No matter how long you have been in business or how many loyal current customers you have, new clients are the lifeblood of any organization. From people moving for new job opportunities, to layoffs or corporate mergers, the only sure thing in today’s world is change, which could equate to significant attrition from year to year in your customer base unless you have a robust plan for attracting new clients. With this in mind, here are some tactics to consider in developing your new customer acquisition strategies.

1.) Be easy to find and remember. Your advertising and overall marketing efforts will be more effective if you make it a “no-brainer” for a prospect to remember and/or locate your business. Of course a high traffic location and a catchy name would help this a lot, but not every business has or can secure these assets. Nevertheless, your business can still be easy to find and memorable with an intuitive toll-free vanity phone number. Even if the name of your company is somewhat complicated or your location obscure, by focusing on the product or the benefit of your company (ie 1-800-GET-RESULTS or 1-800-MTN-PROP for a realty company) in your vanity phone number and featuring it prominently in all communications, your business is an easy to remember phone call away.

2.) Offer free samples or test drives of your service. A while back I saw an ad displayed on a car offering a free week of Boot Camp exercise classes. I had been curious of this recent phenomenon in work outs and had wanted to try it. The free trial week was all the push I needed. Six months later I am still a paying customer of this fitness company and have promoted it heavily to friends and family.

3.) Reward current customers for referring new customers. As with the example above, it’s natural to recommend a company/product you are pleased with. Offering an incentive for referrals just adds fuel to the fire and turns happy customers into evangelists for your business – increasing word of mouth buzz and lending credibility and support to your overall messaging.

4.) Be the community expert / content provider in your field. These activities ensure extra exposure for your organization, but more importantly they are many times interpreted by a prospect as an endorsement by the hosting group or publication.
• Contact local publications and offer to be an authority reference or to write articles on subject-matter related to your business.
• Make informative presentations to relevant groups in the area to further reinforce your knowledge in your area of expertise.
• Send helpful hint email blasts or offer white papers to prospects on complicated issues related to your business.

5.) Use the web to expand your trading area – especially if you have unique product or service.

6.) Develop a referral program with other businesses in your immediate trading area or with businesses whose products/services are mutually connected with your own (ie construction contractors and hardware stores).

7.) Offer a100% satisfaction guarantee. This removes the biggest roadblock for risk-adverse prospects while simultaneously communicating to everyone in your target group a clear commitment to customer service.