It started out as an innocent question.

A colleague was struggling with a marketing problem. And since I solve those for a living … it sucked me in. She said:

“When I talk to people about how I help them they absolutely loooove what I do. The problem is … they balk when I mention the price”.

Sound familiar? The old “I love this, it sounds terrific but …”
line of thinking?

Now … the standard response is to provide some cool “answer the objection / position the value” script or angle. But I was a bit surprised when what popped out of my mouth was:

“Why not target people of means from the start? Who got that way
by investing in what they valued?”

Which of course brought up the response, “And exactly how do you do that?”

How can you increase your success rate (and boost your bottom line) by getting your high-end offers in front of more folks who can afford it in the first place?

What tumbled out were 21 avenues to do just that.

Now, not all of them are going to hit the bulls-eye. But if you discovered just ONE that was a perfect fit, wouldn’t that make a massive profit difference for your business?

A quick warning:  There aren’t any quick “3-step, just click your heels together and say there’s no place like home so I can have it by this weekend” answers.

But … if you’re willing to apply a little of your own creativity to each suggestion … there’s a great chance you’ll find a way to bank many more high end sales:

This really is the key. The foundation. The fundamental principle off which everything else feeds. Its what most of us miss:

Put your initial focus on the people who are going to be investing big-time with you. What they want. What they are looking for. And build your offer and your marketing around that.

Most of us do the exact opposite of this. We come up with the idea for the product and service first. And then try to figure out a way to make our VIP Prospects buy. In almost all cases, its a losing proposition.

But when you start with the market first. Folks who have the means to pay for what you offer. And tailor the outcome to what they are ALREADY looking for.  So you employ your unique genius to satisfy a desire they ALREADY have. And supply an outcome they ALREADY want.

You would be amazed how how fast your response rate skyrockets.

In other words:  Create a dream / result / outcome your more affluent prospects covet. That they easily buy into. Instead of coming up with something on your own and trying to figure out a way to make them like it.

Don’t leave this to chance. The more you know about people who have the means to purchase your most elite products and services:

• Who they are
• What they want
• What they buy
• Why they buy
• Where they work
• Where they congregate
• What they respond to

… the more you will know how to craft your offers and frame your marketing to maximize your conversions.

Trying to sell to a more affluent market without doing this is like trying to find snow in the Sahara Desert. Or throwing darts with a blindfold.

You may get lucky and hit the bulls eye. But more often you’ll miss. And miss badly.

Some suggestions on studying more affluent buyers:

Books:

• No B.S. Marketing to the Affluent by Dan Kennedy
• Whale Hunt in the Desert by Deke Castleman  — On the surface this book is about how Las Vegas casinos attract and service their highest rollers. But if you read between the lines you can come up with some great ideas to grasp what your own elite prospects want most.
• The Art of Selling to the Affluent: How to Attract, Service, and Retain Wealthy Customers and Clients for Life by Matt Oechsli
• Selling Luxury: Connect with Affluent Customers, Create Unique Experiences Through Impeccable Service, and Close the Sale by Robin Lent
• Networking with the Affluent by Thomas Stanley
• Marketing to the Affluent by Thomas Stanley

(Note: I have read the Dan Kennedy book. The others I uncovered through research. Please read the descriptions / reviews on Amazon to determine which one(s) are the best for you to begin with.

Google Searches:

Google is a gold mine when you know how to use it. Here are some searches that return quite a few powerful (and free!) resources. With a little imagination, you can come up with your own:

• Most affluent cities
• Most affluent college towns
• Where the wealthy live
• What the wealthy want
• Marketing to the affluent
• Marketing to the wealthy
• Networking with the affluent
• How to network with the wealthy
• Networking groups for the affluent
• Create your own search: [ Your wealthy target market ] + “networking groups”

Pop on over to Nextdoor.com

Nextdoor is a free private social network for your neighborhood. While its not an overt marketing platform, it can be a great way to uncover opportunities hiding out in your own backyard. Because we spend so much time behind our computers it can be easier to uncover possibilities on the other side of the country, that the others side of town. Nextdoor is one way to connnect you with possibilities right around the corner.

