STP 72 | Who is My Ideal Client?
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[00:00:00] James Marland: Hello, this is James from the Scaling Therapy Practice Podcast. This is a show of CourseCreationStudio. com. This is the show where we empower mission driven leaders and helpers to launch life changing online courses. This season, season three is all about helping leaders and content creators launch their course and we want you to be able to listen to season three and have a great idea of how to launch your own online course.
[00:00:40] James Marland: This week we're going to be talking about the ideal client, the ideal client beacon. It's a handout that you can find in the show notes and you'll be able to download that for free. Just sign up for our newsletter and in the newsletter you'll get other free resources and notices of opportunities for you to take that will help you build your audience and your online course so that you can spread your message and reach more people with your life changing content.
[00:01:07] James Marland: It's really important to know who you are sending your message out into the universe for. Like, who wants your message? If you don't know who your ideal client is, this resource will help you clarify who that is so you can almost pick them out of a crowd. They will shine to you like a spotlight and your message will shine to them.
[00:01:30] James Marland: Like a lighthouse, like a beacon. So the, uh, the idea of finding your ideal client is being able to help them find you, but also help you find them. If you clarify your message and identify so well who should be listening to you, your message will shine like gold. Like a lighthouse. And if you know who your ideal client is, they'll shine to you like a spotlight.
[00:01:55] James Marland: Like you'll be able to pick them out of a crowd. So it's very important to know and quantify who you can help the best, which makes us start with, who can you help? Who does your superpower help? This might be controversial, but the, I, your business, the business that's going to sustain you longterm, the business that you're going to want to work in day in and day out is built around you.
[00:02:21] James Marland: It's built around the business owner. It's built around the person that is the most important person in your business. It's not the customer. It's the owner. It's the person who puts their life, blood, and, um, And their time and energy into the business. And if you're going to do it longterm, it's got to be built around you.
[00:02:42] James Marland: It's got to be built around what you can do, how you can help people, what energizes you and what you can do the easiest, quickest, best to get people to their destination. If you don't know that, you're going to be chasing the customer. Your business is going to be running you instead of you running the business.
[00:03:01] James Marland: And that's, that's a recipe for disaster. So get. Get your, get your idea of what you're comfortable and confident in creating and serving either a service or a product. What can you do the best that can help your client that's going to sustain you? That's the first thing. Know your superpower. Seth Godin says don't find customers for your product, find products for your customer.
[00:03:26] James Marland: You're actually trying to give them value. What is the value and what is the value that you're unique skills bring to your ideal customer. The clearer you can identify that the brighter your message will shine to your ideal customer.
[00:03:42] James Marland: So this leads me to the section on the people that are in your ideal business, the people that you're going to identify with, and these people need to have characteristics that align with your core vision, mission, and values. For example, if you wanted to work with me, some of your core values would have to be centered around community or family or belonging.
[00:04:12] James Marland: I have a deep sense of Inclusion for people and helping other people join the group. So no one's left behind. In fact, one of my favorite quotes is by Zig Ziglar, which is, you all get what you want in life if you help enough people get what they want in life. And that's one of my core values is one of the things I want to get out of life is helping other people achieve their dreams and become giants in their industry.
[00:04:40] James Marland: And I want people to succeed far beyond what I can do. And if you want to help other people, then you're going to feel comfortable in my course and in my program. The other one is kindness and compassion. I have a deep sense of helping people that other people might've forgotten or lost.
[00:05:01] James Marland: Like I, I love helping mentoring. I'm also, I volunteer in my. Church's 12 step recovery recovery program called regeneration. You probably heard me talk about that at different times in the podcast. It's a core value of mine that I have compassion on people that might not be in my situation. Um, it, it probably comes from when I was growing up.
[00:05:28] James Marland: Uh, I felt I moved a lot. I moved maybe I changed schools 8, 9, 10 times. I forget how many times and I never felt like I belonged anywhere and I never, built a deep relationships with people. And I felt like I, I didn't belong and, uh, nobody noticed, you know, nobody noticed. So I want to be that person that notices people who have a lot to give, but maybe they need a little bit of encouragement to make the most of themselves.
[00:05:57] James Marland: My third value is, Discovery. I love to find out new things. I am an early adopter to, to some technology. I, I'm always wondering what's around the next corner. I don't like to take the same way home from different areas. I like to drive and find new ways or better ways to do things.
[00:06:19] James Marland: I'm always on the, the discovery for improvement and If those three values that you're, you're shaking your head and like, Oh, I, they are, they align with me. They align with how I want to do things. Then you were probably more likely to work with me. But if you're individualistic, you don't care about other people and, you don't practice kindness.
[00:06:43] James Marland: you you might find somebody else who better Fits with your ideal value If you want them to make a quick book on the backs of other people and you don't care about them, then this, this isn't the course for you.
[00:06:55] James Marland: But if you want to help other people while making an income, you know, consider, consider the resources that we have. So identify your, your values. And then for those people, the next step on identifying your ideal client is understanding the crisis.
