Spotting the Misfits on Your Current Client List

From: Are Your Current Clients Limiting Your Revenue Growth?

When I talk about building a target prospect profile with a coaching client, I always start with this question:

If you could clone your three best clients, who would they be and why?

Now, right off the bat, I need to emphasize what I did NOT say.

I did not say “your biggest client”. I did not say “your most important client”. I said “your best client”. Because when it comes to revenue growth, your best client is the only one that should matter. 

If you’re a smaller business, you probably know this to be true: no matter how good the money is, your largest clients are always a headache. They make more demands, consume more time and resources, and squeeze you on price more than your other clients.

You might have just signed an exciting amount of revenue, but you quickly find yourself unable to grow beyond your current ceiling because of how tied up your resources are serving such a big client. 

Here’s the truth: the best “building blocks'' aren't necessarily the biggest ones.

Your best clients are the ones that are the most profitable, manageable, and replicable. They’re the ones that will actually boost your ability to grow your business in the long run.

If you have clients that don’t meet these criteria to a moderate extent, it might be time to restructure some contracts or, if needed, let some clients go so that you can focus on building a better client base for your business.

Remember, at the end of the day, it’s not about the biggest building blocks. It’s about the best.