Note: This post was done as participation in Tea Silvestre’s blog carnival at The Word Chef.
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A business is nothing without customers. Whether you are a service provider or product creator, full time or part time, running a business is hard business…and finding customers is the hardest part.
You not only have to find customers, but you have to find the right customers. Luckily for business owners, it is easier than ever to find and connect with customers. But as you may see after this post, the problem can quickly become having too many options 
.
At this point I won’t rehash the necessity of building and nurturing relationships with customers. That much is already clear (I hope) and has been covered on many blogs other than my own. Once you establish leads and find potential customers it is up to you to build your relationship with them.
Your business is your business and your customer is your customer. No two are the same. There is no blanket statement to describe how these relationships should be treated or built on. But I’m going to try my best to show how they can get started.
Paid Methods
Honestly, I don’t want to get too much into paid methods.
The first reason is because most people know these paid methods exist. Paying for advertising and marketing is as old as time. There’s nothing creative about it.
You can pay for ads on Google so people searching for certain terms see your business pop up in the sponsored results. You can pay for ads on Facebook and target people with certain criteria fitting your ideal customer profile. You can even pay for lead contact lists (something that my friend in the mortgage business has had some success with).
But the second reason I don’t want to get too much into these is many business start-ups (including my own) try to operate on a shoestring budget. There are cheaper, more creative ways to get those potential customer connections.
And that is what I want to talk about…
Free Methods
1. Email List Relationship Building: The money is in the list, right? That’s because email conversations are much more persona than blog commenting or Twitter messaging. Your email is private and personal. It is not a public account. It is directed at you.
Any business looking to create a loyal customer following should being building their email list ASAP. This can be done several ways, but the most popular technique is to give something of value away for free.
Once you being building up your contact list, you should also begin interacting with them on a personal level. People buy from people they like. Sell yourself first, and your product or service second.
2. Inbound Blog Marketing: Marcus Sheridan, The Sales Lion, is the king of inbound marketing (and the jungle ). His business story is an inspirational one. Marcus entered the world of inbound marketing and skyrocketed his pool business success.
Answer potential customers’ questions. Provide them with useful potential-decision-making information. They will be grateful for the help. And it’s quite possible that your competitor isn’t making the same information readily available. Who do you think the customer will favor?
3. Guest Post on Related, Bigger Blogs: Nothing can drive in potential clients, customers or even business partners, like a little exposure. Create some great content, like the best content you’ve ever created, and offer it up to a site with a bigger audience.
If you are answering someone’s burning questions, they will come over and check you out. If they see that you are offering solutions to their problem, they may contact you as a potential customer.
4. Clarity on Your Site: If you are providing a service or consulting, make it clear on your site that you are for hire with a “hire me” page. Describe what services you provide.
If you have a product available make sure that it is front and center. If people can’t see it, and don’t know that you have a product that can make their lives easier, they can’t buy.
5. Q&A Sites: Q&A Sites are a good source of people looking for answers. Provide a great answer and it will be available for a very long time and ranked very well in search engines.
Even if the person asking the question doesn’t come after you for your services, someone down the line may read your brilliant answer and contact you for more. Just remember to leave a way to get in touch!
6. Answers on LinkedIn: LinkedIn Answers is more than just a regular Q&A site because it is within a social network. The great thing about LinkedIn that makes it different than other social networks is that it is catered to professionals – people looking to network and possibly make business relationships. This increases the chance of your answer leading to further conversations.
7. LinkedIn Groups: Speaking of LinkedIn, groups can be a great source of potential customers. Joining groups gives you access to people with similar interests. Some will be consumers and some will be providers.
By being a part of the group you can message members with special offers and promotions for your products or services. Or, you can take it one step further and talk to the group organizer about messaging members for you for a little extra legitimacy.
8. Facebook Groups: Facebook also has groups (for anything you can possibly imagine!). You can try and promote your products or services on the group wall – but that often seems a little spammy.
In this case, it is definitely better to try to get in touch with the group organizer for a promotion.
9. Twitter Keywords: Use Twitter search to see who’s talking about your area of expertise. Maybe someone needs help…offer it up!
