INTRODUCTION
Even if you have a worldwide, well-known company recognized by millions, there will always be a part of the population (potential customers) who are totally unaware of your existence. Increase the probability of sales by merely opening new doors to potential customers. Successful companies make sure that people know about them from every possible angle - you can see or hear (even smell) them everywhere in various forms. And don’t allow yourself to be misled by the idea that just because your business operates online, you can be found by everyone.
At the beginning, you promote the business it a way that is easy, cheap, or familiar to you from experience; your default setup. As time goes by and customers keep flowing, your satisfaction is fulfilled, so you change your attention to other aspects of the business. Why would you keep looking for other ways to attract customers? So, you stick with your current setup, only improving it by changing some of its attributes and investing more money to multiply the results. However, this approach has a flaw; the world is too unpredictable to rely on a single channel. If it decreases significantly for some reason, you panic because everything depends on it. No customers means no sales, as the unwritten law of business says.
Relying on a single channel is risky. You may not realize its importance, especially when you have momentary success with the default channel, until you reach a point where you have served nearly all of your customers and all you have left is to resell to existing customers. Additionally, if you rely on a single channel and the flow is disrupted by some external force, your entire business is suddenly at risk. It’s not just about what works for you now, but there are many external forces that can endanger your flow and by the time you realize it, it may be too late. Support your foundation by building more pillars or having more limbs like an octopus.
Having more than one channel is crucial for your business. Every year, month, and day is different, and you cannot expect the current flow to continue forever. Find the time and resources to expand in different directions. There’s no need to open several new channels at the same time. Establish one correctly, and only then move on to the next.
First, define the ways your business can currently be reached, such as making a sale, attracting customers, or getting a lead. Next, consider the limitations of your approach by negating your options.
For example:
- You sell only online, but some people do not have a computer or are not computer savvy.
- You only accept payments by card, but they prefer to pay only in cash.
- You operate only online, but they read newspapers.
- You ship from a stock, but people want to see and touch the product in person.
- You advertise online, but they have blocking software installed.
Second, propose a new way that differs from the one you currently use. If you sell online, try offline sales. If you advertise online, try newspaper advertising. The point is to diversify your approach.
And third, test the effectiveness of the proposal on a sample before fully implementing it. Since you do not know what works best for your company, gather sample data first. Use simple math here. Specify a budget with a deadline. After the testing period is over, calculate the conversion rate and profit/loss or whatever metric is relevant for your business, considering the expenses. This will help you decide whether to continue or try a different approach. Not every idea needs to be implemented, even if it brings new leads. Don’t force implementation just because of some monetary return. Do your homework and calculate the effectiveness over a meaningful period of time.
ADVANTAGES:
Imagine your business having four distinct ways for customers to approach your products or services. Even if two of them drastically decline, you would still have another two to safely continue. This same tactic can be used not only for channeling customers but also for entire projects. Instead of relying on one, you can open another branch, business, or service.
DISADVANTAGES:
You are already busy enough, and adding an extra problem can slow your progress on existing projects. Not only will it take time, but you can expect to invest some of your resources as well. Thorough investigation, assigning an employee to the task, and finally executing it all cost some of your budget. Always start with a small fraction by testing or investigating before fully implementing the proposed idea.
CONCLUSION:
There will come a situation in which your business will be tested. In the long term, you want your business to be able to withstand the unpredictable twists and turns of life. It’s better to be prepared. Thinking of multiple solutions to a single problem is helpful in general because it multiplies your options. You will not be limited by a robotic way of thinking, where you have one formula for all your troubles. It’s important to remember that whatever channel you use right now is just one of many tools available to you.