After you've completed your goal-setting activities, you'll need to start thinking about how you'll demonstrate that you're working toward your objectives. When it comes to expanding your business and ensuring the correct market mix, there are four things you should be doing weekly (if possible, daily) to keep it growing.

You might be wondering why we do it on a weekly basis. Why not do it on a monthly basis? Or how about every three months? To be honest, if you want to observe a patterned growth that can be predicted for future goals, you should practice these at least regularly. Otherwise, it leaves a lot of gaps in the method as time goes on, and you'll miss opportunities more frequently if you don't check-in on a regular basis.

PROSPECTING FOR NEW CLIENTS/CONNECTING WITH THEM

This may appear to be a no-brainer, but is it? As you know, getting your product or service out there so that your niche client sees you takes a lot of effort. The important thing is to keep doing it once your doors are open. It doesn't have to be long; 15 minutes a day might be spent on social media, cold pitching a new vendor/client, or simply attending a breakfast networking event every now and then. These are all fantastic opportunities to broaden your horizons and meet new people.

If you need help implementing it, there are a lot of great "systems" out there to help you.

KEY TO KEEPING YOUR EXISTING CLIENT RELATIONSHIPS WARM

Taking the time to think about it and putting it into action will pay off in the end. Email marketing, special promos, thank you parties for certain groups of clients - the sky is the limit when it comes to keeping your relationships warm. This doesn't have to be expensive though – it may be as easy as sending a personal email to a client to let them know they're appreciated to "customer appreciation" events. These remind your clients that you value not only their money and time, but that they have also added value to your business - after all, you wouldn't be where you are now if it weren't for their comments and opinions!

MEDIA RELATIONSHIPS: ENGAGING RELATIONSHIPS

Now, I don't just mean "put an ad in the paper," I mean having meaningful talks with their marketing teams to see if there are any chances that have gone unnoticed (sometimes they will strike a deal if there are costs applicable).

They also have a lot of connections that could aid you with branding updates and other things if you're not happy with your present providers. If they perceive a need, they may also share your business with their network, making this a mutual partnership.

BUILDING A REFERRAL LIST

This is mentioned briefly in your talks with the media and in keeping your conversations with your present customers warm, but what damage can it do to ask for referrals from your current client base? What about commissions? Does it make sense to use Affiliate Status to monetize your referrals?

It's a smart approach to tap into their existing network of contacts to broaden your reach – and you can repay the favor as time goes on, creating a symbiotic growth and exchange relationship.

It never hurts to give more support to local businesses (especially during a crisis) in order to keep them open, and to keep asking and sharing in return as you acquire clientele.

IS THAT THE END OF IT?

No, that isn't it, but it is for now – let's face it, by doing these steps every week, you are not only helping to keep your business top of mind, but you are also opening up opportunities to monitor and track the various niches in case one was missed, as well as identifying where you need to put more effort/time into related to your marketing in order to ensure that these conversations flow frequently and with favors returned.

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Salty Red Dog Marketing, LLC is a marketing agency in Red Bank, NJ, Westport, CT, and everywhere in between. We service businesses with marketing strategies, digital marketing, social media, and consultations.

Contact: info@saltyreddogmarketing.com

Phone: NJ: (732) 802-6205 // CT: (203) 429-9671