Referrals are awesome.

Prospects that book a call with you as referrals from someone else are...

✅ easy to close

✅ better to work with

✅ more likely to refer you themselves. 

I love referrals. The problem is when referrals are all you have... and you're just barely getting by. Then referrals are a trap. Because when something in the market shifts or the economy slows down, you have a problem. And tilling the field isn't fun when you're hungry. But fret not, for I have a plan for you. 

There are four steps I have taken to get out of my own Referral Trap 4 years ago:

1. Start doing outbound

2. Create a coffee date offer

3. Do some regular content

4. Build mechanisms to increase your closing rate

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We help consultants build client acquisition systems. 

Learn more here: www.michalbohanes.com

Book a call to see if we could be a fit

https://calendly.com/kontent360/planning-session-inbound-45min

Check out our client results www.michalbohanes.com/testimonials

And subscribe to our weekly email www.michalbohanes.com/subscribe

In this episode, I sat down Ray J. Green. as he shares his entrepreneurial success that came from a leap-of-fate move to Cabo, Mexico and taking on life as a remote solopreneur. 

Ray breaks down his journey from working at the Chamber of Commerce to generating a $40k / month revenue business in 2.5 years by offering sales audits and coaching. 

When entering a new field, Ray expresses that it is important to invest in people (coaches) that have knowledge of what you are venturing into. In the end, we both agree that the mistakes we make as we transition to business owners are actually lessons that help us create our own success playbooks. 

Time Stamps:

00:07 Welcome & Intro

04:50 Ray's Service Breakdown 

11:11 How Ray's Journey Began

12:58 Ray's Client Acquisition Process 

18:25 Ray's Client Secret of Success

20:49 On Case Studies and Testimonials 

24:37 Ray's Revenue Breakdown 

29:45 Thoughts on Niching

32:26 Client Drive Pinpoint 

35:15 Ray's Content Strategy 

38:17 On Mistakes Being Lessons

48:40 What Makes Ray Feel Alive 

52:46 Ray's Team Breakdown 

54:17 More On Ray's Secret to Success 

57:32 Wrapup

Find Ray J. Green on LinkedIn Here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/raymondgreen?originalSubdomain=mx

Visit His Website Here: https://www.rayjgreen.com/

Direct Link to Ray's Podcast: https://www.rayjgreen.com/blog?tag=podcast

The State Of Client Acquisition Podcast covers the fascinating world of transforming strangers into clients. Our audience are Small B2B leaders and solopreneurs. We focus on the whole process - Strategy - Positioning - Content - Prospecting - Selling. Got a question you want me to cover? Submit it on www.StateOfClientAcquisition.com.

Watch this episode on YouTube:  

Watch the ungated training on how to win clients in 2022 - The Funnel 🔻 and the Pot 🍲 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kz2iZoITN0I 

And here are my paid products: Conversations That Close - How to start friendly, non-salesy, but assertive conversation with the aim of finding clients. $150 Basic, $499 Premium: www.ConversationsThatClose.online 

Being eager to transition to passive income too soon can be a stumbling block for your business. 

I recently spoke to someone who wants to serve his clients in a passive way (via an online course) although this is not the best way to get his clients results. 

In this episode I explain why this is not a good idea and why client results need to trump your own preferences of how you want to deliver your service. 

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The State Of Client Acquisition Podcast covers the fascinating world of transforming strangers into clients. Our audience are Small B2B leaders and solopreneurs. We focus on the whole process - Strategy - Positioning - Content - Prospecting - Selling. Got a question you want me to cover? Submit it on www.StateOfClientAcquisition.com.

Watch this episode on YouTube:  

Watch the ungated training on how to win clients in 2022 - The Funnel 🔻 and the Pot 🍲 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kz2iZoITN0I 

And here are my paid products: Conversations That Close - How to start friendly, non-salesy, but assertive conversation with the aim of finding clients. $150 Basic, $499 Premium: www.ConversationsThatClose.online 

I have started about 2,000 conversations with prospective clients.

And there's a common theme that has proven to be right over and over again:

Those who focus on the identity of their audience or on a virtuous cause...

...do worse in their business.

Examples: Those who...

✅ Coach female / black entrepreneurs

✅ Do Marketing for vegan solopreneurs

✅ Do Operations Consulting for "ethical businesses"

✅ Are focused on social impact

Their revenue is invariably lower than that of companies who focus on solving a difficult problem FIRST. 

Now, Coaching, Marketing, Operations Consulting... those are difficult problems. But it's the primacy of the focus that makes a difference. If the focus is on the identity of the target client -- bad. If the focus is on the problem -- good. 

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The State Of Client Acquisition Podcast covers the fascinating world of transforming strangers into clients. Our audience are Small B2B leaders and solopreneurs. We focus on the whole process - Strategy - Positioning - Content - Prospecting - Selling. Got a question you want me to cover? Submit it on www.StateOfClientAcquisition.com.

