 |
|
BusinessDevelopmentStrategies
Development
Strategies to Grow Your Business
By
Nancy Michaels, President, ImpressionImpact
I'm
often asked, “What is the one thing you would do to grow your
business – assuming you could only pick one sales or marketing practice?”
My response is always: “If only it were that easy."
Unfortunately,
there is no one magic bullet in terms of how to succeed in business.
Instead, it is a matter of employing many sales and marketing tactics
in a visible, consistent and repetitious way that attracts more clients
to your business.
- Identify your ideal
target market. Who, specifically, do you want to have as a
client? Not everyone will be a perfect match.
- Attend and get involved
at the events and meetings that your prospects and clients
attend.
- Establish yourself as
an expert and a valued resource at these meetings by speaking
at them and writing for their trade publications.
- Promote your expertise
by getting published.
- Leverage past and current
successes by re-printing articles written by or about you
and distributing announcements.
- Cultivate a great database
of prospects, vendors, past customers, media contacts, etc.
Remember, you are only as good as your list.
- Create an impressive
web presence. It's the minimum required to have a local, national
or global presence.
- Distinguish yourself
from the competition. Extend exceptional customer service,
celebrate unusual holidays and events, under-promise and over-deliver,
and communicate with your target market on a consistent basis. Don't
forget to know the competition and be able to articulate how you are
different. Thank everyone who refers business to you and never
forget to thank your clients . I continue to be amazed at the
good will generated by a thoughtful, kind gesture.
- Commit to a plan. Make
a date with yourself every October to revisit the marketing and sales
items you implemented in the past that were successful and plot those
activities on a calendar for the upcoming year. Work backwards to determine
what small steps need to be taken on a regular basis to be sure your
marketing plan is completed.
Marketing,
simply put is VCR – Visibility, Consistency and Repetition in the marketplace.
In order to establish name recognition among your target market, you need
to be consistenly visible iand repeat your message over time. Because
we all learn in different ways, employing a media mix is an ideal way
to grow your business.
Nancy
Michaels is a business development coach, author and consultant. She can
be reached at nmichaels@growyourbusinessnetwork.com
|
|
