| |
| |
|
Marketing Information |
|
|
|
Thinking About More Business
What does an old Russian joke have to do with getting new business?Did you increase your business in the past 12 months? Don't discriminate between more new clients or old clients spending more money--count the increase either way. If you didn't, you really should be asking yourself why not. Yes, I know--it all started with the Internet implosion. Then came terrorist attacks. Next, the global recession. And after that a war that threatened to destabilize the worldwide political structures for peace and harmony. Who knows what's next, but the fact is, none of these "cataclysmic" events has really mattered. How can I say such a thing? Because for most of us, several more clients or a few additional transactions can turn a mediocre year into a great one. And large scale macro-level trauma and transition don't really impact our micro-level ability to find that next client or do the next deal. The only place those macro-things matter is in your head, but-- for good or for bad--what happens in your head tends to powerfully affect what happens in your business. Yefim, a Latvian émigré who worked for me years ago told a joke (if you can call it that) from the old Soviet Union. He said, "What's the difference between an American and a Russian?" "The American expects things to get better, and the Russian hopes they don't get worse." Well, after a year or two of lackluster, even dismal, business, you're probably getting more like the Russian: not sure if things can ever get better. And you're questioning whether you can expend any resources to do anything about it. When you believe the world is going to hell in a hand- basket, not taking steps to improve your business seems natural. You expect that clients and prospects will say no to even your best proposition. After a while you simply stop trying. Thinking about more business starts with thinking such a thing is possible--nay, probable--but if you've read this far you still may be a believer. And if you think increasing your business is possible--despite what's reported on the evening news--then it is time to get busy. No more excuses. Not the weather. Not the season--I don't care if it is Summer or Christmas or Ramadan. Not even the economy. So what's the good news? In 1966, Richard Farina wrote a book called "Been Down So Long It Looks Like Up to Me." Feel that way? Great, because making a difference is going to be easy. You've probably been dormant so long, any improvement will look simply marvelous. Here's the secret. There are only three ways to grow your business: you can find new clients, you can have your clients buy from you more often, and you can have clients--old and new--buy more each time. "You mean that's it?" Listen closely, grasshopper. This little formula can yield great insight into how to approach your business right away--if you let it. Want help? Answer the following questions. What ways are you currently using to find new clients now? Go ahead--make a list, even if it's only in your head. Are those ways working? (No--probably not, otherwise you wouldn't be reading this.) Are they the same ones you were using a year ago? (Shame on you--they weren't working a year ago, why should they work better now?) What new products or services have you introduced in the past six months to help your current clients? (You haven't-- no one's spending any money.) Of course not, they already have all the stuff you sell they think they need. What new combinations of products, or products and services, or subscriptions, or renewable services, or? It boggles the mind how many ways there are to increase the value of each individual purchase. How many of these new offers have you made to your prospects and clients in the past six months? (I'm not even going to wait for your answer.) If you meditate on each of these questions like a Zen Koan-- you will assuredly invent at least two--and perhaps many-- new ways to increase your business. Of course, these aren't the only things you can do, but they are a great start. Can't come up with any ideas? Let your clients do the work for you--after all, it's in their own best interests. Do a survey--call up 10 or 20 and find out what they need from you that they can't get. Even simpler--use one of the online survey tools like surveymonkey.com or zoomerang.com. While you're at it, you may want to insure that your core product still makes sense. After all--clients aren't buying it like they used to. That can only mean a few things-- either you're doing a bad job telling people why they want it, or they just don't want it. Both of these problems can be fixed, but it's important to make sure you're fixing the right one. If you fix your marketing and tell people about something no one really wants you're just wasting money. On the other hand, if your products really are right for the market, but you're not communicating effectively--you might end up changing your products unnecessarily. I hope you realize from this simple exercise how easy it is to quickly begin generating new and increased business. Just ask yourself good questions and invent some good answers. After all, that's what thinking is. Then take those thoughts and put a few into action. --PL © Paul Lemberg. All rights reserved Reprint rights freely given. Please click here for details. Paul Lemberg Paul Lemberg is the President of Quantum Growth Coaching, the world's only business coaching franchise system built from the ground up to rapidly create more profits and more life for entrepreneurs. (http://qgcf.com) Paul is also Executive Director of the Stratamax Research Institute specializing in helping entrepreneurial companies quickly increase short term profits for sustainable long term growth. Of course, he is available for keynote speeches and workshops and can be reached via http://lemberg.com
