How to Get Your First 10 Clients Fast

TL;DR

The only thing you should do to get your first clients is talk to people. Search LinkedIn for founders scaling their businesses, read their recent posts, and send context-driven DMs. If you reach out to 100 growing businesses with a relevant and clear offer, you will get clients.

Who This Is For

Aspiring consultants and service providers who are stuck in preparation mode, waiting for the perfect moment instead of having conversations.

The Core Problem

Most people overcomplicate client acquisition. They read extra books, take extra courses, wait extra months. But the only thing that gets you clients is talking to people who need what you offer.

“I’ve had it with fucking politics! I’m sick of the corporate world.”

A friend I haven’t talked to in five years just called.

She saw a post and felt inspired to get back in touch.

Another upvote for writing on social media.

She told me she recently lost her job and was thinking about her next steps.

If you’re an app founder wondering why you’re reading this, stick around. I’ll make it worth your while.

The Preparation Trap

When I decided I was going to start my own consulting business, I overcomplicated everything.

This is something many aspiring entrepreneurs do.

Reading that extra book. Taking that extra course. Waiting that extra month (or six, in my case).

We tell ourselves we’re preparing. Getting ready. Building the foundation.

Really, we’re procrastinating.

Because starting a business is uncomfortable. Reaching out to potential clients is uncomfortable. Hearing “no” is uncomfortable.

So we delay. We consume more content. We refine our positioning. We build the perfect website.

And we don’t talk to anyone.

The Only Thing That Matters

In reality, the only thing you should do is talk to people.

On the street. On the phone. In email. In social media DMs.

That’s it.

Not another framework. Not another course. Not another month of “getting ready.”

Just conversations. With people who might need what you offer.

Your first ten clients won’t come from a perfect website or a polished pitch deck. They’ll come from you having enough conversations that ten of them say yes.

Where to Find Growing Businesses

My friend is now stuck contemplating. And to you, my fellow app enthusiast, I get asked a lot: “Where do I find those leads?”

“How can I get my first 10 clients?”

You can search for them. I’ll show you how below.

Find them on LinkedIn. Show them you’re different. Send them a message they can’t ignore.

And win them over with your willingness to do more than anybody else.

Here’s the search that works:

Founder AND ("hiring" OR "scaling" OR "just raised"
OR "expanding" OR "growing fast" OR "looking for [ROLE]"
OR "excited to announce")

Enter this in the LinkedIn search bar.

You’ll find founders who are actively scaling. Companies that are growing. Businesses that need help right now.

These aren’t cold leads. These are people who just announced they’re hiring, expanding, or celebrating growth.

They have momentum. They have budget. They have problems that need solving.

How to Send a DM That Actually Works

Don’t send generic templates.

Read their last few posts. Find something specific they mentioned. Reference it in your message.

Here’s an example of a DM that works:

Hey [NAME],

Saw your post about hiring. Sounds like things are really
growing! Congrats.

I'm reaching out because I've developed a system to help
businesses create LinkedIn content leveraging AI.

This is not the usual crap that you see around.

Instead, this content can grow your clients' personal
brands, convert, and draw inbound leads.

I'm looking to partner with an agency like yours for a
slow and steady supply of clients (my process requires
a lot of setting up so I can only work with 2-3 clients
simultaneously).

One of the safest bets when it comes to advertising on
social media is promoting organic posts on LinkedIn.

With my system, your clients will have high-quality
content that taps into their audience's pains and dreams.
If we work together, you'll have these posts generated
on autopilot.

All you have left to do is run an ad.

If this is something that might interest you, hit me back.

If not, keep crushing it in 2025!

What makes this work:

Context: References their specific situation (hiring, growing)

Clarity: Explains exactly what you do without jargon

Relevance: Connects your service to their current business need

Low pressure: Gives them an easy out if it’s not relevant

Specificity: “2-3 clients simultaneously” sounds real, not scalable template spam

Why This Works for Services and SaaS

The same approach works whether you’re selling consulting or software.

If you’re a fractional CFO, search for founders raising capital or scaling revenue.

