When the economy takes a turn for the worse, it’s easy to blame the recession for your business’s problems, like declining sales and disappearing customers. But an in-depth look at what’s going on in your particular business could show you that the economic downturn is just a mask and that there are other underlying issues to address. It may simply be a case that the novelty of what you offer has worn off, meaning the recession is just an unfortunate coincidence. Here is a brief overview of what to look out for when your cash register stops ringing.
No matter how great the product or service you offer, customers can and do lose interest. Whether you serve individuals or organizations, you need to take a hard look at what else they might be looking to buy and what other demands are on their dollars. If you find that your situation is due more to novelty than what you offer, you should first examine how you can find new markets for your existing offerings. Perhaps some adjustments (changes in color, material, size, or repackaging of a set of services) provide a way to increase dollar flows. By launching what you do into totally untapped markets, you may soon see a surge of dollars in your coffers.
However, if your analysis shows that customers would still like to buy from you, but the price is now too high, then it’s time to see what you can offer to complement what you’ve done for them before; if you run a market research company, for example perhaps offering lower-cost upgrades to previous surveys or, in the case of a fashion retailer, marketing accessories to update clothing a customer bought from you last year or similar initiatives they will provide the ticket to renew your business income.
But if your analysis shows that there are no new markets for your existing offering and no way to add to what you’ve done for customers in the past, then it’s probably time to turn your attention to what’s new you can develop or offer. existing customers. While conducting such business development efforts, even if your previous customers aren’t buying, it’s important to stay in touch through newsletters, emails, or quick phone calls to keep the channels of communication open. That way, when you’re ready to launch the new offering, you’ll already have a target market lined up. Even when the novelty of your previous products or services has worn off, that doesn’t mean the customers you’ve dealt with for years have abandoned you. They may still be very happy doing business with your company, but are looking for something new.
Whether the economy is strong or down, the human quest for novelty is a tremendous driver of many purchasing behaviors and all business owners need to recognize this. After all, it was probably the search for something new that drew customers away from your other vendors and brought them to you in the first place. It is part of human nature to move on; Acknowledging this will serve you well through thick and thin, as you can always stay one step ahead of what’s new.
Copyright Deborah C. Sawyer