Is It Time to Audit Your Current Client List? Here’s How to Do It
As small business owners and entrepreneurs, we are dedicated to our work and the outcomes we provide. Because of this, it’s important to keep a client roster that serves each of us in more than just revenue.
But if YOU have clients who aren’t fulfilling you or who you don’t feel you can actually serve, it’s important to catch that before sh…tuff hits the fan — which means doing a Client Audit routinely!
Wait, what’s a Client Audit?
So the technical definition of an audit is “an official inspection of an individual's or organization's accounts.” Basically, a Client Audit is an inspection and review of your client list. List out everyone you’ve recently worked with or who is currently on your client roster. If you work on a project basis, we’d even add the people who’ve had projects wrap up, to make sure you have a good overview of the kind of clients you’re working with.
From there, we recommend that you look at this list of clients and your experiences with them from an objective lens. Try to remove emotion wherever possible — whether you love a client or could really do without them. Let’s look at the facts!
Step 1: Keep the clients you love
Go through your client roster, and think about clients who:
- You enjoy working with the most
- Have work and projects you’re the most excited about
- Align with your core values
- Generate revenue (while still being great)
From there, tally up the total revenue these clients bring in. This will help you when it comes to Step 2.
Step 2: Mark the clients who are no longer serving you
Before we dive into this step, we know this isn’t easy. The more clients you have, the more revenue you make, and it’s not always feasible to take a red marker to them just because you don’t want them anymore. In most cases, getting rid of clients also means getting rid of income that supports you and your family.
So, instead of jumping straight to the ‘getting rid of’ step, take some time to make note of clients who may not be serving you and your business anymore. And, just like you did with the clients you love, tally the total amount of revenue these clients bring in, so you can make the right decision to part ways at the right time. Think about clients who are:
The most high-maintenance
- Which clients do you spend the most time with (and not in a good way)?
- Which clients take up valuable time that could be spent with other clients or creating new products?
- Which clients don’t provide exactly what you need to do your job seamlessly?
The most frustrating or stressful
- Which clients are the most turbulent?
- Which ones are consistently late on their deadlines?
- Do you have clients that are rude or disrespectful to you/your team?
- Which clients cause you and your team the most stress?
The ones who don’t follow through
- Do you have clients who don’t hold up their end of the bargain?
- Which clients are difficult to get in touch or communicate with?
- Do you have clients who never apply or follow through with your solutions or strategies?
Regarding that last question: Even if your clients are paying for your solutions or strategies, remember that their lack of follow-through is a reflection on your business and your work.
If they tell other potential clients or businesses that they’re working with you – and your work is nowhere to be found – that could directly impact any future business.
The ones who don’t align with your values
With everything going on in the world these days, it’s no longer worth it to work with others who don’t align with your core values – business or personal. Of course, this is our own opinion. But, quite frankly, we don’t want to help or support those who don’t believe in helping and supporting the same people and causes that we do.
Step 3: Make a list of dream clients
Next, it’s time to get to the fun side of this audit! Make a list of dream clients that you want to focus on. If you don’t have particular names or businesses in mind – that’s ok! You can simply describe the attributes you want, like:
- Type of business or client (Maybe a new industry or field you want to go after?)
- The values and causes they stand for
- The amount of revenue they bring in
- Anything else that aligns with your dream clients!
Step 4: Create a plan to replace clients
We know it’s not feasible to get rid of or ‘fire’ the clients who are no longer serving you – especially if they bring in a large portion of your revenue. So, before you put that red line through their name, make sure you have a plan to replace those clients and revenue.
Current clients
First, start with your current clients. Is there more you could be doing for them? Are there any opportunities to upsell them? Really take your time to come up with a strategic proposal for what more you can offer them, why it’s valuable to them, and what results they can expect from their additional investment.
New and future clients
Next, think about ways you can sell to new clients. Maybe it’s time to create or launch that online program or digital product you’ve had in your back product. Or maybe it’s time to re-evaluate your sales funnels for freebies and new offers so you can start to bring in and nurture new leads.
No matter which direction you go, though, remember to have this plan in place first – or even start this plan – before you get rid of the clients who are no longer serving you.
[BONUS] Step 5: Sign up for the Launch University Waitlist
Replacing old clients or upselling existing ones can feel really overwhelming. What if you don’t have an offer that’s 100% ready to sell? You’re most definitely not alone – and we’ve seen it happen far more times than we can count.
That’s why, as your Launch BFF, we’ve created a brand-new educational experience to help you create, market, and launch your new offer the right way: Launch University!
If you have a new course, membership, digital product, or any other type of offer you want to fine-tune and share with the world: Launch University is the right place for you. It’s an immersive, 12-week course that takes the guesswork out of launching. Whether you’re brand-new to launching or have been around the launching block a time or two, you’ll get everything you need to have a successful launch, build confidence, and take your business to the next level.
Make sure to snag your spot by joining our waitlist! You’ll be the first to know about enrollment and all the other perks that come along with this experience.