Timely Tips To Grow Your Business

That day is long gone as we all know. Today, customers buy selectively. Whether they are business buyers or consumers, they behave the same when it comes to making purchases of products or services:

• They see themselves in charge of the sale.



• They view themselves as "free agents," not obliged to anyone.



• Their definition of "good service" is highly individualized.



• They leave rather than complain.



• They don’t give all their business to anyone.

Because it takes much more savvy to stay in business today than it did even a few years ago, companies need a competitive advantage. Every customer counts. Lost customers mean lost business - dollars that are going to someone else. The big job is to keep pulling more customers closer and closer so they want to do more business with us, while satisfying our existing customers. Here are seven essential tools for growing a business today:

1. NO CUSTOMER KNOWS EVERYTHING YOU SELL. The worst assumption you can make is believing that everyone knows everything you sell. They don’t - and that includes your best customers. How many times do people say, "I’ve had your service for 15 years and I didn’t know you offered that." This is a wake-up call because it means those customers may be going elsewhere to buy what you sell.

The goal is to get customers to look to you for more and more of their purchases. This can happen only if they know what you sell. What can be done to remedy this situation?

2. PUBLISH A NEWSLETTER. Good newsletters take time and effort - and they cost money. But they are worth the investment because they can touch customers and prospects.

Here are some topics you can cover in a newsletter:

• Provide helpful information for your readers. If you want your newsletter to be read, focus on your customers’ interests. What are their problems? What do they want help with? A newsletter should be aimed at the reader.



• Share your know-how - your knowledge and experience. There are other places where your customers can buy what you sell, but they won’t go there if you share your knowledge.



• Answer your customers’ questions. Have a question and answer column or an FAQ - Frequently Asked Questions - page. How can you be sure you’re answering questions customers are concerned about? Easy. Just ask customer service people what customers are asking them. They’ll tell you the questions that come up day after day. If you answer the right questions, customers will know you’re listening.



• "Demonstrate" several products or services. While you can’t demonstrate an actual service, you can let customers know why they should use it. A few days after they receive the newsletter, they will be asking for these particular services.



• Highlight an employee. Along with the employee’s photo, tell a little about the person. There’s something interesting about everyone.



• Focus on "problem-solution" stories. Readers relate to "case histories," particularly those that indicate how you solved a problem for a customer. This is one of the most effective ways for communicating what you do and how you do it.



• Avoid having your newsletter look and read like an advertisement. If it’s self-serving, your customers will not value the publication. After the first time, they will toss it without even seeing what’s on the inside.

3. LET YOUR CUSTOMERS HAVE A GOOD TIME. Pick a day in the summer and serve hot dogs and sodas for free. This customer appreciation day could take place at your office, space permitting, or a local park. Encourage them to bring their families, neighbors and friends. Those additional people may be hot prospects for new sales. Giving something little back to your customers could go a long way towards keeping them for the long haul. Make sure you present an upbeat, positive, interesting picture of your company for customers and prospects.

4. BUILD YOUR CUSTOMER AND PROSPECT DATABASE. The only customer name many companies know is "Accounts Payable" or "Attn: Sally." Drill down into the organization and find the names and titles of those who should know about you and what you do. Make all of them part of your customer and prospect database. Your customer file should also contain e-mail addresses.

However, there’s one caution. While e-mail is essential today, it should not become a substitute for other types of communication. It’s quick and easy, of course, but there’s a need to demonstrate that you have taken the time and effort to create an impressive message.

Someone in your company should be given the task of being responsible for the database. It’s the lifeblood of the business. Without it, you cannot communicate your message.

5. RECOGNIZE YOUR TOP CUSTOMERS. With some companies, a large percentage of sales come from a small percentage of customers. Be sure to send those top customers a personal letter and thank them for doing business with you. Stop by their home or business to say hello from time to time, or send them an annual "thank you" discount card for certain items. In other words, give them special attention.

6. DISTRIBUTE PRESS RELEASES. Customers like to read about people they do business with, and you don’t need to be a reporter to write a basic press release. Just remember to answer these questions: who, when, where, why and how? It’s that simple.

News can be new employees, employee promotions, a new service, special events and your attendance at seminars, conventions or meetings. Something doesn’t need to be "big" to be newsworthy. Try doing it a few times and you’ll get the feel for what you should send to the newspaper and radio station.

7. USE THE MAGIC WORD EVERY CHANCE YOU GET. What is the magic word? It’s "sure." When someone asks, "Do you think you could help me with how to fix my (fill in the blank)?" Even if you do not provide the service in question, there’s only one answer - "Sure." - as you can most often refer the client to a viable source. It’s a friendly and reassuring word. Train your employees to use it as well.

These are seven suggestions to grow a business. Most require more commitment than they do money. All demand effort and the one quality that is often missing in business - persistence. It isn’t what you start that makes a difference. It’s the follow-through that makes winners.