Do you spend too much time trying to get new customers, when you could use it more effectively winning it from existing ones?
Some years ago I was freelancing at a big, famous agency. I noticed they never seemed to pitch and I thought perhaps they’d lost their edge and were failing to get on pitch lists.
So I asked a full-timer about it.
“We don’t do pitches,” he said.
“What, not any?”
“None”
“Well then how can your agency grow?”
“We develop business with our existing clients.”
More recently, I met a guy whose agency had been thriving during the recession.
I asked him how they did it.
“We find out from our clients what services they’d like. Then we bring in the relevant expertise and open a new division.”
So now, in addition to offering clients the typical services you’d expect – advertising, DM, PR, etc – the agency also offers staff and management training.
And with those new services, the agency is winning more business from existing clients.
Then I thought of my own experience in direct marketing over the past 13 years.
The easiest gains were all made by cross-selling, up-selling and making special offers to existing customers.
So why make things difficult for yourself? Go for the easy sell – people who already buy from you.
