How Customer Follow-up Can Increase Sales In Any Business

When was the last time you followed up with your existing customers? Last month? Last week? Or was it the last time they actually bought from you?

I can pretty much tell you that no matter how often you follow up with your customers, it's not enough.

In today's world, people have less and less of an attention span and forget very easily about you and what you have to offer them. If you want an easy way to increase sales in your business, you need to increase the amount of contacts you have with each and every customer you have.

So how can you do this?

First, thank them for the sale.
Emails, thank you cards and letters are a great way to make one more touch with a customer right after the sale. If someone comes in to your store and buys something from you, send them a a thank you a couple of days after the sale. This will make them feel special and make you stand out from everyone else out there.

Also, educate them on the best ways to use the product they just bought from you. Remind them of additional benefits that they might not have known about or remembered before they bought the product.

Second, remind them of complimentary products that work well with the product they bought.
This is huge. Remember that people usually don't know your product anywhere near what you know about it. They are looking to you to help them and educate them.

If you have another product that works great with the product they bought already or that will enhance the product they bought, share that with them. Let them know the additional benefits to using that products also. Offer a special discount because they bought the first product.

Most business owners don't think about the fact that as long as what you have is of great value, your customers will want to buy your additional products as long as they make sense for them. Too many small businesses could easily increase sales just by letting people know about some of the products that they tend to forget to share with their customers.

Third, remind your customers of maintenance or renewable products.
What do I mean by this? Let's say you sell a nutrition product that is usually a month's supply. Many customers will still forget to purchase more when they run out. We're all busy. I do it all the time.

If you can call them or email them and give them an easy way to re-order, you've just saved them from running out of your product and you've made and easy sale at the same time.

Put your customers on a calendar so you know to email, call or mail out a direct mail piece in plenty of time to remind them to place their order before they run out.

Remember that as long as you provide great value and your customers are happy with your products, it's easy to sell them on additional products as long as it helps them save time, use the product better or most importantly, solves a problem they have. It's your responsibility to educate them on what you have to offer. They will never buy from you if they don't know you offer that product of service.

Making The Most Of Local Networking To Market Your Business

As a Small Business, networking with other businesses should be one of the top ideas in your marketing mix. Networking is one of the easiest and cheapest ways to get your company's name out in front of your community.

Networking events like your Chamber Of Commerce and local networking or leads groups are a great way to find prospects, partners and potentially even a built in sales force very quickly if you keep just a few basic rules in mind.

1. Build Your Image - Look the Part
First impressions do count. Your first impression will last for years to come and can either work in your favor or against you. Shorts and flip flops aren't the best dress to impress new people on your professionalism and skills (unless you work for a travel agency specializing in Bahama cruises, then it might just be perfect)

2. Be Proactive
Be proactive and find people to come up and introduce yourself to. Other people there are doing the same thing you are...Trying to get new business and meet new people.

Don't be afraid to walk up and say hi.

3. Ask, Don't Just Tell
Remember this is a two way street. If someone asks what you do, go ahead and tell them about your products and services.  Then... Ask about what they do. What's their business? Let them talk about their business and educate you about who their perfect customer is.

I see it all the time where someone shows up to an event and all they want to do is talk about themselves and how you NEED their product. They never seem to care about anyone else. Once they are done talking about their product, they just want to move on to someone else and repeat the same pitch.

This doesn't give you a good impression to others.

4. Business Cards - The Must Haves!
Be sure to get your business cards printed before you go to any networking event. Make sure that you bring plenty of cards. Business cards are cheap. You don't want to be embarrassed when someone asks for a business card you have to say "Sorry I just ran out."

Also, be sure to get cards from everyone you meet. It doesn't matter if you are just starting your business or have been in business for years, you need to always be building your rolodex of contacts.

5. Wear a Name Badge
Many people hate name badges but this is one of the most important items you can have for your networking. First off, people will feel more comfortable with you if they see your name. Second, as you go to more events, people will forget your name. It's just a fact of life. BUT, they will feel more at ease when they come up and see your name on your badge. This will encourage them to come back over to you and talk to you. Nothing is more embarrassing than forgetting someone's name and trying to have a conversation with them. Help others feel at ease and encourage them to come back and talk to again. This is what builds the relationship.

6. Follow Up Is The Key
So what do you do with all those cards after the event?

Get them in a Contact Management System and follow up!

It doesn't matter if you use Outlook, ACT or any other system out there. You just want to get them in the system so you have a quick way to access all those contacts quickly in the future.

The important thing is to follow up quickly with them.

You should follow up via email, or phone call within the next 1-3 days at most. Make it a priority.

7. Show Up Early, Stay Late
Show up early to any event that you going to. This gives you the most chance of getting to know a few people before the crowds get there.

Stay late. Some of the best connections are made at the very end of an event. You get the people that are more dedicated (like yourself) and you can build strong relationships in a first meeting with someone this way.

8. Be Consistent
Don't just got to an event or group once and expect to make a difference. You need to show up more than once. Show people you are dedicated. Show them that you aren't a fly by night. Some groups will take a few meetings for them to even feel that they can trust you. Schedule it like any other appointment you might have and dedicate yourself to it.

In Conclusion

Using Networking can be one of the most important parts of your marketing mix. I've seen my own company grow from 15 clients to over 300 clients mostly directly because of networking. It's the best way a new business can get involved and get exposure without spending a lot of money.

Just keep these guides in mind as you are making your way to each event in order to get the most out of every event you go. Remember, you'll get out of it what you put in to it.