Potential clients need to be evaluated for their ability to become steady clients. It's ok to pick up clients who you will see once or twice a year. When you are starting out, however, you need to build up a clientele of steady customers. These steady customers will provide steady income.

Potential clients qualify as potential steady clients when they generate $500 or more per month in revenue. The question is, how do you evaluate potential clients for this ability?

Potential Client Evaluation

There are a number of things you must find out about a potential client:

Current Number of PCs

If this is a home office with one or two computers and a husband and wife working at home, it is very unlikely they will have $500 per month to spend on IT services.

If this is a micro business with 8 to 10 computers and a dedicated server, this is a potential client worth further investigation.

Current Support

Is this potential client currently well-maintained? You want to work with clients who know the importance of regular maintenance. If they don't, you will get a lot of aggravation for your trouble.

Who provides the current support? If this potential client receives volunteer support, or support in-trade, then the likelihood they will pay $500 per month to you, is slim.

What are they currently paying? You don't need an exact number but you do need to know if they are getting regular, paid support.

The Bottom Line on Potential Client Evaluation

Potential clients need to have potential to become long-term, steady clients. To determine this you need to ask specific questions about their current needs and support. You can ask these questions without being aggressive as part of your initial meeting. By qualifying potential clients you will slowly build a client base that can support your business in its initial stages.

Copyright MMI-MMVI, Small Business Computer Consulting .com. All Worldwide Rights Reserved. {Attention Publishers: Live hyperlink in author resource box required for copyright compliance}