Building your customer base? Clients are essential to your success. Learn how to find new clients now so you can build your small business into everything you want it to be.
As a small business owner, one of your jobs is to find new clients. Finding new clients is especially important when times are tough. The key to finding new clients is to fully understand your client profile, as this will make it much easier for you to find the ideal clients who will be loyal to your business. Your clients are the most important part of your business. Without them, you would not be in business.
In this article, we’ll cover:
- Importance of clients
- Getting new clients
- Keeping your clients
- Tips
- Business insurance
Importance of clients
Clients are important are important to your bottom line because they keep you in business. Whether you are selling goods and/or services, client purchases are responsible for your income. Every business owner will benefit from understanding who their clients are because this makes it much easier for them to find new clients. A snapshot of client information should include their age, race, gender, ethnicity, income level, and geographic location.
Knowing who your clients are makes it much easier for you to market what you are selling.
Getting new clients
As a small business owner, you always want to attract new clients. In order for you to get new clients, you must be proactive. Being friendly and open is preferred over being pushy or overbearing, as most people respond better to businesses that provide them with helpful information vs trying to force their business information upon them. Getting new clients is a process, making it a good idea for you to use at least three of the below tactics to find new clients for your small business.
Networking
Networking still rules when it comes to getting what you want in the business world. You should be networking with your friends and family, as well as with anyone new who you feel could potentially bring you new clients to your business. While networking, be sure to have the mindset of how you can help others versus thinking what is in it for me. If you focus on building relationships, you will experience more success while networking to find new clients.
Ask for referrals
Contact all of your current clients and ask them for referrals. You can even add incentives, like offering them some type of special savings for every successful referral. Even though referrals are one of the best ways for you to get new clients, it is not always the fastest process. If you want new clients fast, think about how you can create a referral-generating system and add it to your sales process. For example, after a client buys from you, send them an email thanking them for their purchase, adding that you would appreciate any referrals.
Social media
It is easier than ever for small businesses to use social media to promote what they are selling. Some of the more popular social media sites include Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok. You can even start a Facebook group about your small business. When done right, you could get access to thousands of new people who could potentially become new clients. The key to getting new clients on a social media platform is to interact and engage regularly.
Guest posting
Researching other websites or bloggers that are within your industry is a great way to attract new clients. You can offer them the opportunity to review one of your products so they can let their audience know what they think, or you can write a guest post about your small business to entice new clients.
Livestreaming
Livestreaming is one of the best ways for you to connect with other people online. Facebook Live makes it super easy for you to livestream, as well as many other social media platforms – Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, TikTok.
Offer discounts, incentives
You just might be surprised at how easy it will be for you to find new clients by offering discounts and incentives. Many people are looking for a new product or service to try out when they are not 100% satisfied with their current product or service. Your chances of gaining them as a new client will increase significantly by offering some type of promotional discount or incentive for them to use your products and/or services.
Create your own website
SEO-rich natural content is still the most important thing you can add to your own small business website. Why? Because the high majority of people who are looking for new businesses are doing so online. You will need to create basic website pages – home page, about page, products and/or services page, contact page, and an informational and fun-to-read blog.
Team up with like businesses
You can choose to partner up with other businesses that have a similar client base. Together you can come up with ideas for how you can each help drive new clients to each other’s business. Make sure any businesses you want to team up with are not your direct competition. Checking out your local businesses is a great place to start!
Got good online reviews?
Use your good online reviews to your benefit by linking them to your website. You can also post information about your good reviews at your business location. People who see that a business is getting great reviews are much more likely to become a client of that business.
Cold emailing
If done right, cold emailing can be a great way for you to get new clients for your small business. You must write a great subject line, personalize the introduction, be friendly and personable, and write something unique so the recipient does not feel like they are receiving spam. Cold emails do not cost a lot to send and are still considered to be one of the best marketing strategies to find new clients.
Offer to be a guest on podcasts
You can promote your small business on podcasts to generate new interest. Simply contact the podcasts you feel will best benefit your type of business. Let them know that you are interested in letting people know why they should give you their business. Make sure they know you are not just promoting your business and instead want to focus on how your business’s products and/or services can be of benefit.
You can also start your own podcast!
Community events
Participating in community events is a great idea to promote your small business. By participating in things like charity events and organizational events, you are doing what is necessary to get your name out there.
Advertising
Advertising your business is a great idea for attracting new clients. You can choose to use paid advertising, organic advertising, or a combination of both advertising methods.
Keeping your new clients
Once you find a new client, you want to do everything you can so they can be a forever client. What are some things you can do to make sure your new clients remain loyal to your small business?
- Offer them specials that no one else gets
- Be upfront and honest
- Be clear and transparent
- Reward client loyalty
- Ask for feedback
Tips
Having a difficult time finding new clients? If you are only using one or two methods, try using more of the methods above to expand your reach. You may also need to reevaluate whether or not you are going after the right clients. If you are considering lowering your prices to help you find new clients, understand that this is a tactic that may or may not work. To find out whether or not your small business is competitively priced,
Business insurance
As a small business owner, you want to get as many clients as you can to support your small business. Even though you do your absolute best to make sure all of your clients are completely satisfied with your products and/or services, if one of your clients is dissatisfied, they can choose to file a claim against your business. Do you have a plan in place in case this happens?
In order for you to protect both your business and your clients, you need business insurance. General liability insurance protects you from financial loss due to property damage, bodily injury, or personal/advertising injuries. Professional liability insurance protects you if one of your clients says you made a mistake, was negligent, or failed to deliver a promised service. Cyber liability insurance protects your business against a cyber-attack.
Complete a quote in three minutes or less!
Fill out our online form now to get a customized insurance quote. It only takes a few minutes of your time and could lead to your saving lots of money on your small business insurance policy. Once we receive your quotes from our top insurance providers, we will contact you to let you know what the best quote is for your business. So simple!