients

Generating Leads

1.0% 4.0% 17.7% 77.3%

2.5% 4.6% 22.3% 70.6%

1.5% 8.1% 23.9% 66.5%

Source: Professional Services Journal and The Shattuck Group study of 207 professional services leaders. 2009.

PS Executives’ Top Three Concerns

Not Important

SomewhatImportant

VeryImportant Important


6

Everyprofessionalservices(PS)firmhasidealclients-thetypeofclientthatyouarebestsuitedtoserve.WhenPSfirmsserveidealclientseffectively,everythingelsefallsintoplace.ButuntilPSfirmsdiscoverwhotheiridealclientisandthebestwaytoservethem,theyoftenstruggle.

Thegoalofthisstrategyistohelpyoudiscoverorupdateyouridealclientprofile.

Strategy 1: Build Or Update Your Ideal Client Profile

Ideal Clients Defined

Anidealclientisabusinessthatyourfirmisbestsuitedtoserve.TherearesevenmajorqualitiesthatmostPSfirmslookforinanidealclient:

1. Impact–youdeliverservicesthathaveasignificantimpactontheirbusiness,usuallytheirtoporbot-tomlineorboth.

2. Budget–idealclientseasilyaffordyourservicesandusuallyhavealreadyreservedalineitemintheirannualbudgetforthoseservices.

3. Profits–youearnasubstantialprofitbydeliveringtheseservices.

4. Insights–youunderstandwhatyouridealclientneedsoftenbetterthantheydo.

5. Expertise–youridealclientswantandneedyourspecificcapabilitiesandhavelimitedoptionsforacquir-ingthatexpertise.

6. Culture–thereisagoodfitbetweenthewayyoudobusinessandthe

wayyouridealclientsprefertobeserved.

7. Chemistry–yourstaffandyouridealclients’staffworkwelltogeth-erwithfewconflicts.

WhenPSfirmshaveanabundanceofthesetypesofclients,theyfindthem-selvesintheenviablepositionofreal-izingsevenmajorbenefits:

1. Revenue–theyhavealloftherev-enuetheyneedtorewardemploy-eesandstakeholders.

2. Profitability–theirdealsarecon-sistentlyprofitableatlevelsthatexceedindustryaveragesandfueltheireconomicengine.

3. Growth–theyconsistentlygrowataratethatmeetstheexpectationsofstakeholders.

4. Loyalty–bothemployeesandclientsfeelastrongsenseofaffin-ityforthefirmandwanttoseeitdowellovertime.

5. Satisfaction–employeesfindtheir


7

workfulfillingandenjoyable.Cli-entsrealizeresultsthatmeetorexceedtheirexpectations.

6. Commitment–employeesdevotethemselvestosupportingclientsandgivingtheirbestefforts.

7. Vision–executivesandstakehold-erstakealong-termviewandinvestininitiativesthatenablethefirmtoachieveitsfullpotential.

Howcanyourfirmacquireidealclientsandrealizethesebenefits?Youbuildanidealclientprofileforeveryserviceyouoffer.Anidealclientprofileisalistofattributesacrossthefollowingpa-rameters:

• Demographicfactors• Decision-makers&influencers• Keyconcernsofthosedecision-

makersandinfluencers• Goalstheywanttoachieve

Thevalueofbuildinganidealclientprofileisthatithelpsyouseeclearlywhomyouareseekingtoserve,chal-lengesyouwillhelpthemovercomeandopportunitiesyouwillhelpthemexploit,andresultstheywanttorealizefromassociatingwithyourfirm.Thisprofilecanandshouldbesharedwitheveryoneinsideyourorganizationtoensureyouareallunitedinyourvisionandgoals.

Pleasenotethatyourfirmmayhaveseveralidealclients,oneforeachser-viceyouoffer.Youwillrealizetremen-dousbenefitsandfocusbybuildinganidealclientprofileforeachofyourservices.Todothis,pickanimportantserviceandcompletetheexerciseformbelow.Youcanrepeatthisexerciseforeveryserviceyouoffer.

