Even without life-altering events, the average entrepreneur must always be on the lookout for opportunities to expand their business. Because if your business isn’t growing, it’s failing.
How can the average business owner find new customers? I have some ideas, and they don’t cost a lot of money and don’t try to reinvent the wheel, but I’m hoping something here motivates you to give it a shot.
Be Visible in Your Community
A t-shirt with your business’s name on it and a case of bottled water doesn’t cost much, but when brought to a local non-profit’s construction project, a city clean-up, or a soccer game on a hot day, they can have a big impact.
Volunteering your time and talent won’t hurt your business’s bottom line, and it’s good for the community. More and more, customers are looking to patronize businesses that show they share the same values and commitments as them.
A simple Google search can help you find volunteer opportunities that match your skills and schedule.
Offer Special Deals for Referrals
Current customers can be great sources for new customers.
Offer a special “Bring a Buddy” discount (22% would be fun) for when a current customer brings a new customer to a special event. Provide some merchandise credit when a referral results in a new customer.
Gamify it as much as possible, and you’ll have people coming back again and again.
Take a Walk
Where do your customers live? Identify some neighborhoods you’d like to draw customers from, and take a walk. Introduce yourself to the people watering their lawns or hanging out on their balconies and give them a flyer that includes a coupon for your business.
Pick a nice day, and be sure you’re not being too pushy.
Making a personal connection goes a long way toward making a new customer.
The U.S. Small Business Administration has some more ideas on generating new customers. So does Forbes. I think what’s important, and therefore most likely to be successful, is that you make the argument for doing business with you honestly and cheerfully. Folks will become your long-term customer because you offer the best prices you can, with service that can’t be beaten, and an experience no one can match.
That’s the key to our success here at TLC, and it can work for you.
Good luck out there, and be sure to let me know how your ideas work by reaching out through our social media outlets.
–Jack
