Where and how to look for clients for a sales manager: step-by-step instructions. How and where to find new clients

I thought a little and realized that I had formulated the question a little wrong.
If you look at it, if you work as an enterprise (PE, or LLC), a lot of extra expenses arise, from innocent taxes in the event of an emergency, to office fees, accountant salaries, etc. in the case of an LLC. Therefore, the price tag for development is increasing significantly.
So, do there exist and how to find such customers who pay the performers so much that they have enough to hire programmers, maintain offices, etc. My common sense says - these are in the minority, because why pay more if you can pay less. But I have very little experience in this matter.

You are mistaken about individual entrepreneur or LLC. With an individual entrepreneur, you can have an office and a bunch of employees. And if you have an LLC, you can sit at home and work as a freelancer. It all depends on the needs and volumes that you need.
You control the price tag. You can make websites while sitting at home for 4000 rubles. Eating pasta. Or make websites at home for 300,000t.
There are companies that charge little for work, but charge in quantity of orders. Conventional conveyor and stamping.

I don’t remember exactly, but individual entrepreneurs seem to have limits on the movement of funds per year. Which LLC does not have. At the same time, there are no problems with withdrawing money from the individual entrepreneur’s account. At the same time, it is difficult to withdraw your loved one from the LLC account, only either as a salary (but here the tax of 13% from the salary goes + to the pension) or as some do, buying expensive property on the balance sheet of the LLC. Because any movements of LLC funds must be reported to the tax office. For individual entrepreneurs, only income, and also expenses if we want to deduct it from taxes.

Usually, IP/LLC issues are not bothered when there is a problem of growth. And when you start accepting orders from legal entities and require contracts, invoices, delivery/acceptance certificates, and bank transfer payments.

In your initial journey, I would personally advise you to develop in the role of a leader (manager). If you want growth. Don’t hire performers for the office. And delegate tasks to the same freelancers. Take on the role of project manager. The one who negotiates with the customer. That being said, start small. For now, do the work yourself, but try to order part of it from third-party freelancers or if you find someone to freelance on a permanent basis. If it is possible to simply take more orders, also try to shift such orders to other freelancers, taking a percentage for yourself, albeit less than what you give to the freelancer.

If you really want to try yourself offline, then nothing prevents you from being a freelancer and working under a contract, and in the end passing (or not passing) tax return. As a last resort, open an individual entrepreneur with minimal taxes. And to prepare documentation for submission to the tax office, at the end of the quarter, hire an outsourced accountant. Which, for a small fee, will summarize your activities and prepare reports for authorities.

It's no secret that many of the advanced Internet users tried their luck in the field of copywriting.

Everyone remembers literature lessons, essays on the topics covered, and tries to earn money with their school knowledge, being confident that copywriting is nothing more than writing essays on a given topic.

And yet, even a talented copywriter on a personal website or working with a client does not always make serious money: many are disappointed from sitting at the keyboard for a long time, others are not satisfied with the price for the work, and still others simply cannot find the long-awaited generous client.

At the beginning of my freelancing work, I also looked with disappointment at stock prices and, like many other copywriters, I dreamed of a generous customer. At one point I was lucky: I found a client for whom I wrote for a “good” price and six months later I was simply thrilled with the first hundred dollars I earned, which I proudly held in my hands.

Today, remembering those prices and earnings, I smile: both the financial side and the work then are completely different from what both I and my client can get from each other today.

What advice can you give to those starting to make money in freelancing? You can give a lot of advice, but the most important skill that you must definitely learn is the ability to find a customer. It’s good if working with him turns out to be long-term. This is what I consider the number one copywriting success.

Where to find a client or where to start

Where can one find copywriting happiness, how can one show the customer that the price for the work of a high-class copywriter, which we are, is fully justified?

Method one: “The client finds the contractor on his own”

This way to get a client is very rare. In my practice, this happened once: a client found me through articles in search results. The articles were published on a personal website and talked about phosphate-free chemistry.

This is how a customer appeared with an online store of French phosphate-free chemicals, for which almost all the content had to be changed.

