How to Use Your Website to Disqualify Your Prospects
How many hours have you spent this week with prospective
clients who are great at draining your time and energy but
can't seem to find the money or desire to hire you? I've
had my weeks when the number is larger than I'd like to
admit. Consequently, several years ago I implemented one
strategy that has been my secret weapon in my client
cultivation process -- I use my website to disqualify as
many prospects as I can.
You may be saying, "What kind of addle-brained strategy is
that, anyway?" Simply put, I don't want to work with
everyone, as everyone is not my ideal client nor in my
target market. A business owner who belonged to the same
networking group to which I once belonged was completely
flummoxed by what he read on my site. He told me that he
had never visited a site in which someone very clearly
stated who she was, what she does, and with whom she works.
Of course, he thought I was very foolish to be so rigid
and turn away clients and "leave money on the table." I
confidently told him that I didn't mind leaving money on
the table, as there was more than enough to go around. He
didn't get it then, and probably doesn't to this day.
Deciding to use your website to disqualify prospects is a
very liberating experience. Without a doubt, it shows the
world that you know and understand your target market, and
that target market feels right at home when visiting your
site. Those who don't feel at home leave and find another
provider who is a better fit for them. When you disqualify
prospects, you:
1. eliminate the tire kickers who have no intention of
ever hiring you;
2. create customers who call and say, "When can we get
started?" rather than have to be sold on the merits of your
service; and
3. decrease the number of information collectors who only
want to take your time and energy and, and when they have
sucked you dry, move on to the next victim.
To best disqualify prospects, I believe that full
transparency about your business is key. When a prospect
visits your website, she should fully understand all that
there is to know about doing business with you, and have no
questions about how you work with clients. Here are 8
pieces of information that you can include on your website
to make doing business with you as seamless, transparent,
and easy as possible:
1. Target market. Who comprises your target market? What
gender are they? Where do they live? How old are they? How
much money do they make? What do they do for a living?
Where do they hang out on- and offline? To what civic and
professional groups do they belong? Use as many adjectives
as you can brainstorm to describe them. If you can
actually visualize this group of people in your head (and
personally know people who fit this description), then
you've got an accurate portrait of your target market.
Describe your target market in enough detail on your site
so that members of your target market recognize themselves
when they arrive at your website.
2. Ideal client. What are the characteristics of the
clients with whom you most enjoy working? What are their
beliefs? What values do they hold dear? What industries are
they in? What are the traits and qualities of great
colleagues/bosses/friends that made them enjoyable to work
with or be around? Are there foundational issues that need
to be in place before someone is ready to work with you?
Sometimes it's easiest to generate this list by thinking of
the traits of your nightmare clients. This strategy isn't
always foolproof, as many prospects can't objectively judge
themselves (i.e. they refer to themselves as "totally
involved" in a project when most people might experience
that as "micromanaging").
3. Know their problems. What keeps your clients up at
night and causes them great anxiety and stress? What are
the reasons that they seek your assistance? If you need to
get a better understanding of the problems of your target
market, set up 30-minute interviews over coffee or over the
phone with people who fit your ideal client profile and ask
them a series of questions about things you want to know
more about that will give you insight into their daily
lives. Or, join in and participate in their online
discussion lists, forums. or blogs and research the kinds
of questions being posted. On your website, convey that
you fully understand their struggles and difficulties and
have walked in their shoes.
4. Solution to their problems. Once a visitor understands
that you work with others like him who struggle with same
types of issues, that visitor wants to know how you can
help him solve his problems. Do you have a process,
method, program, or strategy? Is that solution delivered
via information products, a consulting contract, a service
call, or a service purchase? Do you offer various ways at
varied price points to help your target market solve their
problems?
5. Demonstration of your expertise. Prospects want to know
that you've successfully helped others like them. Scatter
client testimonials throughout your site, or post case
studies or before-and-after scenarios to show how you
helped others in this target market successfully solve a
particular problem. Information-rich content also serves to
help you demonstrate your expertise, so don't be timid
about telling your visitors what you know by posting
articles you have written that showcase your knowledge.
Don't be afraid to give away your knowledge -- 95% of your
visitors won't be able to do it on their own, and you'll be
the top-of-mind pick when they are ready to take action.
6. Post prices. Don't assume your visitors will want to
call you to discover what you charge. If there are no
prices listed, many will leave and go to another site where
fees are listed. Post your fees on your website so that
prospects can tell if they are easily able to afford what
you charge. Conventional marketing strategy says that you
should have a conversation with prospects and demonstrate
your value before you talk price. I think that's hogwash,
and quite frankly, I don't have the time to have these
conversations. Use your website to give your prospects a
clear idea of what it's going to cost them to hire you or
buy from you.
7. Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs). Are there questions
you answer time and time again? Instead of taking your
valuable time to do this, create a FAQ page on your site
that answers these commonly-asked questions, and provide a
contact form for other questions that someone might have.
8. Barriers to enrollment. If you offer a consulting-type
service, you may offer a free consultation to prospects who
are interested in hiring you. Many times this session
simply turns into a "brain drain" session, and the prospect
is there only for what he can get at no charge from you.
Make sure that your prospect is serious about taking action
by making him take some action in order to speak with you.
You might require him to complete an online assessment or
survey before you agree to speak with him. A fellow
business coach requires prospective consulting clients to
show up with a check for $1000-$5000 and business plans,
marketing plans, financial documents and every other
document that is relevant to the project they are
discussing. The prospects who balk at this are immediately
disqualified, and the coach moves on to the next prospect.
Don't let the task of qualifying prospects drain you of
your time and energy. As a service business owner, your
time is your greatest asset. Use your website to your
advantage and screen out all of those prospects who are not
qualified prospects.
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Online Business Resource Queen (TM) and Online Business
Coach Donna Gunter helps independent service professionals
learn how to automate their businesses, leverage their
expertise on the Internet, and get more clients online. To
claim your FREE gift, TurboCharge Your Online Marketing
Toolkit, visit her site at http://www.OnlineBizU.com . Ask
Donna an Internet Marketing question at
http://www.AskDonnaGunter.com .
