Fishing for customers

It's fall and in these parts of the country, that means the salmon are running. All this buzz about fish has me thinking about the way in which business owners find customers.

This summer, my friend Michele and I loaded up the kayaks and went to a local lake. I took my fishing pole, eager to catch a trout for breakfast. The lake was only about a half mile long, and quite narrow. As we put in, I noticed a group of about 10 small boats in one corner of the lake. I decided to head off in another direction, paddling to the other end of the lake.

My friend tagged along, eager to see me catch a fish. After 30 mins, I hadn't gotten a single bite. Michele paddled off to explore, while I intently continued my casting. About an hour later, Michele returned and asked how I was doing. I told her I hadn't had a bite yet. So she said helpfully "Hey, I went over to where all those people are, and they are catching lots of fish. Why don't you go over there?"

Stubbornly, I refused. I sat in the same spot for another two hours and never had a single bite. Fishless, dissappointed and hungry, we stopped for muffins and coffee on the way home and the fishing pole went on the wall in the garage for a few months.

My own stubbornness on that lake reminded me of some conversations I had with students while teaching business development at the Northwest School of Animal Massage. Within the first 5 minutes of the class, invariably, someone would ask the question "How do I find clients for my new animal massage practice?" And I would reply "Well, the simplest way is to find a veterinarian to partner with who will provide you referrals. They have dozens of clients a day and at least one could benefit from a massage."

The reaction to my advice was predictable. A few people would ask more questions about the process of approaching a vet, compensation sharing, etc. Others would quietly take notes.

But there was always at least one person in each class who, upon hearing my advice, would vehemently disagree. Usually this person would speak up. "There is NO WAY I am EVER working with a veterinarian!" was the usual reaction. Then this same person would close their notebook, fold their arms and look out the window for the rest of the session.

Just as I had stubbornly refused to go to the fish, these new business owners were refusing to go to the customers. As an animal business owner, where are YOUR customers? A vet office? A dog park? A horse farm? A street fair?

You can't expect the customers to come to you. You need to go to them. Otherwise, you'll go hungry.