Even if you have a core group of devoted consumers, you still need new clients to scale your company over the long haul. The truth is that loyal clients may leave or experience financial hardship and spend less freely.
You must ensure that your company continually welcomes potential customers and clients. The flood of diverse clients enables you to maintain excellent customer service and the innovation of your company and products. New hires keep you on your toes and open up new revenue streams for the company.
It's time to think of some fresh, original ways to market your company to potential clients if sales are starting to decline or become stagnant. But before we get too specific about how you can do that, it's important to take a step back and do the following:
- Determine the demographics you want to draw.
- Recognize how your ideal client makes purchases.
- Establish yearly and quarterly targets for the number of additional clients you require.
- Figure out how much resourcing (budget, time, etc.) you can allocate to bringing in new customers
- Engage target market members on their preferred social media and communication channels.
As important as the aforementioned is to the success of your customer acquisition strategy, it won't tell you how to attract those new customers. But we will!
13 original ideas to quickly bring in new clients
Whether you're a new business or have been in operation for several years, getting more customers is probably your top priority. If you're having trouble coming up with new ways to get more customers and increase revenue, here are some pointers:
1. Collaborate with other companies
You already know you need to identify your target audience, but what? The solution is quite easy:
- Find other places that serve the same clientele. Make a list of retail establishments, lifestyle brands, and charitable or business organizations your ideal client might support. Approach that business by creating a partnership.
- Come up with what you would offer their existing clientele. For example, if you run a sports bar, maybe partner with an outdoor or camping store to add some coupons for free appetizers to your place with a purchase. Partner with a local designer's boutique as a personal trainer to provide a complimentary training session with the purchase of a specific fashion item. Create the marketing materials and the actual documentation that buyers must employ to benefit from the offer.
- Don't stop there, either. When your collaboration does bring in clients, you'll need a strategy for converting them during their visit. Try punch cards, membership discount cards, or coupons for a second return trip as solutions for this.
2. Hold Live Sessions
An excellent strategy to attract and retain new clients is to get to know individuals where they live. Public workouts and yoga classes can be held by gyms outdoors. Hair salons can host fashion displays and solicit volunteer hair models. To support a neighborhood sports team or to recognize a beloved ingredient, bars and cafes can host themed tasting sessions.
Make sure you offer a spot for attendees to register for freebies distributed throughout the programming when you hold your event. Inform people that you'll also deliver coupons by email or to their homes after you obtain their contact information. To engage potential customers in your internet marketing, create a unique hashtag for your event and host a social media competition. Remember to factor in some more employee time while you're there.
3. Provide discounts (or, even better, provide something free!)
We believe that businesses should give discounts or limited-time deals more frequently because they are a very effective approach to attract new clients.
Freebies may not seem like the best strategy for a company wanting to expand, but we assure you that doing so will be advantageous in the long run. Why not give prospective consumers a free trial if you own a gym, for instance, so you can eventually turn them into a devoted patron?
Another efficient strategy to attract more clients is to provide your services gratis in exchange for a positive customer review. Remember not to give more than you can afford to lose, whether money or time.
4. Encourage current clients to promote your company to others.
The proverbial statement that obtaining new clients is far more expensive than keeping current ones is common knowledge. And although that is still true, your present clients are valuable in more ways than one since they can help you attract new customers by recommending your business to their friends, family, and wider social network.
The most effective approach to promote your company is by far word-of-mouth advertising. Most customers will undoubtedly seek something in return, even though many will do it naturally. Therefore, consider establishing a customer referral program, providing free or reduced goods or services in exchange for people referring you to new clients.
5. Find alternative ways to reward repeat customers
Give satisfied clients exclusive discounts or "members only" prices to keep them returning. Hold customer appreciation events, and share photos of them on social media with shout-outs or profiles.
Getting to know your consumers and sharing milestones with them is crucial. Send discounted birthday or holiday cards to them and one to a friend. Putting yourself and your company out there innovatively is the key to attracting new clients. When you venture into unexplored territory, you may draw a new clientele. While it seems everyone is focused on the online experience, nothing compares to the excellent in-person customer service and interpersonal connections.
6. Get on ‘Google My Business
One of the best search engine marketing tools for companies trying to target local clients is Google My Business (GMB), which is also free. Why? since most people look for goods and services close to them. Google frequently gives local listings prominent prominence in search results, whether the listing is for a restaurant or a new dentist. Consider that 76% of individuals who conduct a mobile search visit a linked business the following day, with 28% of those visits ending in a purchase. It makes sense to properly set up your firm on Google My Business if you run any local business.
Here is how to get started:
Step 1: Create an account, claim your listing, and verify it.
Step 2: Optimize your business listing correctly.
