Finding new customers during a pandemic has proven to be challenging. Many medical practices have lowered their patient count, some have been closed altogether, and some simply don’t have the money to spend. Restaurants are no longer seating for inside dining, stores are closed and sales for most business are way down. There are no trade shows, no door to door visits, no onsite meetings and no in person training programs. Still, there are ways to increase your customer base, you just have to change with the times. I can’t tell you how many times we have had to reinvent ourselves in the course of doing business for 16 years. I welcome these challenges as it forces me not only to think, but to create more efficiencies for my staff and all of the medical practices we support.
Finding New Customers
The first thing we are doing is not only doubling but tripling our marketing efforts. We have mailers going out once a week with various educational information. Just because we are in a pandemic doesn’t mean you need to be relaxed on your security efforts. Hackers are taking the opportunity to hone their skills while people are working from home. Marketing will increase your brand and get your name out there.
- Hold webinars. We have upped our game on holding educational webinars. People seem to have a little more time, and are more familiar with virtual learning so jumping on a webinar is becoming the norm.
- Phone calls – believe it or not, trying to get a 10 minute Zoom call is sometimes easier than scheduling a 30 minute face to face meeting. Again, people are much more familiar with Zoom and may not even mind at giving you just 10 minutes of their time.
- Take the time to develop new products/packages that are beneficial to your customers. Rarely do we have time to put together that “offer” we have been thinking about for years. Now just may be the time.
- Stay in front of existing customers. Ask for referrals, check in on them, go above and beyond what you have been doing.
Pandemic
Keep in mind this pandemic is not going to last forever. It may be here for the near future, but it will not be here forever. People will eventually return to restaurants, stores, malls, etc. The idea is to stay productive and don’t give up hope. We are all in this together!
