TL;DR
– Visit prospect offices in person, as it’s memorable because everyone is constantly glued to devices
– Send 30-60 second personalized videos with their name written in the Love Actually style
– Form strategic partnerships internally with marketing and externally for referral exchange to significantly increase reach
– Host informative webinars or events with valuable content for both target audiences to build expertise
– Join LinkedIn and Facebook groups with 145K+ members to engage where prospects gather
Sometimes we get so stuck in our current sales methods that we forget there are various ways to reach our customers and get more responses. We’ll make your sales process a painless (dare I say, “fun”?) process for you.
As you see so many others in the world doing interesting things and being innovative, you might feel like it’s too difficult; as if everything has already been done. The good news is, even if this is the case, they haven’t approached your target audience in this way yet.
It is always possible to improve your sales strategies – especially since new technologies are developed almost daily. Use all the resources available to you to create great campaigns that reach your prospects in the right way, at the right place, at the right time.
Here are the creative ideas and tools (read our recommendation for sales tools for customer acquisition) you need to break down the barriers with potential clients.
10 Ideas for Customer Outreach
The most important point I want to make here is that you should be yourself, but where your ideal customers are. Okay, maybe that’s two points… but they are both crucial to your success. When you are building relationships as a sales representative – and ultimately making sales – there are many obstacles that stand in your way.
We hope to clear some of those obstacles with the following ideas for your sales strategy, so you can stand out from the crowd and have your customers ready to build a relationship and buy.
Outreach Idea #1: Go to Your Prospects’ Office 🏢
When was the last time you visited a potential client’s physical location before meeting them? I’m guessing never, or maybe once.
Show your face. In-person visits are memorable because we are glued to our devices all day. Some may have even started to drift too far from people (especially during Covid times). It is much easier to get through to your potential clients in person than over the phone, as it is an unusual method nowadays and will quickly boost your B2B sales outreach results.
If you want to reach a specific company, go to that company. First and foremost, you should befriend the receptionist. They are your gatekeeper to getting you to the next step, and if you are friendly and grateful, you will get much further than if you lie or demand something.
It can be a good idea to bring something they can keep – even if it’s just a business card, but it could also be a gift basket. This way, they will notice you and be more willing to connect with you or at least consider your company.
Outreach Idea #2: Stand Out From The Crowd
As the world population continues to grow, it can be difficult to stand out from the crowd – especially when networking.
Here are a few ideas on how to stand out from the rest:
- Wear something unique or have a creative business card (the digital business card is their LinkedIn profile with LinkedIn summary). This will create a memorable experience for attendees and they will be much more likely to remember you.
- Be proactive at digital conferences. Some of these conferences now offer the ability to view profiles, connect via video, and chat in different rooms. Take advantage of these tools at every opportunity to meet new people.
- Send something to their workplace. If you cannot be there in person, send something nice, such as a thank-you card, a special demo package, or a gift certificate (which can also be digital, but will more likely arrive in physical form to the recipient).
- Send personalized videos via email or social media. There are now ways to personalize videos to personalize your customer acquisition on a grand scale. If you record the videos individually, you can also, inspired by the movie Love Actually, write the prospect’s name on a piece of paper to get their attention and record a 30-second video (no longer than 60 seconds) explaining why you are contacting them.
- Use fun meme creators if they fit your brand, like reface and Piñata Farm. Use the recipients’ names so they see you’ve made an effort and don’t feel like you’re just a robot sending the same message to everyone.
- Follow up. Never let a good connection go to waste. This applies to every single one of these ideas for standing out from the crowd. If you don’t stay in touch, all the effort was for nothing. Use tools like LaGrowthMachine (LGM) to automate communication so you always have a message ready.
No matter how you plan to stand out from the crowd – make sure you have the intention to help the customer. This way, your message will land better, and the chances of connecting with more people will increase.
Outreach Idea #3: Strategic Partnerships 🤝
« No man is an island » – John Donne
As much as we may wish, we cannot do it alone. Having people by our side not only makes our lives easier but also much better. This is also true for work, of course, as forming partnerships can be your secret weapon.
There are many different ways to pursue this strategy. One is to form partnerships within your company. Reach out to other departments and find out who you can collaborate with to make customer acquisition smoother. Marketing and sales, for example, can often provide each other with a wealth of knowledge.
Another way is to collaborate with external partners. Companies often form partnerships with each other, but also between individuals. By building relationships with people from complementary companies, you can help each other with referrals.
Whichever partnership is best for you, be strategic when choosing. Make sure your goals align, or you might end up with more problems than benefits in the long run.
Outreach Idea #4: Provide Value 💵.
When you reach out to potential clients, they often expect you to sell them something. You can deviate from this typical approach by offering them something that customers will find useful. For example, send them a helpful link that might be relevant to them, a whitepaper with relevant industry information, or a free trial of a product. Write a customer acquisition email that the recipient will enjoy reading.