Conclusion: if you have your own personal website or LiveJournal page, write also interestingly, with sparkle, professionally. This is how we earn authority and get better at writing texts (the benefits of practical classes no one has canceled yet).

Method two: “Customers from the copywriting exchange”

This method does not involve waiting for the client to “take the bait” on our magic resume with the phrase “ready to work for $0.5 for 1000 characters without spaces.”

After registering on the exchange, go to the section with job offers and start looking for yourself interesting offers. It should be noted that the highest paying topics will be technical, as well as financial and construction topics.

Once a suitable offer has been found, it is very important to contact the customer and offer yourself correctly.

A year ago I needed a staff of copywriters and, having accepted several dozen resumes, now I can already name a list of the most common phrases that completely kill the customer’s interest and force them to immediately close their portfolio without any emotions.

Ready to work for oh...a dollar
Ready for cooperation, you won’t regret it... My Skype, email
I will complete any task quickly

These are phrases that can be used, but only in context.

What do I suggest writing in my account on the exchange or in a message to the customer?

Feel free to offer the entire range of your services, emphasizing their uniqueness.
Even if you have a portfolio, do not send the customer to view it on their own, try to communicate with him or in correspondence, or even better on Skype and discuss all the items in the portfolio together, justify the price of each service. It is important to immediately describe the package of services that few people offer on the exchange.

Let me give you an example of my service package:

If necessary, selection keywords by topic, their distribution into articles.
Professional approach to each article: 100% uniqueness, no rewriting.
Introduction into the text of both single keywords and sets of many homogeneous keys (10-40 pieces; examples of work are attached)
If necessary, a deep rewrite, checking in two services (Advego, Text.Ru) with a result of 100% uniqueness.
Creation unique pictures, iconography on the topic of the article.
Additional services for posting texts in the site admin area, formatting included.
The package price implies a discount of 2 to 5%.

In almost all cases of cooperation, I sell this package to the client: it is convenient for the client and beneficial for me.

Another mistake newbies make is insisting on offering services. Most often, such actions are perceived as intrusiveness, although in two cases out of ten this technique may work. As they say, the city takes courage... But I would not recommend this method of presentation to any of my students.

A job has appeared and the client wants minor services? Never give up simple routine work.

Why? It’s simple: this way we gain invaluable experience and learn many of the secrets of copywriting or content management. After such workshops, you can think about increasing the prices for your services, but often the customer himself notices your efforts and raises the rates.

But at the same time, you shouldn’t take on everything that you can find on the Internet, the conversation is ongoing about yours regular customers. Otherwise, choose topics that are interesting to you, develop yourself, even while working for someone else.

Method three: “Social networks”

Although not very popular, it is very effective way find a client. On any social network you can find groups where copywriters hang out.

There are especially many such communities on VKontakte and Facebook. These are special “exchanges” where guys share their experiences and even warn each other about troubled customers.

This method is the most reliable for beginners: in such communities they will warn you against mistakes, and you don’t need to pay commissions from your earnings to anyone. IN social groups communication with the client occurs without intermediaries, unlike exchanges, where the client and the contractor communicate through third parties.

Method number 4: “Active search”

This method is used by experienced copywriters who are confident in what they offer. If you know well, for example, medical topics(or any other), type in search bar some thematic queries and start visiting sites from the top 20 search results.

Usually on any website there is a form feedback, where you can send your commercial proposal. How to compose it is a topic for a completely different conversation.

So, dear colleagues, I hope that using at least one of the proposed methods, you will find your golden client!

I wish you continued prosperity in your home and good luck in your favorite business!

Always yours Elena Skopich

2 votes

Hello, dear readers of my blog. Today we will talk to you about how to find a customer to sell a website. It takes time to learn how to make beautiful portals. If you don’t see the return, then it’s unlikely that you will have enough passion to finish what you started. Therefore, it is better not to work for the table, but to start making a profit from them as early as possible.

About great people and your aspirations

None of the great people knew for sure whether he would become famous and certainly could only dream that he would name will go in into history.

