How can we attract the most clients with our limited marketing budget and time, plus make it fun? Here are five ideas to get your phone ringing more often and with the right prospects for your business.
1. Wear t-shirts with your logo.
I wouldn’t have believed it myself if I hadn’t seen it. If you wear a t-shirt with your company logo and tag line clearly stating what you do, people will stop you in the grocery store. The most common comment: “I have been looking for someone who does what you do!”
Similarly, if you have a car door magnet or sign advertising your business, people will stop you in the parking lot and start talking to you. And don’t worry if you have no idea where to get car door magnets. Intuit sells them! Plus, you don’t even need a designer when you select a pre-formatted style. http://intuitmarket.intuit.com/fsg/marketingmaterials/personalizedcarmagnets.aspx
If you’re an accounting professional with software certifications, you can list not only your company logo, but also your certification logos, such as QuickBooks ProAdvisor, Intuit Solution Provider, and others. People will recognize these and will start a conversation with you.
These old-fashioned offline ideas will kindle new customers and new friends.
2. Volunteer to be on a panel of experts.
What’s great about appearing on a panel instead of speaking to an audience is the short preparation time. All you generally need to do is be prepared to answer questions in your field of expertise.
When you can answer an audience member’s question intelligently, they will often follow up with you to discuss what else you can do for them.
Appearing in front of an audience of individuals interested in your field of expertise is a leveraged form of marketing. Instead of having 100 individual conversations like you do in networking, speaking allows you to demonstrate your expertise to many individuals at once, saving you tons of time.
3. Appear on TV, radio, or in the news.
This one is easier than it looks. What are the most common questions your clients are asking? Make a list of these, turn it into a press release, and send it to the business editor of your local small town newspaper. Let them know you’re the local expert on this topic, and you’d be happy to field questions for any articles they write. You can even offer to supply articles for them, which provides them with content they don’t have to pay for.
Do this in the form of a “top 10 mistakes” list or a “7 things you need to know before you hire a __.”
Then, relax and enjoy your 15 minutes of fame.
4. Leverage the marketing channels you are already using.
If you have your social media accounts set up, send out a tweet or post letting people know you are looking for new clients. For best results, describe the type of client you are looking for.
If you have your newsletter set up, send an email letting your list know you are looking for new clients and who to send you. A common mistake with newsletters is to send only articles. Periodically, you’ll want to send announcements of specials you’re having, which will boost sales, or other special announcements, such as an open house, a training class, or a request for testimonials.
Last, if you’re active and known in networking circles, use your elevator speech time to describe your ideal client. The more specific you can get, the better your results will be.
5. Keep in touch with current clients.
The more you can reach out to current clients, the better. When is the last time you’ve sent a client a thank-you card for no reason or on no particular occasion? Proactively plan to connect with your clients throughout the year, and not just for invoicing! You’ll find that your client retention, revenue per client, and referrals will all go way up when you increase the number of times you reach out to clients.
Those are five fast and fun ways to get new clients. Let me know what works best for you.I’d love for you to post some of your favorite and fun ways to get new clients. Share your experiences and ideas on my blog or on my Facebook page here http://www.facebook.com/sandismithleyva.