Focus On Improving

So you're sitting there thinking of ways to drum up new business. You're doing all the "traditional" stuff and you've even taken a stab at some of this web 2.0 marketing stuff that people seem to be talking about. And yet still, you sit there wondering... 

Growing up my parents and godfather would always say, "you can do better!" They didn't say to be harsh or cruel. They said it so that I could continually challenge myself to do better. And I did. I consistently challenged myself in finding ways to improve in all aspects of life. 

What's the point of all of this?

Being self-employed can often be challenging. Especially when you're going it solo (with no mentors, advisors or partners to see you through). Sometimes, it's not the market or economy that sucks; it's you. People are still making buying decisions day-in and day-out; they're just being more selective. So what can YOU do to stay top-of-mind and influence people's buying behavior so that they purchase from you? Focus on improving! 

• Improve Your Product: are there things about it that customers don't like? Can you fix it to make it better?   

• Improve Your Customer Service: do you want people to evangelize your product/service? Then remember this, it's ALL about the experience! If you improve your customer service, you'll increase your client retention and create better word-of-mouth.     

• Improve Your Delivery: your product sure does have some nice features. But why should I buy it from you and not the next guy? Give me a compelling reason to buy from you and maybe I will. 

There's more you could do I'm sure so please feel free to add to the list. And speaking of lists, here's a great one to follow by Chris Brogan: "10 Things You Can Do Better Today" 

[Flickr Photo by: gutter]

Comments

[Brad Shorr]

Hi Rick, We were talking about this just now on Twitter ... a company could improve its marketing. I've been quite busy lately because companies are starting to place a higher priority on sharpening their message and making sure people see it. Social media, in your words, is high impact, low cost marketing. In the b2b world, printed brochures, advertisements in trade journals, and the like, are more and more being seen as low impact, high cost.

[HeyStephanie]

I like the fact that you added, "Improve Your Product" to the list. I'd expand upon this in that companies need to gauge the voice of their customers first to understand how they can improve their product to meet the needs of their customers. I've witnessed a lot of companies that jump the gun and launch new features without assessing whether or not it actually helps their customers. Some times it's not all about new features with all the bells and whistles but making sure the basic features are fully functional.

[Ricardo Bueno]

@Brad Shorr: a company could always improve it's marketing image (it's brand). Especially online when things move as fast as they do, you need to be responsive and alert and deliver a top-notch performance.

@HeyStephanie: hiya! I couldn't have gone without adding that to the list. And I agree with the rest of your statement. You can't just keep adding features and think that that's it. That's all you have to do to create a product evangelist out of your customers. "Listen" to what they have to say about your product first, and focus on changing that before you go on and add new features.