Estee Lauder was born as her seventh child. By that time, five of her siblings had died due to unbearable conditions. The only thing she had was a few recipes for cosmetics that she inherited from her uncle. Could she be sure that she could earn $2 billion a year from them and become the founder of a huge corporation named after her?

By the end of the 90s, 20,000 people working in Bill Gates' modest company became millionaires.

Soichiro Honda was not hired by Toyota. He for a long time I grieved, looked for other options, and then started collecting motorcycles in order to somehow feed myself. He did this in order to somehow survive, and in the end he became famous all over the world.

All these people just lived and performed certain actions, implemented plans. We learned and comprehended everything in the process of work. They are all united by aspirations and actions, not skills or dreams. If you crave something more, then you need to start doing it, and not daydream and reassure yourself with the thought that you are not ready.

About when to start

Perhaps right now you feel like you don’t have enough energy to find clients. You will not be able to process the order. In fact, you have been preparing for this moment your entire life. Now is the time to start implementing your idea. Start writing own story climbing now. Step by step and you will reach your goal.

Give up laziness, excuses, fear.

By putting everything off until tomorrow, you complicate the process. You are wasting time. Perhaps one more day and you will miss your happiness; you will give this niche to younger and more active people. For those who have enough strength, perseverance and perseverance.

Now, especially in small towns, there are not many offers for creating websites, but they already exist. If you continue to be lazy, you are dooming yourself to be second. Do you want to give potential customers and your income more active people? Don't think.

I look at the work of large corporations and often see incredible problems that you can learn about in the first design book you come across. And yet, these companies operate and earn money, have many clients and are able to maintain staff. What do they care about my opinion? You might not care either!

How to be sure to succeed in this field

The most important component of success is desire. And frankly speaking, it is impossible to maintain it if you are not paid. This is just stupid! Do you know what distinguishes normal people from those who believe in books from the “Want, Dream, Get” series?

It’s easier for us to make money than to waste time on dreams!

You can laugh a million times at motivational books and it will be right. All of them do not last as long as we would like. You are wasting your precious time on the wrong things!

To prolong the effect, you need to see the result. If you are dreaming about great success, then you will have to learn and improve. To earn big money you need to be a smart guy (or girl).

Why would I try if it is far from certain that I will get money for it? You are going to work to sell. The better your project implements its plans, the better. You can learn to sell endlessly. There is always room to grow.

Fortunately, the niche is varied. Some are ready to buy a worse project, but will pay less, but for others, give them trends. And customers understand that they will have to pay for this knowledge.

But in order for people to want to pay for your work, you have to start somewhere. You need to have a portfolio. Be sure to commit yourself, develop requirements for yourself! Many of those who are sincerely interested in the topic will not reach the completion of the first project. It will become boring, uninteresting, lazy.

Only you need additional income, but we are all human. Until you fully believe that it is real. But tell me, are you ready to miss a project if you promised it to someone?

How to find a project for a beginner

Where can a newbie find a customer for a website? Search government agencies who cannot afford electronic resource and offer your services. They can be animal shelters, aid collection points, orphanages, and schools. Make a website for them for free. This way you will take responsibility, do a good deed and get unique information, which will be needed during development, as well as experience and portfolio.

A minimum investment is required: timeweb hosting ( www.timeweb.ru ) with annual payment costs a little less than 1,300 rubles, and you will be given a domain. Design, if you don’t want to deal with training, will cost about 5 thousand. Perhaps you will find a beginner like you. He will also agree to complete the project on a charitable basis. Or modify some cute free template. You can write the texts yourself. Believe me, you can do it, you just have to start.

You will invest a minimum of money, but will gain experience. You will not be able to deceive the people you promised and you will learn to communicate with customers.

How to find clients

Several similar projects can be put together in a portfolio, and then you can create your own website, which will simply post your contacts and these examples. To be honest, the return from such a portal will not be great. There are a million offers on the Internet and it will not be easy to break out among people.

Large corporations order projects from equally large web studios, and small firms have no time to surf the Internet and spend money on advertising.

