It’s a common struggle for entrepreneurs: getting really clear on who their ideal client is. When you ask entrepreneurs who their ideal clients are, they may say, "well, it’s this group and that group and a little of some other group," Sometimes they can’t really tell you.

It’s so important to know who your ideal client is for several reasons:

1-You need to develop marketing messages that speak directly to your ideal group, so you can "pull" in more of your ideal client type.

2-It’s impossible to market to everyone. Trying to attract everyone through your marketing messages will only create unclear messages for anyone who reads them. You don’t need everyone – you just need your ideal client type. That requires a niche message, not an "everybody" message.

3-Being really clear on your ideal client type makes it easier for other people to send referrals your way. If you are trying to market to two or three different client types, it can be very difficult for others to really understand who you serve. That makes it hard for them to truly understand who to refer to you.

One way to really hone in on your ideal client type is to make a list of all your clients, going back one or two years. Then grade them with an A, B, C, D, F. Your A’s will be the ones with whom you love working. They are getting great results, and they refer others to you. Your D’s and F’s are those who, when you look at your appointment book and see their name, that feeling of dread comes over you again.

Next, you want to look at the things the A’s and B’s have in common. What are their common personality traits, problems, obstacles and challenges? The next step is to interview some of your A and B clients to find out from them what they were experiencing before they worked with you, and the results they received after working with you.

Look for the common words and phrases they use. Write down verbatim their answers to your questions. In order for you to attract more A’s and B’s into your business, you want to use the language that they use to describe how you helped them.

Do yourself (and your business) a favor and stop trying to serve everyone, or even several client types. Try to narrow your focus to one or two ideal client types and see what a tremendous difference it can make it attracting new clients to your business.