To quote Smart Marketing Blog – “Cold-calling makes you a commodity” .
So here, in part 3 of my blog series on avoiding cold-calling, are their number 3 & 4 tips:
3. Strategic partnerships
“This is one way you can maintain contact with your clients, even when they aren’t ready to buy. By establishing a network of professionals in various business sectors, that you trust and to whom you have no problem sending work, you can leverage those respective relationships to increase your brand’s value. You can become a connector with the sole purpose of making business easier for your clients. Done right, it’s a two-way partnership. Because every time those clients need the services you offer. they are far more likely to refer you. It pays to be thinking about other service providers, not just your own business, when you meet potential clients.
4. Referral rewards
There is nothing more powerful than testimonials and word-of-mouth recommendations. Frankly, they’re more effective than any paid-for advertising. If you have a solid product and loyal customers, offering referral rewards to those clients to help spread your brand awareness will work wonders. Empower your current customers to be your advocates. Give them the opportunity to tell their friends and family about your business. And when they do, and when you close that sale, give your customers a percentage of that new sale. Because remember, you wouldn’t have had it if they didn’t make that referral. When you do this, you’re expanding your network so your brand is exposed to new paying clients. And with every client, you’re exponentially increasing your revenue potential. Concerned about losing 20 percent of a sale? Don’t be. 80 percent is better than zero percent, right? And remember, whatever you are doing on the marketing front, you can engage in social conversations on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Quora, comment on blogs and even interact on YouTube and Flickr with people of the same interests and link them in ways never before possible. Proactively seek conversations between users in your industry, in your region, in your city. These are the people you want to connect with. These are the people that’ll help you grow your business by connecting you with new business opportunities.”
Which of these, if any, are you currently working on in your business?