[00:07:13] James Marland: What are they going through? What are the challenges or situations that your, your clients are looking for help? Or they, they push them to look for help. Can you identify specific events, situations that typically trigger a crisis? these challenges. What is their crisis? What is their current situation that they are in?
[00:07:34] James Marland: The easier you can define this, the better you're going to be able to define the rest of the items on the sheet, like their problems and pains and the promise you can give them. So what helps, what motivates them to start looking for a solution, their current situation? For example, if they're a parent that has a child that's not going to school because they're anxious, or maybe they're being bullied, that's a current crisis.
[00:08:01] James Marland: Like, their kid isn't succeeding. That's going to motivate them to start looking for a solution. If they're a business owner, and the business owner, uh, spent a bunch of money on marketing, but they're not getting a return, and they're like, ah, I feel like I'm wasting all this money. That's a crisis. That's a crisis for that business owner.
[00:08:23] James Marland: The crisis could be as simple as I want a sweet treat. What is the sweet treat that I want? I want my, my, uh, I'm hungry. I need to be satisfied. If you can think about it, even in that, that basic term, what, uh, what would start making them look for a sweet treat? I'm thinking of a McDonald's milkshake or a ice cream cone.
[00:08:46] James Marland: You know, what, what would make me, what is the situation that would make me start looking for an ice cream cone? Maybe it's hung. I'm hungry. Maybe I'm bored. Maybe. you know, I saw a commercial and now I'm thinking it's all I can think about. An ice ice cream cone. Maybe I'm on the keto diet and I can't eat ice cream anymore like I used to, you know, so I'm, my crisis is what is a sweet treat that I can eat that satisfies that desire that doesn't break my keto diet.
[00:09:13] James Marland: I found blueberries and some version of yogurt that helps, but that is the crisis and the crisis makes people want to look for a solution. Winston Churchill said, never let a good crisis go to waste. Not exactly sure what context he meant that in, but for us, it means there are crises, your ideal clients are in that you can use to help you identify their problems and pains.
[00:09:41] James Marland: Which leads us to Addressing urgent problems because of the crisis because of their current situation. What are some of the problems that your clients desperately need to solve and desperately is probably a key here, but what are the, the problems that they desperately need to solve and how do these, how do these issues affect their daily and longterm being?
[00:10:09] James Marland: Steve Jobs said, if you define the problem correctly, You almost have the solution. What is the problems that they are having in the marketing solution? Their problem could be, uh, the business owners are like, I'm spending all this money, but I'm not getting any clients. I don't have enough money to keep spending.
[00:10:28] James Marland: You know, that's the problem. I don't have enough money to waste on something that doesn't give me a return on investment for the parent. It could be, I'm worried that my kid is not going to like school and they're going to isolate. For the one with the sweet treat is if I don't get a treat now, I'm going to just keep thinking about it and I, I don't know how to satisfy my, my longing for, for, for the diet, you know, diets often when, uh, my problem, my, my crisis is I wanted a sweet treat.
[00:11:00] James Marland: My problem would be if I can't find the right treat. I'm not going to attain my diet goal, uh, markers, you know, I'm not going to be able to reach what I need to do to lose weight and to feel better. So that's my problem. And if you can define the problem that's going to give you the job to do, like what is the job or the promise you can offer?
[00:11:24] James Marland: But often, um, people don't make decisions until it's painful enough, which is the next section. What are the pains? What are the, the passions and their needs that your solution can, that, that they are looking for, that, that, that forces them, not just from like going, they have a crisis and they have a problem, but it, it's like one step above, uh, what, that they are going to look for a solution because they're in such pain.
[00:11:55] James Marland: And these, these speak to the deeper needs. What are the needs that your clients are trying to satisfy through your solution? And often people are trying to avoid pain or reach towards some sort of pleasure or something that benefits them For the business example, if they are trying to spend money, the pain that they're trying to avoid is just throwing money down the tube.
[00:12:20] James Marland: You know, they want a return on investment and the pain, uh, is maybe going out of business or the pain is they can't pay themselves or the pain is they can't build because they're, they haven't figured out the marketing. So what is the pain that you are helping them avoid? Or what are they going towards?
[00:12:38] James Marland: Like what? What do they want to achieve for me and my business? One of the things I want to achieve is, security like I spent so many years building into other companies and making them successful and then when they were done with my skills or they found another solution, they They let me go.
[00:12:59] James Marland: That was painful for me. And I'm tired of building somebody else's kingdom. I want to build something that provides security for my wife. if I'm, I'm almost 50. Okay. But if I die, I don't feel like dying right now, but if I end up dying, how can I provide for her in the future? How can I provide for my son?
[00:13:20] James Marland: And even a little, and even a little bit more, My extended family. we've all dreamed about buying a cabin and going there for family events. Nobody has the funds. But what if I was so successful, I could create those family environments, you know, those, those Christmases and the Thanksgiving at the Marlin family cabin.
[00:13:42] James Marland: That would be awesome. Maybe I'd be the favorite uncle, you know, uh, I would really enjoy that. what are the pains people are trying to avoid? And what are the pleasures or the, vision that they're going for? That's what often what motivates people avoidance or something to obtain or go for.