You can use hashtags and actually seek seek out people looking for help too (i.e. “#help”).
10. Fiverr Samples: While Fiverr is a great resource to get some cheap projects done quickly for your own business, it is also a great way to possibly lure in some customers for bigger projects of your own.
Alex Whalley talks about using Fiverr to create an online business.
11. Find Affiliates: Doing all the work on your own can be both exhausting and discouraging. But what if you could get a couple of people on your team? Sales partners that don’t take any control of your actual business.
You can pay to be a service or product provider on an affiliate network. Or you can go out and make connections with people that will help promote your product.
While this method is often associated with product sales, you can also partner with affiliates for service promotions.
12. Freelance Networks: Freelance networks are a hot bed of people looking for work. Odesk and Elance are the two big ones that come to mind.
The downside of these networks is that you there will most likely always be someone under-bidding you. But one successful project can be the beginning of a long business relationship.
13. Forums: Forums are are designed for discussion so there is a lot of opportunity to create possible business relationships. Some forums even have sections for people to connect specifically for that reasons (like the “Warriors for Hire” and “Warriors Wanted” sections on the Warrior Forum).
Whatever industry you are in, chances are there is a forum for it. And if there isn’t, then you are either in the wrong industry or have a huge opportunity on your hands .
14. Leverage Media Exposure: Getting into certain media outlets can provide you with plenty of exposure and allow you the opportunity to display your expertise.
HARO and Reporter Connection are two sources of media outlets looking for references. Become an expert reference and you can gain exposure for yourself and your business.
15. Online Classifieds: While sites like Craigslist can be a big pain in the backside and a huge source of spam, they can also be a great resource for finding potential clients and customers.
While most postings in the jobs sections are for employees, why not pitch a freelance/consultant relationship to the employer? You could also get lucky by finding something in the “gigs” section of the classifieds.
Going Past the “Meeting”
So there you have it: 15 ways to find and “meet” potential customers for your business. Once you get your foot through the door it is important to build on the relationship. This not only turns potential customers into customers, and customers into loyal customers, but it also allows you the ability to see if the potential customer is the right customer for you. Remember, sometimes a decision to not take on a customer is just as important as a decision to take on a new project.
Holy Syndication Batman, This is a freaking great post Eugene!
(and I’m not just saying that because of the link love either!
)
Really covered some of the important bases in regards to networking and ‘connecting with your ideal customers’ but you did it in such tasty bite sized chunks!
Sweet.
Thanks Alex. And just giving credit where credit is due
.
Tasty bite sized chunks are easier to digest
I never thought about using LinkedIn answers in that way! Good tips.
Thanks Annie. LinkedIn in general is a great resource. But I think the Answers section is one of the best kept secrets.
I dig the suggestions in this list but the one that stands out for me the most is #1: Building Your Email List.
Above all else, to me, that’s the one that’s going to generate the ready list of interested prospects. I’ve generated more subscribers to my paid newsletter and other programs with that email list alone.
But it’s more than just slapping up a call to subscribe. It’s about delivering utility. If it isn’t useful, if there isn’t an objective that readers can easily identify, then they’re not going to be as engaged if they decide to subscribe at all.
Hey Ricardo, like they say “the money is in the list.”
But I feel like many people who run businesses don’t necessarily want to create a newsletter or continuously strive to provide high value content (although I think it’s a good idea to try to). This provides some great places to get introduced to clients.
“Ideal” customer is definitely the key word. Those are the ones that make you money. Thank you for sharing this list.
And those are the ones that become repeat customers too!
Nicely done, sir! I would say this is has the makings of an eBook if you wanted to expand it out a little further (go in depth on each item). So glad to have you in the Word Carnival troupe!
Thanks Tea…and I’ll have to jot that idea down. Maybe some time in the near future
.
Anyway, just got the internet back up and working here…so I’ll be sure to hop around all the “carnies’” posts tomorrow
Id like to add that having a Customer Referral Program could also help. It can be a bit cheaper depending on how you plan to implement it. But the rest on your list are good ones too. I love coming to your page looking for information and doesn’t leave disappointed.