Set aside a block of time where you can really get down and immerse yourself in a few of these resources.

Here’s a direct challenge: Lock yourself in a room (or go to Starbucks) for a minimum of 3-4 hours. You need that much uninterrupted time (especially if you are using the Google searches) because each bit of investigation can lead to an unexpected treasure trove of other links.

Remove all distractions. And just focus on the resources we’ve mentioned. Or new ones you come up with.

And allow what you discover to percolate. And generate creative, effective strategies for connecting with and enrolling these ideal prospects. (Instead of just throwing stuff at them you hope they will respond to).

I know: When you started out it was hard. It was painful.

And then this mentor came along. And rescued you. And you want to do the same for others. Well I have news for you.

First, your mentor didn’t rescue you. They provided an avenue where you could rescue yourself.

Second, they didn’t help you by taking pity on you. They helped you by crafting a way forward worthy of your dreams. And requiring you to step up into it.

Remember … the first rule of being a Lifeguard is: At all costs, avoid jumping into the water with a drowning person. But that is exactly what so many of you are doing with your message and your offers when you try to rescue your prospects.

And its dragging you and your business down.

Now this doesn’t mean you charge a billion dollars for everything you offer. And that you turn your back on people who are just starting out, who really do need you.

It does mean you craft everything you offer to reflect the elevated vision your high-end clients have for their lives. And then, create an affordable version where folks who don’t yet have the means can get a taste of it.

The key is:  All your offers require people to step up and commit to a higher vision for themselves.

This is going to sound harsh. But its true: When you take pity on folks who are struggling by creating offers that try to fix the struggle, you only mire them more deeply in it. And attract people who can’t afford to pay what you’re worth.

On the other hand, crafting offers that ask them to step up out of the struggle and towards the place they really want to go (and where you really want to take them) gives them a platform to work their way to success.

And attracts people who can either afford you. Or who will find the money so they can. Because what you’re providing them isn’t just a remedy for their struggle. But the gateway to a dream.

And a dream is something people will find the money to pay for. In fact … its the only thing they will find the money to pay for.

Get in front of groups in cities where there are large concentrations of wealth, and provide something they are looking for.

If you live in a larger city, you’re already there. If not, target a larger city that is nearby. And do whatever you can to get in front of or around groups where:

• The members have money to spend
• They are desperately seeking the solutions you offer

Yes, this takes work. But if you’re game, it can be alot simpler than you think.

Example:  If you averaged just 2 calls a day asking to speak in front of or connect with groups where your VIP Prospects hang out. And only 2% of those calls bore fruit …  in one year that would land you 20 appearances in front of groups filled with your VIP Prospects. Who already have the means to invest in your highest level products.

If you received just one high level client from each of those gigs … wouldn’t that make a massive difference in your bottom line? (Sorry, dumb question … )

Hate making phone calls? What If I told you I was going to pay you $50 a call … whether they were successful or not?

Well, if you followed Secret #6, that is at least
what each of these phone calls is worth.

Think I’m crazy? Consider this … if making even 2 calls a day brought you 15-20 high-end clients a year. And assuming a $3,000 price point (6 months of coaching at $500/month) … I know that’s low for some of you …

That’s $45,000 to $60,000 you would NOT have made without those calls. Yep, suddenly placing phone calls to strangers sounds alot more fun.

Because in reality … $50 a call is just a start. its really the low end of what those calls are really worth.

As you get better at targeting the right groups. Delivering great presentations. And enrolling people who fall in love with your offers into your highest end programs. PLUS having them refer their friends and colleagues. AND having each presentation you make lead to others (“Can you please give this talk to OUR group?”)  … you will discover the value of each phone call you make is staggering.

College towns often have high concentrations of well-off folks who are progressive and open to new ideas to help them live more satisfying and extraordinary lives.

