That old business adage which proposes it costs ‘five times more to get a new customer than it does to keep an old one’ certainly rings true when you analyse just how much companies spend on marketing in a year. But I have often discussed and encouraged clients to sell more to existing customers as this is by far the easiest way to grow your business (assuming you are not a new start up business), but of course each year a business will lose customers. There is a natural churn. Some of this will be absolutely no fault of yours and which you have no control over, such as customers dying or moving out of your area but typically a business loses customers because the service was poor, the product was poor, or it was found cheaper elsewhere. Whatever the reason, the probability is that you will lose customers each year leaving you two options, to take it on the chin and focus on selling more to your remaining customers, or to try and attract new customers. So how can this best be done?
The key to attracting new customers is to realise that not all prospects (potential customers) are right for your business. For example, if you provide garden maintenance services then marketing your business to people who live in flats is a waste of time. Likewise, if your offer is set at the value end of the market then trying to attract high end customers might not be the wisest move. So, it’s really important to first to identify the criteria that makes a good customer for you – in other words you create a picture of who the ideal customer is.
Having then done that the next stage is to work out how you are going to set out your marketing message – what do you need to communicate to these people, what is the style of language you will use, and how will you physically present your marketing material? After working all this out you then of course need to begin your communication programme – getting your message out to your target audience – those prospects that you have identified that are just right for your business.
One of the widely used tools to attract new customers is advertising, whether this be in print, radio, TV or of course the multiple social media platforms available. Many of us are perhaps cynical of the advertising industry, but good advertising does work. Correctly planned advertising can reach a large number of people with a particular message. On the flip side, there is a lot of wastage with advertising, which means that an enormous amount of people will see the advert yet not be interested in what is on offer. The other problem is that consumers are becoming a more critical and perhaps cynical audience. The advent of social media however means it’s never been cheaper and easier to trail an advertising campaign and to change it mid flow.
Is there a better tool than advertising to attract customers to a business? Singularly no, but ‘publicity’ as a marketing tool if used in conjunction with advertising and other promotional tools is a very powerful way of attracting new customers to a business. What then do we mean by ‘publicity’? It is simply the act of promoting a company or its products and services by planting favourable news stories in the media, which are not paid for by the company involved. The important point to note here is that the public have a high degree of belief and respect for news stories. They carry a lot of credibility as the public believe a neutral body is presenting the information so do not feel manipulated or ‘sold to’ in the way they might should the message be coming straight from the business featured. Publicity really is a marketing tool that should be more widely embraced by the business community. It has a high persuasive impact and can enhance a company’s image, but used in isolation it is not as effective as when it is used to support, enhance or augment other forms of communication. It can be described as very broad marketing tool essentially involving press releases, press conferences, photographs (which often speak volumes!), letters to papers and of course editorials. Best of all of course it is often free! Granted, there may be management costs in planning publicity and hiring the relevant experts to carry out your publicity campaign, but aside to all that it is incredibly easy to get some press coverage in a local paper, especially if you nurture contacts and occasionally place a paid advert via the chosen media source.
Exhibitions or garden shows can also be a very effective way of attracting new customers – pick the right exhibition, plan your exhibit and promotional material carefully and you could reap rewards. Typically exhibitions are a great way to attract new customers in a business to business environment, but they can work really well too in a business to retail environment. Having a stand at a regional garden show can do wonders in helping you attract new customers to your retail centre. Of course the stand needs to be staffed by people that are naturally good with customers, believe passionately in your brand, and really have the ability to convey that enthusiasm and passion to prospects.
This leads us to the role of your staff and the importance of their skills and knowledge. We can’t talk about attracting new customers without considering the role that personal selling – or sales representation – has in this process. This is I believe still the most effective way to get new customers – especially in the business to business environment and particularly if supported by effective marketing campaigns. The power of rapport, personality, and face to face communication using tried and tested sales techniques, is as perennial as many of the products we sell, so if your business lacks these skills or staff you need to acquire them and invest in training as a priority.
Finally a word of warning. Exhibitions, advertising, publicity campaigns and sales campaigns can all backfire spectacularly if the product and service at the end of it all are not what they should be. You will be placing your business and product under a huge spotlight, raising expectations and promising certain things you need to be sure you can deliver. Do not make claims you cannot support, promises you cannot deliver, or present an unrealistic image of your business. Customers will be disappointed, disillusioned and loose trust in your claims – including those you make in the future, and all your costs and efforts to attract them in the first place will have been in vain.
Neville Stein MBA
Horticultural Business Consultant
Tel: 0044 7778 005105
Email: info@nevillestein.com
www.nevillestein.com