Why Talent Alone Isn't Enough to Win Clients in 2024!

Have you ever lost out on a potential client to another architect or designer, even though you knew you could have done a better job on the project? It's not a good feeling, isn't it?

I've seen it happen too many times - someone else gets hired not because their work is superior, but simply because they were more visible and accessible to the client. Maybe their marketing was on point, clearly communicating their services. Maybe they had an attractive packaged offer listed with pricing. Or maybe they just showed up higher in online searches.

The tough reality is that in a competitive market, simply being good at what you do isn't enough anymore. Even if people are actively looking for what you offer, you have to make it easy for them to find you and hire you.

The main lesson for me has been: If you're in a growing market with lots of competition, you can't just do great work and trust on referrals or word of mouth. To stand out, you need to:

Have a visible online presence and strong brand.
Clearly showcase your services and what makes you different. A USP or UVP as it’s known (Unique Selling/Value Proposition)
Provide packaged, easy-to-understand offers with pricing.
Solve a painful problem your clients are desperately seeking relief from.
Implement strategic marketing to get in front of your ideal audience.

Some additional strategies to increase visibility:

A) Consistently reach out to people already on your lists/networks. Known as warm outreach.

B) Create organic, valuable content that builds your authority. Content creation.

C) Directly cold email/message potential new customer targets. Known as cold outreach.

D) Use paid advertising on platforms like Google, Facebook, etc.

E) Optimize your web presence for high search engine rankings. SEO techniques.

It's not enough to just be really good at design work. You have to couple that with smart, compelling marketing that quickly answers…

"Who are you?", "What do you offer?", and "How can I hire you?". So outstanding writing, also known as copywriting really becomes valuable.

Because at the end of the day, clients will go with whoever is most visible, clear and accessible to them, fairly or not.

As I mentioned before, I'm putting together a "Marketing Essentials" PDF guide with strategies I've learned to increase my own visibility and reach more ideal clients. More details on that coming soon.

In the meantime, I'm really curious to hear your thoughts. Have you lost potential projects to competitors who simply out-marketed you, despite your talents? Or have you found successful ways to market your services consistently?

Share your stories and any ideas in the comments below! Let's discuss how we as designers and architects can raise our marketing game without compromising our creativity.

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