Go Where The Hungry Fish Are

As I was preparing to present a workshop in Indiana for a room full of young financial advisors, I overheard a small group of them discussing fishing.

“Chris,” I called out to one of them at the beginning of the workshop, “When you go fishing, are you looking for just anything that will take your bait, or are you aiming for something specific?”

“Well, any fisherman knows that different fish go for different baits,” he called back.

“So, when?you?go fishing,” I asked him, “Is there a particular fish that?you?go after?”

“I like fly fishing,” he responded, “Usually for trout.”

“Would you do that on the ocean?” I continued.?The group chuckled.

“No, of course not,” Chris replied, trying to decide whether I was acting clever or clueless.?“You’re not going to find trout in the ocean.?They’re a fresh water fish that you find in streams and rivers,” he continued, apparently concluding that my problem was ignorance.

“So,” I responded, “what you’re saying is that if you’re fishing for trout, you’re going to be casting with different bait, and maybe even in different waters, than if you’re fishing for tuna.”

“Yes, that’s right,” he responded, satisfied now that he had enlightened me, while others in the group continued to chuckle.

“When you’re fishing for trout, then, do you fish just anywhere—in any stream or river?” I asked.

Now, Chris must have been really concerned for me.?He replied, delicately: “No, a good fisherman learns the best times to fish and where he’s most likely to land one.”

“In other words,” I continued, “He goes where the hungry fish are?”

“I guess you could put it that way,” Chris replied.

My class was ready for our lesson.?“When you’re looking for clients,” I asked him, “What type of client are you looking for?”

Chris chortled.?“Anyone who needs my services that has the money to pay for them.”

“And where do you find these ‘anyone’ clients?”

“Anywhere I can,” Chris answered.

He had taken my bait.?“Why would you be so specific about how you fish, and yet so general about how you get your clients?” I asked him.

I was determined to beat the fishing analogy to death.?“When you’re 'fishing' for clients,” I told the group, “Your best results will come from choosing a particular type of client, baiting the hook with a service that he or she might really need, and then fishing where the hungry clients are.”

I was instructing them to be crystal clear about whom they wanted to serve (their “target markets”) and what their clients usually needed the most from them (their clients’ “core needs”).

In other words, if you’re going to include some kind of networking in your marketing strategy, you must ask yourself these kinds of questions:

Do my target clients belong to a trade association or professional group that I could tap into?

Can I reach them through a pre-existing club or union that serves them?

What do they want, and where do they all go to discuss what they need?

But maybe the best way to reach the clients you want isn't networking at all.

Instead of fishing all over for “anyone” clients, find the clients you want most where they're likely to be.?If networking is the right approach, research where?they're likely to be and figure out how to reach?them. Visit them as?a guest, as a vendor, or as a speaker/educator.?If you do this, you’ll be catching terrific clients in no time.

But maybe networking isn't the right approach. Find out what is.

I have two openings in my October personal?90-day Marketing Tune-up?program that will help you end the 4th quarter strong and be set up for accelerated growth next year.??

Message me?to talk about whether these 'fishing lessons' will help you,

And?keep?REACHING…