I’m glad I didn’t disappoint you
. A referral program is definitely great. And hopefully if you’re doing a really great job, you’ll get some free referrals anyway 
Really nice to do list to connect with ideal customers, I actually use forums very much to attract customers to my services and actually getting good results. LinkedIn Group is also great resource and I recently start getting result from there as well.
LinkedIn is great because it’s a network for professionals, so you know its serious people there (for the most part
). Forums get overlooked a lot too, they’re definitely still alive and thriving.
Interesting ideas! I hadn’t checked out Fiverr – thanks for the tip. I normally frown on job boards for couch warriors, generally because the pool of available talent is just downbidding themselves and each other into ever-lower fees. Great for the client, but at some point, you cannot feed the dog, much less the kids, on that kind of cash. I’m always happy and willing to be proved wrong, though, and Fiverr is a clever spin on the concept, to be sure!
True, some of the boards aren’t very favorable to freelances…but it’s up to you as a freelancer to set your limits. There’s no lack of work out there, you can find the right position.
Great list of free promotion methods, Eugene. I’ve been having a lot of success with guest blogging for profile raising lately, with the added bonus that some clients hire me to blog for them.
Guest posting is a great promotion method! And one that I unfortunately haven’t used enough of. I’m going to pick up my guest posting efforts with the launch of my new site though.
I would agree with Tea that you could easily expand this and have one rockin ebook. Number 4 on your list can’t be stressed enough. I can’t tell you how many sites I’ve visited where I leave in frustration because there is no clear option for using their services, or (worse in my opinion) its not easy to see how I can connect with them in social media. Don’t make me hunt for your Twitter handle please.
Ok…you’ve convinced me. I’ve added an ebook to the queue
. Well…maybe sometime down the line 
Tea,
#1 really stands out for me because it has been something I have been doing and preaching for a heck of a long time.
Like you pointed out in this method and many of the others there is a “right” way and a “wrong” way to do it.
Doing these things the “right” way is all about being a real person and using these methods as a way to really connect.
The wrong way, of course, is to simply blast out marketing message after marketing message.
-Steve
Hey Steve…I actually wrote this, Tea came up with the topic. But I can see how I made that confusing up top, woops.
If anyone wants to know how to do email marketing properly they should go check out your site!
Nice post…I agree with Tea…the makings of a great ebook. Very insightful and thorough
Thanks Michelle
. I’m really considering it now since a couple people have said that already.
Wow, this is just an amazing post. Bravo Eugene, bravo. I don’t think I can add anymore to it since you’ve listed every possible way to connect with the people, at least from what I know. I’m very glad that you have included forums, people don’t use it as much as they should. It’s such a great way to build a relationship with potential clients, but it does it take time to do so.
Any sort of relationship building takes time, if you want it to be real at least. But yeah, forums are definitely not dead – people don’t talk about them enough. I’ve picked up a couple of freelance writing clients from forums.
Eugene, thanks for the reminder of the importance of joining and participating in social media groups. Sometimes we join and forget to stay connected and lose the value of the relationship. Thanks for the reminder.
Hi Eugene, you absolutely rocked this topic.
I love the way you broke it down to paid and free methods of getting one’s business through the door. #4 is one that I am yet to do, on my blog.
Thanks for a great insight to may options to finding our perfect customers.
Glad I could be of service Stella
. Thanks for stopping by!
Hey Eugene,
Great post on finding ways to connect with our ideal customers. I have found that building personal relationships has been the greatest way for me to make sales online.
Building relationships are definitely a great way to go: with customers and other businesses/marketers.
Customers like to buy from people they like. And other businesses are more likely to partner with you or promote you if you have a relationship with them.
Eugene,
My favorite is your Clarity on your Website point – that’s been a constant source of contention for me, because I like fancy titles to describe what I do (“Business Storyteller”, “Creative Renegade”, “Digital Gunslinger”) — but in the end, if the descriptor doesn’t make sense or line up in the customer’s mind, it’s going to lose them before I even get a chance to say hello.
Just like the plumber’s house that’s always leaking cuz he’s busy fixing everybody else’s house – you have to stop at some point and fix your own stuff. Looks like it’s time for a day off from clients!