Ifyoucannotcompletethefollowingexercisewithahighdegreeofconfi-dencethatyouranswersareaccurateandrepresentativeoftheidealbuyerofthatservice,youshouldseriouslycon-siderconductingmarketresearch.Tolearnmoreabouthowtodothis,pleasevisitwww.theshattuckgroup.comandclickonOurServices.


8

Strategy 1 Exercise: Build Or Update Your Ideal Client Profile

Pickoneimportantserviceyouofferandcompletetheexercisebelowabouttheidealclientforthatservice.Repeatthisexerciseforeachserviceyouoffer.

Demographic Factors

Industry:

Broadindustry

Sub-industry

Geography

Companysize:

Employeecount

Annualrevenue

Decision Makers & Influencers:

Majorresponsibilities

Departments

Titles


9

Tenurewithcompany

Psychographicdata:

Agerange

Education

Gender

Key Concerns

Challenges:(whatkeepsthemupatnightworrying?)

Challenge1

Challenge2

Challenge3

Opportunities:(whattheydreamofaccomplishing?)

Opportunity1

Opportunity2

Opportunity3


10

Goals They Want To Achieve

Goal1

Goal2

Goal3

Goal4

Goal5


11

ManyPSpeoplebelievethatwhattheydoisaboutexpertise,credibility,andcapability.Whilethismaybetrue,itisnotthereasonthatclientsbuy.Clientsbuybecausetheybelieveinapromise.Infact,thefundamentalnatureofsellingprofessionalservicesis–inaword–promise.AsPSpeople,wepromisetohelpourclientsgofromwheretheyarenowtowheretheywanttobeinthefuture.

Thegoalofthisstrategyistohelpyouanalyzetheefficacyofthepromisesyoumaketoyourmarket.

Strategy 2: Analyze Your Existing Promises

Your PromisesWhatpromisesareyoumakingtoyourclients,prospects,andthemarketatlarge?Toanswerthisquestion,youneedtolookatyourmessages.Let’spickoneservicethatyouoffer,saythemostpopularormaybethemostprofit-ableserviceyouoffer,andlet’sexam-ineitingreaterdetail.Mostofthetime,promisesaremadethroughbrochures,webpages,presen-tations,webinars,andothertypesofmarketingmaterials.Gatherthosema-terialstogetherinonelocationandlaythemoutonatable.Haveahighlighterhandy.Whatdoyousee?

An Objective LookIfyourfirmislikemost,you’llseein-consistenciesofseveralkinds:

• Identity–thisisprobablythemostobviousone.Manyfirmsstruggletokeeptheiridentityconsistentacrossallpointsofexposuretothemarket.Butthisistheleastlikelyareatonegativelyimpactclientacquisition.

• ValueProposition–isyourvaluepropositionconsistentfromonedocumenttothenext?Isitclearly,simply,andelegantlyarticulatedsothatitstandsout?Canaclientlookatadocumentandknowwithinsecondswhytheyshouldbuythisservice?


12

• Results–doyoupromisetodeliverspecificresultsoroutcomesfromyourserviceandifsowhatarethey?Aretheseresultsconsistentlystatedfromonedocumenttothenext?Morethanjustdeliverables,resultsaretheimpactofthedeliv-erablesonyourclient’sbusiness.Resultsaretypicallytiedtospecific,quantifiableoutcomesfromyourservice.

• Benefits–whatbenefitswillclientsrealizefromtheservice?Whilere-sultsarespecifictobusinessdriversofaquantifiablenature,benefitsaremoresubjectivebutequallyimpor-tant.Benefitsarethepsychologicalrewardsofhavingachievedcertainresults.

• Deliverables–doyouconsistentlyoutlinethedeliverablesfromyourservice?Doclientsandprospectsunderstandthetangibleitemsthattheywilltakepossessionofasyoudeliverservices?

Itisimportanttoexamineyoursalesandmarketingmaterialsfromadisin-terestedperspective.Ifyoudonotfeelconfidentthatyoucandothisonyourown,werecommendthatyouhireanoutsidefirmorfindafriendorcol-leaguetodothisonyourbehalf.


13

Strategy 2 Exercise: Analyze Your Existing Promises

Pickonemajorserviceyouoffer,preferablyapopularorhighlyprofitableservice,andcompletetheexercisebelowforthatservice.

