Leah Neaderthal

In my first job out of college, working at a huge advertising agency in Chicago, the Chairman of North America had a Christmas tradition every year.

He would walk around to everyone’s cubicle and give them each a Christmas bonus: a full-size candy bar.
But not just any candy bar. This one (image below; if you can’t see it, click Display Images above.)

Let’s remember that as a junior account executive in my first job, I was making exactly $27,500 per year.
And the Chairman, who was making in the 7-figure range, give us a candy bar that nodded to money, but was clearly not an actual monetary bonus.

I felt… degraded may be too strong a word, but I definitely felt like I was the butt of a joke. We all did.
—

But now, looking back on it, it makes me think of two things.
One, how proud I am that I’m running my own business. That I’m in control of my financial future. And if I want to make money (say, one hundred grand), I know exactly how to do it. They’re the same steps I teach my clients.

And two, how proud I am of my students. Listen – $100k is nothing to sneeze at. But every day I’m seeing people who are learning how to get clients so that they can achieve that number on a timeline that fits with their business.
Some students are on track to make that in a year.

Some make it in a quarter.

Some make it with just one client project.

But for all of them, it’s the same. They finally know how to get the bigger clients, or raise their prices so they’re making 5x more per client project. They know the steps, and now they’re working them.
—

Because money isn’t a joke. As I’ve talked about before, money is control and power. And a candy bar as a Christmas bonus is a bad joke made at someone else’s expense.
But knowing how to make money? Well, that’s definitely sweet.

To your success,
Leah

For over 10 years, she had gotten all of her clients through referrals. But now she was getting worried.

“I’ve always trusted that the universe would provide. And for many years, it has. But I don’t think it’s wise to continue trusting the universe.”
And I agreed.

Trusting the universe is not a strategy.
Sure, trusting the universe means you don’t actually have to put yourself in the uncomfortable position of going out and getting new clients. You don’t have to reach out to someone who you don’t know, or ask for the business.

It doesn’t challenge you to do anything different than you’ve done before. Or grow as a business owner.
And it impacts your bottom line.

When you trust the universe to bring you clients, it means not knowing if, or when, the next client will come your way. What if it doesn’t provide and you have no backup way to get clients?
When you trust the universe, it can mean that your income is erratic, so you can’t plan ahead for expenses, or bring on new team members.

Trusting the universe is safe for your ego. But it’s not safe for your business.
—

But when you learn HOW to get new clients, that’s safe for your ego AND for your business. Because you know how to get the clients you want, and you’re in control.
It’s possible to do it in a way that isn’t salesy, that lets you be yourself, and develops great relationships with your clients. So you’re working with them, not for them.

Now I want to hear from you: When it comes to getting new clients for your business, do you have a strategy and a sales process? Or are you trusting the universe?
To your success,

Leah
 

When I got the email below, my heart just hurt. Another day, another promise to entrepreneurs of a “silver bullet” to getting new clients.

The problem? All these silver bullet tactics are for B2C, not B2B.

A lot of business coaches want you to believe that the sales process looks like this:

Do something simple —> Get a client

That’s fine when you’re selling to individuals: people who can purchase your solution with a credit card.

But when you sell to companies, it looks more like this:

First contact with a prospect —> Discovery call —> Navigate the vortex of the company’s decision-making process over weeks or months —> Client says yes

If you sell to companies, you know what I’m talking about. You might have a great intro call with someone, but your clients usually can’t simply say yes on the phone. So what happens next?

So it’s no wonder that automated sales funnels, call scripts, or other trendy tactics won’t work for B2B. They’re simply not designed to.

(If you sell to companies and you’ve been frustrated that these tactics aren’t working for you, this is probably why.)

But there’s good news. If you can master the B2B sales, you can use that knowledge to sell B2C. But it doesn’t work the other way around.

—

Listen – most of us came from corporate. We know that hiring a service provider takes more than hearing someone read from a slick script.

So what DOES work?

Understanding how to LEAD a B2B sales process, anchoring the process around the specific value that your work brings to your clients, knowing how to help your clients navigate their own internal process, and giving them something they can say yes to (that’s also extremely profitable for you).

So next time you start to get enticed by using a silver bullet solution in your business, think about your clients. Would they say be able to say yes to that?

To your success,

Leah

1. Join the free Smart Gets Paid Group and connect with women entrepreneurs who are learning how to get clients too.

This is my new Facebook community where badass women like you learn how to get the clients they want, without feeling salesy. Click here to join.

