While the effects of the pandemic are still causing problems throughout the states and the world, becoming stagnant is never a viable option for any business. Companies all over the world experienced all-time highs and all-time lows. It was due largely to the restriction on normal business activities, loss of clients, and want of new projects that some businesses were not able to make it. 

With travel being limited, traditional business development activities were severely constrained, even halted. Because of that, companies had to resort to video conferencing, social media and other new digital platforms to conduct marketing and business development strategies. If the importance and dominance of digital marketing were not obvious then, it is certainly undeniable now.

While the medium for marketing has changed, what remains the same is the importance of providing value to win and retain clients. How do you make value? Here are 3 ways you can.

Strengthen your client base

Because businesses juggled many legislations and guidelines promulgated last year, not much attention was given to anything else. Growth was a faraway concept that could be achievable in a faraway timeline. As the economy will start to recover from the past years’ heavy restrictions, you need to strengthen the relationship you have with your current clients. After all, a good client base will be the key to bring in new business. 

If you have a website, blog, social media, or you just happen to have their email, use any communication method you have to reach out to them and don’t let them forget your services. Remind them of what you currently offer or inform them of any new ones. 

Losing your connection with clients will usually cause them to look for other providers, simply because they don’t know if you are offering the services they seek. Don’t assume that your clients actually remember your last pitch to them, especially when they did not need it yet. Giving little reminders will go a long way, who knows you might be offering something they just happen to be looking for. Write a blog. Send a newsletter. Stay connected.

Improve client experience

They say that a sure way to accomplish a task is to reduce the friction between you and the task. Make sure you are providing clients a channel to easily communicate with you. Provide them with ease of access to information and ensure an easy avenue where they can find you.

You could create a chatbox on the company website where clients can easily ask their questions and may be referred to company advisors when it involves complicated matters. You can also provide your clients with information regarding matters they care about in blog posts or social media. To encourage your clients to visit and use your website, consider its layout and interface, and user experience. Is it easy to use? Available for mobile? The more approachable and useable the site is the more traffic it will attract which in turn could translate to real-life contracts. 

Try recapturing campaigns

Some potential clients don’t become actual clients. There will be inquiries and some will even avail of your website’s free content, but they don’t end up engaging your services. You will even have old clients who will ghost you. Test out a recapturing campaign. It is designed to rekindle inactive subscribers or clients’ interests. Instead of a generic follow-up email, try a special recapture offer or message that targets inactive subscribers directly.

Through a little digging around, here are 3 recapture messages that work:

1. Offering Solutions. When clients want to engage services, it’s usually because they want to solve a problem. Show that you have a special understanding of their problem and how you can provide the solution.
2. Offering Incentive. Freebies are the way to any customer’s heart. Offer incentives such as a free 30-minute consultation, throw in a free eBook, or an invitation to a webinar. This will surely get their attention.
3. Testimonial and Client Feedback. When you want to buy something online where you can’t see the product for yourself, the first place you scroll down to is the comment section where previous customers have rated and shown their own picture of the product. You can talk about what makes your company great, but nothing beats the testimony of your other client’s success. 

Surviving the pandemic was hard but who’s to say surviving the aftermath won’t be harder? As we gear towards the future, we are now operating in a world that is forever changed. We need to be deliberate in the things that we do. Maintain a constant effort to be aware about your business development strategies and implementation. We could just come out of this pandemic in one piece and continue to grow.