No matter how good your product is, its appeal won’t matter if you don’t have customers buying it. Your customer base is one of the most important aspects of your business. To keep your business profitable, you need to retain your current customers while expanding your customer base to include new ones. Discover five ways you can broaden your customer base.
Know Your Audience
When you know your audience, you can target its members through means such as Google AdSense and Facebook Ads. Get the most out of your marketing budget by selling directly to the people who are likely to buy products from you. Don’t waste money on marketing to those who have no need for or interest in your company.
The more you can learn about your market, the more easily and efficiently you will be able to market to your desired consumers.
Focus on Customer Service
You won’t find much setting some companies apart when they work in the same industry, but excellent customer service is something that needs to be a big focus of your business. Create an easy and convenient return policy for your clients, and follow through after orders to gauge customer satisfaction.
Have representatives available who are friendly, thoughtful, and accessible. Offer various ways for consumers to get in touch with you. Customer service is greatly appreciated and almost always recognized.
Promote Your Business
Take advantage of every marketing advantage you have, and don’t neglect social media. Make sure you are promoting your business on all applicable social media outlets.
Many consumers will head to your business’s Facebook page to get others’ opinions about your company before doing business with you. Having a page is not enough; you also need to keep that page active and engage with your customers. You can also use Twitter to offer an online customer service alternative as well.
Offer Different Payment Options
If you run an online business, a potential customer can easily leave your website out of frustration. Not offering a preferred payment option may seem insignificant, but it can lose you customers.
Even if you’re considered a high-risk vendor, you can still accept plastic on your site by using a company that accepts bad credit merchant accounts. Make the process as comfortable and convenient as possible for your customers; accepting credit cards is a big part of that customer cultivation.
Don’t Ignore Existing Customers
Expanding your existing customer base is important. You don’t want to risk losing your current customers in the process. Many business owners get so preoccupied with acquiring new clients that they unintentionally neglect the ones they have. Work on programs to keep your current customers loyal to your business. Once you have those programs and ideas in place, tweak them periodically, checking in with your customers while you work to secure new customers.
Expanding your customer base isn’t always easy, but for every new customer you get, you have the potential for that customer to be loyal and to refer your business to his or her friends and family.