Which leads us to one of the final sections, which is articulating your promise or the promise of value. What are you going to offer them? that will solve their problem and alleviate their pain. What is your promise? A way to say this is a simple statement, I help, and then the group of people, I help this group do what?
[00:14:24] James Marland: Achieve what? What are you helping them do? you, if you were the, um, marketer and you're, you're helping people market their business, I help business owners achieve what? reach more clients, and then maybe another benefit would be cheaply effectively, on time or something like that. Like, I help business owners reach more clients.
[00:14:45] James Marland: What do you do? For me, I empower mission driven leaders or helpers launch life changing online courses. That's my, that's my tagline, but that's what I do. I'm trying to reach the group of people who have a mission, not just a mission to make money, but a mission to help people. And what do they want to do?
[00:15:04] James Marland: They want to help other people. So that's, that's what I do. And I do that through my pod course, my online courses, coaching, consulting, and a done for you service. So that's what I do. That's what I offer. Well, what, what would you say if you've identified your people, if you've identified their crisis, if you've identified their problems and their pain points, what they're going for, what would you say is the people that you help and what do you do for them?
[00:15:33] James Marland: It's your value proposition. It's what your solution offers that's unique or beneficial, and it helps you stand out from the competition. Peter Druckard said, the aim of marketing is to know and understand the customer so well that the product or service fits and sells itself.
[00:15:51] James Marland: So can you identify what you're doing? so well and your core audience so well that they immediately connect with it. That's your value proposition. The final stage on the ideal client beacon is visualizing the outcome. Where are you taking them? What is the transformation? In fact, the transformation or the vision of change is actually what sells most.
[00:16:22] James Marland: Of the product or service. They, if you can describe how their life is different and what will be better, then you are well on your way to reaching your ideal client because they will connect with that. They will connect with the vision. The vision is something that you can describe so well that people can see themselves achieving it and, doing what you are saying.
[00:16:49] James Marland: Well, Disney said, if you can dream it, you can do it. So help them dream it. Help them dream the transformation. Because right now, they're in the crisis. They, they might not be able to dream it. They might not have hope that things can be better. So you need to communicate in that middle part of the Ideal Beacon handout.
[00:17:10] James Marland: You need to know that so well that you can describe what you can do for them and only you can do for them. And then they will believe that you can help them with their problem. So at the top of the document, there is a place to write your ideal client statement. And you get to, after you filled out the sheet, you reflect on all the attributes and the motivations of your ideal client. And you craft a sentence that captures what you do and how you help them.
[00:17:39] James Marland: Simon Sinek says, the goal is not to do business with everyone who needs what you have. The goal is to do business with people who believe what you believe So in summary, your business starts with you. You need to know your superpower, your skills, and your strengths. Your people, the people you are going for, what are their values? Do they align with you? The clearer you can articulate your values, the easier it is for them to find you. What is the crisis that they're going through?
[00:18:08] James Marland: What is their situation, their predicament? What is the, in their world or environment that is going to make them start looking for a solution? What is the problems that their crisis is giving them? How is it impacting their life? What is the pain that these problems produce? how does it make them feel?
[00:18:28] James Marland: What are their needs? What are they going for? What are they trying to avoid? What is your promise? What is your promise to them that you can solve their problem and help them through their crisis? to their paradise, to their transformation, to their oasis. the clearer you are in your vision, the easier it will be for them to see themselves using your solution.
[00:18:56] James Marland: Remember, if you want, if you want this handout, please go to the show notes, sign up for our newsletter. This will be emailed to you. You'll be able to download it free of charge. if you want the companion to this, handout, it's, um, about 10 pages of questions and it shows examples of the, the ideal client statement.
[00:19:16] James Marland: It helps you articulate more of That's a course that I'm offering right now. It's going to be my marketing course right now. I have two or three handouts in the marketing course. It's going to be up to 14. And so right now it's a really cheap price of around $5 if you're listening to this. Um, but every time I add a course, it's gonna be more, but if you wanna get in on the ground floor and, uh, try it out, uh, you can buy it for $5.
[00:19:44] James Marland: So, uh, check that out in the show notes. Be really, uh, happy if you started using it and started reaching your ideal client.
[00:19:52] James Marland: I am also offering the Confident Course Creator, which helps you identify your strengths and your ideal day in life. And also a really cool eulogy, eulogy handout where you sort of craft the story of your life and then put it down so that you read it several times a week or I read mine daily. That gives me a mental picture of where I want to go and it helps me direct my my steps and the tasks that I take every day.
[00:20:23] James Marland: If you found this helpful, please like, and share. I'm on Spotify, Apple podcasts, and also the Kajabi platform. You can find my podcast on my webpage. Just a reminder, scaling therapy practice is, it's my opinion. It might not fit your situation. If you are looking for professional advice on business, legal accounting, please seek a professional in that area.
[00:20:49] James Marland: The Scaling Therapy Practice is a proud part of the SciCraft Network. Thanks, Gordon!