Combine folks of means … who are open to new approaches … with your terrific package of value … and you’re going to see much higher conversions. And profits.

So ask yourself … are there any college towns within driving distance of where you live? And are there any groups in those towns where you can start to make inroads, contacts, connections? And eventually, sales?

We all know about “target market” or “target client”. But what would happen if you targeted an industry?

Ask yourself:  What professions and industries feature large concentrations of affluent folks with lots of spendable income, that are starving for the kinds of outcomes and results you deliver?

In short:

• Focus on an industry that features people of wealth & disposable income.
• Or on professions where people have money
• That are filled with folks who are looking for what you offer.

To make this more effective, narrow that target to members of that industry with a specific problem that you solve:

• Young attorneys who want to stay fit, but are so focused on making partner in the next five years they can’t find the time. And its driving them crazy.
• Top sales professionals who want to find love, but are on the road so much they can’t. And the lonliness is killing them.
• Doctors who are desperate to find an added stream of income without sacrificing their current medical practice.

The formula looks like this:

• Select an industry with lots of affluent members.
• Target a specific segment of that industry (attorneys just out of elite law schools, female doctors, newly married high-tech executives).
• Focus on a painful problem that specific segment is desperate to solve. That your unique expertise helps them achieve. (Finding love quickly, losing weight and looking great on a half hour a day, discovering investment vehicles so their weath creates weath and they can become financially independent quickly).

With a little thought, you can come up with a list of industries / professions that fulfill all of these:

• Advertising
• High Tech
• Investment advisors
• Design
• Medical Professionals (Doctors)
• Human Resources Professionals

(There are probably alot more, depending on what you do).

Here are a few ‘real life’ examples: 

The website “Its Just Lunch” started as a more personalized dating service for busy professionals who had alot of money but no time to go through the usual “trial and error” dating mill. The key: Targeting a specific affluent market segment with a specialized level of service.

And … instead of becoming just another marketing coach, Philippa Kennealy (a physician herself) started The Entrepreneurial MD: Mentoring physicians tired of the limitations of managed care to either create their own concierge medical practice people would pay for out of their own pocket. Or move away from medicine altogether to start their own business.

How could you match the genius you bring and results that you specialize in delivering, to an affluent market segment more than willing to pay for those results?

• What professions or industries feature large concentrations of affluent perfect prospects?
• What groups exist in these industries that you can get in front of?
• What clusters of these folks can you begin to network with? Infiltrate?

Think of it as like being on a kind of cool, fun spy mission:  Find out who these prospects are, and how you can creatively insert yourself smack dab the middle of their gatherings. Do some undercover intelligence. Find out exactly what they desperately want. That you are unique qualified to provide. And then … offer it to them.

If you are a healer / intuitive or some other kind of practitioner / mentor whose services might be considered alternative or cutting edge, consider targeting creative industries / professions where there is wealth. Plus the kind of open mind which makes them an ideal prospect:

• Entertainment
• Fashion
• Advertising
• Design
• Some sectors of the tech industry

I once knew someone who worked as an interior designer in New York City, before she became involved in metaphysics and healing work. And there were scores of her very affluent (and influential) design and professional colleagues who became interested in her work. Even thought it was highly evolved. And outside the mainstream. And began connecting her, not only to prospects, but to some very powerful centers of influence.

Meetup.com is an online service that lists scores of networking and special interest groups in your area. So you can connect with them.

So … why not discover MeetUp Groups in your area that are filled with folks from your ideal affluent market segment or industry?

Google makes this easy. Simply search for [ your ideal market segment or industry ] + “Meetup groups”. A few example results:

• Entertainment Industry Meetup Groups
• Advertising Meetup Groups
• Online Advertising Meetup Groups
• Doctors Meetup Groups
• Interior Design Meetup Groups
• Technology Startup Meetup Groups

Most people look for MeetUp groups with alot of folks just like them. (Example: Doctors who join Doctors MeetUp Groups). While this may allow you to talk shop, it also puts you in environments with your competitors and colleagues. Not your prospects.