Valuable things don’t necessarily have to be “tangible” either. You could also suggest connecting the potential client with someone they would enjoy talking to. This is usually done after a conversation based on asking about the client’s needs, rather than offering your contacts without context. You don’t want to burn bridges for no reason.
However you can help the client, they will recognize the value of connecting with you and therefore put you ahead of a number of others when looking for a product or service. Keep in touch with them regularly even after the purchase, preferably via email and/or social media.
Outreach Idea #5: Host an Informative Meeting
This idea can also be combined very well with the partnership aspect and building relationships. An event can be done together with your partner, so you both reach target audiences. Whether it is an in-person event or an online event, offer value to both target audiences with your topic and content.
A webinar is a great way to reach the desired target audience, as the barrier to entry is low. Attendees can simply provide an email address and watch your webinar at any time – provided you record the event.
If you opt for an in-person presentation, you have the added benefit of attendees getting to know each other in person. Attendees can not only network with you but also learn about your expertise, which is very valuable to most.
Outreach Idea #6: Join LinkedIn or Facebook Groups
A social media truism is that they are meant to be social. This is why groups are so popular. People can connect online over shared interests, so take advantage of that. Join the groups that are relevant to you, your industry, and your target market.
Think about what interests your potential clients have and find a group related to that. For example, if you are in the financial industry, there are hundreds of options. There is a group called Finance Club with over 1.5 million members, or a group for accounting and auditing with 145,000 members. Choose the groups with the closest thematic connections and join them.
However, do not join too many groups, or you will overwhelm yourself, as the goal is to post regularly (and LinkedIn (more on using the LinkedIn scraper) limits your ability to join too many groups). Look for links you can post, practical tips, or simply interact with others so that your profile gets more attention. In many of these groups, you can also post a link to your company and talk about what you do – usually once a week in a specific post.
Once you are in the selected groups, you can also set up a method for automating contact requests for people in specific LinkedIn groups. Using LGM for automating outreach combined with LinkedIn Sales Navigator offers a way to connect and build a follow-up sequence. You can send a social media message or an email to people you want to talk to (also read our article on Gmail automation) to get in touch with them.
Outreach Idea #7: Stay Top of Mind 🧠.
In other words, remind them that you are still there for potential clients. Whether they are discussing industry trends or looking to use your services, people will forget what you can do for them. By appearing in their feed repeatedly, you can remind them how you can help them.
There are many ways to do this, the best of which are:
- Outreach emails – Write directly to the inbox where there are no distractions.
- Social media – Create posts that are relevant, interesting, or helpful to people.
- LaGrowthMachine – For Linkedin, Twitter (read our guide on Twitter marketing) and email automation.
Whichever method(s) you choose, make sure you can maintain consistency. This way, you will not burn out, and you will still be present regularly and therefore easily contactable when someone is ready to make a purchase.
Outreach Idea #8: Ask Customers for Referrals 🗣️
If you have been in your business for a while, you will have clients who are satisfied with their service or with whom you have built a good relationship. Ask them over the phone or via email if they can provide you with a testimonial or referral. Provide them with an example or create one for them so they just have to approve it.
You can also create an automated email in LGM to connect with each of your clients 2-3 months after their purchase. This way, you can automatically ask them if they were satisfied, if they could provide you with a review or testimonial, or if they know anyone who could also use the service.
Outreach Idea #9: Follow-up
No matter what method you use to reach your customers, stick to the golden rule of sales: follow up, follow up, follow up.
Use LGM to automate this process and reach everyone you have contacted. Create a sequence that runs automatically for you to continuously stay in touch with your prospects without you having to put in the effort manually each time.
Create an automation for everyone you meet and get their business card from, everyone you talk to on the phone, and everyone you have reached through social media. Every contact counts.
Outreach Idea #10: Work Cross-Departmentally
Collaboration is your best friend. By working with other departments in your company, you can achieve much better results. The marketing team, in particular, is data-hungry and works to bring you customers. You will both have insights that can help each other and bring more business to you and the company.
If your company has multiple departments that speak to the customer, such as another sales department, work with them to see if they have discovered any techniques that could help you. Company leadership has a vested interest in supporting this collaboration if the company makes more money, so foster this supportive culture instead of competition.
Another department that is great to collaborate with sales is the research and development team. They are constantly running tests and understand customers better than they understand themselves. By building these internal partnerships, you combine forces that will also bring more benefit to the customer.
Choose Your Strategy
Now is the time! You have the ideas, now you just need to take action. Choose what works best for you and your target audience, and just get started. Build a list, write a few emails, and you can get your sales activities going and create new momentum.
Create automations with LaGrowthMachine that save you time and energy, and start selling with ease. Contact us and let us know what you do for your sales activities.