How then can you quickly and reliably find clients? Offer your services.

I recommend that you create your own regional portfolio portal with an offer focused on your city. You guarantee full support. You undertake not only to develop, but also to bring the resource to fruition. Meet clients, communicate and make their dreams come true. They will definitely recommend you to their friends and acquaintances.

How to find more often

You are launching a virus. The site is already operational. There is a portfolio. But you continue to increase your chances of winning by communicating with new clients. Walk on small companies. Even in small towns, a whole bunch of them open every day. One new acquaintance a day is 365 channels a year.

In five years, there will already be 1,825 of them! This whole database. Considering that a person communicates with at least ten people during the week, then you have 182,500 chances! Let's say a potential customer likes you, but due to financial circumstances he does not want to work with you. Who interferes with him in a friendly conversation when it comes to website construction, give your contact to the right people? Accidentally leaving a business card will bring you profit!

Efforts are always rewarded. Nothing happens just like that.

One day, I was sitting with my wife in a beauty salon, we were all chatting together about this and that. And we accidentally started talking about websites. The girl understood that she did not have enough money to order a website on which she wanted to display information about own services. I immediately thought that she didn’t need it, so I started recommending Wix ( www.wix.com — free constructor sites). “Ugh, Vicks, it’s free, it’s probably some kind of crap,” snorted the girl, who didn’t understand anything at all about the structure; where she came up with such an opinion is still unclear to me. I finally convinced her to try it.

I completely forgot about what happened. Because I was firmly convinced that even if she tried, she would then recommend Vicks to all her friends, and not my services. But she called a month later. Found my number through my wife. She thanked me for my help and said that she now has her own clients who want to get their nails done by her and for some reason she sees my merit in this.

She also mentioned that she is often asked how she figured out how to create her own website. After an enthusiastic story, many clients begin to be interested in my services and the development of a more serious project.

Surprisingly, they come from her often, and the amounts of projects are surprising.

You shouldn't sit on the couch waiting for happiness. Even Emelya, who was sitting on the stove, at some point in his life had to cast a fishing rod and catch a pike.

As you can see, in my article I used quotes from the book by Stephen Covey The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People . A good and very informative book. I highly recommend reading it.

Subscribe to my blog and learn how to create cool websites that will sell. Improve your own skills, get real benefits and maintain the fire in yourself that is so necessary to make your dreams come true!

August 29, 2010 at 2:05 pm

How to find your first client

When you become well known in your business, clients will constantly come to you instead of having to look for them. When there is a lot of work, there will not be much need to try to sell your services.

But what to do if you're just starting out? Before clients start calling, there may be problems with what to do all day. This is the perfect time to make your presence known.

Don't focus on freelancing sites

If you have nothing to do all day, it can be tempting to browse freelancing sites like eLance, Guru or Freelancer. I mean, there's a ton of clients offering work there, right?

In reality, such sites can create a lot of problems for freelancers and should therefore be approached with caution. Hours spent on sites, participating in competitions and low (sometimes too low) pay compared to the real cost. It's much better to spend this time promoting your name.

Lights up everywhere and always

The reason clients started finding me was because I seemed to be wherever they were all the time. I left comments on the blogs they visited. Then I started writing for these blogs. I tweeted helpful articles and advice throughout the day and started tweeting own blog with unique articles.

People often ask me how I manage to be online so much. In fact, I'm often offline after work or on weekends, but I still tweet. My Twitter account connected to Facebook, my website, LinkedIn and some others social networks, so it seems that I am always and everywhere. This way the client will remember you, consider you an expert and apply for the job.

Optimize your portfolio

I have many interests and hobbies. When I created my first portfolio site, I posted everything I did there: print design, web design, logos, layout, photographs and drawings. The funny thing is that I didn't get any work, although I had a lot of talents. The clients couldn't understand what I was doing. Now I have a simple portfolio with the best projects in one area - layout. And clients can tell exactly what I do.

Write, write, write and write again!

