I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again. I LOVE helping people launch their businesses. There’s nothing more satisfying than encouraging someone to start side hustling and seeing it take off.
If you haven’t read You Are a Badass At Making Money, I highly recommend that you do. Author Jen Sincero basically says that YOU are in charge of your own income and YOU can make it what you want it to be.
I couldn’t agree more!
Today I’m going to be sharing some tips on finding more clients. No matter if you’re a life coach, photographer, reading interventionist like me, an executive function coach like my friend Lauren, or are trying something altogether new, there are PLENTY of people out there who want to pay you for your work. If you haven’t started a side hustle yet, these are some great tips for landing your first client! Trust me, they’re out there. It’s just a matter of finding them!
Ask for referrals.
Obviously, the easiest way to find new clients is to ask your existing clients to refer you. One of the ways I ended up working with five families who were all friends with each other was to “wow” one family. People talk, and if you ask them to talk about you are they’re happy with your work, they will. When someone refers you, ALWAYS send them a thank you card with a little gift of some sort. In some cases, their simple conversation with a friend made you thousands of dollars and thanking them is essential.
If you don’t have existing clients, look for other professionals in your community who can refer you. If you’re looking to work with kids, a child psychologist, teacher, or daycare center might be great places to start. If you’re a business coach, join any and all entre meetup groups. Use your imagination. There are plenty of people out there who want to refer you.
Join local email list serves and the NextDoor App.
Not only are these incredibly entertaining with the amount of things people complain about, but you can get some really great clients from it. People in a group I’m in LITERALLY had a 200+ email argument about the directions of the lanes in a local swimming pool. It truly is humanity at its finest. Anyway, search local Google groups and you’ll find a ton. Ask neighbors which ones are the best to join. Reply to a few so people see your name and THEN advertise your services. I’ve gotten some of my best clients through list serves and highly recommend them.
Join local Facebook groups.
Same goes for Facebook groups. Are you a life coach? Join groups where a lot of people in your client niche reside. Are you an admissions specialist for colleges? Join a group with parents and older high school students. The possibilities are endless and Facebook has them ALL.
Create a graphic and ask friends to share on social media.
If you’re unfamiliar with Canva, allow me to enlighten you. Not only is it super fun to create graphics on, it looks amazing and professional AND the free version is quite good. I made this one a few weeks ago and it’s been blissfully circulating around my friends’ social media pages ever since.
Host (and attend!) lectures at your local library or on Zoom
Nothing in the world says, “I know my stuff” more than hosting a lecture on it. Most libraries will let you use their space for free if it’s informational (spoiler alert: all lectures are informational) and Zoom offers free trials and has a free format for 40 minutes. Hosting some kind of “class” or lecture not only will help you hone your public speaking skills but also give you several good leads to follow up with.
Obviously advertise the heck out of it on Facebook, email groups, etc.. Greet every single person when they arrive. Make sure you collect email addresses. Give your guests killer, free information. Show that you know your stuff. Follow up with a thank you email ideally that night. See the new clients roll in.
Thanks for checking out today’s post. As always, if I missed something important, please include it in the comments section below. Have a fantastic Tuesday!
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