As a consultant, you must always have a healthy pipeline of leads. Even if you’re happy with the current number of sales you’re making, there are always ways to increase these figures.
Online marketing is just one way of keeping your pipeline full, and if done effectively, can make a real difference in your profits.
Try these online marketing techniques to increase sales:
Make use of affiliates.
Select individuals who compliment your service and would like to earn a commission for spreading the word about your offerings. When you use affiliates, they generally promote your business online and drive new clients to your product or service. In exchange for this, you pay the affiliates a percentage of each sale that they make.
Affiliate marketing is not only an effective tactic but a cost-effective one too. You don’t have to pay for advertising up front in order to get new prospects. Payment happens after the sale is made, and then you only pay a percentage of each sale to the affiliate.
Also, the traffic generated is already targeted to your particular niche. When traffic is pre-warmed, it’s more likely to convert into a sale.
An affiliate relationship works well with the courses you may offer; however, you can be creative in your affiliate offerings.
Be active on social media.
Social media allows you to keep in touch with your clients while simultaneously growing your brand. Social media is more informal than your website, so a lighter, casual presence is required here.
Your goal on social media is to engage with your clients. Ask questions, respond to their questions, and participate in discussions. You can take polls and have contests.
Post valuable information that will interest them, and they might share it with their friends and business associates as well!
Use a variety of formats for your posts, such as text, images, videos, and more.
If you are not utilizing social media marketing in your overall marketing strategy, you could be missing out on a huge number of potential clients.
It can be overwhelming to stay active on social media as much as you should. Consider delegating part of your social media management. You can still be active and personal on social, but you don’t have to do it ALL.
Target mobile phone users.
Nowadays, most internet users browse the web using mobile devices. Ensure that your website and other marketing materials, such as your emails, are mobile-friendly.
Gain clients through opt-in opportunities.
People like to receive free stuff, so why not take advantage of it? Be sure you have a freebie listed on your website in exchange for a potential client’s email address.
Once they’re on your email list, you can continue to market to them via emails. They’ve given you permission to communicate with them again.
Create a podcast or YouTube channel.
The best way for potential clients to get to know you is through hearing your voice and/or seeing you in action.
Podcasting is a fantastic content production option to make a genuine connection with your ideal client. What better way for people to get to know who you are, what you stand for, and how you help them by hearing your voice right in their earbuds?
Videos are perfect connecting too! You won’t need to create highly polished, professional videos. Most successful videos are simpler and show that you care about your client base. Just create a few how-to videos showcasing what your company does or how your products work.
We recommend choosing one or the other, especially if you’re new to content marketing. Stick to a consistent schedule, then if it makes sense in your marketing strategy, add the other.
Include testimonials on your website.
One effective way of showing how good your services are is to include testimonials from past clients on your website. Allow your clients to submit their own video testimonials.
Make things as easy as possible for them. Perhaps send them a quick survey that asks three basic questions:
- What challenges did they have before hiring you?
- Share the biggest obstacle they were experiencing that would have prevented them from hiring you?
- What did they like most about hiring you?
You can turn their survey answers into a nicely written testimonial for your website.
Be aware of compliments given in casual conversation. You can write up a brief summary of the compliment given verbally and send it to them for edits and approval.
A positive review could turn a possible sale into a definite one, so encouraging your clients to make testimonials is worth your time and efforts.
Not all of the above online marketing tactics may work for your consulting business but making the effort to try them could bring you greater profits. It’s only when you try different techniques that you discover for sure how effective they can be.