Business Development Series

Develop Your Strategies to Target New Market and Attract Clients

Determining how to attract new clients and diversify a client base is an issue that businesses both large and small typically must contemplate at various stages of their development.

Marketing and innovation two key factors when it comes to seizing the initiative. Sometimes it may simply be a matter of getting your name out there, however for full effect this will need to be done so in a targeted manner, while innovation can take many forms, including modifying business operations, from minor tweaks through to major changes.

MARKETING: KNOWING YOUR CUSTOMERS
Of course, knowing your customers is a fundamentally good business practice, and can act as a springboard for the development and implementation of business planning.

This sort of knowledge commonly falls under the banner of market research, and may well help to identify areas of your business that will benefit from further attention – while using this knowledge as the basis for a marketing plan can help to formally articulate strategies and goals.

As advised via the business.gov.au website, marketing can help to “reach your target audience, boost your customer base and ultimately increase your bottom line”.

Putting together a marketing plan can provide a range of benefits, with business. gov.au noting that it helps business to:
• Identify a target market and develop an understanding of how a product or service meets client needs
• Identify competitors and what targeted customers think about their strengths and weaknesses
• Position a brand, products and services so that a targeted market views a business as better than, or different from, the competition
• Set specific, measurable goals, along with time frames for marketing activities
• Develop a strategy to reach a target audience, including the messages, channels and tools to be used

On this last point, it is certainly worthwhile looking into how a website and social media platforms can be utilised to build a business presence and potentially target new customers. Further information on how to put together a marketing plan can be found at the business.gov.au website.

INNOVATION: IMPLEMENTING CHANGES
Innovation is a very broad concept and can be applied across many facets of business operations – and, in seeking to expand and improve your range of services and in turn grow your client base, it is worthwhile canvassing a range of ideas.

It may simply be a matter of analysing your business processes and considering different measures to make these processes more efficient, which may potentially range from implementing new work procedures to adopting new technology.

By way of example, businesses that have been proactive in integrating digital technologies are likely not only reaping the benefits of more accurate and efficient operations, but are also better positioned to adopt future technology developments.

From the introduction of new processes, to the development of new products and services, adopting an innovative approach could potentially help grow your client base – and being responsive to what is happening at both an industry-specific and broader level can help businesses maintain a competitive edge.

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