As always, there’s no magic fix that works for every business out there. Some of us are gaining, others are losing, and a few are just stuck, wondering, “What on earth is next for us?” It’s all about digging deep into marketing and sales to get the most bang for our buck. Want to save money? You’ll spend time. And vice versa.
Harnessing the Power of CRM Marketing
Remember all that time you spent building your customer base? It’s about to pay off.
Here’s a no-brainer but effective trick when starting a freelance gig or a business: tell everyone in your contact book. The same goes for tough times. Dust off all those contacts, spreadsheets, and CRMs with potential or lost clients.
At the very least, categorize your current and potential clients into ABC groups based on income/significance. And don’t be a stranger! Reconnect, send out newsletters and make special offers.
You can upload your client database to Google/Facebook and run ads. Remember, it’s easier (and cheaper) to keep a client than to find a new one.
Reach out with your client’s interest in mind, not just because you’re having a hard time and need to make a quick sale. Everyone’s cutting costs — including on your products or services.
If your records are a hot mess, that’s still better than nothing. But it’s time to get organized.
Marketing Analytics: Time to Dive Deep
You can pull quite a bit from something as simple as Google Analytics on your site, covering advertising channels and SEO. Look at goals, site time, entry and exit pages: all the stuff you might have put off before, it’s “time” now. If you have end-to-end analytics, the idea is the same.
Tasks:
- Advertising equals expenses. Identify and cut the ineffective stuff, keep/boost what works.
- Scrutinize your entire sales funnel, focusing on two metrics: conversion to lead and conversion to sale.
- Dive into multi-channel analytics. Don’t just slash and burn without thinking. You might have the urge to cut everything, but you could end up killing your sales.
Riskier traffic channels and tests are usually first on the chopping block. But hot traffic might get cheaper if competitors are cutting costs. Measure twice, cut once.
Keep a Close Eye on Sales/Sales Department
This is where you often find fatal leaks in your funnels. Analyze customer rejections, new questions, and objections related to the current situation. Have answers ready, and steer the conversation back to business.
No sudden moves. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. Sure, some channels might be off-limits, but they’re still working, right?
Crisis doesn’t bring new tasks to the table, just changes their priority and the resources we can allocate.
As external risks grow, it’s time to minimize the ones inside. The tighter the market and the less money there is, the more precise and calculated your marketing needs to be.
