There are five important steps to grow your business. The focus here is to attract new customers and keep them. We'll start by just cutting to the chase and listing them. We will later go into more detail later, in subsequent articles, look at one or more of these in much greater detail.
These may seem rather basic but I see so many businesses do a very poor job of them. The steps are:
Step 1. Get noticed: This obviously has to be your first step. Maybe you put ads in a shopper, run TV or radio commercials, or have pink trucks. But what ever it is, there has to be something about it that makes people notice you. It can be bright colors, unsual shape or sound, or an advertisement where it will be notices. But whatever you do, stand out from the others. I once saw a prize drawing on TV where a red envelope was drawn in the midst of all white ones.
Step 2. Give them a reason to want to do business with you. Your business information won't do it. You have to somehow differentiate yourself from the competition. Do you specialize in anything? Do you have equipment you competitors don't? Are you better, faster, cheaper or something?
Look at pizza. Papa John's said they use better ingredients. Domino's started with their 30 minute guarantee. (If not delivered in 30 minutes the pizza was free.) Another had thick Chicago-style crust, another thin and cripy crust, and yet another deep dish. The idea is not necessarily to choose what is going to be the most popular, but what will make you different from the others, and, of course, what you are capable of doing well.
Step 3. They have to be able to find you. For many businesses the action - a visit or phone call or online purchase - does not always come when the client makes the first contact. Whether you hand someone a business card, sample, brochure, and/or a promotional product, or they see an advertisement, or see a TV commercial, they need to be able to find your information later. If you run an ad in a shopper every week, or always have a television commersal on the same show, or have a sign the same place, or be located in a well-known location, they will know where to look for you. A magnet will go on their refrigerator and more or less stay forever, while a business card might be lost or thrown away.
Step 4. Give them an excellent experience. Steps 1 through 3 are wasted if they are not happy. You spend too much money getting them to you to throw it away after just one encounter.
Step 5. Follow up. Don't let them forget about you. Follow up with email, direct mail, phone calls, etc. If you put a new roof on their house they may not need another one for twenty years. But they may need repairs, or other services you offer, or they might refer you to a friend. Make them happy and keep in touch!
Follow these steps and you are sure to grow you business. More articles are to come with more information and examples on these steps.
© Stephen Ghelerter, Shorty's Print and Promo 126
Designed by Katemangostar / Freepik