Do You Track Where Your Customers Come From?
Smart companies appreciate customers and know that their customer base forms the heart and soul of their business. Newspaper ads, yellow page listings direct mail, radio and TV advertising are some traditional ways to attract customers. Today’s businesses also use online advertising, Facebook, Pinterest, Google Adwords, and email campaigns. Do you know which of your marketing and advertising dollars are attracting the most new customers?
You may ask, “Why do I need to know this?” The answer is you don’t, but if you do know, you will find out which of your marketing dollars are working best, be able to attract more customers, and decide if the source of the new customers is worth the cost.
Know Where Your Customers Come From
The first step in tracking the source of your customers is developing a list of potential starting places. The list might include:
- Yellow page listings
- Newspaper advertising
- Radio and TV advertising
- Articles in newspapers & magazines
- Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn etc.
- Search engine results
- Word of mouth referrals
Customize possible sources of customers based on your specific type of business. Once you’ve generated the list of possibilities, you’re ready to move to the next step.
This One is Easy
Sometime solutions to your problems as a business owner are so simple; you ask yourself, “Why didn’t I think of that?” You are not alone. Surveys show that many small business owners are unaware of the source of their customers and experience difficulty when asked how they would go about finding this information.
To begin accumulating this valuable information, simply ask. If customers order online, include a question on the order form which asks them how they got to you. For walk-in or business by phone, keep a simple tally sheet. Personally ask the question and note the results. Make sure you include word of mouth referrals as a choice. Referrals from current customers are powerful.
Also, there are social media and website tracking applications that automatically generate detailed reports on clicks per link, clicks on ads (i.e. Facebook) and website analytics. These tools make your metrics tracking quick and easy.
Why this is Important
Simply put, this is important because with no customers, you have no business. With information about where your customers come from you have the power to allocate marketing dollars where they give you the most return. You can grow your business, track trends, and make adjustments if the source of new or repeat customers changes.
Still Need Help?
Schedule a complimentary Business Breakthrough Strategy Session with Pamela Finnesand, The Business Maximizer, to learn more about tracking your customers and using your marketing dollars effectively.
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