Promises Made To Clients

Valueproposition:

Results

Result1

Result2


14

Result3

Result4

Result5

Benefits:

Benefit1

Benefit2


15

Benefit3

Benefit4

Benefit5

Deliverables:

Deliverable1


16

Deliverable2

Deliverable3

Deliverable4

Deliverable5


17

WhenPSfirmstruggletoclosedeals,thereisoftenaproblemwiththeirpromises.Ifidealclientsdeeplydesiretheresultsyoucandeliver,haveadequatebudget,andhaveabusinessreasontotakeaction,moreoftenthannotyou’llwintheirbusiness.Butwhengapsexistbetweenidealclient’sgoalsandyourpromises,closeratessuffer.Thegoalofthisstrategyistoidentifygapsbetweenidealclients’desiresandyourpromisesandcreatestrategiestoclosethosegaps.

Strategy 3: Identify Gaps Where You Should Make Changes

Discover The Disconnect Onceyou’vebuiltyouridealclientpro-fileandanalyzedanimportantservice,youareinagoodpositiontocomparethetwo.Thisisapowerfulexercisethatwillclearlydemonstratewhereyouneedtomakechangestoyourmes-sagessotheybecomemorepersuasiveandyouwinmoredealsandincreaseprofits.ItisoftenatthispointinthisprocessthatPSexecutivesbegintomakethefollowingobservations:

• TruthInAdvertising–somePSexecutivesbecomeconcernedthatthisexerciseisleadingthemtoapointwheretheysimplytellclients

andprospectwhattheywanttohearratherthanmakingsubstantivechangestowhataPSfirmactuallydoes.Restassured,thisexerciseisnotheadinginthatdirection.Youhavetounderstandwherethegapsliebeforeyoucreateaplantoad-dressthem.

• ThisIsALotOfWork–yesitis.Thisstrategywillcallfornotonlychangestothewayyoupackageandpresentyourservices,butalsochangestotheactualservicesanddeliverablesthemselves.Makenomistakeaboutit.

• ACrossroads–thisisthemomentwhereyougettoseewhatthemarketwants,whattheycareabout,andhowyoustackupagainstthosedesires.Nowyouhaveadecision


18

tomake.Willyouputtheworkintore-positioningyourservicesandsalesandmarketingmessages?Isitreallyworththeeffort?Onlyyoucananswerthisquestion.

Steps To SuccessBeginthisexercisebylistingthekeyconcernsandresultsthatidealclientscareaboutdeeply.Thenlisttheprom-isesfromyourservice.Analyzethetwoandthenrecordthemajorgapsthatyousee.Rankeachgapinorderofimportance.Somecriteriafordecidingthesignificanceofthegapcaninclude:

• Expectations–doidealclientsex-pectationssosignificantlyoutweighyourabilitytodeliverthatitisnotworthittotrytoaddressthoseex-pectations?

• Profitability–doidealclientex-pectationsdramaticallyexceedthepricetheyarewillingtopay,nega-tivelyimpactingprofitabilityandmakingchangestoyourserviceunattractivetoyou?

• Messaging–canyousubstantiallyimprovethepositioningofyourservicesimplybychangingyourmessagingandpromises?Thisisanidealsituationbecauseitwillincreasetheattractivenessoftheserviceandallowyoutochargemoreforit–allwithoutimpactingyourcostofoperationsandprofit-ability.

• Adjustments–canyoumakeafewminorupgradestodeliverables,yourmethodology,orotheropera-tionalcomponentsandthenre-packagetheservicetomakeitmoreattractivetoidealclients?Thisisalsoaverydesirablesituationbecauseitempowersyoutochargemorewithonlyminordecreasestoprofitability.

Finally,listsomestrategiesforhowyouwillclosethegapbetweenidealclients’keyconcernsanddesiredresultsandyourservice’spromises.Somecriteriafordefiningstrategiestoclosethegapscaninclude:

• Impact–howmuchmoreattractivecanyoumaketheservicebyclosingthegaps?

• Revenue–howmuchmorerevenuecanyougeneratebyclosingthegaps?