Include images and videos of your company. Include information such as a description of your place of business, driving directions, a phone number, your website address, and more. Don't forget to give positive feedback in any Google My Business evaluations left by recent clients.
Step 3: Share Offers
Over the past year, Google has been busy introducing new strategies for companies to draw customers to their listings. You can now post information about events, limited-time discounts, and new goods in the search results to attract more clients. Just about how many possible new clients you may bring in just a straightforward online search!
7. Go for User-generated Content
The value of social media marketing for your company has already been mentioned. Running a user-generated campaign (UGC), such as a photo contest or greatest comment contest where you reward consumers for receiving the most likes or shares on their postings, is one way to get creative with your company's social media channels.
UGC campaigns are excellent for retaining current clients and, indirectly, putting your company in front of new potential clients at little to no expense. By purchasing sponsored posts on Facebook, you may spread the word about your UGC campaign even further.
8. Organize Community Meetings
Meetup organizations are constantly looking for new locations to meet. Allow small parties to use your conference room or break area.
Book clubs especially enjoy holding meetings in locations with food or coffee services. Moms' organizations might appreciate getting together in a gym or an eatery that welcomes children. During the session, provide members of the group discounts. They'll most likely return if they enjoy your offerings, perhaps even before the next meeting.
9. Exercise charity
When asked by fundraising campaigns, especially ones that emphasize local companies, provide coupons and services. Next, request permission to attend the event in return for your contribution. Make sure to extend a personal invitation to use the voucher to the individual who wins your service in the raffle or auction. Tell them what to expect when they visit your place of business. They'll be more inclined to stop by if you give them individual attention.
Another choice is to sponsor charitable events and set up a booth or table to encourage more people to sample your goods. By experimenting with your staff scheduling app, see how many team members you can bring with you. Future clients may be more inclined to adopt your brand if they learn that you are committed to a particular cause.
10. Make new friends and connections
It's hardly surprising that networking would be included on a list of strategies for luring new clients. More people aware of your goods and services can potentially become consumers. With that said, there is a twist: your employees should also be promoting your company, not simply owners and managers.
So let your staff handle the networking on your behalf. Include some time to look for possible clients in their work schedules. To advertise your company, take them to conferences and outings. Give them discounts and freebies to distribute to passersby while they promote the business.
11. Share your knowledge
Have you ever seen a behind-the-scenes concert tour video or heard an author talk about her book? Did you then appreciate the artist's work more, especially after realizing how much work was involved? We concurred!
Therefore, don't be scared to mention the things that your company performs effectively. Get your renowned chocolate cake recipe out there if you own a restaurant. Share videos of workouts created by your trainers if you are the gym owner of a small facility. Create films, blogs, and images to spread the word about your company in regional media outlets like food magazines and news programs. People are more likely to purchase your service or product if you disclose how you operate.
12. Know your competitors
Any business now must include a competitive analysis. Understanding your rivals does not mean borrowing their concepts. Knowing their advantages and disadvantages is key. The information you collect will help you develop and improve your own business strategy.
Understanding what you're looking for and how that information may benefit your company is crucial when analyzing your competition. Do your rivals, for instance, offer the answer that your target market is looking for? And can you offer this remedy through your own company?
Here are some methods for learning more about your competitors:
- Examine market reports
- Check out their current offerings
- Analyze the websites and SEO tactics of your competitors.
- Observe their advantages and disadvantages (as a service provider, on social media, etc.)
- Examine their content marketing approach.
- Read the feedback and rankings left by clients.
13. Employ direct response marketing
Direct response marketing encourages potential customers to take immediate, precise action. Utilize direct response marketing to persuade potential clients to fill out a lead capture form with their contact information or to opt-in to your email list. This enables you to communicate with them and guide them toward completing a purchase.
Think about offering free material in exchange for contact information, such as an ebook or downloadable template. Additionally, make sure to focus your messaging on the primary problems of your desired audience. Direct response marketing's goal is to demonstrate the value your company provides while immediately responding to the demands of potential customers.
Lastly, begin tracking the expense of acquiring new customers.
It's crucial to assess which of your marketing initiatives are working the best for your company and which aren't very effective, whether you're attempting to expand your clientele through social media or offline initiatives. One KPI that's particularly important in this situation is your customer acquisition cost, in addition to monitoring new customers and customer turnover rate (CAC).
In a word, CAC informs you of the price associated with luring a new client. Fortunately, utilizing a spreadsheet makes the calculation pretty simple. Divide the total of your marketing and sales expenses for a certain period by the number of new clients you brought on during that same period.
However, don't stop there. Consider determining your CAC by marketing channel or project. You can modify your acquisition strategies and marketing techniques by precisely and regularly measuring your CAC. Doing this lets you determine which channels have the lowest CAC and where it makes sense to invest more money and time in marketing. Your company will therefore perform better and generate more income due to this.