How do you find your first paying clients as a new business?

Podcast Transcript

Hello, hello, Josh here from builtforsmallbusiness.com. In today's episode, I want to talk about how to get your first paying client as a new business.

Let's be honest, you have everything sorted out now. You have your business, your registration, everything is ready, and you have your bank account set up. The bigger question is, how do you find your first paying client? And how do you even go about sourcing one?

The easiest way, I would say, is to look inwards instead of outward. What do I mean by that? Look at your friends and family. They know you. They have seen you grow up, they know your struggles, and at least one family member is likely running a business or facing a problem or two that your business can help solve. It is much easier to start there than to look elsewhere.

Now, in terms of looking inwards, you have to understand that your family members will trust you to some extent, but an outsider will not because they do not want to, but because they do not yet see you as someone who can solve their problem. Simply put, they do not know you. As a new business, your registration is fresh, and so is your business bank account. There is not much credibility behind the name yet.

Your family members will be the ones to give you that initial credibility. If you are submitting a proposal to a potential client and they ask, "Have you done anything like this before?" and your answer is no, that immediately raises a concern. It gives them the impression that they are being used as a test bed — and when money is changing hands for a service or product, that is a completely different ball game. Your family members, however, will vouch for you.

Look through your family and find one or two members who run a business. Then ask yourself, how can your business help them? Let me give you an example. Say you have a family member who runs a laundry service; they help people wash their clothes and so on. They might have a recurring problem where customers dispute the number of items they dropped off. Someone brings in 25 pieces of clothing and collects 23, and suddenly, there is a disagreement.

You could approach that family member and say, "Since you are having this problem, I can help. What if I built you a website with a booking system?" The booking functionality would require customers to log exactly how many items they are dropping off before the booking is confirmed. That way, there is a digital record they dropped off 25 pieces, and they are collecting 25 pieces back. You solve the problem, they are happy, you are happy, and you now have your first client.

That website could go even further, issuing receipts, tracking customer history, and offering discounts. It sounds simple, but it can go a long way. And that is just looking at it from a website angle. It applies to any type of business construction, a bakery, anything. You just have to look at what you do and ask, how can I help?

One more thing I want to mention. I understand that, as a new business, you are eager to make money, and that is completely natural. But one of the most important mindset shifts you need to make as a business owner is this: stop leading with "I want to make money" and start leading with "I want to solve a problem." Solving problems is what will make you money.

Try to solve a problem first, and the money will follow. I hope you all do well. I know we all need to get paid for what we do. Wishing you all a lovely one. Have a good one. See you next time. Bye.