Strapline

Copy - Content - Marketing Communications Planning

Friday 2 January 2015

How to convert customers and prospects to engage and purchase - part 5

Why should you care about what other's think and why is it important when looking to increase sales and engagement from your customers and prospects?

Not so many years ago you could short change a customer or let down a prospect and apart from the odd angry call, or letter of disappointment, not a lot happened. So if you kept most people sweet all was well. Add to this most people didn't have the time or skills to find another supplier, so they put up with what they got.
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Well that's not the case now. The way you as a business owner and the business you own are perceived is critical to your success.

Here are 5 things you can do in January, which if you can achieve, will have a positive impact on your bottom line by this time next year:


  1. Appreciate you have 5 audiences you need on your side at all times - your staff, your active clients, your sleepy clients, prospects that have just found you, and your suppliers, Do you know how they perceive you and your business? If you don't then how can you mange their perceptions?
  2. Make a concerted effort to improve the speed you pay your bills. Nothing makes a positive impression to your suppliers than prompt payment. Your suppliers are normal folk who have contacts who will use your products or services - they don't live in a bubble!
  3. If you run your business with a management style based on fear, lies, and misinformation then take a few courses in leadership or be content with paying monthly salaries to people who will actively do everything they can to see you underachieve - even if it eventually brings down the company they work for. Staff who love to come to work and feel valued are one of your biggest assets in generating business. Ask yourself would you work for a boss like you?
  4. Work out who are the most profitable clients. Not just the biggest turnover, but the ones which generate the most profit. Then work out why they make the biggest contribution. Spend time with these customers and find out what their perceptions are of our business. It's usually got something to do with the way the customer is handled. Make sure you have a well documented and trained customer service ethos throughout the whole business - including you as the owner.
  5. Work out who your top 5 competitors are. Then spend time reviewing the way they manage the expectations of visitors to their website, or answer the phone. Take a look at their written and email communications. You can do this if you have time, or get a professional agency to help you. How does your company compare?
Why do these things - well as I keep on mentioning - most business don't appreciate that nowadays they don't get an opportunity to lose business because customers and prospects have all the power they need to go elsewhere, so don't give the opportunity to even quote.

Coming up in January a series of articles on why offline direct and indirect advertising is coming back BIG TIME.





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