Building a creative business is challenging, especially when you find yourself in urgent need of clients. Whether you're just starting out or suddenly find yourself with dwindling projects and rising overhead, knowing how to quickly acquire new clients can be crucial. Here, we discuss various strategies to help you secure projects swiftly.
Understanding the Sales Funnel
The sales funnel is a foundational concept for attracting clients. It comprises three stages: awareness, consideration, and decision. To find clients fast, target those already in the decision stage—they’re actively seeking services like yours and are ready to commit.
Leveraging Past Clients
Reach Out to Recent Clients
Your recent clients are the most obvious choice for quick projects. Reach out to them and ask if they need more work done. It’s okay to be forward and say something like, “Hey, we have availability coming up—any projects we can help with?” These clients have already trusted you once, making it easier to succeed with them again.
Pitch Similar Services
Propose a new service that complements what you recently completed for them. For example, if you designed a website, offer maintenance or additional landing pages. You know their business needs and can tailor offers accordingly.
Competitive Advantage
Keep an eye on your client’s competition. If a competitor has launched a new initiative, use this to your advantage. Inform your client and offer a service that helps them stay ahead. This can create urgency and motivate them to act quickly.
Identify Industry Trends
Stay updated on industry trends and propose these new opportunities to your clients. Show them how adapting to trends could benefit their business. For instance, if a new social media platform is gaining traction, suggest they establish a presence there.
If You Have No Recent Clients
Freelance Marketplaces
Sites like Upwork or Fiverr can be great resources when you need clients fast. Although these platforms often feature competitive pricing, they also provide direct access to clients ready to make quick decisions with no upfront marketing efforts.
Networking Events and Co-working Spaces
Attend local networking events or join a coworking space where you can connect with other entrepreneurs. Being in the right place at the right time can lead you to contacts who need your services.
Cold Outreach Luck
While cold outreach often has low conversion rates, it might occasionally yield opportunities due to timely coincidences. Timing is crucial, and sometimes being available at the right moment is all it takes to land a client.
Avoiding Common Pitfalls
Be cautious not to over-rely on strategies that have low success rates, like mass cold emailing, without personalized messages. Invest more initially in networking and nurturing past client relationships to increase your chances of quick success.
Building Systems
Implement a system in your business to regularly engage with past clients and explore new opportunities. Plan quarterly reach-outs during budgeting periods and the end of fiscal years, which may reveal unexpected openings as clients seek to utilize their budgets.
Consistently seeking opportunities and maintaining relationships is vital for a sustainable creative business. When the need for clients becomes acute, strategically reach out to past clients, leverage industry trends, explore competitive insights, and stay active in networking circles. While newer methods like freelance marketplaces and cold outreach can also yield results, a proactive approach within your network may offer faster and more reliable outcomes.
About Two Pixels Off
Hosted by Brad Hussey and Michael Janda, Two Pixels Off is a podcast dedicated to helping creative entrepreneurs run successful businesses. The show covers everything from marketing and pricing to project execution and profitability, all aimed at empowering creative professionals.
If you’re interested in actionable advice for headline writing and other content strategies, tune into Two Pixels Off on your favorite podcast platform, or visit TwoPixelsOff.com for more episodes.