Halloween isn’t all vampires and ghosts. There are hayrides, candy, and pumpkins! Today we take a break from the spooky to visit the pumpkin patch. Like picking clients, picking the right pumpkin is easy once you identify what suits you best.
(*If you feel deprived of PPC terror today. You can read my scary article on the reverse of this topic, Spotting the Succubus Client: How to Identify Rotten Potential Clients and Politely Turn Them Away)
The following list is easy, turning away revenue is not.
The short list below is obvious, even intuitive, but the promise for more revenue can be a strong motivator to ignore the obvious. Make your own list of questions and qualities that your dream clients should possess and revisit it each time you qualify a potential client.
- The thump test: Is it healthy?
Pumpkins: By thumping the outside of the pumpkin you can tell if it is soft and rotten inside or healthy and full of juicy guts.
Clients: Researching and asking the deep, insightful questions can help you determine if the organization has enough health to sustain new growth and if they are producing a quality service or product.
- Thick or thin skinned?
Pumpkins: A thick skin is great for making pies and carving multiple layers of designs. A thin skin allows easy carving for children. Especially if you make them use those orange plastic carving tools.
Clients: Try to gauge an organization’s culture and team personality and decide if it is a good fit with your team. Do they seem too sensitive? Or maybe they seem stubborn and slow to implement changes? Do you communicate well with their team?
- Traditional and uniform or unique and diverse?
Pumpkins: Are you a traditional orange pumpkin lover, or do you enjoy the occasional hybrid color, bumpy skin or oddly shaped gourd?
Clients: Does your team enjoy being experts in one vertical? Or do they enjoy the challenge of learning best practices for multiple verticals? Are there specific verticals your team is more excited about managing?
- Size
Pumpkins: Pick a big fat carving pumpkin, or those tiny little pumpkins to arrange on your mantle with acorns, hay and other allergens.
Clients: This is when it is important to understand your agency’s current structure and capacity and future goals for growth. Can you handle a huge client right now? Are multiple small clients more hassle and less return? Do you love working with small businesses, growing mid sized organizations or large brands?
Applying your own experiences with former clients (who were your best and worst clients?) and understanding your agency’s goals for growth and development can help you create your own list. Check back tomorrow for the next post in our 13 Days of PPC Fright series! #PPCFright2014
