1 If you haven’t got a website, get one. Equally if your existing site is seriously in need of updating get it done. In both cases I suggest using a professional. A poorly produced amateur site harms your reputation from the off. That’s the point – ever more people source professional services on the web to start with – no website equals no enquiry. Insist your designer teaches you how to do basic updates – new staff, new brands, new contact details, etc.
2 Once you’ve got or have updated your site, do some SEO – search engine optimisation. This could be done by the same expert as above, but a real specialist could well be a good idea. If Google and other search engines can’t find you, there’s not much point creating a website to start with. To help your expert, be clear about what prompts you want to bring customers to you. Be specific: fewer and better enquiries is usually good news.
3 Learn how to use social media and find out which such media your customers are active on. Don’t just assume it’s Facebook; this is a constantly moving target. If you have young staff, I’ll bet one or more is a social media whizz – get them to do it for you, unless you enjoy posting. You have to do it regularly, you need to be fresh, to have a story to tell. Copy the style of someone else whose posts you enjoy.
4 Selling emails are the best value, most convenient marketing tool ever created, so aim to use them regularly. As long as your emails are fresh and interesting, you can send lots – one contact sent me interesting email every day for a month without annoying me. Focus effort on the subject box to get your email opened – put the recipient’s first name there. Don’t send to 10,000 people on the same day – how would you cope if they all responded?
5 Do your research. Here’s a definition of marketing: find out what people want and sell it to them at a price you’re both happy with. So you have to do the finding out first. You can do this by phone, email, in person or all three. Yes, it can be embarrassing talking to strangers but no research is far worse.
6 Create in-store events. Every business that is retail based should aim to bring people through the door, first and foremost. This is a classic case for involving your suppliers, indeed, some of them will have a budget to support your activity – negotiate smartly. Have a clear set of objectives, not least who you will invite – ladies who lunch at midday, business owners at close of play, sports fans on Saturdays who can’t read the shirt numbers on the far side of the pitch (this was me).
7 Stay aware of the next generation. Some kids need glasses young, but most don’t. Mum and Dad need to be persuaded to bring them for an eye test and once they reach 18 you should aim to communicate with them directly. You might lose them when they go to university, but you may not – most eye care can wait for the holidays, and continuity matters.