Your First Client Is Yourself
Your First Client Is Yourself
Independents are reluctant to work for themselves: doing the kind of planning, marketing, training, financial analysis and other internal tasks that are essential to the survival of any business. That~{!/~}s because we get paid to work for others. We don~{!/~}t get paid to work for ourselves.
Besides, many people go on their own in order to indulge their creativity~{!*~}as a chef, a writer, an artisan or even an international trade consultant. Have you ever wondered, while scanning the obituaries, whether you will be remembered for something you have done? I remember reading once about the first man who ever sold popcorn in cinemas. He was a truly obscure man, but he had affected the lives of millions, and he changed the economics of the movie theater business along the way. Most of us would like to be remembered not as a bank balance, but as someone who made a difference in the world.
Writing a marketing or a financial plan is not such an act. These are routine tasks that generate more routines: researching potential clients, creating mailing lists, addressing envelopes, poring over spreadsheets. They can be tedious activities, especially when you know that nobody~{!/~}s paying you to do them. Many of us will put off such tasks until business slows down. By then, the trend lines are already going in the wrong direction. Tasks which are, under better circumstances, merely dreary now become fraught with anxiety. You start to tell yourself that this promotional mailing has to work, because you can~{!/~}t afford it if it fails.
After all these years of being on my own, I have finally lived through enough ups and downs to realize that I have to work for my own business, indeed that I am my most demanding and time-consuming client. The future of my business depends on my continuing to market my services even when times are good. My marketing plan is not a philosophical document; it~{!/~}s more like a ~{!0~}to do~{!1~} list. It establishes a routine. Even now, I still must force myself to follow it and stick to the plan, even when there seems to be no time or energy left.
I~{!/~}m reluctant to hire others to do these tasks because they don~{!/~}t have an immediate payoff. Maybe in a few more years, I~{!/~}ll decide that I can afford to. Even if I do, there are still some parts of this job~{!*~}showing up at public events, keeping in touch with former clients and other business associates, deciding how to market your products or services~{!*~}that only the proprietor can do. I~{!/~}ve found that one of the most powerful actions I can take is to be out and about, reminding people I~{!/~}m still in business.
Finding new customers means we have to kiss thousands of frogs~{!*~}and just as many next month. We can never be sure which ones will turn out to be a princess or a prince. Two things are certain: Doing all that kissing is a royal pain in the behind. And no entrepreneur can afford to stop doing it.
Your First Client Is Yourself - To learn more about this author, visit James Chan's Website.
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Not until quite recently, perhaps only a year or two ago, did I actually sit down and write a marketing plan for myself. I~{!/~}d been planning to do it for years, more than a decade actually. But something~{!*~}anything~{!*~}else always seemed to be more urgent.
Independents are reluctant to work for themselves: doing the kind of planning, marketing, training, financial analysis and other internal tasks that are essential to the survival of any business. That~{!/~}s because we get paid to work for others. We don~{!/~}t get paid to work for ourselves.
Besides, many people go on their own in order to indulge their creativity~{!*~}as a chef, a writer, an artisan or even an international trade consultant. Have you ever wondered, while scanning the obituaries, whether you will be remembered for something you have done? I remember reading once about the first man who ever sold popcorn in cinemas. He was a truly obscure man, but he had affected the lives of millions, and he changed the economics of the movie theater business along the way. Most of us would like to be remembered not as a bank balance, but as someone who made a difference in the world.
Writing a marketing or a financial plan is not such an act. These are routine tasks that generate more routines: researching potential clients, creating mailing lists, addressing envelopes, poring over spreadsheets. They can be tedious activities, especially when you know that nobody~{!/~}s paying you to do them. Many of us will put off such tasks until business slows down. By then, the trend lines are already going in the wrong direction. Tasks which are, under better circumstances, merely dreary now become fraught with anxiety. You start to tell yourself that this promotional mailing has to work, because you can~{!/~}t afford it if it fails.
After all these years of being on my own, I have finally lived through enough ups and downs to realize that I have to work for my own business, indeed that I am my most demanding and time-consuming client. The future of my business depends on my continuing to market my services even when times are good. My marketing plan is not a philosophical document; it~{!/~}s more like a ~{!0~}to do~{!1~} list. It establishes a routine. Even now, I still must force myself to follow it and stick to the plan, even when there seems to be no time or energy left.
I~{!/~}m reluctant to hire others to do these tasks because they don~{!/~}t have an immediate payoff. Maybe in a few more years, I~{!/~}ll decide that I can afford to. Even if I do, there are still some parts of this job~{!*~}showing up at public events, keeping in touch with former clients and other business associates, deciding how to market your products or services~{!*~}that only the proprietor can do. I~{!/~}ve found that one of the most powerful actions I can take is to be out and about, reminding people I~{!/~}m still in business.
Finding new customers means we have to kiss thousands of frogs~{!*~}and just as many next month. We can never be sure which ones will turn out to be a princess or a prince. Two things are certain: Doing all that kissing is a royal pain in the behind. And no entrepreneur can afford to stop doing it.
Your First Client Is Yourself - To learn more about this author, visit James Chan's Website.
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Casey GollanCasey Gollan, Business Coaching & Mentoring Programs. Add $1 Million to $10 Million in the next 1 to 3 years. Since 1996 Casey has to added hundreds of millions of dollars to businesses. Watch a free video see client results Business Coaching website. - Visit Casey Gollan's Website |
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David BarrDavid Barr is the President of Venture Opportunities, Inc. David has been a professional business broker/intermediary since 1980 focusing on General Business Brokerage and Mergers and Acquisitions representing client transaction value from $400,000 to $20,000,000. Mr. Barr has handled the sale of over four hundred and fifty companies. David earned a university degree from the State University of New York majoring in economics and business. David holds the Mergers and Acquisition Master Intermediary and the Certified Business Intermediary designations from the International Business Brokers Association. He is also a Senior Business Analyst and a Texas licensed Real Estate Agent. For more information about David and Venture Opportunities, visit www.bizdealmaker.com. - Visit David Barr's Website |
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Linda RichardsonLinda Richardson is the Founder and Executive Chairwoman of Richardson, a global sales training and performance improvement company. As a recognized leader in the industry, she has won the coveted Stevie Award for Lifetime Achievement in Sales Excellence and she was identified by Training Industry, Inc. as one of the “Top 20 Most Influential Training Professionals.” Ms. Richardson is credited with the movement to Consultative Selling and is the author of ten books on selling and sales management, including Sales Coaching — Making the Great Leap from Sales Manager to Sales Coach, and Stop Telling, Start Selling. She teaches sales and management at the Wharton Graduate School of the University of Pennsylvania and the Wharton Executive Development Center. Linda is a frequent speaker at industry and client conferences, has been published extensively in industry and training journals, and has been featured in numerous publications, including The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Nation’s Business, Selling Power, Success, and The Conference Board Magazine. Learn more about Richardson's sales training and performance improvement solutions at http://www.richardson.com web - Visit Linda Richardson's Website |
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James Chan Video - James Chan, Ph.D., created the phrase "The China Formula" to help Americans understand China in one word.
Dr. Chan is President of the Philadelphia-based, independent consultancy, Asia Marketing and Management (AMM). AMM specializes in advising U.S. manufacturers, trade associations, and information companies in building business relationships in China and in exporting American-made products and services in China and Asia. To view AMM's detailed profile online, go to: www.AsiaMarketingManagement.com.
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