| As you are writing your computer business plan, | | | | special URL and landing page, you easily can count |
| you need to think about a very important | | | | how many clicks you got and how many sign-ups |
| question: WHO will be benefit from your services? | | | | you got. Then after the campaign, you can |
| Many computer business owners make the | | | | measure which percentage of sign-ups got |
| mistake of chasing after prospects that only need | | | | qualified, which ended up becoming customers or |
| services now and on a short-term basis. What | | | | clients and finally, how much new and eventual |
| you should be doing however is marketing to | | | | revenue can be traced to these specific new |
| those prospects that will be with you for many | | | | customers or clients from that specific campaign. |
| years to come and bring you predictable, steady | | | | 3. Measure How Much Time and Money Goes into |
| revenue. This is the core, but potentially | | | | Seminars and Relationship-Building Events. You |
| $100,000+ difference between | | | | need to know how much time and money goes |
| transactional-oriented cherry-picking, one-shot-deal | | | | into the seminars that you hold for your |
| customers and long-term, steady, high-paying | | | | prospects, customers and clients, so you can |
| great clients. | | | | understand the cost of acquiring a real client... and |
| Although many mistakenly use the terms | | | | even more importantly, understand exactly what |
| customer and client synonymously, it's a huge | | | | a really great client is worth to your computer |
| oversight because of their enormous differences | | | | business. As a simple example, think about what |
| in long-term potential to your computer business. | | | | would happen if you invested $1,000 and 16 hours |
| They fail to see how working for fly-by-night | | | | of time (that you value at $100 per hour) |
| customers will leave them scrambling to make | | | | planning, marketing and holding a seminar event. |
| their next buck and dissatisfied as they move | | | | From this, perhaps you got a new customer that |
| from customer to customer, never establishing | | | | spent initially $400. Then, that same customer |
| solid, mutually-beneficial relationships that can | | | | might become a steady, high-paying client on a |
| make computer consulting work more rewarding | | | | $12,000 per year on-going service contract. This |
| and successful. | | | | basically means you spent $2,600 in money and |
| Consider the following 4 ways to build a computer | | | | time finding a new client that was worth $12,400 |
| business plan around the needs of great clients, | | | | in the first year of your relationship. The client |
| rather than one-shot deal customers. | | | | acquisition cost was $2,600. But what if you |
| 1. Think About Customer and Client Acquisition | | | | didn’t push on-going service contracts, and |
| Costs. As you are creating your computer | | | | that client just spent $400 with you once? |
| business plan, think about the time and money | | | | Then, that $2,600 cost was certainly not worth |
| that will go into your marketing campaigns. | | | | the trouble. The customer vs. client mindset |
| Customer or client acquisition costs are simply | | | | makes all the difference in your computer |
| defined as those time and out-of-pocket | | | | business plan. |
| expenses that can be directly traced to the | | | | 4. Target Clients with Your Marketing Activities. |
| acquisition of new customers or clients. In order | | | | Unless you have a huge Fortune 1000-sized |
| to measure this correctly, you need to have | | | | marketing budget, you have to work smarter |
| controls and techniques in place to help you | | | | when it comes to marketing. You have to focus |
| measure where your customers or clients | | | | on small businesses that are most likely to |
| originate. | | | | become steady, high-paying clients. There’s |
| 2. Track the Origins of Your Customers and | | | | a world of difference in the lifetime profitability |
| Clients. Tracking where your customers and | | | | potential or lifetime value between customers and |
| clients originate is critical to understanding how to | | | | clients. As you design your computer business |
| get more of the clients that will stick by you long | | | | plan, you can’t afford to market to any |
| term … and less of the customers that have no | | | | companies that don’t have the potential to |
| interest in building long-term relationships. For | | | | become steady, high-paying clients. The |
| example, when you send out a postcard or other | | | | targeting and lead qualification becomes mission |
| piece of marketing collateral to a set of leads or | | | | critical. |
| prospects, you can send them to a Web site | | | | In this article we gave you 4 tips to help you build |
| landing page to fill out a form, register for a free | | | | your business around getting great clients rather |
| seminar or request a free CD. If you use a | | | | than one-shot-deal customers. |