Page 8 - CEEM Shopping Mag February 2020

9 Tips for Effective Business Development

By American Express

Also, beware of inundating your prospects with a large number of testimonials. It could look as
though you're protesting too much. Only use testimonials that are authentic and have the ring
of truth. Sometimes, when asking for a testimonial, the person writing it does so reluctantly to
please you, but their heart is not in it. You can end up with a perfunctory, factory-style testimonial
that savvy clients will quickly see through.

Keep an Eye on Online Reviews
Increasingly, consumers may turn to online reviews to decide whether or not to do business with
a local company. 80 percent of consumers trust online reviews as much as personal recommendations.
Set up a Google Alert for your company so you can monitor and respond to these reviews when
necessary. It can help show that you care about your business and about the people who use your
services or products. A caring attitude may engender goodwill and attract new business.

Ask for the Business
After you've met with your prospect, submitted the proposal, done all the due diligence and
followed up, consider closing that phase by unabashedly asking for the business. Try a simple:
"I would very much like to provide this service for your company. What will it take to get started?
" This "let's do business together" approach is direct and honest, and can signal your con dence in
the value of your service or product. It's refreshing. What's more, it can give your prospective client
the opportunity to decline. It may be better to know this so you can refocus your energy and
attention on the next potential customer.

Pay Attention to Your Website
Have you let your website slip? Does it look like it was designed a decade ago? In this visual world,
design matters. It's fair to say that most of your customers may start with your website. Recent
research shows 84 percent of business customers check business websites. A tired looking website
will most certainly result in missed opportunities. At a minimum, you can add a video to showcase
what you do.

As for your content, your website may not thrive if it just provides information about who you are
and lists your products and services. Consider rewarding visitors who land on your site with ample
free resources, information, knowledge and tools to help them succeed. Make it easy for them to
share the resources with others without having to ll out forms, deal with constant pop up windows
and other annoying interruptions. This is passive business development that will possibly pay
dividends and doesn't cost you anything.

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