8 Action Steps To Grow Your Business

Delivering Beyond Expectation

Business success is built on generating more profit in your business. There are only two ways to increase profit and that is to generate more revenue by increasing the number of customers who buy from your business and secondly reduce your costs by looking at smart ways to be more efficient with your resources including staff and resources. Let’s look at 8 Action Steps to growing your business.

Step 1 Get To Know Your Customers

Do you know who your customers are? Have you developed a customer avatar? ie the key characteristics of your ideal client. By knowing who your clients are and understanding their needs and wants then you can design products and services that meet those needs. One of my sales coaches once said and I remember this phrase many years later is that people buy for pain or for pleasure. They buy because they get a great experience and it was a pleasure doing business with you or they purchase from you because you helped them solve a problem

Step 2 Offer Great Customer Service

Customer delight is surprising a customer by exceeding his or her expectations and thus creating a positive emotional reaction. This emotional reaction leads to word of mouth. Satisfied customers use your product, but delighted customers are loyal and actively promote your brand through word-of-mouth. So the cliche under promise and over deliver still rings true. Ensure your customer service is exceptional and go the extra mile. Your clients will remember

Step 3 Nurture Your Existing Customer And Look For New Opportunities

Do you have a CRM and a marketing strategy in place to build stronger relationships with your existing clients? Do you have a plan of regular contact with your key clients? Do you give them the VIP treatment every time they buy from you? Are there other services they could use? The more you know about your client the more likely they are to purchase additional services from you. Ask your clients for referrals. We know that clients usually network with similar people like themselves so work out who your best clients are and their characteristics and build a pipeline and funnel to find more clients like them.

Step 4 Develop A Social Media Strategy

Nowadays it is not just enough to have a website. Depending on who your clients are you need to have a Linkedin business page especially if you are selling B2B, a Facebook business page, an Instagram presence or business page. Google My Business listing is also really important and you need to ensure your webpage is ranked highly by Google. Using social media and having a schedule of regular social media posts to build your brand is really important. A social media strategy is important to drive clients to your website but more importantly once they get there you need to build a relationship with them by providing something of value in return.

Step 5 Networking Offline And Online

Invest time to build your networks. Find events where you know where your ideal clients will be and attend events on a consistent basis so people get to know you. Business networking, is a great low-cost form of marketing or an excellent way to get away from the stresses of running a business? For some, it can be both and for others, it can offer much more value than either of those two takes. At a networking event you get to have conversations with people, and whilst you might not be selling straight away it is helping you understand people’s business pains and issues much better.

Step 6 Host Your Own Business Events

A great way to get to know your clients is to host your own events. Encourage them to invite other professionals to network. Create your own business networking groups where your clients can meet other business people to do business with. One of the most successful networking groups is Business Networking International. Every week thousands of people meet regularly to refer potential clients to each other.

Step 7 Give Back To Your Community

Sponsor a charity by having a regular giving plan. Participate in community events. Join local Facebook community or business groups to build a presence. Customers want authenticity. They want to do business with people who have integrity and respect and more importantly who are real.

Step 8 Measure What Works And Refine Your Approach As You Go

One of my previous CEOs always said what can be measured can be managed. You should monitor where your customers are coming from in order to measure whether your marketing activities are successful or not. Don’t be afraid to experiment. There are so many low cost ways to market your business. Google Ads, Facebook Ads or Instagram posts. Publish on Linkedin. Refine your approach and focus on strategies that work.

Successful people do what unsuccessful people are not willing to do. Don’t wish it were easier; wish you were better Jim Rohn