How is 2017 starting off for you? I hope prosperous and encouraging!
January is a great time to set goals for the year. If you haven’t already, take time this week to set specific goals for your business/career, financial goals, personal goals, family goals and spiritual goals. People who set specific, written goals are 42% more likely to achieve them than those without!
When it comes to goals for your business, you’ve most likely set sales goals or financial goals. That’s an excellent place to start, but the next step is “how are you going to reach those goals this year?” You could:
- Look for new marketing strategies
- Start cold-calling
- Put a lot of money into advertising
These tactics can certainly be effective in many cases and may work for you. However, there’s often hundreds of opportunities to grow our businesses, right in front of us, that we overlook on a daily basis.
I want to share three goals that you can work on this year in your business that will help you identify and capitalize on those opportunities!
#1. Increasing repeat business.
If you own an auto body shop or mortuary, selling the idea of repeat business to your clients may not be as appealing. For the rest of us, we need to keep in mind that selling products or services to existing customers is much easier than trying to gain new customers. How can you increase your repeat business in 2017?
- Follow up with customers you haven’t heard from in a while, and ask them how they are getting along with their products or services. For example:
- “Hi, Mr. Smith! This is Andrew from XYZ Company and I haven’t seen you for quite some time. I wanted to call and make sure you were getting along OK with your [insert your product/service]?”
When you follow up with past clients, here’s what can happen:
- During the conversation, the opportunity may arise to present the customer with a new product or service that they need or want.
- Customers often put things on the back burner that aren’t urgent. When you call them, it reminds them of what they need, and you’re likely to get the sale. This is especially true for service based businesses.
- When customers know you care enough to check-in, you stay in the forefront of their mind for when they do need your product or service.
#2. Establishing your business as the “go-to experts”.
People don’t buy products and services; they buy assurance, trust, convenience, experiences and personalities. If you can offer these qualities along with your products and services, you’ll establish your business as the “go-to experts” in your industry.
Let me give you an example.
When I operated my technology company, people I knew would come up to me on a daily basis and start talking about a computer issue.
- I’d listen closely. They felt a connection with me because I showed that I cared.
- I would assure them that I could take care of the issue. I didn’t know the answer to every single computer problem, but I was willing to work at it until I found a solution.
- I would schedule a time to come to their business or home that was convenient for them.
- I would create a positive experience. While I was working on their issues, I would explain what I was doing, as well as engage in friendly discussion.
- I earned their trust. Once the issue was fixed or another solution had been recommended, I would let them know to call me at the first sign of problems.
Before long, I became known as the “go-to expert” in my industry. It wasn’t because I had more knowledge than my competitors; it was because of the qualities I was delivering with my products and services. As a result, I was able to charge higher prices, close a high percentage of deals and received countless referrals.
#3. Delivering something new.
Instead of spending all of your time and money trying to find new clients, find ways to serve your current clients or past clients better. What does that look like? Take 30 minutes this week to reflect and brainstorm on these questions:
- What new product or service could I provide to my existing customers that would help solve a common problem?
- How can I reorganize or repackage my current products and services to better fit customers’ needs?
- How can I better explain the value and benefits of the products and services that I offer to potential customers?
If you make it a point to work on these three goals in your business in 2017, you’ll be amazed at the number of opportunities that present themselves to you!
