# Choose Large Clients Over Small Referrals

Source: https://ivankamenken.com/large-client-filter · Last updated 27 October 2026

A large-client filter is a written test for the accounts worth chasing, set before the next referral arrives. Ivanka Menken uses it inside Letting-Go Mentoring, a 6-month 1:1 programme at AUD $1,500 per month ex GST. You write what counts as a large client, what five or six large clients would be worth, and which small referrals should stop taking selling time. Then you compare one large account with a hire: in the example, $300K a year covers an $80K to $90K role. The filter is one page, and the next referral is tested against it.

## Busy, flat, and short of large accounts

- You have too many small referrals and not enough large accounts.
- You cannot say what five large clients would be worth.
- You are unsure whether a large client could cover a hire.

**AN EXAMPLE WEEK:** It is the first Monday. Last month brought 18 small referrals and one large account. The team is busy, revenue is flat, and the hire has no line in the plan.

### THE LARGE-CLIENT FILTER

- Target account: $300K (example)
- Five large clients: $1.5M (example)
- Hire covered: $80K to $90K (example)
- Small referrals to stop: ____

## A few large clients change the shape of the business faster than many small referrals

Many small referrals keep the team busy and the revenue flat. Each one is a new sale, a new relationship and a new delivery, and none changes the size of the business alone.
A large client is a different shape: fewer relationships, bigger budgets, and a revenue line that can carry a hire. The filter decides which accounts deserve the selling time.

> A few large clients change the shape of the business faster than many small referrals.

**The cost of staying stuck:** Without a filter, many small referrals can keep the business busy but not five or six times larger.

## The tool: Large-Client Filter

Large-Client Filter sorts the next referral against target criteria, then tests what a few large accounts would carry against the cost of a hire.

It is a one-page filter, not a lead list. It holds the target criteria, the revenue a few large clients would carry, and the small referrals to stop chasing.

It replaces the open inbox: every referral gets a call, the small ones fill the calendar, and large accounts never get a deliberate list.

### What goes on the page

1. Target criteria: size, budget, repeatability, decision maker
2. Five large clients: the revenue they would carry
3. One large client: the hire it could cover
4. Stop list: the small referrals that no longer get selling time

It sits inside Letting-Go Mentoring, alongside the 12 fortnightly handovers. No separate checkout.

## Put the referral list through the filter

Ivanka puts the last month of referrals on the page. She asks: What counts as a large client? What would five or six be worth? Which small referrals stop taking selling time? Which large account could cover the hire? They write the criteria and the revenue test. Before the next session, the founder brings the next referral.

### The questions

- What counts as a large client?
- What would five or six large clients be worth?
- Which small referrals stop taking selling time?
- Which large account could cover the hire?
- What will you say to the next small referral?

### THE FOUR-STEP LOOP

1. The one thing: The next referral and the filter decision.
2. The numbers: Target criteria, five-client revenue, hire cost.
3. The story: Why every small referral still gets a call.
4. The commitment: Write the filter and test the next referral.

Before the next session, the founder brings the next referral and the decision. The review is the decision.

## A filter you can use on the next referral

By month 6, the filter is a habit, not a one-off list.

**NOW**

- Many small referrals fill the calendar.
- No target account criteria.
- No revenue test for five large clients.
- The hire is a hope, not a line.

**BY MONTH 6**

- A written large-client filter.
- A target list of large accounts.
- A revenue test for five or six large clients.
- A clear line from one large account to a hire.

The container: 12 fortnightly 60-minute sessions, one handover each fortnight, a monthly scorecard, reviews at month 3 and month 6.

## The numbers are read with you, not at you

Ivanka Menken built Letting-Go Mentoring for founders of $500K to $3M businesses who became the bottleneck. She reads the numbers with you and holds you to the decision you write down.
The Large-Client Filter is one of the tools inside that work. It does not replace your accountant, and it does not sell for you. It makes the target account and the revenue test visible before the next referral.

> Ivanka has the unique ability to ask the challenging questions and be supportive at the same time.
>
> Business owner

## Who fits, and who does not

### It fits

- You run a $500K to $3M business growing while cash is tight.
- Your revenue comes from many small referrals.
- You want a written filter for large accounts.
- You want to know what a large client could cover.

### It does not fit

- You want open-ended coaching or a done-for-you fix.
- You want someone else to sell for you.
- You are not willing to stop chasing small referrals.
- You want a lead list rather than a filter.

### Investment

**AUD $1,500 per month ex GST, 6 months.** It is part of Letting-Go Mentoring, a 6-month 1:1 programme at AUD $1,500 per month ex GST, not sold separately.

Included:

- 12 fortnightly 60-minute sessions
- A monthly one-page scorecard
- Reviews at month 3 and month 6
- The large-client filter and revenue test

Three founding places in total, shared across all 1:1 mentoring, are available at AUD $1,000/month ex GST, in return for honest monthly feedback and a testimonial, which can be anonymous.

- [Join Letting-Go Mentoring, AUD $1,500/mo, 6 months](https://buy.stripe.com/dRmbJ19u01y114SeUodQQ0v)
- [Book a 20-minute intro call](https://theartofservice.zohobookings.com.au/#/15606000001356030)
- [See the Letting-Go Mentoring programme](https://ivankamenken.com/letting-go-founder-mentoring)

## Questions about Large-Client Filter

### How does the Large-Client Filter work inside Letting-Go Mentoring?

It is a one-page filter Ivanka Menken uses inside Letting-Go Mentoring. You write what counts as a large client, what five or six would be worth, and which small referrals stop taking selling time. Then you test the next referral against it. The programme runs 6 months at AUD $1,500 per month ex GST, and the tool has no separate checkout.

### How many large clients should I target?

Start with five or six, because that is the number that changes the shape of the business in the example. In Letting-Go Mentoring, Ivanka Menken has you write the revenue five or six large clients would carry, then compare it with the hire you need. The number is yours, not a benchmark. The programme runs 6 months at AUD $1,500 per month ex GST.

### What if large clients take longer to close?

They often do, so the filter protects the time they need. In Letting-Go Mentoring, Ivanka Menken has you stop chasing small referrals that fill the calendar and start a short target list of large accounts. The revenue test shows what the wait is for. The programme runs 6 months at AUD $1,500 per month ex GST.

### Can one large client really cover a hire?

In the example, one $300K a year account covers an $80K to $90K hire. Inside Letting-Go Mentoring, Ivanka Menken puts that comparison on the same page as the target criteria, so the hire is a line in the plan rather than a hope. Your numbers will differ. The programme runs 6 months at AUD $1,500 per month ex GST.


## Filter the next referral before it fills the calendar

If last month was many small referrals and no large accounts, start with Letting-Go Mentoring. The Large-Client Filter is inside it, and the 20-minute intro call is where you can see if it fits.

- [Join Letting-Go Mentoring, AUD $1,500/mo, 6 months](https://buy.stripe.com/dRmbJ19u01y114SeUodQQ0v)
- [Book a 20-minute intro call](https://theartofservice.zohobookings.com.au/#/15606000001356030)
- [See the Letting-Go Mentoring programme](https://ivankamenken.com/letting-go-founder-mentoring)
- [The Step-Out Log](https://ivankamenken.com/step-out-log)
- [The Commitments-Kept Metric](https://ivankamenken.com/commitments-kept-metric)

- Every way to work with Ivanka: https://ivankamenken.com/work-with-ivanka