In the current world of business, it may feel like you’re walking on shifting sands. The ‘rules’ are constantly changing, and it can be difficult to keep up. When it comes to attracting new customers to your business, it might be time to rethink your approach and grow your market reach.
Here are three easy to apply methods for bringing new customers to your business.
1. Trading advertising
Consumers have moved online and that has fundamentally changed the way brands are reaching their customers. However traditional advertising – print, radio, TV, and billboards – are still among the best ways to attract new customers.
The key is consistency and repetition – ‘Just do it’ by Nike has been used since 1988. ‘Got Milk?’ the famous American slogan by the California Milk Processing Board, started in 1993 (thefinancialbrand.com.) These household brands have invested millions of dollars into making their message stick. Just think how many times you watch an advertisement on TV before you see it enough to take action.
According to thefinancialbrand.com, ‘effective frequency describes the number of times a consumer has to be exposed to advertising before the marketer gets the desired response.’ Some experts claim a message should be repeated three times in order to work, others say it’s seven.
Whatever approach you take, advertising is more effective at eliciting a response when it’s repeated.
Did you know, Bartercard has a large number of advertising and media companies Australia-wide, including magazines and radio? You can get your message across at no cash cost – a great way to attract new customers.
2. Host workshops or classes
Workshops and classes can be an additional source of income if you chose to charge attendance fees, but more importantly, they are a way of engaging with your customers and attracting new ones.
They can also get your brand exposure in all the right places through PR opportunities. For example, an Italian restaurant could go one step further and put on pizza-making and Italian cooking classes where people can learn authentic cooking skills, bond, and at the end of the class, enjoy and share what they’ve made with friends.
A cooking class is something fun to sign up for, but almost every industry has something valuable to share with its market, and the quality of your business will drive the numbers.
Here are a few ideas:
- Put on a debt reduction workshop if you are a financial planner or accountant
- Practical use of interior space is big now. If you are an interior designer, host a class where participants can learn the tips and tricks of the trade to recreate a magazine look at home
- Beautifully designed, custom-made cakes are featured in almost every lifestyle magazine. If you specialise in desserts, put on a workshop teaching baking enthusiasts to custom-make their own cakes
- Offer a digital photography workshop if you are a camera house or photographer – being situated in a beautiful part of the world is a bonus.
3. Build an online community
Although a shift to online certainly isn’t new, a strategic sales approach combining in-store and digital is. Consumer trends are seeing more sales resulting directly from a combination of customers interacting at a digital level and coming in-store; creating a consistent and high-level shopping experience that integrates a digital and in-store experience is a must.
Most retail brands on Instagram include a link in their bio that allows followers to purchase or pre-order any item pictured in their Instagram feed, so spending is inextricably linked to the platform and will attract more consumers to come in-store.
Today, almost every successful brand is using social media as a direct line to its customers. Building an online community of followers through curated content to shape perceptions, anchor itself to certain qualities, influence spending, and create common ground will add depth to the brand beyond bricks and mortar.
Some companies have built online communities close to half a million followers entirely through social media – you can’t find them advertised in magazines as they’ve never spent a cent on external marketing or PR.
Social media is also a way of conveying content to consumers straight from the owners of the business, not just their marketing teams, which gives more meaning to the brand for followers.
Let Bartercard help grow your business
If you’re keen to attract more customers – locally, nationally, or internationally, Bartercard can help. You can also save cash on your advertising, gain support in running workshops, all while building a strong business network. Contact Bartercard to learn how Bartercard can be the key to your business success.