Instead, target groups with your prospects. (Example: Doctors who join MeetUp Groups where their patients hang out). So you can be the ONLY doctor / business coach / relationship expert / body sculpting specialist in the group.

The flip-side of finding MeetUp Groups with scores of your VIP Prospects or members of your targeted industry, is to create your own group focused on those ideal clients.

So, instead of starting a “find your soul-mate” group for everyone, start a “Busy Professionals Find True Love” group, targeted to the busy professionals who have the money to pay you to help them find their match.

Instead of starting a fitness group (for everyone), start a “Fitness for Tech Workers” group. Instead of just an ideal career group, why not a “Dream Career MeetUp Group for Entertainment Industry Refugees”?

What’s the payoff? I know quite a few entrepreneurs who have enrolled participants from their MeetUp Groups into their high-end programs.

And you don’t have to limit it to Meetup. You could also create a Facebook Group. A Blog. Or any other kind of online community targeted towards the professions, industries and market segments you’ve identified as being a treasure trove of your VIP Prospects.

Success Tip:  Keep your group focused on a specific vision / dream / outcome that is highly valuable to your prospects. That they are motivated to achieve. That they have an emotional, almost involuntarily positive response to. That they have the willingness to pay for.

A group with high perceived value …
Focused on an urgently desired outcome  +
An intense desire for that outcome from the participants  +
Ability to pay for support in achieving that outcome  =  Profits!

• Have you published a book?
• Can you get a killer testimonial from someone who is well known to your prospects?
• Have you achieved something of note your prospects will instantly connect with?
• Have you created results for yourself in your life or your business that give you instant respect and credibility?

In the world of positioning, modestly is not allowed. On close examination, even those thought leaders with a reputation for being humble find a way to trumpet their biggest successes “under the radar”.

“Aw shucks, I’m really alot like you. I’m really pretty low key. I was shocked that I made 80 gadzillion dollars during my last product launch. And how was I to know, a producer from Oprah would call to ask how I did it?”

You can be as talented as hell. But there is a language of achievement that those who have also achieved understand and find extremely attractive. Find a way to get your achievements up front and articulate them in a way that relates them directly to the results your VIP Prospects are looking for.”

Ask everyone and everybody to help you brainstorm ideal industries and venues chock full of your ideal VIP Prospects.

Here’s a fun thought (I ask your forgiveness in advance):

Remember the last time you had to pee really bad in a public place? Remember how absolutely shamelss you were in asking total strangers, “Do you know where the nearest bathroom is?”

Its kinda like that. And that cool thing is,
when you’re as urgent as that, its just as easy.

This is your life … remember? This kind of success isn’t the kind of thing that gets delivered to you on a silver platter. But if you maintain an attitude of insatiable urgency, you will be surprised at the openings, insights and resources that come your way … when you ask.

The internet is also a great place to ask. (See the suggested Google searches in Secret 2 above.)

Here’s a crazy truth: The more clear and focused you are on exactly who your VIP Prospects are (and why they would be crazy to pass you up), the more of them show up. Because you are laser clear on who is a perfect fit, you instantly recognize them when you see them. And you also instantly recognize freebie seekers and time sucks when they show up.

What sub-niche groups within industries can you target that have lots of disposable income?

• Executive Singles
• High End Creatives
• Recent Law School Graduates.

Where / how can you get in front of them? What groups do they attend? What can you tweak your offer / genius so that it gets in front of what they are ALREADY looking for?

Here are a few questions designed to make you more money from the ideal VIP Prospects you are already working with:

• Where did the prospects who have ALREADY paid you lots of money come from?
• What do they do for a living?
• How and where can you find more just like them?
• How can you get in front of large groups of them?

You can also ask your satisfied highest level clients if they know of anyone just like them that is looking for what you offer. Can they introduce you to them? Do they know of any groups filled with folks just like them? Can they put you in touch with the leader, so you can propose a presentation?

