Entrepreneur Tips – What is driving your clients away? And What to Do About It

Many businesses experience a slow down at times throughout the year. It happens to the best of us.  However, if you’ve been feeling that slow-down for the past several months, perhaps it is time to take some action and figure out what is going wrong. What might you be doing or not doing that is driving your clients and potential clients away?  Before it is too late you need to take a minute to reflect and then make some positive changes. These should help.

Top Ways to Keep Your Clients Coming Back Time and Time Again:

How are you doing with your clients and potential clients?  Are you still making your current clients feel special?  Even though you’ve been working with them for years, it’s important to still make them feel like they are your #1.  Think about it. Are the newer or potential clients getting all your energy?  This happens, but it’s important to note and make the appropriate changes.

What can truly happen in your business is you get too overwhelmed.  The demands of running your business can be too much.  We also know that part of being a business success is to grow your business and secure new clients.  You WANT to continue doing this, just not at the expense of your current clients. It might be the time to sit down with your virtual assistant or team and go over more tasks they can handle for you so you can give that quality care to all clients.  The biggest mistake most make is thinking they need to do it all alone.  You don’t.  So take action now.

Also, take a look at your promotions or your offerings. Are you offering all the good stuff to the clients you are hoping to attract?  Giving specials is great, but consider what you can be doing for your regular clients too.  You know the ones that pay each and every month.  It doesn’t have to be money either.  It can be things such as sending out extra tweets or helping them with a project they are having problems with.
  
Are you ignoring feedback? – What are you clients telling you?  Are you listening so you can take appropriate action?   Look for signs that things are going well.  For example, are they not sending you as much work?  Are the responses back not as warm and fussy as before?  Be mindful of the signs and work to make it better.  Also encourage feedback, by asking for it.  When I send my invoices, I also ask for recommendations and I truly want to hear what I can do better.

Not connecting enough – Are you not engaging enough with your clients and potential clients. When was the last time you sent out a newsletter or updated your blog? Be honest.  Okay, take it a step further, when was the last time you actually did some marketing for your business?  Take just a few minutes and write down what marketing you’ve done in the past two months.  Now review that.  Is it enough? What have you done right, what can you improve upon?
 
Now you know what you can do to make positive changes, be sure to include a plan to do that.  Write down a specific to do list to make these changes and follow-up on them. Be sure to make client relations a big part of what you do to not only keep those clients coming back again, but to keep them referring you to others.

Diana Ennen is the President of Virtual Word Publishing, www.virtualwordpublishing.com and the author of numerous books on starting a virtual assistant business including Virtual Assistant the Series: Become a Highly Successful Sought After VA and accompanying Workbook and also Corel WordPerfect’s Office Ready Virtual Assistant Solution pack.  E-mail her at diana@virtualwordpublishing.com to receive your free Business Informational Package.  Article is free to be reprinted as long as bio remains intact

Jumpstart Your Small Business Growth Now!!

What’s one of the most Powerful Ways to Jump-Start Your Small Business Growth?

If you’re like most entrepreneurs, you’ve got your nose to the grindstone all the time. But when you’re always busy working you don’t notice what’s changing in the marketplace, or what’s new that you could be taking advantage of to better market your business. And these days, thanks to the Internet and the economy both of these things are changing at an incredibly fast pace.

So if you’re always busy putting out fires and taking care of clients and customers, you’re likely missing out on one of the most powerful ways to grow your small business… Attending events!

One of the best ways to stay inspired and on top of the latest trends and opportunities is to regularly attend conferences, events and workshops outside of your industry. Because, while reading about the latest and greatest online or in books is great, nothing substitutes for hearing experts speak live about what they’re doing and what’s new.

But let’s face it, spending a few thousand dollars and taking a week off work to go to a conference or seminar isn’t always possible. So I’ve got the next best thing for you!

I’ve been invited to speak as one of 12 small business experts at the upcoming FREE 3-day “Small Business Success Telesummit.” It’s all done by phone, so you can attend every session, or just one or two, from the comfort of your own home or office.

Topics include everything from using social media and other online tools for marketing, creating a more compelling personal bio, mastering in-person networking, how to market your expertise using tips booklets, time-management techniques, outsourcing secrets and more. There’s even a live Q & A segment with the experts at the end of each call.

Here’s a list of all the amazing speakers scheduled for the three-day event:

social media expert Nancy Marmolejo, PR experts Shannon Cherry, Diane Ennen (that's me!) and Nancy Juetten, Time Liberator Susan Lannis, The Tips Booklet Queen Paulette Ensign, Savvy Networker Zita Gustin, Results Coach Leanne Hoagland-Smith, Founder of the HUBstreet social networking site Nancy Fox, New Business Mentor Leah Grant, Internet Marketing Strategist Erin Blaskie, and Practical Marketing Expert Stacy Karacostas. Plus, everyone who registers receives a bonus ebook packed with helpful articles from these experts.

Now you can get the info you need to transform your business without spending a penny or traveling anywhere!

So what are you waiting for? While the event is totally free to attend live, phone lines for the calls are limited. If you’re ready to take your business to the next level go here and register for the Telesummit right away:

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What’s the biggest ah-ha moment you’ve had listening in on a teleseminar? Please do share by leaving a comment below…