Operating a business in the 2020s is far different than it was back in the ’90s. Customers want more than just a chipper salesman with a silver tongue. They want an expert they can turn to for every problem they have within your niche.
How do you become that “go-to expert” for your customers, though? Well, it starts with adopting five simple mindsets and acting on them with your marketing plans.
If you get these basic concepts down, your business should almost immediately see noticeable hikes in its conversion rate.
1: The Entrepreneur’s Mindset
Whether you’re starting with your own business or working on your own as part of a larger group, it’s easy to become a bit sheepish and play follow the leader with your peers. After all, the people around you have been doing your job for longer, so why wouldn’t you learn something from them and enjoy the same success?
The short answer is market saturation. It would help if you stood out and your peers have already covered the customer experience they’re offering. If you follow suit, you risk blending in with everyone else and competing for sales.
Start planning out what YOU want and how YOU want to brand yourself. You’re a unique business professional with unique ideas, and if you embrace that, you’ll have something unique to offer. This cements your place in whatever industry you’re dealing with, and customers learn to see you as an expert in your niche; rather than just another person offering a service.
2: Stay in the Customer’s Vision
You can’t rely on your previous customer engagement being memorable to funnel referrals and repeat business. You have to keep your customers aware that you exist and communicate with them.
Get into the swing of posting to social media, crafting more personal emails, and contacting past customers regularly to stay within their awareness. When you do this, your previous customers will likely come back as needed, and they’ll refer their friends and peers to you even when they don’t need your services themselves.
3: Serve the Customer
It’s easy to focus on selling as much as possible to the customer, but that doesn’t work anymore. Customers want to gain value from your business outside of purchasing your service, and they want to know you’re knowledgeable about what you’re offering.
The best way to prove this is to offer information for free. For example, WholeFoods doesn’t just sell food; They educate customers on proper eating habits and low-cost buying. This cements their place as experts in the grocery industry, and it builds trust with customers. Sales come naturally after the trust is built.
4: Lead with Information
This ties into number-3 on this list. You want to provide value without promoting yourself or your business directly. Simply providing relevant information to your service sparks interest and builds your reputation as an authority; without coming off as a salesman.
For example, if you’re a digital marketer, you can create videos that show how digital marketing helps businesses succeed. However, you want to disconnect from your company and talk about digital marketing in a more general sense.
5: Community-Driven Actions
Nowadays, people are looking for more than just a good deal. They want to be part of a bigger picture, and they want to support companies that actively participate in the community.
You can show that you care about your local community in several ways, but it has to come off as genuine and meaningful. For example, there’s a well-known law firm in Missouri with an entire web series dedicated to lawyers going to various local sandwich shops. They go in, order their favorite dishes, and talk about the shop while adding humor to the mix.
Participating in the community like this shows you’re more than just a business, keeps you in the public’s eye, and offers value outside of your business. It also boosts local businesses and gives you content for your own social media pages.
Get Started Now
These are all simple practices that provide a significant boon for your business, but they take time to turn into habits rather than one-off PR stunts.
The best way to start benefiting from these tips is to start right now and actively try to commit to each one whenever you can. Eventually, it’ll become second nature, and your business will be better off because of it.