If you ask 100 business owners in a row what they want more of, the vast majority will almost certainly respond that they desire more consumers. More individuals purchasing their goods and services is something they want to see.
You already know how it operates (or at least how it should): when more customers purchase from you, you receive more gross revenue and, depending on your margins and overhead, increase your bottom-line earnings. The wider your customer base grows, the more individuals you have to turn to for extra sales and the referrals they may provide you, which is a spin-off benefit.
Most business owners (including you and your competition, if you’re being honest) invest most of their time, energy, and resources in this particular area. If you’ve been in business for a while, you’ve undoubtedly concluded that acquiring new clients isn’t always the most straightforward, time-saving, or lucrative thing you can do. Most firms only use one or two primary strategies to attract new customers.
You may recall, for instance, that many companies used telephone solicitation heavily in the years before the Do Not Call law was passed. You likely received more calls than you should have when you were merely sitting down to supper.
Companies and professions (such as lawyers, truck driving schools, doctors, and auto dealers) adopt a different strategy. Many of them engage in extensive television advertising to lure in new clients, particularly in the afternoon. They’ve discovered that it’s a cost-effective approach to reach a sizable portion of their target audience—the people who are most likely to utilize their services—during those hours of television viewing.
Every company, sector, or profession has strategies for reaching out to those most likely to be interested in its goods and services. What works for one industry or discipline of business may or may not work for another industry or profession of business. Consider your organization and company for a moment. You likely use one or two primary strategies for luring new clients, just like almost every other business owner in your sector or profession. Your approach is probably the same as that of nearly every other company. The “That’s how things are done in our industry or profession” method is what it’s known as.
When someone first decides to start a business, they frequently observe what others do. Finally, like every other comparable business they have seen, they set up their office, shop, or a different location for business. They observe what other people do to advertise or promote their companies, goods, and services, then imitate those marketing strategies and plans for their ventures. Nearly every company in almost every industry or profession engages in this activity; it is not simply a few.
But hold on a second. Who was the original creator of that system? And who is to say that it is correct or the ideal system for you to employ? The fact is that there are a limitless number of methods of drawing new clients to your business, and your imagination is the only limiting element. You can adapt some of the most excellent, efficient, and reasonably priced techniques from what people do in unrelated industries.
This raises particular issues for discussion. How attentive are you first? What do those who work in the same industry as you do? And how effective are they?
Next, glance around to see what other companies in adjacent disciplines, industries, or professions are doing. Have you observed what is successful for them? Exists a company that stands out by being unique or unusual? Or do they all essentially employ the same marketing strategies?
What level of creativity do you possess? Can you examine what some competing companies are doing and apply (with a few modest modifications) their strategies to your company? In other words, what would you do if you were brand-new, just starting in business, and did not know what anyone else had done to draw in new clients? What strategy would you use to attract new clients? Would you follow the same procedures you do now, or would you choose an entirely new course of action?
My go-to dentist specializes in taking care of young patients’ teeth. He adores kids. He also understands that as they age, they might require braces, that they’ll probably get married, have a spouse, and have children, all of whom will need dental care. He thus installed a unique “kid-height” counter in his reception area so that when kids enter, they can speak with the receptionist directly, conduct business like an adult would and arrange their next appointment. Even his welcome area is filled with art and photographs from some of his young patients.
What do you believe the youngsters’ feelings are? You probably figured it out by now. They adore it there to the hilt. Additionally, they spread the word to their friends. Their parents as well? They are ecstatic. Think about your children wanting to visit the dentist! Then, with the parent’s assistance, transact business on an equal basis and participate in setting the schedule for their upcoming visits. What a chance for kids to learn and develop. Who do you suppose the parents go to the dentist with? That’s accurate. Parenting is the offshoot industry that results from working with and catering to children.
Which dentist do you see the kids using as they age, start their own families, insist their partner switch, and bring their kids to? The camaraderie, trust, and caring that this dentist is developing with those young people will give him all the financial security he’ll ever need and free him to live his life as he pleases, doing whatever he wants and going wherever he wants.
What about you and your company, then? What do you have to say? What marketing strategies are you currently employing to draw in new clients and cultivate lifelong relationships with them to earn their business? Second, how many various marketing strategies are you presently using successfully? Having just one or two primary approaches for luring new clients poses a genuine risk.
To generate business-to-business leads for their salespeople to follow up with, one of my consulting customers relied nearly solely on a telemarketing crew. When a well-funded rival established for business not far away, they hired almost the entire telemarketing workforce of that company and practically forced it out of business. The company was nearly a complete failure. A…….. the………….. To restart the industry, we set to work and hired and trained a brand-new telemarketing team.
But then we looked at other marketing options, established an efficient direct-mail program, began a proactive referral-generating system, and worked out some joint ventures and host-beneficiary agreements with other complimentary but non-competing firms. Now that they have backup plans or additional “pillars” in place, the company can continue operating normally even if one of their marketing efforts fails.
How is your business doing? How would you use this? Why don’t we start by returning to the inquiries I made earlier? Then determine if there are any places where you may use some improvement. Ensure you don’t rely on just one or two critical strategies for bringing in new clients. There is no doubt that attracting new clients is vital to your business. Yet, they are not only crucial, but they are also essential for the life of the company and its growth.
You must have several mechanisms in place to ensure that your company can keep operating and expanding without interruption in the event of an emergency.
TopLine Business Solutions, an international consulting organization with more than 1,000 consultants in more than 30 countries, was founded and led by Martin Howey. Martin is renowned as “The Consultant’s Consultant”—the guy that top business consultants worldwide look to for training and advice. Martin is among the finest authorities on marketing, business development, and profitability solutions. To learn more about starting a business or working in marketing and business
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