We've all had sucky clients from time to time. Some people complain and make life difficult for others, no matter what you do.
But if you’ve got sucky clients on the regular, examine where your idea of an ideal client came from.
Years ago, I was a beauty consultant with a major skin care and makeup MLM company. The business model involved throwing skin care parties to allow women to experience the products firsthand. (Remember those days when we just got together willy nilly? I know this almost seems CRAZY in a COVID
world…)
Most consultants struggled to find hostesses to book parties with. Our upline leader always told us not to dismiss people for any reason. “Your ideal clients,” she always said, “are people with skin.” Yup. That was it. People with skin. After all, who were we to pre-judge anyone about how
much money they’d spend or what kind of friends they’d invite to their party. “You never know who they know.”
So the most obedient consultants (she called us “coachable”) did just that. We talked to anyone and everyone who had skin, inviting them to host a skin care party whether we liked them or not.
Well, you can guess what happened. We ended up with broke clients. Obnoxious clients. Snooty clients.
We worked with a LOT of truly lovely women along the way. But the motto of “anyone with skin” also led to some pretty sucky clients.
Most of the time, the REAL reason they were so sucky is not because they were awful people. They just weren’t ideal clients for US. Case in point: I did a few parties on an Air Force base, and they were complete disasters because I didn’t understand Air Force culture. Hardly anyone bought
anything, most everyone was frustrated (including me), and the women were left with a poor impression of the company. Another consultant who understood their lifestyle and culture would have served them MUCH better.
But I listened to the advice of a woman who was well-meaning but WRONG (and supposed to know more than I did about how to grow that business.) I put my own preferences, experience, and expertise aside and traded them for a ludicrous version of an ideal client: anyone with skin. I wasted my time,
failed to serve my customers the way they deserved, and lost out on revenue I would have earned by serving clients who were a better fit.
Who are you listening to when it comes to your ideal client profile? Are you focusing exclusively on the client demographics and psychographics, or do you take your own needs and preferences into account?
Ideal client attraction doesn’t start with defining THEM. It starts with knowing YOURSELF and honoring your preferences and needs. That’s why the Bye Bye Sucky Clients Ideal Client Attraction Formula is so powerful. Start with the 5 questions that make up the formula, and you’ll never accept “anyone with skin” as a client
again.
