These are my clients and customers – the heart-centred business owners who have joined me to learn effective ways to get new clients – without compromising their integrity.

They are the people who care passionately about what they do and love making a difference to others through their work.  Yet they know that they can only do that through connecting with the value they have to offer and learning how to communicate it.   Even when they dread sales and don’t believe they could ever learn how to do it – never mind actually fall in love with it!

So in my new monthly series called Client in the Spotlight I’ll be introducing you to these inspiring people.

For the first in the series I’m pleased to introduce:

Helen Reynolds, Image Consultant

Helen, tell us a little bit about you and your business

I work with female business owners who aren’t 100% happy with the way they dress.  It might be they want to look more warm and approachable, or more successful and polished and sometimes they just want to dress in a way that feels more authentic to them.

I teach them how to recognise the styles that really work well for them and that make them feel like the very best version of themselves, which in turn gives off a great impression so they attract the right kind of clients

Tell us why you do what you do 

I do this work because it saddens me that so many women don’t feel confident about the way they look and in some instances this stops them from living the life they could be living.  I’ve had clients turn down invitations because they don’t have the right thing to wear.  Clients who have found it hard to meet a life partner or grow their business because they don’t feel good about themselves. It’s really sad.

It amazes me how powerful the effect of wearing clothes that truly suit you is. I used to be very shy myself. In my early career I worked in glossy magazines and worked on titles such as Cosmopolitan and Harpers & Queen. At first I was really intimidated but I started to realise the difference in me when I wore clothes that I felt amazing in – I was more confident and assertive and it made other people respond differently to me too.   After I had my children I sought the help of an image consultant and it inspired me to train in the profession and I’ve never looked back.

My work isn’t really about the clothes – it’s about waking up something inside of my clients and helping them to appreciate their gorgeousness.  For some of my clients it’s a life changing experience.

What’s been your biggest success in your business in the last year?

My live workshop that I ran in May this year, as it was the first time I’d felt confident enough to run a live event and been able to offer my services to a group of women rather than doing 1-2-1 work.  It was amazing to be able to spend a whole day with so many women and make a difference on a bigger scale.

I made an offer to the room that day and over 25% of people bought from me which felt amazing and it filled my diary for the next couple of months. Financially speaking I made more money on that one day than I’d ever made in month!

How have sales conversations supported this success? 

Knowing how to sell authentically was crucial to the success of my workshop. To be honest, without knowing how to sell effectively, I would never have run a workshop.  Since doing the “Get More Clients Saying Yes” programme my conversion rate is around 80%, which has made me so much more confident and I honestly enjoy selling these days. Not something I ever thought I’d say!

My mindset around sales has changed so much that I see those conversations as being of service to my potential clients. I went from dreading sales to realising that I get a real thrill from meeting new clients and knowing I can help them.  I love sales conversations so much now that I’ve even changed my whole business strategy so I could increase the number of sales conversations I have!

What three tips would you give other business owners struggling with their sales?

1. See sales as service. You’re helping someone to make a change that they need to make in order to improve their lives or their businesses.
2. Trust that your clients will buy from you and those that don’t aren’t your clients. Put your all into the conversation to help your potential client see if you’re a good fit but be unattached to the outcome – not everyone will buy and that’s ok.
3. Learn how to do it! It’s an art and a structure gives you confidence and a much higher conversion rate as a result.

How can people do more work with you?

Sign up for my free e-book to support you selecting your speaker outfit and a copy of my “5 style steps” to looking fabulous at www.helenreynolds.net

Website:  www.helenreynolds.net
Facebook: facebook.com/helenreynolds.net
Twitter: @hreynolds_style