What Kinds of Clients Should You Prospect?

*Article has been updated for relevance in 2018

Finding clients is one of the most difficult aspects of starting your career in SEO/internet marketing. Unfortunately, when it comes to acquisition, everyone seems to have a different approach (which is actually good) so, in this post, the opinions expressed here are simply what works for the author.

In general, there are two types of clients.

White Collar

White collar clients are the corporate types and, in general, had to pursue a higher education degree to get their job. They will include professions like doctors, dentists, surgeons, and lawyers.

Blue Collar

Blue collar clients are in some sort of service-based industry. These professions include roofers, plumbers, electricians etc.

Okay, So Which Is Better?

While an argument could be made for both types of client, this author believes that blue collar clients are preferable overall. The reason for this is that their industries will make just as much money as a white collar client, but they generally appreciate hard work and are less likely to feel entitled. Of course I am not suggesting that all white collar businesspeople are entitled, but because they went to school for so long (and paid a lot for it), they (in general) tend to not like being told how things should go. What this means for you is that you will likely have more run-ins with them, and they will want to be more involved in your work, which will make your job more difficult.

White collar clients on the other hand will (again, in general), be more willing to acknowledge that you are the professional and know what you are doing. This makes things incredibly easy, and will ultimately help both you and them.

But I Care About ROI!

You might be saying, “how on earth can a mold removal company (for example) make as much as a doctor?”. The truth is, many service-based jobs (mold and other emergency services in particular) can cost quite a pretty penny. For example, mold removal can range from between $500 and $10,000 per job, which means that each customer your client gets is worth quite a bit.

To expand on this point, we asked a local mold removal company how much one hot lead is worth to them.

Inbound calls from people who are actively looking for mold removal are incredibly valuable to us because they are already so far along in the buying process that they close up to 50% more than any other type of lead.

— James Head of Customer Acquisition

The numbers there are clear. If you can provide calls from people interested in high-ticket services, you will have companies willing to pay big bucks for them, regardless of whether they are a surgeon or a landscaper. In fact, businesses (like the one at this website) are built entirely around this model, and it has been found to be incredibly lucrative. So lucrative in fact, that it is estimated in a new study to be worth over $100 billion per year.

Ultimately, it is up to you to decide what types of clients you want to go after, but always remember that it is your job to bring them more visibility, so be sure to do your research into the niche before jumping in.