How have you been getting your customer? Today's customers need the right people in their corner. In today's market, there's an incredible opportunity for an entrepreneur who recognizes the opportunity to gain knowledge and develop expertise as a result of working with customers. The people who buy from you need to know, not only what you sell, but also that you need their suggestions for doing a better job serving them.
Getting and keeping customers doesn't happen, automatically. The process demands a unified, consistent approach. Here are some suggestions:
- Do the research. Find out where your customers are coming from, how they view your business and why they're doing business with you. Use this information to position your product or service and to build a prospect profile and database.
- Develop a prospect database. Your mailing list is the future of your business. Include prospects, present customers and past customers. Build a special top priority list - those people you would like to do business with if you had the opportunity.
- Utilize helpful information. Keep in communication with them by sharing interesting articles, studies and reports to customers and prospects. Your thoughtfulness will be noticed and appreciated - you will then gain a reputation as a knowledgeable source.
- Be known for your ideas. If you develop a strong reputation as a person who can be counted on for new, innovative ideas, you'll be in demand by customers and prospects.
- Always stay in front of your customers. Some salespeople disappear when their accounts do. Salespeople like good news. So when there's a dark cloud overhead, some run for cover. While it's often difficult to get in front of customers as much as we like, it's relatively easy...stay in front of them.
- Get serious about prospecting. Prospecting is getting together with those who want to meet you. It's not making calls to get appointments. It's the process of identifying those you want as customers and then initiating an action plan to cultivate them so they want to do business with you.
- Stop looking for the "hot" leads. While taking time to qualify prospects is essential, it's also easy to make the mistake of destroying potential sales. It happens everyday. Every buyer has experienced it. In the first few seconds of talking with the prospect, the salesperson asks, "When are you planning to make your decision?" There are dozens of these so-called "qualifying" questions that are designed to skim the cream off the top. Perceptive customers may decide at that moment not to do business with that salesperson. By spending time trying to understand the customer, creating interest and showing benefits of buying the product or service are what helps set the decision date.
It's always important to stay on track. Good intentions don't build business or increase sales. Once you develop a marketing program, make sure it's implemented on a continuing basis. That takes commitment. But while the results will be rewarding, getting and keeping cu
