Customer Acquisition
Chances are, you are here because you have technical skills. Focusing solely on technology can stunt any career or business. We must focus enough of our attention and energy on potential clients or employers in order to acquire the projects or positions to which we can apply our skills and which keep our business or career lucrative. Here are some things we can do to get potential clients or employers attention.
Determine Target Market
In the previous section we explored various products we can produce using Excel. Some products probably resonated more with you than others. And chances are good you know some products that were not listed. Whatever products we think are a best fit for our skill set and subject matter expertise, those products have appeal to a limited audience.
Some products have broader appeal, such as those linked to human resources. But while every business has human resources, some businesses have just one person or too few to make things like position budgeting or benefit cost projections. Determining who wants the products we can offer helps us focus our efforts on that market mostly likely to pay for our sevices.
Branding
Branding is a set of features that distinguish one organization from another in the eyes of the market. Here are some things we need to do to establish our brand;
Name - Establish a short business name (click link) that is distinctive, memorable, and does not limit our offerings. Check domain names (click link) to make sure your name can be used in your website URL.
Pallet - Create a distinct color palette for your brand (click link).
Website - Add a place for potential clients to discover our business. Google sites are free and easy but limited. They are a good place for starting out.
Email - Purchase a domain name with email service or leverage Gmail for business. or a personalized email address for Outlook.
YouTube - Create YouTube channel so you can post introductory videos as well as "how tos" that will bring potential customers to you.
Facebook - Create a Facebook page for your business.
LinkedIn - Create a LinkedIn page for your business.
Social Engagement
This is the process of communicating with an online community. This can be valuable if directed to the proper audience. I see many Excel experts in LinkedIn's forums for Excel. This is great if we are offering training services but of little worth for finding clients who need help modeling a startup or project.
Here are some ways we can increase our social engagement.
Blogging - In the early days of the internet, online publications were desperate for bloggers. I began regularly contributing to one publication. I quickly saw a major increase in people reaching out to me and my brand topping Google's search engine listing.
If we can't get a blogging gig for an online publication that reaches our market, we can still create our own block for no money. If we have something interesting to say and we can see it with brevity and humor, our blog will establish our brands cache. Here are some free blogging sources.
Pod Casting - I have never created a pod cast though I have a personal recording studio which I use for video. But I listen to a few Pod Casts so I know it has potential to reach an audience and generate passive income for little investment. Here is a How-to-start-a-podcast tutorial.
Speaking Engagements - If you have public speaking skills and something interesting to say, there many opportunities for gaining brand recognition by speaking at colleges, meetups, and corporate events. We can even create our own zoom/web conferences for little or no money.
Writing Articles - This is similar to blogging but without the regular posting commitment.
Authoring Books - It is much easier to become an author today. We can self publish on Amazon for no investment and make money.
Freebies: Producing Best Practices, Templates, and Utilities
Networking and Social Engagement
https://www.feedough.com/what-is-marketing-definition-types-scope/
https://www.revechat.com/blog/customer-acquisition/
Branding: https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/branding
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