If you’re building sales tools, search for founders hiring their first sales team.

If you’re offering content services, search for agencies expanding their offerings.

The pattern is the same: Find people with momentum who have the problem you solve.

The Willingness to Overdeliver

Here’s what separates your first ten clients from the next hundred:

Your willingness to do whatever it takes.

Your first clients aren’t buying your established reputation. They’re not choosing you based on case studies or testimonials.

They’re taking a chance on someone new.

Reward that chance. Overdeliver so much they can’t help but talk about you.

Get them results they didn’t expect. Solve problems they didn’t ask you to solve. Move faster than they thought possible.

Not because you’re desperate. Because you’re building case studies that will make the next ten clients easier.

The Compounding Effect

Get your first few clients. Overdeliver for them. Use them as case studies.

And you will never have this problem again.

Because now you have proof. Now you have testimonials. Now you have results you can point to.

Your first clients are the hardest to get because you have nothing to show.

Your tenth client is easier because you have nine success stories.

Your hundredth client is easy because you have a track record.

But you can’t get to client 100 without client 1.

And client 1 only comes from having conversations.

What This Looks Like in Practice

You search LinkedIn using that formula. You find 100 founders who match your criteria.

You spend 5 minutes reading their recent posts. You send a personalized message that references something specific they mentioned.

You do this for 100 people.

Maybe 30 respond. Maybe 10 get on a call. Maybe 3 become clients.

Now you have 3 clients. You overdeliver. They tell their friends.

Two months later, you have 6 clients. Four months later, you have 10.

Six months later, people are reaching out to you.

But it starts with those first 100 messages. The ones you send before you feel ready. Before your website is perfect. Before your positioning is polished.

The ones you send when you’re scared they’ll say no.

Why Most People Never Do This

Because it’s uncomfortable.

Reading another book isn’t uncomfortable. Taking another course isn’t uncomfortable. Refining your positioning for the fourth time isn’t uncomfortable.

But sending a DM to someone you don’t know? Uncomfortable.

Getting on a call where you might get rejected? Uncomfortable.

Putting your offer in front of someone who might say it’s not good enough? Very uncomfortable.

So most people stay in preparation mode. They optimize their website. They perfect their pitch. They wait for the moment when they feel completely ready.

That moment never comes.

Meanwhile, someone less prepared but more willing to have conversations gets their first client.

Then their second. Then their tenth.

Not because they were more qualified. Because they were more willing to be uncomfortable.

Frequently Asked Questions

What if I don’t have case studies or testimonials yet?

That’s exactly why you overdeliver for your first clients. Do work that’s worth talking about. Ask for testimonials when you deliver results. Your first 3 clients become your proof for the next 10.

How do I price my services if I’m just starting?

Price based on the value you’re delivering, not your experience level. If you’re solving a $50K problem, charge accordingly. But be willing to prove yourself—consider offering a trial project or guarantee to reduce their risk.

What if people don’t respond to my outreach?

Then you need to improve your message. Make it more specific to their situation. Reference something concrete from their posts. Show you understand their problem. Generic messages get ignored. Personalized, relevant messages get responses.

How many messages do I need to send before I get a client?

Depends on your offer and how well you target. But if you send 100 relevant, personalized messages to growing businesses and get zero responses, your offer isn’t clear or your targeting is wrong. Adjust and try again.

Should I build my website and positioning before reaching out?

No. Talk to potential clients first. Learn what language they use. Understand what problems they actually have. Then build your positioning around that. Don’t guess in isolation—learn from conversations.

Key Takeaways

Stop preparing, start talking: The only thing between you and your first clients is conversations. Books and courses don’t get you clients—outreach does.
Search for momentum, not generic leads: Growing businesses have problems that need solving right now. Find founders hiring, scaling, or raising capital.
Overdeliver on your first clients: Your reputation compounds. Do work worth talking about and the next ten clients will be easier than the first three.

If you’re stuck in preparation mode and ready to actually start getting clients, reply to this post. I’ll send you the exact search strings and message templates I use.