• ClientAcquisition–howmanymorenewclientscanyouacquirebyclos-ingthegap?

• HardCosts–howmuchwillitcostyou,intermsofcollateralre-printsandotherhardcosts,tocompletethiswork?

• OpportunityCosts–ifyouchoosenottoclosethegaps,whatopportu-nitiesmightyoumiss?


19

Strategy 3 Exercise: Identify Gaps Where You Should Make Changes

Comparetheidealclientprofileandthepromisesofyourservicebycompletingtheexercisebelow.Useabbreviatedstatementsfortheworkyou’vecompletedthusfar.

Ideal Client Profile

Key Concerns

Challenges:(whatkeepsthemupatnightworrying?)

Challenge1

Challenge2

Challenge3

Opportunities:(whatdotheydreamofaccomplishing?)

Opportunity1

Opportunity2

Opportunity3

Goals They Want To Achieve:

Goal1


20

Goal2

Goal3

Goal4

Goal5

Your Service Profile

Promises Made To Clients

ValueProposition

Results

Result1

Result2

Result3

Result4

Result5


21

Benefits

Benefit1

Benefit2

Benefit3

Benefit4

Benefit5

Deliverables

Deliverable1

Deliverable2

Deliverable3

Deliverable4

Deliverable5


22

Gaps Between Ideal Clients’ Key Concerns And Desired

Results And Your Service’s Promises

Gap1

Gap2

Gap3

Gap4

Gap5


23

Strategies To Close The Gaps Between Ideal Clients’ Key Concerns And Desired Results And Your Service’s

Promises

Strategy1

Strategy2

Strategy3

Strategy4

Strategy5


24

Earlierwenotedtheinherentdangerofputtingtacticsinfrontofstrategy.ToooftenweseePSexecutivesmappingoutatwelve-monthplanonaspreadsheetandinsertingactivities,likewebi-nars,emails,andothertactics.Sometimesitseemstheactualcontentoftheseactivitiesisalmostanafter-thought.Intheend,youdowanttohaveagoodplanlaidoutlogicallyinaspread-sheet,butthisisnottheplacetostart.Pullmarketing,bycom-parison,beginswiththemessageandemphasizesthereasonsthemarketshouldpayattentiontoyourfirm.Thegoalofthisstrategyistohelpyoudevelopahighlyeffectiveclientacquisitionplanbasedonpull-marketingconcepts.

Strategy 4: Build A Client Acquisition Plan Based On A Pull Strategy

Pull Marketing Defined Pullmarketingdrawsidealclientsintoyourbrandbygivingthemcontentandideasthataremeaningfultothem,causingthemtowanttoreachouttoyou.Itispredicatedonthenotionthatidealclientsarealreadyincrediblybusyandonlyifyouprovidethemsome-thingofvalue,usuallyforfree,willtheypayattentiontoyou.

Pushmarketing,ontheotherhand,ispredicatedonthenotionthatifyoutellyourtargetaudiencewhoyouare,whatyoudo,andwhytheyshoulddobusi-nesswithyou-andtellthemrepeat-edly-theywilllistenandeventuallydo

businesswithyou.Oneofthebestexamplesofpullmar-ketingisthoughtleadership.Weoftensaythatifyoutellclientshowtosolvetheirmostpressingproblems,theywillpayattentionandbegintoconceiveofyouasasourceofsolutions.Thisisanexcellentstartingpointforbuildingaclientrelationship.Sohowcanyoudothis?

Begin With The End In Mind Aneffectivepullmarketingstrategyfocusesaroundjustafewkeythemesdividedupintospecificmessagesdeliveredacrossahandfulofcam-


25

paigns.Thinkofthisasyoureditorialcalendar,thekindthattradepublica-tionsuse.Tobuildahighlyeffectivepullmarket-ingstrategy,youneedtwothings:greatcontentandacampaignplan.Hereareafewsuggestionsforbuildingsolidcontentandaneditorialcalendar:

• UtilizeTheConcernsNotedFromYourIdealClientProfile–ifitmat-terstoidealclientsitshouldmattertoyou.Selectthetopthreeidealclientconcernsandcreateanedito-rialcalendarwhereyouplanout10-12messagesthataddresstheseconcerns.

