For most companies, “closing the perfect client” means “identifying the ideal prospect” and that’s a mistake.
“But Derek, that’s exactly what the perfect client means!”
Perhaps, but I beg to differ.
Don’t ask me what my perfect client looks like. There’s no such thing as the perfect client, or brand, or business — what client you want to work with depends so much more on your expertise, mindset fit between you and the client, your approach, and the direction you want to go.
Besides, business don’t hire your agency just because you “know your stuff.”
Their decision is frequently influenced by much, much more — including things outside your control. Therefore, how much and what you know is a useful vehicle to communicate your expertise.
- A good client is one that you have a solution for after spending time learning about their business objectives (you can’t serve their needs unless you know what they are).
- It’s your responsibility to assess if the client is a fit for your business. Do they align with where you want to steer your agency?
- A good client is one who have a level-headed expectation of the reality of what it takes to scale. “But Derek, every client wants to see immediate results!” You’re 100% incorrect. Clients only ask for immediate results because you HAVE NOT communicate correctly and set expectations appropriately. It’s on you, not your client.
- A good client is only as good as the results you deliver. It takes two to tango. Let this one sink in a little…
You can’t hide behind your resume
In my experience, many marketers use their resume as their pitch because it’s much easier piggyback on the past than to demonstrate current proof of success.
Let me clarify.
How often have you seen this in resumes from marketers who worked in large eCommerce brands…
“Increased eCommerce sales by 200% year over year.”
“Improve conversion rate by 40% in 6 months.”
“Generated 6X ROAS on Pay Per Click campaigns.”
There are more but these are all exaggerated accomplishments!!! No single person can do that — especially in large organizations.
I was guilty of exaggerations in my career
I understand that — many years ago, that’s how I started.
We all start from zero early in our career. But there comes a time when you leave your resume behind and focus on the present.
Letting go of my toxic mindset
The solution eventually came to me: I don’t need to try to be like another agency. Or secretly harbor jealousy of someone else’s success.
I would read posts and articles about some agency landing big brands, or how they grew from $0 to $50M in 3 years, etc…I was jealous. Period.
That mindset was holding me back.
I’ve always told myself if I could just close this brand or that perfect client then things would be great. The perfect client would catapult my business to unprecedented levels. Hogwash!
No such thing as perfect
If you are looking for perfect clients, you are setting yourself and your team up for disappointment.
Yes, there are target prospects, industries, and brands that you would like to work with — but that doesn’t make them the perfect client.
You see, the idea of a perfect client cannot exist. It defies logic.
What does perfect mean to your business? Is it the size of the account, the industry they are in, the team you work with, etc…the questions are endless.
For many, it’s how much money they can generate from the client that makes them “perfect.”
By now, you’ve all heard about niche marketing. If you haven’t, that just means you specialize in doing marketing for a very specific industry like roofing, dental implants, or accident attorneys.
Let’s say your niche is window replacement or car dealerships or law firms. You would only consider those clients as perfect. Right? Maybe.
But even then, not every window company or law firm will end up being your ideal client.
Just because you’re in a niche doesn’t mean every business in that category should be a prospect.
In fact, because we specialize in pay per click services, doesn’t mean every business with a Google Ads or Facebook Ads account is our perfect client.
We are working with many brands today that I would have never thought was a fit for us — but that was entirely due to my shortsightedness, which I have learned from.
The Right Client…
If you need to define what an excellent client looks like, I summarized it to these 5 things.
- The client keeps in constant and open communication with you about the good, bad, and ugly.
- They defer to your expertise for guidance (after you earn their trust) and stop micromanaging your work.
- They challenge you every step of the way to become better together as a team.
- Two-way feedback is seen as collaboration and not contention.
- They are so happy with your work that they constantly refer your agency to other businesses.
Still think there’s such a thing as the perfect client?