Watch this episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/aYXCh_KfcPE

Watch the ungated training on how to win clients in 2022 - The Funnel 🔻 and the Pot 🍲

And here are my paid products: Conversations That Close - How to start friendly, non-salesy, but assertive conversation with the aim of finding clients. $150 Basic, $499 Premium: www.ConversationsThatClose.online

From charting the music to charting LinkedIn, in this episode, all round creative genius and serial entrepreneur Sam Browne shares his LinkedIn exploits that lead to him becoming a LinkedIn rockstar a mere 2 months into being properly active on the platform.

We discuss our different content sharing methods where Sam proves to be more of a renegade with his unplanned and unscheduled methods that are also quite impactful. As well as the importance of centering the reading experience and creating aesthetically pleasing posts. 

What sets him apart is his cheeky creative flair that shines through his post segment conception and optimization. 

I broke down Sam's magic after our call in this LinkedIn post: https://bit.ly/3umdbzk

Time Stamps:

00:04 Intro & Sam Browne Rockstar Backstory 

08:00 How Sam Went from Rockstar to LinkedIn Prodigy 

15:16 Sam’s (Past) Business Success

17:25 What are Sidecar Posts?

25:43 Sam’s Content Recipe

28:17 Where/How Sam Learned Copywriting 

31:09 Content Posting Formula 

34:38 Q&A: Schedule Structure 

40:13 My Content Lessons (What Are You Optimizing For?)

45:06 Q&A: Does Not Being Scheduled Help Reach a Different Audience?

48:00 The Story Behind The Emojis

51:36 Sam’s Post Mini-Discussion 

57:09 Q&A: Writing Business Specific Content Or Connecting With Ideal Client Base

1:01:53 Summary & More Pointers 

1:09:58 Wrapup

Find Sam Browne on LinkedIn:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/sam-browne 

View Black River Drive’s Lead Single Here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7VwNj3BRdzw 

The State Of Client Acquisition Podcast covers the fascinating world of transforming strangers into clients. Our audience are Small B2B leaders and solopreneurs. We focus on the whole process - Strategy - Positioning - Content - Prospecting - Selling. Got a question you want me to cover? Submit it on www.StateOfClientAcquisition.com.

Watch this episode on YouTube:

Watch the ungated training on how to win clients in 2022 - The Funnel 🔻 and the Pot 🍲

And here are my paid products: Conversations That Close - How to start friendly, non-salesy, but assertive conversation with the aim of finding clients. $150 Basic, $499 Premium: www.ConversationsThatClose.online

Jiu Jitsu Black Belt and Marketing Swiss Army Knife, Ryan Kovach of RK CMO shares how he went from temporary unemployment to a million dollar a year solopreneur. 

With a Can Do attitude and a DIY spirit, Ryan is a fractional CMO to his clients, by being both the consultant and the service provider that is fully immersed in their craft and their client’s day-to-day running of their (digital) marketing. 

Super valuable insights for anyone who is considering becoming a fractional CXO.

Time Stamps:

00:02 Intro & Jiu Jitsu Breakdown 

00:58 How Ryan Got Into Jiu Jitsu 

03:34 Jiu Jitsu Lessons That Translated Into Business 

05:31 How Ryan Built a $1M Solopreneur Business 

21:39 Handling Workload: Subcontract or DIY?

27:18 How Long Did It Take You to Get 80K?

34:35 Ryan’s Niche 

39:15 How Ryan Got His First Client 

43:37 Scope of Work 

50:10 Steps to Getting Company Personality 

56:16 Ryan’s Growth Plan 

1:03:21 Last Nugget of Knowledge 

1:04:56 Wrapup

The State Of Client Acquisition Podcast covers the fascinating world of transforming strangers into clients. Our audience are Small B2B leaders and solopreneurs. We focus on the whole process - Strategy - Positioning - Content - Prospecting - Selling. Got a question you want me to cover? Submit it on www.StateOfClientAcquisition.com.

The State Of Client Acquisition Podcast covers the fascinating world of transforming strangers into clients. Our audience are Small B2B leaders and solopreneurs. We focus on the whole process - Strategy - Positioning - Content - Prospecting - Selling. Got a question you want me to cover? Submit it on www.StateOfClientAcquisition.com.

Watch this episode on YouTube:

Watch the ungated training on how to win clients in 2022 - The Funnel 🔻 and the Pot 🍲

And here are my paid products: Conversations That Close - How to start friendly, non-salesy, but assertive conversation with the aim of finding clients. $150 Basic, $499 Premium: www.ConversationsThatClose.online

I had a conversation with a Consultant who works with a "LinkedIn Coach". 

The question is: Can a LinkedIn Coach help you with your overall Strategy? Not just LinkedIn Strategy, but overall. Your product? How to Position yourself? How to sell on Zoom? 

