The Laws of Attraction
By Alan Rosenspan, Alan Rosenspan & Associates

In the last article, we talked about the importance of protecting your customers in these difficult economic times.

Many companies do; most companies don’t.

That means that the bad economy may actually afford you an opportunity to attract more customers away from your competition. Customers who were previously satisfied with less - are now asking for more.

And when they do, you can be right there to catch them. How can you do that?

1. Add value. Think of ways you can add value to your product or service that your competition doesn’t have. Let me give you an example: Many companies use an automated inter-active phone system. “Press one to get more information. Press two for a brochure. Press three for…”

Companies love them because they save money. Consumers hate them. So several companies – such as Capital One - have actually included “talk to a live person” as a benefit of their product.

But doesn’t it cost more? Southwest Airlines has always resisted the temptation to cut costs on customer service. When you call, you always speak to a live person. Funny how they are always one of the only airlines to make a profit.

2. Look for stronger offers. In bad economic times, the temptation is to cut back on offers.

That’s the wrong place to save money.

Suppose your company is offering a free report or white paper. Some bright young marketing person might suggest that instead of a written report, you offer it only as a PDF (“Just think of all the money we’ll save on printing and postage!)

Yes, you will. However, a few other things will also happen:

(A) The weaker offer will reduce response. And these days, you just can’t afford to lose a single good lead.

(B) Without a real document in their hands, the person who responds will have a harder time convincing their boss, or even their spouse, to purchase your product.

And (C) You have lost the opportunity for your information to be placed in a file, which they can go back to when they are ready to buy (and this might be in several months.)

3. Measure everything you do. And then do more of what works. In a difficult economy, it becomes even more important to know the Return-on-Investment on every marketing dollar you spend.

Sure, that giant billboard looks great – but can we quantify how many extra sales it produces?

Maybe that same amount of money would be better invested in an e-mail campaign. Direct mail is working well? Great, let’s find more lists to mail to, or mail more frequently.

4. Cherry-pick your prospects. You may not be able to afford to market to everyone - so make sure you are marketing to prospects with the highest potential.

Can you select those prospects that might spend more on your products or services? Is there any way you can target your competition’s best customers?

Finally, one of the best ways to attract new customers is to ask your existing customers for referrals. It’s also one of the most cost-effective ways.

---Source: Alan Rosenspan, president of Alan Rosenspan and Associates. Email him at ARosenspan@aol.com.