How To Make A Self-Made Millionaire Into Your Loyal Customer
How hard can it be to make a self-made millionaire into my loyal customer?
An entrepreneur who has built their way up to the top from nothing is naturally going to be more cautious about business decisions than say someone who is hired to work for an already established company.
An entrepreneur will always have a thought in the back of their mind that if the company does not work out they will lose everything. That is such a scary thought to have, especially when you think everything is going well until one bad business decision happens.
The affluent population is proud of their hard work. They want to receive the credit that was hard earned but they never forget the past of giving everything to make their business work. Most of the affluent population are more concerned with acting “rich” but saving their money in the bank. They remember growing up and living without pricy items and they know that they can continue to live that way.
But how do you market to a self-affluent?
Dan S. Kennedy has provided us with 3 simple guidelines to appeal to the affluent. (Check out the link at the bottom for his book, No B.S. Marketing to the Affluent.)
They won’t take no as an answer
No one likes being told “No”. Especially when you can’t fathom why a business just can’t simply say yes to make your life easier. The independent affluent is no different. If you want to turn them away simply tell them “No.” When asked why tell them “It’s against policy”.
And there you go! You have successfully turned away a client that you have been working day and night to win their business. Instead, hear them out. Find out what it important to them and why. And make a business deal that can respect both parties.
If they admire you, they’ll reward you with their business
The self-affluent admires the characteristics that got them where they are at today. And they admire others who share the same story. When a 70 year old self-affluent man is deciding who to sell his business to he will think back on his life and choose someone who reminds him of himself.
One of those characteristics, not EVER giving up. If you have to send your business card 100 times to a company for them to finally give you a call. IT WORKED! Chances are they applaud your persistence and know that you will never stop fighting for them if they become a client.
More often than not, they are searching for value, as they define it
Self-made millionaires KNOW the value of a dollar. They likely pride themselves in being smart about money and looking for a good bargain rather than paying top dollar. They understand how hard they have worked for their money and they are not going to waste it!
“Warren Buffett still lives part of the time in the same home he bought for $31,000 in 1958, and has been known to pick up Bill Gates at the airport himself when Gates visits. The late Sam Walton was famously, symbolically frugal: old pickup trucks, off-the-rack suits, even brown paper bag lunches.”
Most affluent entrepreneurs have a constant fear of losing it all or having it all taken away from them and ending up broke. The feeling of wasting money causes anxiety. It’s important to know that the price these people will pay for something has to do with how right and justified or queasy and irrational they feel about it and not about intrinsic value or their own ability to pay.