• TellYourMarketHowToSolveTheirMostPressingProblems–ev-eryidealclienthasgoalstheywanttoaccomplish.Youdrawthemintoyourbrandwhenyoutellthemhowtoaccomplishthosegoals.Andre-member,justbecauseyoutellthemhowtosolvetheirgreatestchalleng-es,thatdoesn’tmeantheycanorwilldoitindependentlyofyou.Butifyoushowthemyouknowhowtoaccomplishgoalsthattheycareaboutdeeply,theywillbefarmorelikelytocontactyouthanacompeti-torwhenthetimeisright.

• ProvideInsightsThatComeDirectlyFromYourExperiences–partofthegoalofthisexerciseistopositionyouandyourbrandasathoughtleader.Themoreyoucanrelateinsightsthatarisedirectlyfromyourexperiences,themoreyouwillbeperceivedasaleader.

• UseCaseStudiesAndMarketResearch–wheneverpossible,

developandusecasestudiesandmarketresearch.Thisaddsasenseofobjectivityandcredibilitytoyourmarketingstrategies.

• EmphasizeGoodClearCommunica-tion–makeyourwritingascleanandassimpleaspossible.Avoidtechnicaltermsandmaintainacon-versational,yetprofessional,tone.Hireaproofreaderandpublishqual-ityfinalpieces.

Theprimarygoalofyourcampaignplanistoinsertyourbrandintothebuyingcycleofasmanyidealclientsaspossible.Yourcampaignsshouldbetactical,short-term,anddesignedtoelicitbuyingbehaviorquicklyfromidealclients.Someofthesetypesoftacticsinclude:• Direct-responsecampaignstargeted

atspecificbuyersinsidespecificbusinesses

• Emailmarketingcampaignswithwhitepapersandothervalue-basedoffers

• Webinars• Telemarketingcampaigns• Socialnetworkingcampaigns• Websiteupgrades• Onlinevideoandaudiotools• Searchenginemarketing• Referralincentiveplansforexisting

clients• Strategicallianceswithkeypartners

whohaveclientswhofityouridealclientprofile

Maptheseacrossatwelve-monthplanandassignspecificmessagestospe-cifictactics.


26

Strategy 4 Exercise: Build A Client Acquisition Plan Based On A Pull Strategy

Developyoureditorialcalendarbelowandthenapplymessagestospecifictactics.

Editorial Calendar (Content):

KeyThemes:(majortopicsofimportancetoidealclients)

Theme1

Theme2

Theme3


27

Theme4

Theme5

Messages:(yourtreatmentofthethemesdividedintospecifictopicswhereyouprovideinsightsandexpertise)

Message1

Message2

Message3

Message4

Message5

Message6

Message7

Message8


28

Message9

Message10

Message11

Message12

Campaign Plan (Tactics):

Direct-response

Emailmarketing

Webinars

Telemarketing

Socialnetworking

Websiteupgrades

Onlinevideoandaudiotools

Searchenginemarketing

Referralincentiveplans

Strategicalliances


29

PSexecutiveswithoutdatedorincorrectdata,orworseyet–nodataatall–arenotinagoodpositiontomakecoursecorrec-tionswherenecessary.Inourexperience,certaintacticsandmessagespullmuchmoreeffectivelythanothers.What’smore,itisnearlyimpossibleattheoutsetofacampaigntoknowwhicharethewinnersandwhicharejustokay.Trackingsystemsgreat-lyimproveyourabilitytotargettherightmessagesattherightaudienceandincreasedeal-flow.Thegoalofthisstrategyistohelpyouimplementtrackingsys-temsthatprovideactionableintelligencesoyoucancontinuallyrefineyourcampaigns.

Strategy 5: Execute Your Pull Strategy And Track Results

Implement Tracking Systems Nowthatyourclientacquisitionplanisreadytoexecute,therearefewmorefinalstepsyoushouldtaketoensurethegreatestsuccesspossible.Someofthosestepsinclude:

• Integration–integratetrackingintokeybusinessprocesses,especiallytheadditionofcontactstoyourCRM.WerecommendthatyoucreatetechnologypoliciesthatwillnotallowanewcontacttobeaddedtotheCRMunlesstheirsourceoforiginisidentified.

