One of the most difficult concepts for small businesses who are looking to grow is where to find their customers. Some businesses have a niche customer, one who just needs some prompting to choose them. Other customers are fickle and may opt to stay with a brand through habit or the apathy that comes with trying to change something.
But, nobody is tethered to a brand forever and there are ways in which newer businesses on the market can attempt to take their customers from other businesses - especially if you suit that customer better than their current provider. So how can you make yourself more appealing than your competitors?
Give Customers a Better Deal
No customer is fully committed to their current brand and if you can only make them a better offer, you might have a chance at securing them as your customer. This ranges from the casual to the more intensive service provided. Look at mortgages, for example. Very few people stay with the same mortgage provider throughout their mortgage term.
Trussle tells us that one of the main reasons for looking to remortgage is that a better deal can be found elsewhere. Indeed, if something as seemingly set in stone as a mortgage can lure customers to opt for a new provider, then surely the more casual brand customers can easily be swayed. Telecoms providers are another key example in this area: Sky and Virgin both provide tantalising deals reflective of what their customers may want and what motivates the change in order to poach customers from their competitors.
Be More Aligned with Customer Views
The customer is an elusive creature and one whose passions and motivations constantly change. As we power through 2019, environmental concerns are high up on many consumers' lists and people are looking to shop local and to think green when they make purchases more and more. So, if your business has a way of showing customers that you care about what they care about - whether that means links to a particular charity, or commitment to the planet, Fairtrade or even animal rights, then you may speak to the conscientious consumers.
Toms didn't gain popularity as footwear options because they were hardy shoes, they did so because the espadrilles provided shoes for others with every pair bought. As societal concerns trickle into the world of business, showing that you have morals and values that other people respect encourages them to choose you over another brand, as a guilt-free option that chimes with their principles.
Finding customers isn't as difficult as you might think and no matter how saturated the market seemingly is, there are always options that consumers will prefer. Whether this motivates their head through how much better a deal you can offer them or their heart with how you can be their link to making a positive impact, you can attempt to find some customers who many would consider to have already settled with a brand of choice.
