Ways to find new customers through marketing channels
Written by Jamie May
How to Find New Customers: Marketing Channels
Sales goes out and hunts for customers. Marketing makes customers come to you, or at least makes the hunting easier. The line between the two blurs constantly in a small business where the same person is often doing both, but it’s worth understanding what sits where.
This is every meaningful marketing channel for finding new customers. Some you’ll already be using. Most businesses are only using a handful of these at any one time, which is usually where the gaps are.
People and Partnerships Hire or outsource a marketer or digital specialist if you don’t have the skills in house. Co-brand with a friendly, complementary business and split the cost of reaching a shared audience. Bundle your product or service with someone else’s to create something neither of you could offer alone. Ambassadors, high profile or simply well respected people who genuinely use and recommend what you do, can transfer credibility to your brand faster than most other methods.
Content and Expertise Blog posts, articles, press releases, speaking at industry events. If you know your field well, write about it. Google rewards it, prospects respect it, and it keeps working long after you’ve written it. You’re reading an example of this right now.
Your Presence and Location A shopfront, a market stall, a personal trainer running sessions in a park. Sometimes the best marketing is simply being visible in the right place. People buy from businesses they walk past, recognise, and feel comfortable with. SEO and your website do the same job online, making sure people find you when they’re already looking.
Relationships and Word of Mouth Referrals, references, letters of recommendation. Ask a past client to write something or speak to your next prospect directly. Word of mouth is the oldest marketing channel and still one of the most effective. The problem is most businesses just hope it happens rather than actively encouraging it.
Promotions and Sampling Discounts, free samples, free introductory work, charity and community involvement. Getting your product or service into someone’s hands before they’ve committed to buying is one of the fastest ways to remove hesitation. Charity and pro bono work also raises your profile in ways that paid advertising often can’t.
Print and Digital Presence Email campaigns for existing customers and warm prospects. Merchandising and point of sale. Handwritten cards and invitations, which almost nobody sends anymore, which is exactly why they get noticed. A well designed website. Social media used consistently rather than sporadically.
Community and Industry Industry bodies, chambers of commerce, local business groups. Being an active member of your professional community puts you in front of people who either need what you do or know someone who does.
And Yes, Novelty Works Too A loudspeaker, a sandwich board, skywriting if the budget stretches. Sometimes standing out simply means doing something nobody else bothers to do anymore.
The Takeaway
Go through this list and mark every channel you’re currently using consistently. Then mark the two or three you’ve been meaning to try but haven’t. Start with those. Most small businesses find new customers through a surprisingly narrow range of channels and leave a lot of opportunity sitting on this list untouched.
If you want help working out which combination makes the most sense for your business, that’s exactly what Outsold is here for.