• Training–trainyourstafftousethetrackingsystemseffectivelyandalwaystoutthebenefitstothemofknowingwhichtacticsareproduc-

ingthebestresults.• Monitoring–werecommendthat

youmonitoryourCRMatleastweeklyandlookforthesourceofnewcontactsinthedatabase.

• Assessment–definea“check-in”pointwhenyouwillanalyzedatafromasetperiodoftimeandassesswhatchanges,ifany,youwanttomaketoyourclientacquisitionplan.Wetypicallyrecommendaquarterlyassessment.

Somekeydatapointsthatareimpor-tanttotrackovertimeinclude:• WebStatistics–thereareafew

differenttypesofstatisticstotrackhere:totaluniquevisitorsmonthly,lengthofvisits,totalpagesclicked


30

peruser,andspecificactionssuchasregisteringforwhitepapers,webi-nars,andotheractivities.

• EmailStatistics–whetheryouman-ageemailin-houseoruseaservicebureau,itisadvisabletotracktotalmessagessent,totalopens,andclick-throughstolandingpages.

• SourceOfNewLeads–ifyourCRMsystemwillallowit,setupafilterthatyoucanrunweeklyfornewcontactswhohaveenteredyourdatabase.Thenfilterareportonthesourceofthesenewcontacts.Besuretohaveaunique“source”foreverycampaignyourun.

• Messages–betweenweblandingpages,specificemails,andcoor-

dinatedcampaigns,youshouldbeabletoseerelativelyquicklywhichmessagesseemtoelicittherightbehaviorfromyourtargetaudience.Thisdataisinvaluableforrefiningcampaignsandmakingthemassuc-cessfulaspossible.

• CloseRates–ifyourCRMwillallowit,trackleadsallthewaythroughthesalesfunnel,fromfirstcontacttoproposaltoclose.Thenlookfortrendsatboththecontentandcampaignlevel.Ifyoucanidentifyspecificcampaignsandmessagesthatproduceagreaternumberofnewclients,youcanrepeatthemknowingtheywillimpactrevenue.


31

Intoday’stougheconomicclimate,PSfirmsneedtomaximizetheirresourcestoachievethegreatestsuccesspossible.Thesefivestrategies,whenimplementedeffectively,haveproducedoutstandingresultsforTheShattuckGroupandourclients.Whiletheyrequireconcertedefforttorealizetheirfullpotential,theywillimpactacquisitionoftherightclients,revenue,andgrowth.Isyourfirmreadytogrow?

Conclusion

Final ThoughtsAnidealclientisabusinessthatyourfirmisbestsuitedtoserve.Relation-shipswithidealclientsproduceout-standingresultsforboththeclientandyourfirm.PSfirmswhohaveanabun-danceofidealclientsexperienceben-efitslikegrowth,stability,worksatisfac-tion,andthebreathingroomtheyneedtoplanforthefuture.Tocaptureanever-increasingshareofidealclients,youneedtounderstandthemdeeply.Ifyoudonot,youshouldconductqualitativeandquantitativemarketresearch.Yourdeepunder-standingofidealclientspositionsyoutotailoryourservicesandpromisestothem.Asyouimplementapull-mar-ketingstrategytoattractthem,you’llnoticethattheyperceiveyouasboth

anexpertandasourceofgreatideasandsolutions.Tomaximizetheimpactofyourcam-paignsandmessages,implementtrack-ingsystemsacrosskeymetricssuchasweb,email,messagesthatpullmoreeffectivelythanothers,andultimatelycloserates.

How We Can Help

AtTheShattuckGroupweunderstandhowmuchworkthesestrategiesre-quire.Butthegoodnewsisthatyoudonothavetogoitalone.Wewouldbehappytohaveaconversationabouthowwecansupportyouthroughthisprocess.Tobeginthisconversation,callustodayat877-296-5301orsendanemailtoinfo@theshattuck-group.com.


