There’s a very bad smell in the air – I think it’s the economy! But Subway continues to grow and has now passed McDonald’s as the world’s largest fast food chain; iPads are selling so fast they are on back order and people are still queuing up for all sorts of things they really want. This means that in the midst of all this bad economy there are substantial pockets of good economy. The IMF and the government are both predicting growth for this year – they just can’t agree on the figure.
When I talk to clients, who are finding it tough out there, they are quite often only too willing to explore how to get out of the business they are in and into something else which can only be better and certainly no worse that what they are doing at the moment. The problems are:
1. It’s not easy to get out of a business that hasn’t
completely failed
2. It’s not easy to identify the next sure bet.
When I dig deeper they all happily agree that if their business was doing just a little bit better they would be content to hang in there until the general economy improves. If this is the bind you find yourself in, there are some things you can do to improve your personal economy while you’re waiting for the world to catch up. This is what you need to do:
- Decide who your ideal customers are. Draw up a detailed profile.
- Work out the best way to get in front of them, whether it is online, offline, through referrals or direct mail etc.
- Develop a multi step approach to get them to make their first purchase.
- Once you have made the initial sale you must stay in contact with them to create ongoing sales.
If what you’re doing now isn’t working, you need to improve it, tweak it or change it. Remember that “No” usually means “Not now” - this is why you need a multi step approach. And it’s always easier to sell to someone you’ve already sold to.
Go change your economy!