http://www.chrispattas.com The 7 things any business should be doing to achieve customer growth.

1. How To Grow
Your Business
By Chris Pattas

2. There are 7
ways to
grow your
business
First make sure you...
Know your purpose,
Understand your industry
Define your competitive advantage
Choose your target market
2

3. 1. Retention & Repeat Business
• Are you growing your “share of wallet”?
• Have you implemented a loyalty
program?
• Are you developing great relationships
with your existing customers?
• Do you know why customers keep doing business with
you?
• Do you have an integrated account management process
or retention strategy and incentive program.
• Do you have a regular digital newsletter or seminar?
3

4. 2.Acquisition or Partnering
• Have you identified other businesses
you could synergistically acquire or
partner with?
• Have you thought about vertical
integration?
• Do you spend time at board level
identifying and developing strategic
partnerships?
• Do you have an active engagement
program with potential partners?
4

5. 3. Referrals from Existing Clients
• Word-of-mouth referrals are the
easiest way to grow your business
• Do you have a process or system
in place to encourage referrals
from existing customers?
• Do you have a customer database
that can be segmented and analyzed
for potential referrals?
• What is the nature of your recognition or reward program?
• Have you reviewed all your customer contact points for referral
potential?
5

6. 4. Referrals from Trusted Partners
• Word-of-mouth referrals are the easiest way to
grow your business
• Do you have a process or system in place to
encourage referrals from partners?
• Accountants, lawyers, financial advisers, IT providers
and other trusted service providers can become a
great source of new business if this process is
nurtured
• What is the nature of your recognition or reward
program?
• Do you have a methodology where trusted service
providers find it easy and natural to refer customers
to you?
6

7. 5. Search
• Traditionally, people used
directories to search for businesses.
These days most people search for
information and businesses using
search engines like Google andYahoo.
• Do you have a website optimized for
search (SEO)? Does it have a blog
or news channel?
• Are you leveraging social media? Are you accessing the millions of
people using LinkedIn, Facebook,Twitter,YouTube, Pinterest every day?
• Do you have a PR strategy and process? Is it working? Do you have
interesting and rich content you can adapt for multiple channels?
• Do you have a process to leverage trade shows and other conference
events? Do you participate in digital events?
7

8. 6. Outbound Targeting
• Are you successful at cold-calling?
• Do you use the telephone, email and
traditional mail to reach new prospects?
• Do you outsource or insource
your lead generation from your call
and mailing lists?
• Are you using LinkedIn to reach the
millions of professionals who search for information every day?
• Do you have a call or email script that has a high conversion rate?
• Do you have well trained professionals who create a compelling
environment for new customers to try your product or service?
• Do you ignore the prospects who have said “no” or do you have a
good lead nurturing program?
8

9. 7. Inbound Promotions
• How many different advertising channels do you use?
• Do you have different messages? Is the
call-to-action compelling?
• If you use Google Adwords and Adsense, do
you review your keywords and analytics
regularly? Are you advertising on Facebook for B2C and LinkedIn for
B2B markets?
• Are your digital banners effective? Do your landing pages work well?
• Don’t believe all the fear about traditional media. If used correctly and
as part of an integrated strategy, traditional media can cut through to
new markets and deliver you an excellent ROI.
• Are you selective about the print media you use? Do you prefer radio
or outdoor advertising? How about the local newspapers or magazines?
Is the message consistent and targeted?
9

10. Helping business owners & leaders
achieve their vision & objectives...
www.chrispattas.com