The Velvet Rope Theory: Screen your clients?

Does everybody know your name?!

Imagine you being invited to an exclusive party. You arrive to the party and stopped by a velvet rope between two brass poles. A young woman asks you for your name, you give it and one end of the velvet rope opens for you to enter.

You passed the screening. The exclusive party clearly is something the host knows you would benefit from and enjoy.

It is absolutely divine to work with clients you enjoy. It makes the work you produce better and promotes mental and emotional health for you personally. Having great relationships with clients creates a quality of life that extends to all areas of your life. When you work with clients who are not ideal for you, at some point you’re going to create a conflict, whether intentionally or not, because you will be frustrated with those clients, and those clients will think you’re not providing them with good service and they’ll be right. I’ve made that mistake many times.

I did not screen any client in the beginning. I should have asked the right questions. All business relationships should be equally yoked and all parties should be of like mind. This is especially true for the nature of the business and venue I provide services to.  There is a wise saying, “All money ain’t good money” a true saying I learned the hard way.

There was a time I worked with five attorneys or law offices simultaneously as a legal marketer and not one of the firms were a fit. It is awful when you hate going to work for yourself. It should have felt rewarding to have clients. It should have been a blessing especially then. Never have I had so many headaches as I did at that time. What was causing this stress? It was not the work. I enjoyed marketing. It was who I chose to do business with. It is draining and exhausting working with challenging client-relationships.

We are dedicated screening our clients now. It is not elaborate; we simply take the time to talk with potential clients over coffee or lunch. Humble egos is what we look for. This approach may not be best for your business, but if you have more challenging client-relationships than enjoyable client-relationships, it may be time to introduce the velvet rope theory.

This is my own kind of beautiful . . . Dream Your World!

I am Lisa Henry-Harper . . . Digital Content Producer & Visual Storyteller

Learn more about my marketing coach services and mentor-ship program for entrepreneurs, start-ups and boot-straps. Visit CrowBeautiful.com