Clients want to know they are being taken care of by the best in the business. If they have to choose between a freelancer they haven't heard of and one who has written on several popular blogs and published a book, who do you think they will consider an expert?

You don't have to write a book, but blogging is a fantastic way to get your name out there. Most sites will even pay for articles - and this great way for additional income.

Old Fashioned Marketing

Social media won't make you rich or solve all your marketing problems. Sometimes a little good old-fashioned marketing can be the best source of new clients.

Job Boards - Job board sites are different from freelancing sites because they only contain short description companies and what they want to do. Such clients are often willing to pay fair money than on freelance sites.
Cold emails - Best source clients in the first days we sent them cold letters. I simply Googled the type of client I needed and sent them a pre-prepared proposal. I still get orders from this even though I stopped sending emails over a year ago.
Personal Networking - I know most of us freelancers are hermits, but attending events is a great way to find local clients. Conferences like Barcamp and Podcamp are simply fun to attend and networking with other freelancers is invaluable.

Finding clients from RSS feeds

On most social sites you can subscribe to RSS feeds and they can be super helpful for finding new clients.

For example, if you go to Twitter and search for “looking for freelancer,” what messages will be displayed? What other phrases might be useful for finding clients?

You'll see an RSS button for every search you make on Twitter, so it's a good idea to subscribe to them to keep track of your potential clients' posts.

In addition, almost all message boards usually have mailing lists. By subscribing to them, you will save valuable time and never miss out. useful messages and there will be no need to visit different sites every day.

Tell everyone what you do

When you're just starting out, let everyone you know know what you're doing. Chances are that someone knows someone who needs your services. So be sure to let everyone know you're in business.

Post information about yourself wherever you can

There are literally thousands of sites that will allow you to post your name and a link to their site. It's not only good practice exchanging links for SEO, this also brings us back to the idea of shining everywhere. Here are some ideas:

CSS Galleries

Nowadays, many construction specialists are increasingly opening their own businesses. This way of earning money has certain advantages. The presence of healthy competition is a good incentive to improve the quality of work done. In addition, you can set your own price. However, such activities also include constant search orders. And here the usual methods of popularization do not always work.

About search tricks

In the construction business the most best advertising creates " word of mouth" If the team has successfully completed its work, then satisfied customers will begin to recommend it to all their friends and family. Moreover, the same neighbors, looking at the current renovation process, decide to update their homes themselves with the help of a team that is working nearby. Therefore, when fulfilling an order, you need to try to get along not only with the owners, but also with their neighbors.

The method involving the distribution of flyers and business cards also showed very good results. The easiest way, of course, is to negotiate with sellers of construction stores and leave them leaflets with business cards. All this is done naturally monetary reward. This way, many people will be able to learn about your team, and advertising costs will be minimal. Beginning construction entrepreneurs can start distributing leaflets themselves.
In the construction industry, the old methods of finding clients and orders still operate. We are talking, of course, about advertisements in newspapers and near the entrances of residential buildings. Many people believe that if an advertisement is posted at their entrance, then its author lives somewhere nearby. This means it will be much easier to contact him. This approach to finding clients is convenient to use in those areas that are a priority for you. Note that advertisements in newspapers work less often, but they still work.

Many builders have a large circle of acquaintances through their line of work. Let us note that it is very useful to know who your competitors are and whether they can become your partners. There are several reasons for this, and searching for orders is just one of them. Often customers ask to recommend someone to conduct a certain type construction work, which are not included in the price list of their performers. And this is where they remember old friends. There are situations when you can simply outbid an order from competitors who, for certain reasons, cannot undertake its implementation.

Search for orders via the Internet

It would be foolish not to try to promote your services on the Internet. There are two ways to search for orders for construction teams in this field.

1) Publication of advertisements on thematic websites and forums. It is important to choose only those resources that are popular. You can limit yourself to submitting the same ad. But if this is not enough for you, then you can create your own section in which you will communicate with potential clients, give advice, collect applications, and gain authority.

