The Game Plan

Many aspiring entrepreneurs want to start a business and achieve financial freedom, but most don't know where to begin. I felt the same when I got started.

The internet is filled with conflicting advice, and the more you research, the more overwhelmed and confused you become.

In my coaching and consulting sessions, I often see a common pattern: clients feel overwhelmed by the belief that they must do everything they see others doing.

They think they need to post on every platform, run paid ads, send cold emails, master sales scripts, learn copywriting, build sophisticated funnels, become YouTubers, run webinars, and deliver the perfect pitch. This is simply not true.

Starting a business is all about focus. By understanding the fundamentals, having a clear vision, resisting shiny objects, and staying committed to your path, you significantly increase your chances of success.

Here’s what I wish I knew when I got started:

1. Choosing Your Business Model

Your business model is the vehicle you choose to reach your desired destination.

Choosing a business model can be one of the toughest challenges for beginners due to the many options available. Some popular internet business models include agencies, coaching, consulting, digital products, and membership sites.

Each business model has its pros and cons. The best one for you is the one that excites you the most and that you can envision yourself pursuing long-term without losing motivation.

It should also be relevant to your current skills or involve skills that you’re confident you can learn quickly. This will help you narrow down your options.

A common mistake is trying to pursue multiple business models at once. For instance, wanting to start and grow a newsletter and monetise it through sponsorships while also building a marketing agency.

While it's possible to do both, you can’t build both from scratch simultaneously—just like you can't drive two vehicles at the same time. One is a service-based business, the other is a media business, requiring different strategies and focus.

For me, everything became easier when I was able to make clear distinctions between the Expert business model vs. the Creator business model.

2. Choosing Your Niche

Choosing a niche is important because it allows you to focus on a specific audience. It makes it easier to tailor your offer, establish credibility, and stand out from competitors.

4 important questions to ask before choosing your niche:

1. Is there a painful problem that needs to be solved?

2. Is the purchasing power high enough to afford the solution?

3. Is the ideal customer in this market easy to find and target?

4. Is this market consistently growing?

Additional considerations for choosing your ideal buyer

1. Who do you enjoy serving most?

Consider the demographics, psychographics, and behavioural traits of your ideal customer. Choose a market segment that you genuinely enjoy serving.

2. Who is easier to sell to?

Identify market segments that are more receptive to your messaging and are more likely to convert into paying customers.

3. Who is easier to serve?

Evaluate the level of effort and resources required to serve different market segments. Choose a market that aligns with your capacity to deliver exceptional value.

Ultimately your goal is to become a niche of one.

A niche of one is the unique position you achieve by combining your skills, interests, experiences, and perspective and building your brand around that.

It’s about creating value that only you can provide, making you irreplaceable in your field. A niche of one is the ultimate competitive advantage.

3. Creating Your Offer

There are 3 components of an irresistible offer:

1. Quantifiable Outcome: A clear, measurable result that your clients can expect from working with you, demonstrating the value of your service.
   
   For example: “I’ll help you sign 3 new clients in 90 days or less using LinkedIn and email marketing”
   

2. Confidence Guarantee: A promise or assurance, such as a money-back guarantee, that reduces the client's perceived risk and builds trust in your offer.
   
   For example: “I’ll help you sign 3 new clients in 90 days or less using LinkedIn and email marketing or you don’t pay until I do”

3. Social Proof: Testimonials, case studies, or reviews from past clients that validate your ability to deliver successful results and encourage potential clients to trust you.
   
   Here’s a real example from a client: "Omara helped us go from 0 to $100K annual marketing revenue through LinkedIn and email marketing without spending money on paid ads. If you're serious about results, look no further."

And read this book at least twice.

4. Getting Clients

There are 3 ways to acquire clients:

1. Direct Outreach: Reaching out to potential clients personally through methods like email, calls, or direct social media messages to offer your services.
   

2. Organic Content: Creating valuable content, such as blog articles or social media posts, that naturally attracts clients over time without paid promotion.
   

3. Paid Advertising: Using paid ads on platforms like Google or social media to target and attract potential clients.

Trying a little bit of this and a little bit of that won’t work. You need to choose one method and focus on it until you sign your first 5 clients using that approach alone.

If you’re just getting started, you can’t rely on organic content alone.

If you have more time than money, focus on direct outreach. If you have more money than time, focus on paid ads or paying someone to do direct outreach for you.

I recommend starting with direct outreach to get a feel for what kind of messaging works. Also, acquiring your first few clients without spending money on paid ads is generally a safer bet.

However, this advice only applies if you’re selling a service. If you’re selling a low or mid-priced digital product, paid advertising is pretty much your only option unless you have a large social media following or email list that you could sell to.

You’ll find more details on these three client acquisition methods in this article. Make sure you read it or save it for later.

If you enjoyed this, share it with a friend.

Until next time, keep creating!

Omara

If you want to grow your brand and attract new clients on LinkedIn, reply to this email or book a call here to discuss how I can help.

"Before I met Omara, I struggled to find and convert leads into paying clients. One month later, I had more leads, paying customers, and increased my revenue by 50%. He's my go-to LinkedIn marketing expert." —Venzo Chaar