Hmm, that’s an interesting point. Can you come up with something fancy AND descriptive? That could be a challenge.
Eugene thank you for the reminder of the Q&A sites. Particularly, that a good answer can stay around for a long time and keep on doing its work for you.
LinkedIn is a fantastic resource if it is used well. You can also consider starting your own group. Apart from being able to message your group once a week, which can be very effective, it is also handy as a means of connecting through invitations to suggest people join, especially if you can promote it as providing great help, information etc.
You are right! So many of us might be good at bringing in potential customers, but really poor at converting them into taking some type of action, signing up, contacting us etc.
So that is an essential to check. Off to do it now. Thank you for this great list of 15 must do’s.
My pleasure Sandy. I’m actually considering creating my own group on LinkedIn for the new site I just launched today. Might be a good thing to do sometime down the road (or soon
).
I must say that forums and social networking sites are two of the most effective ways to connect with a business ideal customers. Social networking sites most especially because everybody can spread the business information by sharing it to others connected with them.
But it’s important to remember to use the right ones…pick the ones where your potential customers are hanging out and actually wouldn’t mind hearing from you.
Yeah! Reaching out with your customers is the best way to go. There’s really no point to join a network if you can spot your customers within the network, absolutely makes no sense.
Great list of FREE resources to build your business and gain customers. With so many ways to get free traffic, there really isn’t a need to do paid advertising, unless you want immediate results, or have dominated the resources above.
You have a big point in there…free resources take a bit more time to get the results. You could pay for ads for quicker results, of course.
Getting something free, in this case the right customers, is always a preferred method to the paying for them one. But getting them the hard way takes a lot of time and work. Sometimes, just sometimes, it’s better to take the money path.
It’s really a time/effort vs money trade off. Best case scenario is being able to do both
Great post on finding ways to connect with our ideal customers. Great list of FREE resources to build your business and gain customers.Thanks for a great insight to may options to finding our perfect customers.
Really, really great article. Thank you for posting it
Great post, thank you for sharing it. You have some good tips Eugene.
“A business is nothing without customers.”
You play your cards with a strong hand, my friend.
If you don’t have customers transacting with you to the tune of the costs of business and, at least, your living costs, you don’t have a business. At best, it’s a something. That’s neither here nor there.
This is what I read when I read your statement: A business is nothing without customers.
And I don’t disagree with you, Eugene! Heck, shout it from the rooftops!
Recently on my blog: Charlie Chaplin made me cry http://wp.me/pbg0R-qG
“at best it’s a something” …love that line. You have a way with words my friend
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[...] Eugene Farber of Reality Burst: How to Find Your Ideal Customers [...]
As a blogger, on a variety of topics, I’ve always found it helpful to word the title of blog posts as a question that someone might type into google. Basically, I’m targeting the phrase that I believe most people will use to search for answers about their problems.
This works amazingly well, especially if you are highly specific and good at predicting (or researching) search queries.
It also brings you the “ideal customer” in best possible way — chances are, they’ll be hungry for whatever solution you are offering them.
Awesome post. I also do agree with you that paid method is not a very good approach to connect with your client. I think blogging is a nice and interactive tool to get connected with your client. Anyway looking for more articles from you.
Thanks Susan. I think a paid approach can be effective, and even quicker. But I know that people prefer free in general
Participating in a forum is a good idea since you might find people there who can help you out in looking for customers. They can become bridges to your success if you create a good relationship with them.
Yep, forums are something that not a lot of people talk about. Definitely an underrated resource.
Your article really make sense. I’m satisfy by the way you brought out ideas. keep on posting!
[...] Eugene Farber of Reality Burst: How to Find Your Ideal Customers [...]
All of these are needed to find ideal customers?…wow, I really need to do this..Kind of a stress to begin with, but maybe I can catch up with the evolving internet business..thanks..
You don’t need to do them all. You can do one, or a few. It’s really up to you. This is just a list of ideas of where to find them.
Now that we are embracing the advantages of new technology, Many people started to use online ways in getting more and more customers for their businesses. Personally, I find social networking sites to connect with potential customers.