How can a company grow in today’s economy?

When I visit local businesses as a customer and ask, “How’s business?” The answer I hear a lot is, “It’s slow. But what are you going to do? How can you grow a business in this economy?”

It’s a fair question because these are difficult and scary times. The economy is unpredictable, seemingly unstable, and mostly hostile when it comes to owning and operating a small to medium-sized business.

Honestly though, I am completely shocked at how unpredictable, seemingly unstable, and mostly hostile MANY business owners are to their clients, customers, and patients. It’s one of the few things in this world that leaves me completely speechless.

Over the last 12 months I have driven over 15,000 miles on various road trips across the United States. I’ve spent weeks in Seattle, Washington, DC, Vermont, Philadelphia, New York City, and everywhere in between. Along the way I have stopped at thousands of different businesses.

To my amazement, what 80% of these companies had in common was that they showed me how little they cared as a customer. As far as they knew, I was a local resident who was a potential customer for life. It did not matter. They just didn’t care about me. The more the business seemed to depend on location and foot traffic, the more they seemed to treat their customers with disdain and contempt.

Think about it… you’ve had similar experiences in your own community… maybe even today. Unfortunately, those types of businesses are the norm these days.

In many cases, I left without buying anything… even though I had gone with the intention (and the money!) to buy.

As a business growth strategist who has dedicated herself to helping grow businesses, I’m obviously more hypervigilant and sensitive as a client. Regardless, behavior and attitudes that are blatant and obvious to me still register with your clients… at least on an unconscious level.

“To him who watches, everything is revealed.” (Italian proverb) Start taking a closer look when you visit another business as a customer. You’ll see what I’m talking about.

But, if you are really brave, you will look just as carefully at your own business. Observe your staff as they interact with your customers (and each other). Note any subtle “attitude” or general unhelpfulness. Notice any laziness in your lack of resourcefulness and lack of proactivity. Count how many times they say “no” or “sorry we can’t/don’t do that” during one day and one week. Try to witness everything as your customers would. You will learn tones!

Interestingly, all of these companies shared something else in common. When asked how their business was doing… almost all blamed the economy for how bad things were. I guess they also blame the economy for their hostility, rudeness and stinginess towards their customers. They can’t hope to grow your business when your attitude toward your customers drives those customers away.

The lesson here is…until you’re willing to make the best of what little you have now (especially in the way you treat your customers), everything you do to grow your business will only speed up the pace. in which you take your business to the ground.

In a culture where people blame everyone and everything for their problems (sometimes justified, but very often NOT), those business owners who take responsibility for themselves and do the best and most possible with what they have stand out as a sore thumb In a good way!

So how can you grow a business in today’s economy?

Here are some things business owners can do right away to turn things around (without spending a dime):

1) Make it very easy to do business with you.

Don’t miss out on the power and simplicity of this step.

Just this week…while in NYC…I’ve had several run-ins with business owners (as a client) where I left determined to NEVER return. They just made it too hard to do business with!

What do I mean? Well, they only take credit cards if you ask for a certain amount; they only deliver to the street directly adjacent to mine; they only give out a fortune cookie when you ask for a ticket; they treat you like dirt when you try to redeem your Groupon purchase; they take 5 days to reply to your express mail and then they don’t even reply to the specific and clear questions you asked; they charge your credit card and then take 13 days to ship your package (and never respond to your inquiries); etc

See how ridiculously simple and easy it would be to fix each of these? Yet this happens in all industries, all the time. Some of these offenses seem small and petty. But, all of them are significant to potential customers and customers.

Why turn away a customer who would probably order you three times a week just because it’s a block away from your arbitrary delivery zone… especially when you already charge a delivery fee?

Why let customers think you are the cheapest restaurant in town by refusing to give a $0.03 fortune cookie because you ordered an app instead of an entrée? Why place an offer on Groupon and then allow your staff to treat everyone who responds with contempt… making sure they NEVER come back… and making sure they tell everyone they know about their horrible experience? Why knowingly wait forever to reply to an urgent email and then not even answer the questions (or apologize)?

This type of behavior happens EVERY day at far too many companies. It really is disconcerting. Get a grip on this area and you’ll be way ahead of the curve!

2) Do the math before trying to save money in ways that drive away business.

