Making Sales When Times Are Tough
Making sales is hard enough work when things are going well. But what about when you and your customers are facing tough times? Then, it becomes even more challenging.
When faced with cyberattacks, global pandemics, and climate change-induced supply chain worries, you need to have a plan in place to make sure your business doesn’t just survive but can thrive.
Making sales is hard enough work when things are going well but it becomes even more challenging when you're facing tough times Share on X
Staying Positive Even When Things Don’t Look Good
Before you get to strategies and tactics to help your business stay afloat, it’s important to have the right mindset to face challenges. If you suffer from negative thinking, low confidence, high-stress levels, or a “can’t do” attitude, now is the time to fix them.
A positive attitude is essential when faced with challenging times. You need to look forward with optimism and focus on the glass being half full rather than half empty. You must be open to growth and ready to learn from difficulties if you want to face them appropriately.
A positive attitude is essential when faced with challenging times. You need to look forward with optimism and focus on the glass being half full rather than half empty... Share on X
Treat Your Customers Like Gold
A major challenge during tough times is customer acquisition. When things are tight, people aren’t looking for new businesses to buy from. Instead, they’ll be relying on the businesses they know and trust.
This is why it’s important to work on building strong relationships. Customer retention is much more cost-effective than new customer acquisition, so focus on growing your brand, offering a great customer experience, and providing as much value as possible. If you have a loyal fan base, they’ll stick with you when things are rough.
Use Your Sales Resources Wisely
When you’re going through hard times, you may find that your regular sales activities were more unnecessarily costly than you realized. As part of your planning, look for areas you can trim. Try to make the best use of your time and other resources on sales activities that get results.
One way to do this is to focus on inbound rather than outbound marketing. Outbound means going out and getting new business by creating opportunities to talk to potential customers. Inbound lets them come to you. With inbound, you create helpful content and offer it for free to the public. This draws people back to your business.
Put content out there to engage your audience and it will help you keep bringing new leads into your marketing when your resources are limited.
Put content out there to engage your audience and it will help you keep bringing new leads into your marketing when your resources are limited. Share on X
Focus on Two-Way Communication
Starting today, build good two-way communication with your audience. Keep in steady contact with them, helping them solve their problems and gaining valuable feedback from them. Use what you learn to make even better and more valuable offers that will make a change in their lives. With this good communication in place, you’ll be able to spot trends and threats before they’re upon you.
Are you worried about the tough times the future may bring? Stop worrying today and prepare your business so that it will not only survive but thrive in hard times. If you need help mastering your marketing in tough times then download our Report/Workbook to help you prepare.