People are so focused on the mechanics of LinkedIn, forgetting that it's just a small piece in the overall puzzle of making a business work. 

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The State Of Client Acquisition Podcast covers the fascinating world of transforming strangers into clients. Our audience are Small B2B leaders and solopreneurs. We focus on the whole process - Strategy - Positioning - Content - Prospecting - Selling. Got a question you want me to cover? Submit it on www.StateOfClientAcquisition.com.

Watch this episode on YouTube:

Watch the ungated training on how to win clients in 2022 - The Funnel 🔻 and the Pot 🍲

And here are my paid products: Conversations That Close - How to start friendly, non-salesy, but assertive conversation with the aim of finding clients. $150 Basic, $499 Premium: www.ConversationsThatClose.online

This is all about activating your First Degree Connections and past clients, as opposed to searching for new Horizons. 

Enter Scott Webb, ReFluencer

Though there are differences in my and Scott’s methods, the core foundation of our strategies remain the same; to add value beyond the product or service you sell.

Scott has an excellent framework and a killer set of tactics under his sleeve to make sure you have mined your existing network to the biggest extent possible. 

As Scott says, the revenue you seek is in the list you keep.

Time Stamps:

00:10 Guest Intro

01:14 What Is a Refluencer?

04:00 Nurturing The Email List

07:12 Where to Start Energizing a Base?

15:19 Referrals and Referral Fees; Yes or No?

29:54 Reenergizing The Base

33:29 The Apple Orchard Framework 

41:23 On Becoming A Refluencer 

49:00 Being Systematic About Refluencing 

53:55 Getting Clients To Do The Work

58:23 Wrapup 

Find Scott Webb on LinkedIn here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/scottnwebb/ 

View the Apple Orchard Framework here: https://www.appleorchard.io/

Slightly more emotional episode. 

It was triggered by a conversation with a consultant who's considering going back into corporate life because he cannot get clients for his business. 

I thought it was such a shame because there are such straightforward tactics he could just DO and win clients. 

So it's a bit of a rant or pick-me-up, depending on your viewpoint. 

The State Of Client Acquisition Podcast covers the fascinating world of transforming strangers into clients. Our audience are Small B2B leaders and solopreneurs. We focus on the whole process - Strategy - Positioning - Content - Prospecting - Selling. Got a question you want me to cover? Submit it on www.StateOfClientAcquisition.com.

Watch this episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/xQ9X5Fr_kCI

Watch the ungated training on how to win clients in 2022 - The Funnel 🔻 and the Pot 🍲

And here are my paid products: Conversations That Close - How to start friendly, non-salesy, but assertive conversation with the aim of finding clients. $150 Basic, $499 Premium: www.ConversationsThatClose.online

Testimonials are a give and take, in order to get some, we should be open to giving some first.

Anric Blatt and I linked up to discuss testimonials; what they can do for businesses and personalities, how to go about giving and receiving them, the formats of testimonials and how to avoid going to third base too soon.

He emphasizes the three step strategies around testimonials – the ‘Stop, Start, Continue’ and ‘Get, Give, Ask’ concepts that create a space of allowing people to give back. We also share methods of testimonials; his a video kaleidoscope of short, impactful testimonials and mine a transformational intimate interview styled testimonial – both being centered on the idea of giving a testimonial that works for YOUR audience.

Validate first, fascinate second – a feedback tango on opening the avenue of reciprocity.

Time Stamps:

08:00 The Responsibility of Testimonials

02:15 In Which Context Can Testimonials Cause Damage?

04:14 Anric’s Testimonial Kaleidoscope

14:08 Customer Testimonial (Strategy) Recommendation

20:40 LinkedIn Review Rating Plugin

25:30 Getting Client Feedback From Day 1

33:17 Anric’s Feedback Trick

37:00 My Testimonial Hack

44:26 Focusing on Your ‘Who’

46:10 The Synthesis of Testimonials

53:26 Wrapup

Find Anric Blatt on LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/anricblatt/

Check out Anric’s Testimonial Videos:

Video Testimonial Kaleidoscope: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nJ-VDt9uXM4

Written Testimonials: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AgIKluTX214

Check out My Testimonials Page: https://www.michalbohanes.com/testimonials?r_done=1

The State Of Client Acquisition Podcast covers the fascinating world of transforming strangers into clients. Our audience are Small B2B leaders and solopreneurs. We focus on the whole process - Strategy - Positioning - Content - Prospecting - Selling. Got a question you want me to cover? Submit it on www.StateOfClientAcquisition.com.

Watch this episode as a video here: 

Watch the ungated training on how to win clients in 2022 - The Funnel 🔻 and the Pot 🍲

And here are my paid products: 

Conversations That Close - How to start friendly, non-salesy, but assertive conversation with the aim of finding clients. $150 Basic, $499 Premium: www.ConversationsThatClose.online