Do you know which is the single largest sector of the
business world? Services!
Care to guess what the single most overlooked business
opportunity on the Net happens to be?
Services!
Selling your services online is a fantastic way to
“leverage” your income-building potential -- all at a minimum cost.
By services, I don’t necessarily mean Net-related services
like programming or Web design (although they can and should be included here).
You could be...
• a landscape designer
• a cartoon artist
• an import/export specialist for Germany
• an investment specialist in Brazilian bonds
• an expert in Japanese netsuke
• an accountant with special knowledge of tax havens
• a copywriter
• a trainer (of just about anything!)
• an editor for medical articles
• someone who creates indexes for books
• a pharmaceutical expert
• a translator (Do you know two languages?)
The possibilities are endless.
And your clients could be “local” or “global” in nature. The
narrowness of your “niche” service will determine whether your target group
lives in the neighborhood or much further away -- on another continent, even!
-----
The diversity of this world, including its people, is
amazing. Just about everyone has an expertise in something that he could sell.
Heck, odds are he is already selling it as his primary income source... but
he’s never thought seriously about generating customers by using the Web’s full
potential.
OK, now for an example... in my former community (Hudson,
Quebec), our Royal Canadian Legion Curling Club hosted a huge bonspiel for the
top Legion men’s teams from across Canada. They wanted a bag-piper for the
opening ceremony but none of the members knew anyone who played the instrument.
So someone tried looking on the Net.
Bingo!
But here’s the best part. This bag-piper lived in the
neighboring community -- just 10 miles (15 km) down the road! This is a perfect
example of a local service seller using the reach of the Web to generate more
income.
As you’ll see, it’s every bit as easy, perhaps easier, for
potential new clients to find and hire you through the Web than for global-type
services such as copywriters, programmers, etc.
Global or local, here’s a certainty...
Building a Theme-based Content Site that is related to your
service is a smart and timely business move, especially now that more and more
people are using the Net as their preferred source of information. And that is
exactly what the Service Sellers Masters Course will help you build...
... a site that your visitors will love due to its valuable
info
And...
... a site that Search Engines will love to spider, list and
rank! What do most service sellers do online to add new clients to their roster
and build a successful online business? Either they...
• do the minimum by constructing a one-page resume-style Web
site that simply outlines their credentials (“I’m here... call me if you are
interested” passive approach that does nothing to answer the important
“what’s-in-it-for-me” question for visitors)
Or...
• put up a “circa 1997” brochure site that no one visits (no
submission of properly optimized Web pages to the Search Engines + no attention
to off-page Search Engine ranking criteria = no presence on Web searchers’
radar screens)
Or...
• post their services on any number of online spots, such as
Guru.com (a faceless name lost in a crowd of competitors).
These strategies simply do not get the job done effectively.
Instead, follow this pathway to profit...
Start by thinking about how a prospective client goes about
hiring a new service seller. It’s critical to get inside her mindset so that
you can set up your strategies accordingly...
#1 She has to find you.
Use effective marketing efforts online and offline to raise
your profile. Achieve a good ranking in Search Engine search results (i.e., try
to obtain a top 20 position on a search results page), which makes it easy for
people to find and visit your site. By what you write, say, and do, encourage
word-of-mouth referral -- create a buzz!
#2 She needs to get to know you and trust you.
Build credibility by providing high-value content on your
Web site. Show prospects that you have their best interests at heart and that
you can adapt or customize your service to meet their individual needs. Foster
an ongoing relationship through a free e-zine/newsletter that steadily
increases their trust levels and cements a view that you are an “authority” in
your field. Yes, you will also start your own theme-related e-zine. Delivering
great content to subscribers is so important, especially if you want to sell
your services online...
• It builds trust.
• It credentializes you.
• It develops a sense of “owing” in your subscribers.
#3 She sees that you and your service fulfill a wish or fix
a problem.
Show your potential clients through the content on your Web
site and in your ezine that you can provide the solution that they are seeking.
Your service will solve their problems, answer a dream, enrich their lives,
and/or improve their businesses. You are the dependable expert that they want
and need!
Once you achieve this essential foundation of trust, the
remainder of the pathway is open and positive... your prospect picks up the
phone to call you or contacts you via a form on your Web site. After a
satisfactory exchange where you “close the deal,” she hires you over other
competitors.
CONTENT -> TRAFFIC -> PRESELL -> MONETIZE
The content on your Web site has helped to convert her from
being a prospect to being a client by developing the trust she needed to contact
you! A profitable WIN-WIN situation for both of you!
From there, the key to long term success is a simple matter
of OVERdelivering your services. Do not just “please” your client -- absolutely
“delight” her. Turn her into a raving fan and a valuable lifetime customer. A
solid base of repeat clients means a solid base of recurring income and no
acquisition costs -- the ideal business outcome!
A successful business is a profitable business. Generating
profit is a straightforward and very do-able process...
Identify a great niche service and its target group.
In order to generate income, enough people must need and/or
value your service and feel strongly that they will personally profit from the
way you deliver it versus your competitors’ approach.
You also need to know whether your marketing efforts should
be focused locally or globally (depending upon the narrowness or broadness and
the nature of your niche).
Action Steps
1) Create thumbnail sketches of...
Your service -- Write down in point form exactly What, How,
Why, and Where you offer (or plan to) your service. Note your range of
flexibility -- how and where you can adapt your service to particular needs.
Describe your strengths (i.e., the reasons why you are better than the
competition) and pinpoint your weaknesses (i.e., what you are planning to
improve).
Give your outline to a family member or a friend who knows
your business to see if you have forgotten anything and/or to check that the
presentation is as objective as possible.
Your client -- Develop a profile of your ideal client...
• Baby boomer? Senior citizen? Teens?
• Family? Single? Partners?
• Money concerns? Stressed for time?
• Trend-setter? Conservative? Do-It-Yourselfer?
• City-dweller? Rural home-owner?
• Neighborhood? Region? Nation? Continent?
• Etc., etc.
Make your sketch as comprehensive as you can. If your
service has more than one kind of client, do a profile for each major type. As
well, ask yourself who should not be your prospect -- this technique is helpful
to keep you focused on your ideal client.
2) Now combine the two thumbnail sketches (You, and Your
Client).
This is your service business! Use this detailed snapshot
when developing content for your Web site. It will help you keep focused on
your target group and their needs. Doing this is critical for achieving a high
Conversion Rate.
The snapshot will also help you narrow your niche, if
needed. Use it to discover more profitable angles to your service. The ideal is
to offer a service that is relatively high in demand with few suppliers (i.e.,
your competition). Try to adapt or change your present service to meet that
goal as closely as feasible.
Be passionate about what you do.
Action Step
Love what you are doing. Your enthusiasm and determination
will be reflected in your business at all levels of operation. It won’t feel
like you are working!
To be continued...
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