Ways to Find Customers 1
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Anyone can start a business. But to stay in business, you need a steady stream of customers who buy what you sell.
Finding those customers sometimes seems like a difficult, time-consuming, and expensive task. But it doesn't have to be. Although you may never learn to love sales and marketing (which is what finding customers is all about), you can learn to do it effectively and economically. Here are answers to some of the most frequently asked questions about how to win customers for your small business.
Is there any secret to marketing products?
The secret of successful marketing is to realize marketing requires you to do four things:
1. Get the word about your products and services out to as many potential customers as you can.
2. Remind those potential customers frequently about what you do.
3. Persuade them to buy from you rather than from the competitor.
4. Deliver a top-notch product with top-notch support so your customers will give you repeat business and refer new customers to you.
How do most small businesses get their customers?
Surveys that Business Know-How has done over the years show that between 47 and 54 percent of small and homebased businesses get most of their customers through word-of-mouth advertising, referrals, and personal networking. A growing number of businesses are now finding that advertising in the online search engines such as Google and Overture is also an effective way to bring in business.
What is word-of-mouth advertising?
Word-of-mouth advertising is what happens when one person tells another about what you do. If the word of mouth is a glowing testimonial or even a neutral "I know someone who does that," it can bring customers your way. It will also make people more responsive to your ads or calls because they will have already heard positive things about your company. On the other hand, if the word of mouth is negative—if a customer complains you didn't satisfy his needs, screwed up a job, or didn't respond to his calls, word-of-mouth advertising will drive customers away.
What is networking?
Networking is making business contacts. It is you telling other people what you do. The contacts you make may be directly with potential customers, or they may be with individuals who will give you leads or refer customers to you. Your networking contacts may also be with people who can provide valuable information that will help you improve your business or gain industry knowledge.
Networking is what you do every time you:
- give someone you meet a business card
- shake hands and introduce yourself to others at chamber of commerce or professional association meetings
- participate in a formal or informal sales lead exchange group
- flip pancakes at the Lion's Club breakfast
- accept a seat on the board of a nonprofit organization
- exchange tips and business information with noncompeting businesses
- attend the professional association dinner dance
- introduce yourself to the person sitting next to you on the airplane or standing in line ahead of you at the bank
- offer to answer another business's questions
- ask another businessperson for suggestions or about experience in some particular matter
- donate a prize for a holiday bazaar
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