How to attract more customers to your business

Developing and implementing a strategy to support your small business will give you a better picture of what you want to achieve and help you build a roadmap for success. In this guide, we will look at some of the critical elements needed to develop your business strategy to increase your customer base.

Where do you visualise your business being in one, three, or five years? It is an interesting question, and the more detail you can provide in your answer, the better chance you will have of achieving your goals.

Suppose you are thinking of starting a new business or have just started on a new business journey. In that case, we will share a few practical tips on how to grow your business on a small budget so that you can still compete with the more prominent players – you need to think smarter and act quicker on your decisions.

How do I make my business grow faster?

1. Get to know your customers

Understand your customer’s needs and develop products and services that meet those needs. You can gain insights into your customers by personalising your services and then encouraging them to provide you with feedback to enhance your service proposition further.

2. Offer excellent customer service

not only remember excellent service but engage in repeat purchases. They will also be more likely to refer other people to you through word of mouth or social media pages and groups. Please encourage them to post positive reviews on your social media platforms and Google reviews, which will generate great (and free!) PR that will attract potential new buyers to your store.

3. Nurture existing customers and look for new opportunities

Have strategies in place to nurture existing customers. For example, stay in contact with them via an e-newsletter or let them know about promotional events, exclusive discounts or free product samples ahead of time, which would appeal just to them!

At the same time, look for opportunities to get more work and build your customer base. Make sure you find the right balance between nurturing customers and finding new ones.

4. Choose a functional website with a simple design

Many start-ups believe that their customers will not take their business seriously if they do not have their website professionally designed. However, around 84% of today’s consumers think a website makes your business more credible than those who only have social media profiles.  

Getting a professional to custom design your website can be expensive. Still, there are some very reasonably priced and good quality websites which you can create yourself at low cost with little or no design experience.

You can start with a ready-made free or premium WordPress theme for a fraction of a price. Below are a few moderately priced and easy to build websites you might want to consider using.

5. Use social media

Social media is a powerful tool for promoting your business to potential customers and gaining valuable insight through ‘social listening’. Through social listening, you can find out what customers are saying about you, gain insight into their behaviour, identify keywords and trends that appeal to your target market and improve your customer service. As a result, social media can help you build your business profile and attract new customers.

6. Attend networking events

Invest time to build your network. Look for various groups that will introduce you to many local business owners to collaborate and create new exciting working relationships. Networking allows you to build mutually beneficial relationships with other like-minded businesspeople creating repeat referral opportunities.

7. Host events

Yes, it may take a lot of money, planning and effort, but you could reap the benefits of greater brand awareness, deeper connections with your customers, and a real standout from your competitors. Invite your best customers and encourage them to bring friends along and business connections to widen your customer base.

8. Give back to your community

When businesses help other people, those people tend to want to support the company in return. Giving back improves a company’s image in the eyes of community members and results in a better place to live and work. Fixing up local parks, painting or repairing schools provide better and safer places to learn and play. Again, posting on your social media platforms will project the “people side” of your business, which will help you make sound and relevant connections.

9. Measure what works and refine your approach as you go

You should monitor where your customers are coming from to measure whether a marketing activity has been successful or not. Do not be afraid to experiment. Refine your approach if something is not working and focus more time on the activities that achieve the best results.

Who will be my business customers?

To understand how to meet your customer’s needs better, some businesses closely monitor their customer relationships to identify ways to improve service and products. As a result, your business treats its customers can give you a natural competitive edge over the bigger players.

How do I compete with my competitors?

If you succeed to beat your competition, you will increase your market share. If you have more market share, you will have more customers, bringing you higher sales and profit. To maintain this profit cycle, you must know your competitors. Find out who they are, what they are offering, and their strengths and weaknesses. This will help you identify the key areas you should target to make yourself more attractive and distinguish yourself from the competition.

How can I then beat the competition?

Your competitors will also look over their shoulder at their market rivals. Businesses that plan for growth are more successful than those that standstill. Keep up with developments in your sector, follow consumer trends, invest in new technology.

Can small businesses be more effective than larger companies?

Absolutely! There are several reasons why small businesses are likely to deliver better customer service than a large company, as you are likely to have a closer relationship with your customers. Therefore, better insights into your customer base require fewer resources to learn what they want to meet their expectations.

You are likely to be more flexible when reacting to downturns or changing your product range(s) as consumer preferences change or reduce. You should spot new trends earlier and standardise your operating procedures. Above everything else, trust is probably the most valuable asset that a business can possess. If you do not have that, then you are unlikely to survive.

Your Business Plan Accountant in London

Whether they are early shoots or well established, all businesses may require funding or need to attract angel investors and new stakeholders at some point. An expert business plan allows you to see if the idea can be profitable and allows a bank or any other lending provider to understand your idea of how the business is shaping itself for the future with the ultimate aim of securing funding.

We have a team of highly qualified business plan writers with years of experience helping small business owners create a professional and bespoke business plan and financial forecasts to achieve their goals. So why not get in touch to find out more.