Many small businesses think of attracting customers as a resource-heavy practice. But, most businesses can’t survive without a regular stream of new customers. Below, we look at some simple ways of attracting new customers to your small business.
1. Offer new customer incentives
One of the best (and most exciting) ways of generating new customers is with incentives. This can include a free cup of coffee, discount code or free shipping for their first one or two orders.
2. Improve your SEO
Getting your Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) strategy right means you’ll benefit from a regular influx of pre-qualified organic traffic visitors – this is the key to gathering new customers in a cost-effective way. Update your website and take advantage of the plethora of free tools out there to make your website both technically-sound and ready for your visitors to navigate through hassle-free. If you’re finding it challenging to manage your business’ SEO on your own, it may be a wise decision to consider seeking help from professional startup SEO services. By entrusting your SEO needs to experts, you can ensure that your website is fully optimized to attract and convert potential customers while allowing you to focus on building and growing your business. This approach will not only save you time and resources but also help you to achieve your desired results faster and more effectively.
3. Demonstrate thought leadership and innovation
Innovation and thought leadership are two great ways of standing out among the competition. By demonstrating new approaches to old problems you can lead the way in your industry, allowing you to attract customers organically who will be drawn to your approach.
4. Prioritise your CX strategy
Did you know that it’s up to five times more expensive to acquire a new customer than it is to retain your current customers? Prioritise your Customer eXperience (CX) and customer engagement strategies to keep your current customers on board. Loyal customers will recommend your business to their network, friends and family, giving you new customers without the hefty acquisition or marketing costs.
5. Partner up
Are there businesses in the same industry or sector as you who serve the same audience with different products and solutions? Don’t be afraid to partner up with other businesses – especially if they offer complementary services to your own. Partnering up gives you both access to each other’s customer bases and prospects, and you can work this out on a commission structure that’s mutually beneficial for both parties, creating a win-win for your businesses, and allowing your customers to purchase from one vendor rather than several.
6. Start networking
Once businesses leave the start-up stage, they tend to forget to network. However, effective networking can bring a range of benefits – not only will you gain new customers, but you may also develop connections that can help streamline and grow the other parts of your business.
7. Re-engage your previous customers
Consider reaching out to your previous customers. Often in the B2B world, customers move between businesses, industries and even regions, but this doesn’t mean that they’re no longer a suitable prospect. Re-engage with your previous customers, even the unhappy ones, because you never know their current requirements – and you might be exactly what their new business needs.
8. Gather reviews
Create a short survey or comment box to drive reviews from your current customers. These can be used across your website, marketing and sales collateral and on search engines to drive traffic and boost conversion rates.
9. Create a referral scheme
Referral schemes are perfect for driving new customers in a cost-effective way. Simply engage your current prospects and customers, and reward them for any referrals that they give with discount codes, vouchers or other benefits.
10. Sponsor and participate
Finally, a great way of getting your company name out there is to sponsor and participate in the local community. This will help raise your profile, as well as supporting worthwhile causes, helping to attract new customers.
Attracting new customers doesn’t have to be costly or time-intensive. By using the steps above, you can attract new customers to your small business with ease.
