Tips for building a client list
Hi all, first post here. Does anyone have any tips for building a client list?
I'm trying to get more work with production companies and grow my skillset as a video producer and editor.
My strategy is to build a contact list of every production company based in New York City that's sortable by different parameters of industry success (won a major award, accepted to certain film festivals, has sold work to a curated subset of distributors).
I'm not a technologist by background, but I imagine that this data could be scraped off the web in three stages --
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First, by identifying the websites that would host these datasets (IMDb, film festival websites, etc);
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Second, by hiring someone to scrape those websites for data and enter it into a structured database like a Google sheet;
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And third, by using prospecting tools to locate and validate contact email addresses and phone numbers for those companies.
I feel good about my ability to execute on #1.
For #2, I imagine this would be an afternoon project for someone who has experience doing this before. Could I maybe hire someone to choose the technological approach strategically (i.e. is it cheaper to use an existing tool, build a custom one, or just outsource the data entry to somewhere more low-cost)?
For #3, I have a friend in Sales who gave me some pointers for tools like prospect.io and neverbounce.com.
I'd especially welcome help figuring out Stage #2, though if my goals could be accomplished with a different approach, I'd welcome any insight or comments about the whole process!
Hey @elytra,
For # 2 you can always turn to Upwork and look for someone that can do that for you. I don't think it's an automated scraping gig (each website will be different) but I'm no expert..
I second BenAmesy that the real fun begins after you get the information you seek. My advice will be to test and test again, write personal emails if possible..
Hi Elytra, I have 0 experience in scraping for this type of client, but I've built a number of client lists in my previous gigs.
Looks like your list won't be too extensive (just NYC based) so you wouldn't need to make a crawler. It doesn't take too long to scrape websites and then put domains in a tool like prospect.io (I use hunter.io mostly) to generate e-mail list. Probably half hour to hour, depending on how good your copy/paste game is! I usually fact check who I should reach out to via LinkedIN. In your case, not sure if IMDB or another site would have that information.
Once you have a list is when the real artistry begins! You have a smaller list, so be good to reach out via a couple of platforms. It's usually LinkedIN or twitter in my world, not sure what would be best in your field. First few approaches should be entirely value/content driven, success rates for smaller lists are always better when you don't ask for things in first outreach. Approach them in a networking way, allow them to recognize your name and associate that with something interesting - in your case, make sure your video production is public so they can see it. More value the better, then try to initiate conversation and provide value.
Especially with a micro-focused outreach like yours, a single sales outreach blast never works. Provide lots of value and try to get a conversation. Good luck!