MORE RESOURCES:
Marketing - Google News |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
10 Steps To Getting Paid For Your Marketing Materials How many times have you heard the same sound bites come out of your mouth to your clients, prospects, and audiences, almost boring yourself to tears in the process? Imagine generating money directly from those sound bites, from those pearls of wisdom that effortlessly trip off your tongue. Yes, it is completely possible, and here's how to do it. 25 Ways To Make Your Next Direct Mail Campaign Work This list contains 25 powerful strategies to improve your direct mail results. It would be wise to use this as a checklist to ensure you've included as many as possible in your advertising. How To Create Urgency So People Buy Now .. How Price Gouging Can Hurt Your Business "Price gouging" is an emotional, inflammatory term. Everyone is against it, but only buyers, angry over excessive profit-taking, proclaim it. Three Alternative Methods On Getting Quality Testimonials with Bonus Here are three alternatives to increase your testimonial numbers or their quality. Create an online diary or blog, use an auto responder method, set up a form on your web site or set up a survey. Top 10 Tips To Market & Build Your Professional Practice In building and running a professional practice (or any small business or a home-based business), there are many items that must be monitored closely. As a small operation, you can't afford to find out too late that a critical aspect of your business has gotten off-track! This list looks at 10 items to emphasize at the start of a new year, or any time you want to rapidly grow your business in a short period of time. How to Turn Your Marketing Into a Money-Making Machine - Setting The Stage For Successful Marketing Powerful Marketing has become elusive to many companies seeking strong sales results and overall growth. The sad truth is that Marketing comes across as a rather frustrating process. How to Protect Yourself Against the Hidden Cost of Shipping to Trade Shows Trade Shows are lots of work, but they can generate lots of new business for their participants. In addition to the expense of staffing your booth, food, lodging, display, travel, etc. Using Business Cards as Invitations Business card size works well for invitations to special events.What do you visualize when you think about invitations? More than likely you are thinking about a wedding or a party. A Complaint? It's a Compliment! - 7 Tips for Dealing with Complaints at Trade Shows A Complaint? It's a Compliment!What made you mad last week?In the past week, how many times were you upset by something? What action did you take? Complain to the neighbors, make a snide remark to a co-worker, post it on a list or email a group? Did you just gossip or did you try to make it into a positive experience? They say we complain to ten people for every one compliment about a product or service.Did you call the manager of the company, write the company president, email a suggestion for improvement? Probably not. Eight No Cost Ways to Market Your Business Are you trying to promote your business with a tiny marketing budget? Opportunities are plentiful for low or no cost marketing. Here are a few that won't cost you a cent. Marketing - Like a Game of Chess Have you started thinking about your Valentines Day Promotion yet?It may sound like a strange question on the day before Thanksgiving but it really isn't. When scheduling your promotions it is like a game of chess. Tooting Your Own Horn "If he who has a thing to sell Goes and whispers in a well, He won't be so apt to make the dollars As he who climbs a tree and hollers!" -- AnonymousEvery day in your business, something happens that others should know about. You give exceptional service to a client; you reach out to a new type of customer; you demonstrate your expertise on an important topic. 11 Ways to Turnaround a Cash-Strapped Business or Practice This past weekend I received a disturbing message from a dear friend. His business wasn't generating all the income he needed. Make Out Marketing What is the single biggest fear of teenagers, business owners and CEO's alike?The answer is simple. Making out for the first time, with an attractive partner or customer you really want to be with. One-A-Day Marketing Vitamins Is your business growing, or are you on a plateau in need of a boost to move up? I know that I always tell you it is best to have a positioning statement and a plan. But sometimes, you just need something to get you off square one. Loyalty Cards - Tips To Consider Before Committing To One Loyalty marketing has been around for as long as retailing - attractive stores, good service, and a quality product line all contribute to building up a loyal customer base.With the growth of larger stores, a relatively new marketing component - the loyalty card - has been added by many retail outlets. Todays Definition of Marketing. Has It Changed? With the continued proliferation of the Internet, the meaning of the word "marketing" also seems to proliferate. Cyberspace has opened up a whole arena of new marketing technologies, techniques, and twists. Build Lifelong Networks With Your Own Barter Group I don't know if you have ever seriously considered bartering. If you haven't considered it, it's probably about time that you did. Build Your Business Through Networking Here's one of the most important success principles you'll ever learn. It is this: The more people you know and who know you in a favorable way, the more successful you will be in your business or profession.
|
| home | site map |
| © 2006 |