32

TheShattuckGroupisafull-servicemarketingfirmthatspecial-izesinprofessionalservices.Weareahighlyfocusedteamofbranding,marketing,andbusinessdevelopmentexperts.BasedoutoftheSiliconValleyinSanJose,California,weserveselectclientsnationwide.

About The Shattuck Group

Our Mission And VisionOurmissionissimple–wehelpourcli-entsgrow.Thisisouronlypurposeforexistingasabusiness.EverymemberofTheShattuckGroupteamknowsthismantraandworkseverydaytomakeitrealforourclients.Ourvisionisequallysimple–weonlygrowwhenourclientsgrow.Weknowthatoursuccessisunequivocallytiedtoourclients’success.Thisprovidestremendousmotivationineverythingwedo.Everystrategywerecommend,everytacticweimplement,andeveryprojectwemanage–they’reallde-signedtohelpourclientsachievethegoalsthatmattermosttothem.

Our Value PropositionWeempowerourclientstoachievethegoalsthataremostimportanttothem.Increasedrevenue.Increasedprofits.Increaseddemand.Allofourservices,ourideas,andourenergyarefocusedonthesegoals.


33

Our ServicesWeachievetheseobjectiveswithauniquecombinationof10servicesthatarecustomizedforeachclient.We’velearnedthroughmarketresearch,ourexperiences,andempiricalobservationthatthese10serviceshavethegreatestimpactonourclient’stopandbottomlines:• MarketResearch• PositioningStrategies• MarketingPlans• MessagingDevelopment• BrandIdentity• BrandAwareness• ClientAcquisition• LeadGeneration• ThoughtLeadership• VideoDevelopment

Our Background

TheShattuckGroupwasfoundedin1998.Formorethanadecade,we’vebeenhelpingprofessionalservicesfirmsgrow,sometimesexponentially.Wehavethesuccessstoriestoproveit.Forinstance,wehelpedAvcomgrowfrom40milliontoover300millionintoplinerevenue.Ifyou’dliketohearmoreaboutthesestories,[email protected]“successstories.”Ifyouwouldliketolearnmoreabouthowwecanhelpyourfirm,pleasecallustodayat877-296-5301.Oryoucansendanemailtoinfo@theshattuck-group.com.

RandyShattuckisaseniormarketingexecutiveandfounderofTheShattuckGroup,amarketingfirmthatempowersPScom-paniestoreachtheirgrowthobjectives.For20yearsRandyhashelpedPSfirmsgrowbybuildingstrongbrands,generatingleads,acquiringtherightclients,andpositioningeffectively.

About The Author

Randy Shattuck’s BackgroundBeforeTheShattuckGroup,RandyhelpedAcclaimTechnology,aSiliconValleysystemsintegrator,growfrom10to120millioninsalesin3years.Asmarketingstrategistforthatfirm,Randyleadthechargetothemarketbybuildingabrandthatgrewfromabou-tiquetechnologysalesorganizationtoatrueenterprise.UnderRandy’smarket-ingleadership,thecompanygrewfromafewemployeesinoneofficetomorethan130employeesinofficesthrough-outthegreaterWesternUnitedStates.PriortoAcclaimTechnology,RandyheadedthemarketingfunctionofCon-tecMicroelectronics,helpingthatfirmdoubleitsrevenues.Underhismar-ketingleadership,Contec’sbrandgrewfromarelativelyunknowncompanytoarecognizedindustryplayer.Randynegotiatedthelargestcontracteverinthatfirm’shistory,resultingintremen-dousnewsalesandprofits.

Forthepast11yearsRandyhasleadTheShattuckGroup,helpingdozensofPSfirmsinavarietyofindustriesreal-izetheirgoals.Randy’sbackgroundisinmarketing,behavioralscience,strategy,andrheto-ric.HeisafeaturedcolumnistinPro-fessionalServicesJournalandRain-Today.Heisasought-afterspeaker,writer,andthinker.Youcanemailhimatrandy@theshat-tuckgroup.comandvisithisfirmonlineatwww.theshattuckgroup.com.


34

Notes


35

PLAN. BRAND. EXPAND.

[email protected]

877-296-5301

Business

Five strategies to acquire new ideal clients in a tough economy