16 retail businesses filed for bankruptcy in 2018. They were big names at the mall, like Nine West and Claire’s.
So how do you avoid their fate? Learn how to attract customers to keep your business growing.
There is a lot of competing marketing advice online. Lots of gurus offer hundreds of ways to build your business. How do you know if any of them work?
Don’t worry, we’ve got you covered. We’ve rounded up 9 foolproof ways to attract new customers.
Read on to learn more!
1. Go Beyond Traditional Customer Avatars
Some businesses resist the idea of a target customer. “I want to help everyone!” they think. Or “anyone can use my product!”
It’s highly unlikely that’s the case. So instead, many businesses have a customer avatar. Or an ideal client.
This is a more specific profile of the type of customer your business attracts. It makes it easier to advertise to them.
But here’s where it falls down. You’re targeting people based on their age, gender, location, or job. People don’t always define themselves through their demographic.
Try creating a customer profile based on their psychographics. This lets you align your brand with their values.
Customers make buying decisions based on emotions. So it’s important to create emotional connections with them.
2. Try Using Snail Mail
When was the last time you got something in the mail? Exactly. Many businesses switched to social media advertising and email marketing.
Few companies send direct mail now. True, some customers find it irritating. But you’re competing with fewer brands since it’s a less crowded space.
Don’t just send flyers. Create well-designed postcards that people will display because they’re gorgeous. Customers can show off physical marketing materials on your behalf.
If you’re having a sale, why not send fancy invites to those in your local area?
3. Find New Customers in New Audiences
Do you ever listen to podcasts? If not, you should. They’re a growing medium that lets you get into your customers’ earbuds.
And podcast listeners are loyal. 80 percent of listeners listen to all or most of the episode.
That’s phenomenal in a world where people skip YouTube videos because of ads. Or skim-read blog posts looking for bullet points.
Go back to your new customer avatar. Figure out what kind of podcasts they listen to.
Find podcasts that accept guests. And pitch your services. Give away tons of value in your interview and watch the new business come in.
4. Try Localized Content Marketing
This isn’t the same as local SEO (but we’ll get onto that in a minute). Localized content marketing means tailoring your content to different markets.
As an example, you might be based in San Francisco. But your company has a global appeal. And you’d like to reach customers in Italy.
You could stay ‘local’ in your content marketing. Stick to San Francisco-centric content.
Or you could try localization.
Get your content translated into Italian. Avoid using jargon or phrases specific to where you’re based. And look for statistics or reviews to provide social proof in the region you target.
Read more tips about this strategy.
5. Encourage Referrals
If you’ve ever used Dropbox, you know how referrals work. They grew their business by offering free storage every time you referred a friend.
Other businesses offer affiliate codes. Or extra perks like discounts and free gifts.
Is there a way you can encourage your existing customers to refer you? That way, they do the hard work of attracting new customers. Which leaves you free to work on new products and services!
6. Build Partnerships
This is a simple way to attract new customers. It relies on ‘borrowing’ someone else’s audience. And they get access to yours.
A cab firm might partner with a restaurant. Show your bill to the cab and get 10 percent off your fare. Or show your cab receipt at the restaurant to get a discount.
Do you see how it works?
Choose a partner business that doesn’t do the same thing as you. You don’t want to partner with a competitor.
Pick something complementary where both of you benefit from the arrangement. Then you attract new customers every time someone else uses your partner’s business.
7. Add More Direct Response Marketing
Many companies use email marketing to send newsletters to customers. But they fill the newsletters with news about what they’re doing. And they wonder why no one buys from them.
Or they have well-designed web pages that never ask customers to do anything.
Try switching up your marketing to include more direct response tactics. That just means including a specific call-to-action (CTA) on each piece of marketing.
Each email should have a clear CTA that offers a direct benefit to the customer. And your web pages should have a clear CTA button.
Don’t overwhelm your customer with choices. But make it obvious what you want them to do next. And make it easy for them to do it.
This is less about attracting new customers and more about converting website visitors. But those conversions still mean extra dollars for you.
8. Get To Know Your Data
Do you know who your best customers are? Or how they find your business?
Make it a priority to find out. Scour your data looking for clues. Check your Google Analytics to see how they find your website.
Once you know how high-spending customers find you? Then you know where to go to find more of them. Attract new customers who hang out in the same place as existing ones.
But you can’t find this out until you get to know your data.
9. Keep Existing Customers
Okay, so this isn’t attracting new customers. But check out the Pareto Principle. It states 80 percent of your business comes from 20 percent of your customers.
Identify who that 20 percent is. And work hard to keep them happy.
Think loyalty programs. Ambassador status. Exclusive discounts.
Whatever it takes, do it. Keep them happy and coming back.
Enjoy Your New Customers
Now you have nine things to try to attract new customers. How well these methods work depends on how much effort you use. And your target niche.
But try each of them out. Give them a couple of weeks to see if you get a business boost.
Once you know what works, double down on that. And watch your profits soar.
Check out our business resources for more tools to help you grow your business.