Has your business been foundering in the slow economy? Since even well established businesses have lost customers during the recession, how can a small business owner find ways to expand his or her client base when the economy is tight? Here are five ways to grow your business in troubled economic times.
1. Pursue high-paying clients.
A simple way to grow your company is to chase after customers that are willing to pay higher prices for your product or order more services from your company. While small-order clients are an essential part of consistent sales, you'll have to venture outside your current base to grow your business. Just one or two high-paying clients can significantly increase your monthly cash flow.
2. Advertise your product from an education standpoint.
When you're trying to expand your company profits, you'll also want to market additional services to your existing customers. An excellent way to do this is to call them and inform them of new products or services that may be beneficial to them. To make these calls productive, take the time to find out about their specific needs and then discuss how your product can be of service.
3. Use your website to reach out to new customers.
The Internet is one of the best ways to reach a new audience for your business. If you don't have a company website now is the time to design one. Make it user-friendly and offer a free item such as a business proposal or a sales quote to site visitors who complete a short form. If you include business name and phone number as required fields on the form you will quickly obtain a list of new company contacts that you can use to follow up with sales calls.
4. Get to know the needs of your target market.
One of the most effective methods for advertising in a tough economy is to "speak" to the needs of your customers. Despite the current economic conditions people will continue to buy items or services that they need or that they feel strongly about. You can find out about these interests by asking a few non-intrusive questions about their interests during sales calls.
5. Invest wisely in your business.
Ultimately, no matter what the state of the economy, you'll still have to make investments in your business if you want it to grow. It's essential that you make wise business funding decisions so that your spending has a direct impact on growth.
All companies need to find ways to expand in order to remain competitive. Following these five tips will help you to grow your business during a slow economy.