If you are just starting out … do you have any friends or colleagues doing something similar to what you do? If so, ask them: Where do their VIP clients come from?

Are you a member of a group with members that do alot of lucrative high-end business? Where do they find their clients?

Because the internet is so seductive, we often throw ourselves into complex, low-yield web-based strategies for reaching more affluent clients. When the fastest way is often right in front of us … a simple request or phone call away!

Sometimes clients and prospects bring out the “know-it-all” parent in all of us. When we make our offers, it sounds like: “If you know what’s good for you, you’ll do this!”

Guess what? They don’t care about what’s good for them.
They care about what they want. And if you’re offering
“what’s good for them”, they will find someone else
who will give them what they want.

Think of it this way:

If you’re taking someone special out for a birthday dinner, do you take them where you want to go? Of course not. You take them where THEY want to go.

Its the exact same thing with your high end prospects. Stop creating your offers like a parent: Trying to convince them its something they need for their own good. Dashing yourself against the rocky cliffs of despair trying to get them to buy it.

Instead, custom craft your wealth-targeted offers towards satisfying what they already want.

• What they want desperately
• What delivers an outcome they dream about
• What they are ALREADY looking for
• What they are willing to pay for
• What you are uniquely qualified to deliver

And build your high-end offers around THAT.

Remember: You aren’t selling your expertise. You are selling the urgently desired outcomes your expertise makes possible.

Your potential high-end prospects are all around you. At dinner parties. Social events. Any place where your potential high end prospects hang out. And you get the opportunity to talk about what you do.

Remember:

A great, jaw-dropping message  +
People who can afford you  +
People who want what you offer  +
Dinner Parties  =
Clients, Contacts and Open Doors

It may sound crazy: But there is an entire universe of people who don’t have the slightest idea who Ali Brown is. Or Jeff Walker. Or Frank Kern. Or any of the other wizards of internet marketing that are such household names in our neat little online world.

Consider the possibility your best market may not be in our familiar, cozy little internet marketing / entrepreneur clique. Using our cozy, familiar little internet marketing tactics.

There are many worlds outside of internet marketing where there’s lots of money, where people need what you have. Where what you do feels exciting. Novel. Incredible. Even though its old hat in our marketing cliques.

Find them. Infiltrate them. Persuade. Enroll.

Chances are you know people who are doing a brisk business with these kinds of plum clients. Chances are you already are social with a few of them. And they won’t bite (honest!) if you ask them a few questions about their high end clients:

How do they find them?  How do they tailor their message, their strategies and their pitches to attract people with money?

How do they craft their message so that people want them desperately? How do they targer their offering so people whip out their credit cards lightning fast? Even for their stuff that costs a bundle?

And don’t shy away from folks who cater to a corporate market. Even if you can’t relate to a corporate market, you can often borrow ideas from folks who make a mint off the corporate world, so  you can make a mint off of yours.

If you know someone who routinely attracts high-end clients, take them to lunch. Take them to dinner. Offer to pick them up in a limo. (Who could turn that down?) Find out how they do it. Apply the best nuggets to your own efforts.

If you are certain spending a half hour with someone would increase your bottom line by a couple grand (or more), why would you not want to spend a little money to make sure it happens?

I spent 7 years working in the entertainment industry. Which is a notoriously difficult industry to break into.

Just about everyone in the entertainment industry has a crazy, creative story about how they got their “big break”.  Yep, even I have a wild story of how I got my first movie visual effects job.

It takes just as much (or more!) creativity to get your foot in the door of the entertainment industry as it does to work in the entertainment industry.

Its the same in business. Stop feeling you are entitled to success. Get creative. Get clandestine. Leverage your unique talents to figure out ways to create your own “big break”.

True Story:  The folks who created the “South Park” TV series and movies got their big break by creating an off-color, raunchy Christmas story using their now trademark cutout-style of animation.

