Hands down, the most common thing I hear from entrepreneurs looking for guidance, is that they need help attracting more clients to their online business. 

While there are countless different, important facets of running and growing a successful online business, this blog post is going to outline six ways you can begin to attract clients to your online business. Once you have these basics solidified, you’re ready to make your impact (and your business is ready to help you get there)! 

Stay Consistent With Your Main Offer 

When someone asks what you do, do you start rambling on about your five different offerings and “main” focuses? Okay… maybe it’s more like two or three different focuses, but still, that's one or two too many. 

It may sound counterintuitive, but you actually diminish your own credibility and expertise when you focus on too many different things in your business. If you’re an expert in nutrition, then be the expert in nutrition – you don’t also need to claim expertise in relationships and business.

Not only that, but once you pick your expertise and build your main offer – stick with it! Consistency over time helps you become remembered, known, and trusted for one thing, and the confidence that brings your audience is what will inspire them to hire you. 

Know Your Ideal Client and Niche 

Establishing a clearly-defined niche is essential to building a sought-after, 6 or 7 figure brand. It’s a critical first step for new businesses and it’s also important for established businesses to revisit and refine, year after year, to stay on top of their game. Your niche is a focused segment of a larger market where an ideal client with a specific problem or passion has been clearly identified. If you aren’t clear on your niche, then nobody else will be either, and furthermore they won’t understand why they should hire you. 

Understanding your ideal client is an essential part of knowing your niche. It allows you to speak to the hearts and souls of the people you want to work with on your website, in social media posts, in videos and podcasts ... and have them actually see your value and want to pay you for it! When you get specific about who you’re speaking to, your ideal client will know you’re there to help them. When you try to speak to everyone, you ultimately end up speaking to no one. 

Build a Stand-Out Personal Brand 

Your personal brand can affect how you attract clients online, and actually can make or break your business. Personal branding is so important because not only does it help your audience build the all-important know, like, and trust that they need to hire you, it also establishes you as an online expert in your space. 

A professional personal brand that stands out amongst the noise is THE thing that separates you from the rest of your competition. 

In order to create the impact you set out to create, make the income you deserve, and feel the fulfillment that comes with running a successful business on your terms, you need to first have a completely dialed in brand, and then market it while staying consistent with your brand guidelines! 

Need support building your brand from the ground up? Check out my Impact Tribe membership!

Be Daring in Your Marketing 

If your ideal client is going to invest in your service or program, they first need a tangible experience of your brand to decide if they like you, resonate with your energy, and trust that you'll be able to help them achieve results.

Not only that, but your marketing is THE thing that is going to help them remember you when it comes time to hire someone. 

In order to be remembered online, amongst a sea of similarity, you have to stand out. And to stand out, you have to be daring. 

• Share your opinions, even if they’re controversial (... especially if they’re controversial) 
• Tell your audience about YOU, let them into your life (the good, bad, and ugly)
• Show up on video, instead of hiding behind yet another graphic or stock photo

While there are a wide array of marketing activities you can try, there are certain things you can do that are more impactful than others. I recommend focusing on high-touch, high-value marketing that will help you get noticed more, and make it easy for your ideal client to remember exactly who you are and what you stand for. 

Lead with Confidence 

How can anyone else be certain in your ability to help create a transformation, if you don’t present your work with confidence to them? This is important in how you present yourself online, but it really shines through in your voice when you speak to potential clients, attend networking events, or show up on video. 

Here are a couple tricks you can try to speak more confidently:

• Instead of over explaining, clearly and concisely provide just the right amount of information. 
• Answer questions as they are asked, rather than trying to share more than necessary. 
• Don’t try to fill uncomfortable spaces with more justification (like right after you share prices with your client). 
• Speak up! Most women speak way too quietly to truly appear confident. 

If you are getting out there and presenting your business to groups of people, talking to potential clients, and showing up online on video, you rock! But if your voice lacks confidence when you speak ,  then it will be hard to attract clients, even when taking the “right” actions.

Network Regularly

If you’re a coach, speaker, author, or healer, your most effective marketing strategies are those where you interact with other people in person (or via Zoom) – like you do at networking events.

Many women entrepreneurs hide behind their computer, wasting countless hours posting to social media and designing beautiful graphics, only to be disappointed by their barren client list.

The reason that hiding behind your computer (or “play it safe marketing,” as I like to call it) is only mildly effective for service based business owners like coaches, speakers, authors, and healers, is because what people are really buying when they buy your service is a relationship with YOU! It’s difficult to get a good feel of your energy and personality from behind the computer screen. So, put yourself out there and start networking.

What to do When You Have No Clients

Many entrepreneurs feel that until they have clients, they can’t start working on building their business. But, you can actually optimize the time you have by starting to build your business before you ever sign your first client. Not only will they feel more confident in hiring you, but you will also feel more professional and prepared when you start working together. 

Some things you could put together before you ever sign your first client include: 

• Research your ideal client in-depth
• Write your marketing message
• Define your vision and mission 
• Create your offer
• Choose a business name, title, and tagline
• Start designing your visual brand
• Put together a small website or landing page
• Start a social media account for your business

All of these things are essential to creating the foundation of a thriving business. So, if you are starting off with no clients and time to fill, then this is a great place to start. 

Ultimately, the thread that ties these things together is to start showing up consistently and authentically wherever your ideal clients are, and you will naturally start to attract clients to your online business. 

For more in-depth guidance including community, courses, and coaching tailored specifically to you, join us in the Impact Tribe! You can learn more at this link.