Customers are the lifeblood of business: without customers to buy your products or services, you wouldn’t even have a business to begin with. What can you do to consistently attract the right customers?
Before I answer that question, remember every business is going to do their best to attract new customers, but growth can only happen when you retain existing customers. Because it costs between seven- and ten-times more to get a new customer than to retain an existing one, it’s vital that you look for high-quality customers right from the very start, with the aim to retain them for as long as possible.
Keeping this in mind, here are the 4 key concepts you need to keep in mind when planning to attract new customers:
1. Your Message
What exactly does your business do? How would a customers benefit from using your products or services? Is there anything special about you, your company, your products, or your services that make you the best choice? Can you answer the question, “What’s in it for me?” ?
You have only moments to capture a prospect’s attention, convey your “message” in a succinct way, and motivate how your company, products or services are going to help him or her. Analyse your sales pitch, brochure, webpage, packaging and marketing material and ask the question from a prospect’s point of view: “Why should I care?”. You must be able to immediately show the benefit your customers experience after purchasing your product or service; you’ll know when your message is working when it creates a desire for a prospect to want to know more.
2. Your Audience
Can you describe, in detail, your ‘perfect customer’? What makes them interested in your products or services? Where do you need to ‘hang out’ and ‘stand out’ so that your target customer will find you when they need you?
You need to be able to understand how your best customers think and behave. Imagining the world ‘through your customers’ eyes’ will help you find out where they’re most likely to look for what you offer. Spend time getting to know your existing customers: ask questions and get feedback so that you can get an idea of how your prospects think and where they’re most likely to look for you.
3. Your Desired Action
When a prospect is interested, do you clearly show what the next step is? Do you have a system to capture new qualified leads and progressively convert them into new customers?
Once you have ‘buy-in’ from a new prospect, you’ll need to consider what that person needs to do to show you his interest. What would your ‘perfect customer’ prefer: a toll-free telephone number? Must they visit your website & complete a form? Or is it a simple and immediate cash transaction? Implement an easy-to-follow ‘opt-in’ process so that you lower resistance while increasing the desire to take the next step.
4. Your Future Relationship
Every interaction you have with your customer could strengthen or weaken your future relationship. Based on the experience of the first constant you have with a prospect, will he feel that you value and appreciate his business? Also consider that prospects want to know that you are able to commit to a good relationship in the future. You must maintain a good relationship with your existing customers, and remain in regular contact so that you can improve your chances of getting referrals. Think about how you can turn existing customers into ‘raving fans’ so that your existing customers are happy to refer you to other potential customers!
Attracting new customers is not a once-off event. It’s a constant process of trial-and-error, and the only way that you will become better at it is if you are continuously and actively delivering your message to the right people, at the right time, so that they can take action … and hopefully make the first step towards a long-term relationship between them and your company!
[Originally published in the Cape Chamber of Commerce July 2011 ‘Business Bulletin’]