With uncertainty a consistent factor, embracing the unknown as an opportunity and turning it into a strategy could open up some interesting possibilities.

If losing money wasn’t a factor and if losing customers wasn’t a factor, would you be doing anything differently? Could you be doing anything differently to attract and win new business?

Throw out “this is the way we do things around here” and let’s reassess new business development and the customer relationship in Corona. Here are three things to get your started:

It’s not about you

You may have recently acquired a new press, and/or new finishing equipment, and/or new add-on marketing technology to offer. You can spend time doing research and prospecting for new customers who can benefit from all of that, and you should! You made your purchases to differentiate yourself and help customers achieve success with their marketing. So, are you?

‘Data for Decisions’ is my mantra for 2021 – and it’s now yours. Qualifying and quantifying every dollar spent with you and formulating that information into repeatable business results for customers is the fastest way to a ‘yes’.

Capabilities are super important and help you present more options for execution – just keep in mind that speaking about that in the ‘pitch’ makes it about you. Focusing on how you help customers make money regardless which press it ran on, makes your conversation about them.

Selective services

Professional print buyers are working remote and from the people I have been speaking with through my relationship with the Advertising Production Club of NYC, that isn’t changing anytime soon. This situation presents some challenges and opens up some doors for new conversations.

Here are some issues that have been shared with me: Can’t get in touch with their team, can’t get access to the files they need, information and files being emailed by numerous people out of sequence and more difficult to keep things organised, not sure if their vendors are at work, not sure who to get paper samples from, having proofing issues and incurring additional expenses for multiple proofs and overnight shipping, estimates taking a long time, general job communication is less frequent.

Perhaps there is a way you can swoop in with solutions. What services can you create to help remote buyers with any of those issues?

Take me to your leader

I recently presented Content for Conversions for #GirlsWhoPrint Fierce, Fabulous Fridays and I focused on developing a personal brand and building a quality community around your products and services to communicate with.

Content supports your data for decision prospecting strategy and can help you build an audience around topics that enforce your ability to produce, track and report business results. Content can come in many forms: website information, how you describe what you do and who you help, testimonials, tweets, social media re-sharing, company information on social platforms… to name a few.

Then there is content in the form of the actual marketing you do for your business and the content included in conversations you have about how you help customers make money and/or achieve the business goals they set.

So, be a resource; be a beacon of hope that help is a click or call away. Be a thought leader on every vertical you service and an idea generator to help businesses achieve their results.

This is going to take time

Plant the content and communication seeds now, cultivate your audience, and both could grow into business opportunities. There is no longer a fast pass for success. If you need help, get in touch and we will figure it out.

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