The first ten customers are a different game from the next hundred. You are not building a machine yet. You are finding out who buys, why they buy, and what they say when they do.
Be narrow on purpose
One type of company, one role, one situation. A narrow focus makes your first list easier to build and your message easier to understand. If you cannot name fifty companies that fit, and say in a sentence why each might care right now, narrow further.
Build a list of fifty by hand
You do not need a data tool or a purchased list. You need fifty names, a reason each might care, and a sensible way in. Start with your own network and the networks of the people who know you best. Warm routes first.
Learning conversations before sales conversations
Early on, ask for a learning conversation, and mean it. Ask about the last time the problem happened, what they did, and what it cost. Do not ask what they might do in future. People are poor at predicting and generous at being polite.
Politeness is not demand
Most people are kind. They will tell you the idea is interesting. What matters is what they are willing to do:
- Give a compliment (tells you almost nothing).
- Give time, such as a second meeting.
- Give access, such as an introduction to a colleague.
- Give reputation, such as an introduction to a peer.
- Give money, such as a paid pilot.
After each conversation, write down the highest level reached. It keeps you honest.
If ten conversations lead nowhere
Change one thing at a time. The segment, the problem, the message, the offer, the price or the timing could each be the cause. And ask the people who said no, kindly, why. It is often the most useful conversation of the month.
Ten customers who look alike teach you more than fifty who do not.
The full guide below goes further, with a 30-day plan and a checklist.