Reprinted from Creative Studio's post 08.07.2024
Created by Lori Wood Williams for Creative Studios.
This post will help you take stock of how to find more clients, the type of people who love what you do, will buy again, and bring friends. It's one to ponder and think creatively about, so grab your favourite brew, a spare 15 minutes and change your business for the better.
Who is my ideal customer? | Who has my customer? | How do I get shared customers?
Q: What business am I really in?
Grant Leboff, UK marketing expert, says all business owners really run two businesses. The one they know they run and an additional media business, communicating their business to the outside world. It's an interesting concept and one I believe shows how seriously we should take our communications and attraction strategies. If we can find ways to naturally add that communications element to what we do, it becomes easier to build a solid brand.
I'd like you to pause for a moment and consider what is your big idea and why it's significant to your customers. Why should they care about your business? Before you can encourage people to see the value in your proposition you must understand what you do and more importantly why you are doing it.
Who is my ideal customer?
We can look deeply at buyer persona and other strategies but for now take a moment to consider who is your ideal customer. How old are they? Where do they live? What are their interests, styles, etc. Knowing this information will stop you from looking in the wrong places for them and wasting money on awareness. My advice is to leave awareness to the big businesses with deep pockets.
The process of understanding who your ideal customer is can be a tricky one. Be prepared to discount the stragglers from overlapping groups, the ones that don't quite fit and concentrate on where most of your interest comes from.
If you have it, use historical data, though not too old. If you don't have data available, you can ask your target group. Most people are happy to talk about themselves so long as you are genuinely interested, especially if they think you value their opinion. Don't then try to sell to them though, that's a big no-no at this stage. Once you know who your customer is they are easier to locate. Do be sure that your chosen type is big enough to sustain your business if not look for a larger segment.
Who has my customer?
Now you have figured out who your customer is, it's easier to find out where they hang out both online or in real life. You'll have a good idea of things like, where they work, venues they frequent and so forth. Don't be tempted to look at your competitors for this, they won't help you and competitors aren't just the shop next door, they can be other products or other services, look wide on this one. For example a local car dealer might find people are buying bikes instead, how might he change his focus to ensure he succeeds in the future?
Next you need to meet your customer in some delightful memorable way. A good example of this was when Foxes made the Party Rings Mini, they collaborated with Alton Towers. Alton Towers gave everyone a bag of Minis as they left the park. It was good for Alton Towers because people were committed to leaving and would no longer be purchasing food in the park, but they were giving a little extra feel good factor. All they needed was a few staff who were there anyway to hold the open boxes. As a result of this action, a product I would not have bought, became a family favourite. We buy them because we remember that experience and it brings us joy. This happened about 10 years ago!
I know you think you might not be able to find something on this scale but those collaborations are out there for you. You'll need to be able to spot a non-opportunity though. I had a balloon decorating business for many years. After the first year of doing a lot of free work for charities I realised that doing this work which was time consuming and costly, didn't win me business. This is because people looked at my work as being attractive and fun but they didn't see it as something they could or would purchase.
Arguably weren't my customers in the first place, and I hadn't created a place where they were only thinking of me, so that they could discover naturally how my business could benefit them. If I had used this for photography and gone out to seek corporate work with a bag of good reviews, that would have worked. If I'd used the work to showcase an offer for family parties, I would have met my clients whilst collaborating with the charities, but I didn't.
I stopped doing this work. Instead I told charity enquirers that if they wanted my work then they must purchase the balloons from me and I would donate the team's time if I thought it would add value for us both. That worked. This ensured that the charities valued my work, the team got vital experience and we built up our portfolio at the same time. I wouldn't do it now but it was what the company needed to grow at the time.
Consider a local jewellery maker might be tempted to put a few pieces in the local busy hair salon. A few will sell, most will gather dust. However, a little organza bag given to the target customer as she leaves with a pretty charm and personal note from the jeweller, pressed into the hair salon customer's hand and kind words from the hairdresser to accompany, will add the feel good factor and get the customer checking out the jewellers work, they will also remember the hair experience more fondly. Both businesses win.
There are key ingredients to succeeding with a collaboration strategy. Clues can be found in the Party ring story. People had a long walk back to the car and were hungry with little else to do. Timing was the key success factor here. If you want them thinking seriously about you, then there is a mix of ingredients you need. Here is a little checklist to help your creative juices flow:
Finding a partner who has your customer:
Does this organisation really have my customer?
What's in it for them to work with me?
What would I need to do to persuade them to share?
How certain am I that they will carry out the required action?
If they don't, can I pivot my investment in this towards something else?
Getting it right for the customer:
What can I give them which showcases my business without being salesy?
What can I give them which is low cost but high perceived value, which they will use?
Are there too many people in the audience group that I need to service who add cost but won't buy?
Can I stand that cost?
What is the best point to catch them with a free headspace?
How can I make sure they can find me and make a future purchase without selling now?
If you are struggling with any element of this Creative Studios are able to help you figure it out.
How do I get a shared customer?
Once you've considered the previous questions, getting other business owners to see the benefit for them in collaborating with you is much easier. You'll stop wasting time and money on things which don't serve you and your conversations will be easier too. It won't work every time, but will help maximise your chances of success.
Once you've started the connection process, be sure to keep following up by adding value, supporting their business, etc., Build strong but few relationships. I've seen many businesses work successfully this way. Keeping connected will help you both to change anything you need to quickly without wasting valuable resources or damaging your brands. You will also build rapport with your fellow business owner and make a new like-minded friend too.
We hope How to win a new customer helps you think about how you might achieve this to grow your business. Want to know more? You can join COGNEWS as a business member and never miss another post.
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