An Asian restaurant near my apartment has the best sesame cold noodles on the planet. I go there 2 or 3 times a day. They have a $10 credit card minimum. The noodles are $5. I don’t like to carry cash and prefer to pay with credit. I currently drop by whenever I have cash and get the $5 noodles to go. (I rarely make a special trip to the ATM for such a purchase.) They have seen me so many times that they start marking my order as soon as I cross the threshold. I explained that I would probably drop by 3-5 times a week (instead of 1-2) if they would let me use my credit card. They refuse because it is “restaurant policy”. It’s crazy.

The problem is that they haven’t done the math. Now I hear many business owners protest: “But they don’t understand! The banks get a cut of every purchase and that cuts into our margins!”

I UNDERSTAND COMPLETEly. What they don’t consider is that if I spend $5 on each of 4 separate visits… and the bank charges 5% per transaction… 95% of $20 is more in your pocket than getting 100% of the $5 or $10 that I have been spending due to your restrictions. In other words, to save a bit on their margins, they keep customers like me from buying more often. They make it harder to do business with them.

Worse yet, they send me away to do business with their competitors. If I had to choose between an independent coffee shop that has a $10 minimum (where I’d have to get cash out every morning) and a chain (like Starbucks or Dunkin Donuts) that would happily accept my credit card for even one donut… Guess which one I (and most of his clients) will choose every time?

I hate jumping through hoops to give them MY money. Other customers do too!

Now, they can keep making excuses about how their business is different because they are not a chain. Bla bla bla. However, they can ask their customers what they want and then sit down and do the math. In most cases, doing the math will show that both the business owner and their customers will benefit. More transactions (however small) that come in because of the ease of doing business with them… add up over time.

Side note: I know this is an area where business owners think they are very savvy and savvy. They think it’s a clever way to force customers to buy more than they would have to to meet the cc minimum. “If I can get them to spend $11 instead of $4, then I’ll have earned an extra $7!” And there may be some fools who fall for this on a regular basis. But, for the most part, these kinds of policies hurt a company. Customers see it as the equivalent of the utter pettiness of being forced to buy a pack of gum or a newspaper at the 7-Eleven just to get $1 change for the parking meter. It’s not a smart move. Everything matters.

If they’re convinced they can’t survive without a minimum of $10…they should empower their staff to accommodate someone like me who OBVIOUSLY likes something they have to offer. Until they do… I assure you that their customers are walking a fine line between loyalty to them… and eventual patronage and loyalty to their competitors. By the time I find another restaurant with delicious sesame cold noodles (and they don’t even have to be that good), that will accept credit cards with no problem, the restaurant I frequent now will NEVER see me again. Think about it.

You can apply this principle to a hundred different areas in your business right away. We all have to watch our margins. Just don’t cut them in a way that scares away your business. Do the math!

3) Ask customers what you can do to get them to come more often, give them a better experience, etc.

It costs nothing to ask and makes customers feel good when asked. The feedback you’ll get could transform your business.

But be careful… you will do tremendous damage to your business if you ask… but then don’t listen or act on the feedback.

If 5 out of 10 of your customers mention that they wish you had lunch specials or flavored coffee…and you don’t create some lunch specials or offer flavored coffee…go ahead and choose a tombstone for your business because it’s just a matter of time. If you are not listening in obvious areas, I assure you that you are guilty of not listening in many other areas as well. But you can be sure that your customers are listening!

Time to act!

Ok, so now you know some answers to “how can you grow a business?” And these strategies won’t cost you a dime. If you’re honest about your business…you know that the steps above are the equivalent of doing the bare minimum of your work as a business owner. Do it and I promise you will be way, way, way ahead of 80% of the companies in your market.

Just as we’ve all experienced unbelievably horrible customer service from other business owners, we’ve also experienced wonderful customer service. Clients do not forget great experiences. They come back and give you more business.

You have a choice every time a customer enters your establishment. Will they leave having had a great experience with you and your staff…or will they leave (with their money still in their wallet) determined never to return…or worse, regretting giving you their money? That power is something that economic changes can NEVER take away from you.

I hope you take this to heart because if you become one of the few businesses in your area that shows how much you care about your customers, you’re sure to get noticed!

Now you’re ready for some “next level” marketing strategies (which are also cheap and often free to implement). In a future article, I will go into more detail. Until then, please visit my website (see bio section) for more articles and free training.

Now go ahead and grow your business by making the most of what you already have!!!