2) Creating your own website. The second option for finding customers will add credibility to any team. The potential client will see that you take your business seriously. But it’s not enough to just create a website. It needs to be unwound. The content of the site must be constantly updated and promptly respond to all reviews and requests.

Each of these methods has its own advantages and disadvantages. You can choose the one that suits you best.

Search for orders during periods of stagnation

Finding orders during a crisis is always more difficult. Activities with a construction profile differ from other types of entrepreneurship in that they have periods of stagnation and activity. This is often due to the seasons. For example, in winter time It is simply unrealistic to build or overhaul a house. Moreover, if we're talking about about the company, then you will have to pay salaries to all its members regardless of whether orders are received or not. The same applies to state taxes. There are several ways to find customers during periods of stagnation.

1) Active search. This method requires having an employee who will actively look for clients. It is advisable that this is a person with work experience and relevant skills. He must regularly monitor thematic press and collect information about tenders. In addition, he must collect useful contacts, send out commercial offers by e-mail, and so on. Such standard activities can attract long-awaited customers.

2) Visiting construction sites. If you plan to engage in construction at a high level, then be sure to go through the large construction projects that exist in your city. Talk to customers. It is possible that they will be interested in your offers and use your services next time. Moreover, this good opportunity lure clients away from those performers who cannot cope with their responsibilities.

3) Major connections. In this case, you must establish contact with large construction companies and contractors. Don’t be afraid to ask what current projects they have and whether they agree to cooperate with you. At a minimum, you will find yourself in the contact database of a serious company. As a maximum, get long-term access to large orders.

4) When attracting clients, we must not forget about passive promotion of our services. In other words, you place an advertisement, earn a reputation, and participate in various exhibitions. And that’s it, new clients will find you themselves. This approach works great if you have been in the construction business for quite some time, have a good reputation and a solid client base.

But ideally, it would be best to combine passive and active types of search.

Search for orders at the initial stage of development

Usually, construction industry divided among themselves by large entrepreneurs. But this does not mean that a beginner in this case has no chance at all. Its key task is to find reliable clients in the construction industry.

1) The first thing you need to do is create a catalog of finished works. He will be your main resource. With his help potential clients will be able to verify the quality of your orders.

2) Creating your own website. You can create a business card website. It is desirable that it be professional. It will give you a complete picture of what you do, what the specifics of your activity are, and what level your design abilities are. On such a site you can post samples of your work, indicate prices, create a book for reviews and provide contact information. You can popularize your site using contextual advertisements. Using SEO will also help.

3) Making contacts. Try to establish contact with manufacturers of materials for construction and finishing. Everything is very simple here. The manufacturer recommends your team to all its customers as competent performers. In return, he receives a small percentage of every order you receive. And you, in turn, will send your customers to partner stores to purchase materials for construction, repair and finishing.

4) Placement of advertisements in thematic publications. These could be magazines or newspapers that talk about interior design and building materials. Be sure to design a module that will be memorable. Add a link to your online portfolio of your work.

5) Establishing contacts with large construction holdings. Quite often, large companies prefer to transfer some construction projects to smaller firms. In this case, you will have to give part of the monetary profit to the main contractor. But in return, you can get a solid customer base.

6) If there is any builders' union in your region, be sure to join it. This is also a good opportunity to acquire useful business connections, get new clients and create partnerships with entrepreneurs who are engaged in a similar type of activity.
the main objective of the beginning construction team is to achieve highest level work. Clients should be happy with you. This is important because most people look for construction crews through friends. Recommendations from satisfied customers sometimes work better than any advertising.

Useful advertising methods

Besides conventional methods, there are several more ways to attract customers.

1) Placement of feature articles in magazines – print and online publications. In the article, tell us about your work methods and what customer needs and needs you can satisfy.

2) Radio advertising. This method will allow you to expand your base of customers who often listen to radio broadcasts. Create a short video in which you tell about your activities in a few words and also provide contact information.

3) Telephone and subject directories in electronic format. With their help you can find potential clients.

4) Exhibitions. This does not mean participation in the exhibition itself. You can simply come as a visitor. This way you can establish contact with the people you need completely free of charge.