 

2. Learn how to get new clients without feeling salesy, in 10 weeks

If getting new clients is on your to-do list, but you’re not sure where to start, I can help. You’ll learn step-by-step how to get the clients you want, without feeling salesy. And you’ll get the support you need to put learning into practice in your business.  Just reply to this email and put “Clients” in the subject line and I’ll get you the details.

 

3. Work with me privately


If you’d like to work directly with me to learn how to sell, get paid more, and get the clients you really want, just reply to this message and put “Private” in the subject line. Tell me a little about your business and what you’re struggling with when it comes to selling, and I’ll get you all the details.

P.P.S. Know someone who needs to read this today? Please share it using the links at left.

Hey, if you’re like me, you’ve been watching last week’s Supreme Court appointment with a mix of despair and anger. And it can be hard to stay focused on work when you’re so distracted. That’s why I thought it’s the right time to remind us all of WHY it’s important to focus continue to get new clients, even when the world sucks. Enjoy, and stay nasty.

If you’re anything like me, the past couple of weeks have been pretty tough. Hell, the past 19 months have been pretty terrible. 

But especially the past several days, with news that makes us question who we are as a country, and the near-constant assault on our collective humanity. 

So in the face of all this, you might think, “How could I even focus on learning how to get new clients when the world feels like it’s going to shit?”

If you feel this way, you’re not alone. Even I feel it, and I’m the one teaching this stuff.

But here’s why I’m going to keep doing what I’m doing, even when everything sucks. 

Reason #1: Because we need to control what we can.

Right now, so much feels out of our control. And in the face of that, we need to control what we can. And for us business owners, that means our businesses. 

We can do great work. We can make a difference in our client’s worlds. We can find fulfillment in practicing our craft, whatever our craft may be. 

And to do that, we need clients. And not just clients that are ‘good enough’. We need the ones that fuel our soul. Because when the world feels like it’s going to shit, and our soul feels empty, we need to fill it up however we can.

That’s why I’m going to keep teaching you exactly how to get new clients that you want for your business. There’s enough out there to make you feel frustrated, just scroll Facebook for 10 seconds. Getting new clients shouldn’t be frustrating too.

Reason #2: Because I want you to make a shitload of money.

That’s right. Tons. Because I want you — all of us — to donate to the causes, organizations, and candidates we care about. If you’ve been hanging out in, “I don’t need to make that much money”-land, it’s time to move out and move up. 

That’s why I’m committed to teaching you how to get paid bigger numbers for every. single. client. project. One of my SIGNED students, Julie, just told me about her latest client:
“We’re scoping out an agreement now that is more than twice my current arrangement and moving from hourly to a monthly retainer.”

My student Marcia raised her prices 66%, Allyson doubled her fees, and Megan tripled her price for her latest gig… and in each case, the clients said yes. This is what we’re talking about. Money is power, and we all need more of it.

Reason #3: Because we are in this together. 

When I’m scared, my natural inclination is to clam up and close off. But that’s not what we need right now. We need to be here for each other. With each other.

So that’s why I’m committed to showing up for you, with you. To help you get the clients you want, so you can do the work you want, so you can make the money you want. So in this time of utter craziness, your business becomes your happy place. 

I’ll be with you in the Facebook group. I’ll be with you step-by-step in my 10-week program. I’ll be with you in private coaching if you want even more support.

I hope you’ll be with me too. Because none of us is going to get through this alone. But we are going to get through it. 

Stay nasty,

Leah

1. Join the free Smart Gets Paid Group and connect with women entrepreneurs who are learning how to get clients too.

This is my new Facebook community where badass women like you learn how to get the clients they want, without feeling salesy. Click here to join.

 

2. Learn how to get new clients without feeling salesy, in 10 weeks

If getting new clients is on your to-do list, but you’re not sure where to start, I can help. You’ll learn step-by-step how to get the clients you want, without feeling salesy. And you’ll get the support you need to put learning into practice in your business.  Just reply to this email and put “Clients” in the subject line and I’ll get you the details.

 

3. Work with me privately


If you’d like to work directly with me to learn how to sell, get paid more, and get the clients you really want, just reply to this message and put “Private” in the subject line. Tell me a little about your business and what you’re struggling with when it comes to selling, and I’ll get you all the details.

P.P.S. Know someone who needs to read this today? Please share it using the links at left.