Michel Lieben 🧠’s 4-Step Strategy for Landing First 10 Clients

In a recent LinkedIn post, Michel Lieben 🧠 outlines a practical, four-step strategy for entrepreneurs aiming to secure their first ten clients, a method he claims has been instrumental in achieving over $6.5 million in Annual Recurring Revenue (ARR) within three years. Lieben 🧠 emphasizes a phased approach, prioritizing visibility, lead generation, targeted outreach, and persistent execution.

Building Initial Visibility Without Breaking the Bank

The foundational step, according to Lieben 🧠, is to establish an online presence using time-efficient, low-cost methods. He notes that when starting from scratch, founders typically have more time than money. This is where leveraging content creation channels becomes crucial.

“I’d find a ‘free’ way to get my brand out there. In the beginning: You have lots of time. You have little money. So you want to start with a time-consuming channel that doesn’t require much funds.”

Lieben 🧠 suggests various avenues such as writing blog articles, creating LinkedIn posts, recording YouTube videos, or engaging in niche online communities. While he experimented with several, he found LinkedIn to be the most effective for B2B outreach, a strategy he recommends to peers.

Leveraging Content for Lead Capture

The second phase involves directing the generated interest toward a clear call to action. Lieben 🧠 advocates for a concise landing page that immediately communicates the value proposition. He specifically recommends using a short video sales letter (VSL) to break down offerings effectively.

“Your brand efforts will gather interest. Interested visitors will check your site or your social profiles. You want them to understand asap how you help.”

For prospects not ready to commit immediately, Lieben 🧠 suggests offering a lead magnet to capture email addresses. This allows for long-term nurturing through valuable content. Additionally, he points to visitor identification software as a tool to de-anonymize interested parties, particularly in the US market.

Targeted Outreach to Warm Leads

Lieben 🧠’s third step focuses on engaging prospects who have shown interest but haven’t initiated contact. He advises manually crafting the initial 25-50 outreach messages to high-fit leads, emphasizing personalization over immediate automation.

“I’d suggest reaching out to every prospect who’d make an ideal client but hasn’t messaged you yet.”

He provides an example template for this personalized outreach, highlighting the importance of referencing specific content that resonated with the prospect and inquiring about their current initiatives. The manual approach, Lieben 🧠 argues, forces a deeper understanding and refinement of messaging, which is invaluable for future scaling.

The Power of Persistence and Iteration

The final, and perhaps most critical, step is unwavering commitment. Lieben 🧠 stresses the importance of repeating these steps consistently for at least three months before considering abandonment.

“This 100% works. It sounds simple, but it’s challenging to keep working hard when things are uncertain.”

He acknowledges the psychological difficulty of maintaining effort amidst uncertainty and lack of immediate results. Lieben 🧠 posits that consistent effort, even when results are not apparent, inevitably leads to improvement. This iterative process, he concludes, will eventually yield the desired rewards.