This was way before doing animation was as easy as it is today. There was no YouTube. There were no super fast cheap computers. But they had an idea …

They sent out a VHS tape of this short animation (yes this was a while back) to agents, studio executives and other industry decision makers. Not everyone watched it. But the key is: Not everyone has to. It only took one to pass it along to all their entertainment industry buddies saying, “You gotta see this!”

Until their tape created so much buzz in Hollywood big-wig circles that they had their pick of opportunities.

Now, I’m not saying you should make a raunchy video. In fact, entertainment is one of the only industries where something like that gets you noticed. Instead of run out of town.

I am saying … if you do your homework … you can uncover a similar creative avenue that gets the attention of the folks who can make your bottom line alot more lucrative. And your life a whole more successful.

OK … by now you understand there isn’t a simple 3-step process for this.  And yes … there’s alot of improvisation involved. And yes … to learn how to do it you have to jump right into the middle of it.

But what you end up with is better than what any simple 3-step process could deliver. Because if you stick with it, you end up with something that works. That you can adapt and make work. In just about every single situation. Every single time.

You discover what works by trying the best of these 21 Secrets out. Seeing what works. And doing more of that. And … seeing what doesn’t work. And doing less of that. Sometimes its that simple.

These 21 secrets don’t guarantee an instant fortune. (Sorry). What they will do is save you a ton of time (maybe even years) by helping you target the most powerful avenues perfect for your personality and unique genius. So you can get to success faster.

To sum it all up:

First, make sure you have your act together before you leap. The only place people with good intentions but unrefined talent get famous botching their auditions is American Idol.

Wealthy people can be very quick to sense when you don’t know what you are talking about. Sometimes its best to hone your craft “off-Broadway” before you start auditioning for the big parts.

However … you are NOT to use this as an excuse.

It doesn’t mean you need 10 years to “get ready”.
Or use “being ready” as an excuse to delay.
There is a big difference between not being ready
and just being scared.

Learning to tell the difference can be worth
millions in lost opportunities.

Second … a big factor to success with high-end selling is mindset and confidence. And acting “as if” even if you feel you aren’t. There isn’t a quick script or magic technique for this either. (Sorry again).

One of the best ways to accelerate your confidence timetable, is putting yourself in situations where you must come through. And then coming through. And saying, “Wow, that was a blast! Why have I been scared of this all these years?”

So when the head of your big networking groups says to you, “I know we’re starting in five minutes, but our scheduled speaker is having car trouble. Can you fill in for her?”. You have one answer:  YES.

Third, begin with the radical notion of starting with your market FIRST. Instead of deciding on what you offer and forcing it on someone who may not want it. Find a pre-existing desire and simply get in front of it.

Fourth, target a market with a preponderance of people who can afford what you want to charge.

In other words, stop planning ski vacations in the Sahara Desert, and being disappointed when there’s no snow.

Fifth, there REALLY ARE affluent folks looking for the exact answers and solutions you provide. Start crafting an offer and a message tailored to a success-minded high end market. And invite those with less money to challenge themselves and step up.

In short … if you want money, START THERE. With people who already have it. Who value the outcomes you create.

And then work BACKWARDS to craft offers that deliver those outcomes.

Stop deciding what you want to offer first. And then trying to get rich people to buy it. Instead, find out what people of means already want. And get in front of it.

Finally, the great thing is you don’t have to do all 21 of these ideas. You only need one hook that works. So choose the one suggestion that’s a perfect fit for where you live. Your talents. Your strengths. Focus on that first. Perfect it. Do it over and over. And then, only when you have that working, add more.

There is no way I can make you understand this until you do it.  The good news is its kinda like love. All you need is that one kiss, and then you say, “Ahhhhhhh … so THIS is what everyone is talking about!”

Just like love … this takes work. And focus. And persistence. But just like love …  its worth it. Way worth it.

What ideas have helped you find your own high level clients?
Please let us know in the comments!
And … if you received a few new “A-ha’s!” from this post, please
share with your friends on Facebook and Twitter. Thank you!