I've got a fun little exercise for all of you this week.

And this is the perfect time of year for it.

This is pretty simple. I want you to determine the common characteristics of your best clients and your worst clients.

This exercise can be extremely valuable. Your favorite clients may share similar characteristics that you may not be conscious of. The same can be said for your worst clients.

Learning who your ideal client is can give you clarity and focus when marketing yourself and your services. You will know exactly who to target, and more importantly, who to avoid.

Have you been asked the questions, "What do you do?" and "Who do you work for?". The more specific you can be in describing what you do and whom you work for, the easier it is for others to refer your services. You will also be more memorable.

This exercise will help you discover the answers to the above questions.

All you will need to do is create a simple spreadsheet similar to the example I've shown you below (members of LandscapeLeadership.com can download the actual Excel spreadsheet in the Download Library). Don't worry about listing all of your clients--just list your absolute best and absolute worst.

You will see that I'm comparing demographic data such as location, income, profession, etc. Feel free to add to this with what you feel is most relevant to you.

This simple exercise really helped me clarify who my ideal client is. My ideal clients are typically empty-nesters over 50 years old who have lived in their homes at least five years, usually in historic neighborhoods. They are usually high-level executives making a helluva lot more than me :-)

Being conscious of this information really helps me when I'm qualifying prospects either in person or over the phone. It also gives me a ton of credibility. Here's why: When Mrs. Client calls me and tells me they live in East Grand Rapids and that her husband is the Vice President of ABC Company, I confidently reply that I do most of my work in East Grand Rapids and that 90% of my clients are executives just like her husband. Project sold!

I'm confident that you will find some trends amongst your own clients if you do this exercise; and probably gain some clarity.

Leave your thoughts below. I'd like to hear what you learned about your clients from conducting this exercise.

To your success,
Chris Heiler
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