Recently a new client came to me in total frustration. She had been working with another coach who had insisted she focus on offering, and aggressively marketing, only one service. Now she was out of energy, out of money, and couldn't understand why she was failing. A great salesperson in her previous work, she was struggling to sell enough of this one service to support herself.



This talented and skilled professional was on a slippery slope to a failed business. She was using one of the most enticing and dangerous models for the direction of her business: Offering just one service to just one market.

One service, one big client, one product, does not make a one-person business that can thrive. And, it can get you in hot water if your one client with your one product or service is corporate: you start to look too much like an employee to keep the IRS happy.

So, what's the answer? For this new client, my first question was "Have you done the numbers?"

Her blank look was enough of an answer. So, we walked through the numbers process:

==> how many contacts she needed to generate a lead

==> how many leads to make a sale

==> how long the sales process took in both hours and days

==> how much it cost out of pocket to develop a paying customer

==> how long to deliver the service

==> how much she needed to sell to cover her expenses, to generate enough to get by, and provide a quality life for herself, and

==> how long before the customer was ready for the next service session.

The answer to her problems was very clear. She needed to sell six new clients a week to get by in order to pay her bare living expenses. But, it took significantly more time than 40 hours per week to generate the leads, close the sales, and deliver the service. More like 80 hours per week.

She had also not taken into account the amount of money her marketing and sales was taking, as well as the money needed to produce the service. So, although her target was 6 sales a week, she really needed to make at least 7 to cover both the costs of production, and the money she needed to cover her living expenses.

An undoable plan!

The answers to her dilemma were the strategies one-person business owners need to consider for themselves. What kind of multipliers can you implement so you can provide for yourself in a manner to which you would like to become accustomed, and at the same time provide quality products and services to your target market.

Start with a commitment to yourself that you will never again have just one service or product for one market. Aim for at least 3 service/product offerings in 2 - 3 markets. (I know when you are just starting out, it is hard to develop all three at the same time. Just make sure it is in your plan, and then work your plan.)

Devote your next executive meeting with yourself to reviewing your product/service packages. Look for ways you can multiply your efforts, or transfer your current offerings to another market. Ask yourself:

==> Is it time to make one of your service packages into a stand alone product you can make once and sell, sell, sell? Consider ebooks, workbooks, resource guides, quick start guides to using a product or service. Plus with add on's, hard to source supplies, and specific tools.

==> Can you bundle stand alone, or individual services into an ongoing coaching, consulting retainer agreement with your existing or new clients?

==> Can you service a number of clients at the same time? They can get the benefit of learning from one another, and lower individual fees while still increasing your total income/time. Consider teleseminars, group coaching, group counseling or therapy, seminars, workshops or training classes.

You can also look at unserved potential clients in the work you are already doing. Many professional speakers develop products or services so their audience members can take a part of the speaker home with them, or continue learning more than what was possible in one presentation. Consider what you could offer the executives who make the decisions to hire you. Or, additional products or services for meeting planners. This means you have three different potential client bases all in the room with you when you are presenting. Do you leave them wanting more...or do you have products and services just for them?

Bottom line-one product, service, or client doesn't make a viable one-person business. Make a commitment to yourself to build a stronger, more profitable business.