Smart Solo Business

I help solo professionals acquire their ideal clients

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Brynne Tillman on LinkedIn and the Power of Social Selling for Independent Professionals

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[Legacy post: Small Business Talent] Brynne Tillman, CEO of Social Sales Link, is my guest on the podcast today. Brynne is a national LinkedIn speaker, author and trainer. She’s also a proud LinkedIn Sales Solutions Channel Partner, teaching individual entrepreneurs like us, and professionals from major companies including ARAMARK, TD Bank, IBM, and many others.

Brynne’s company, Social Sales Link, teaches a new way of selling. It provides the link between the traditional sales training model and modern day social media and technology. Brynne’s social media solutions for business owners, entrepreneurs, sales managers and sales teams fill the sales funnel with qualified leads, and also assist in researching prospects, industries and competitors — giving her clients the competitive edge they want.

Brynne’s LinkedIn expertise is comprehensive. It includes developing key strategies to connect with prospects, creating an SEO profile so that you can be found, utilizing group members and discussions, creating a strong network of professionals, and developing LinkedIn marketing plans that drive business development and revenue growth.

If you want to get better prospecting and sales results from the time you invest in LinkedIn, then you’ll find Brynne’s approach to social selling both innovative and highly practical. Scroll down to the Podcast Player below and listen now!

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Duration: 25:20 — 11.2MB


Attract and Acquire More Ideal Clients: Sales and Marketing Advice For Solos

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Consistently acquiring ideal clients seems like an impossible dream to most solo professionals. While many of them are highly skilled at their particular craft (consulting, coaching, speaking, etc.), very few of them have mastered the fundamentals of developing new business.

Market research is often completely ignored. That’s a big mistake. When people skip this step their new business development efforts lack focus and generate inconsistent results.

If your sales and marketing results are less reliable than you want them to be, then I invite you to begin the process of solving that problem now. First, analyze the working relationships that have been profitable and fulfilling for both you and your clients:

Take a moment and list the characteristics of the clients involved. How would you describe each person in terms of their personal background, professional background, personality and communication style?

  • We’re paid to solve problems. What specific problems did you help each client to solve?
  • Our work requires give and take. What role did you and each of your clients play in creating and implementing solutions to problems?
  • What do these clients have in common? Commonalities aren’t always obvious, so consider this question carefully.
  • Patterns will emerge. What are they?

Answering these questions is important. It’s the first step toward refocusing your new business development efforts and acquiring more of your ideal clients.

After your initial work is done, take it a step further. The goal now is to add depth and accuracy to your understanding of “ideal clients” and what they value most.

This step is simple. Ask some of your best clients to complete a brief email survey. Employ some version of this Single Question Survey: “When you think of me and our working relationship, what are the five adjectives that first come to mind?” Urge them to be completely candid. I promise you that the insights you’ll gain will be interesting.

Finally, discuss each respondent’s survey feedback with them in-person or by phone. What is it about the experience of working with you that they actually value most? Clear away any mistaken assumptions that you might have. Gain a crystal clear understanding of what your ideal clients find most valuable.

By taking these steps, you’ll be better equipped to retain your best clients. You’ll also know exactly which aspects of your sales and marketing communications should be refocused to reflect what your preferred clients actually want. Having the proper focus is crucial to acquiring more of the right clients, more consistently.

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How Will Your Clients Answer These Questions?

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Most independent professionals say that repeat business is ideal. No surprise there.

On the other hand, few of them seem to focus on actively uncovering the evolving wants and needs of their clients. They assume that they understand what their clients are thinking.

Over the past fourteen years, I’ve found that retaining great clients long-term requires a more proactive approach. In everything that you do for them you must make it clear that you’re striving for excellence. You also need to ask your clients some version of these questions on a regular basis:

  • Ideally, what would you like to have me do more of, less of, or just differently?
  • What would making those changes mean to you / your business?

Setting the right tone and regularly asking these types of questions opens up valuable client discussions. These conversations enable you to identify gaps between what you’re doing and what your clients really want. Of course, closing these gaps is what client satisfaction and repeat business is all about.

If you want increased client retention, profit and fulfillment, then I have a mantra for you – “If it’s to be, it’s up to me.” Take the initiative and commit to making your client relationships great!