3 Actionable Marketing Tactics to Increase Cash Flow

Cash flow (CF) is the Holy Grail. It’s the lifeblood of your business. Knowing how to pick the right mix of marketing tactics to boost your CF pot will be of tremendous value to the future of your company.

It’s cash flow that keeps your doors open for business. No cash flow and sooner rather than later you’ll be out of business. That’s the harsh reality.

Therefore, your number one goal in business should be to increase the gap between your income and expenses.

How can you do that?

You do it by deploying different strategies and tactics that will help you control the two main components of the equation: INCOME and EXPENSES.

On one hand, you’ll have to focus on increasing your income while also becoming more financially savvy in order to manage your expenses (e.g. learn the difference between good and bad debt, understand how inflation works and master the tax game among other things).

Today, I’d like to dissect the first part of the equation and share with you three actionable marketing tactics that will help you earn more income and increase your cash flow. We’ll handle the second part of the equation in a separate blog post.

1. Communicate with your customers on an ongoing basis.

While a lot of efforts are put into pre-purchase information, very few business owners provide additional support post-purchase. And that is a big mistake.

Don’t assume that you can abandon your buyers after they’ve hit the purchase button and have become part of your client portfolio. You need to develop a relationship with your customers that will lead to brand loyalty over time. The ultimate goal is to increase your customer lifetime value.

Based on the ongoing conversations you’ll have, you’ll be able to sell further products and services to these clients and even create new ones based on the valuable feedback they provide you with. When you sell more of what your ideal customer wants and needs, you’ll generate more income.

ACTIONABLE MARKETING TACTICS:

• Leverage social media to provide customer service. Encourage customers to DM you on Twitter or Instagram. Let them know that they can reach out to you via Facebook Messenger.

• Use good old email marketing to send out promotions and special discounts.

• Ask for testimonials and feature these on your Facebook Page. Create an Instagram story based on testimonials and add them to Highlights featured under your Instagram profile after the 24-hour window.

2. Personalize your marketing campaigns, offers and promotions.

Mass promotions, untailored marketing campaigns, banner ads that target everybody yet speak to nobody – that’s what big companies do and prevail at. Not a particularly good strategy if you’re a small business owner.

I encourage you to be bold and go the opposite way.

While more and more customers become annoyed by companies continuing to market to them relentlessly disregarding the age of social we live in and not paying particular attention to their special interests and needs, businesses who are harnessing the power of personalization are filling their wallets.

We live in a fast-paced world that’s becoming increasingly technologized and sophisticated. This means, people are constantly on the lookout for brands, products and services that make them feel special. Those who provide personalized marketing experiences to individuals and groups of individuals with similar interests, win.

ACTIONABLE MARKETING TACTICS:

• Personalize your web, email, social, video and audio content. Write blog posts to specific customer segments (e.g. here’s an article that I wrote for medical professionals). Record industry-specific videos and podcasts for tilers, painters, chiropractors, farmers, you name it.

• Show related products when customers hit the ‘Add to Cart’ button on your page. This is how Amazon increases sales per order and it’s wise for you to do the same thing, too.

• Create personalized coupons and vouchers to increase both sales and customer satisfaction at the same time.

3. Offer exclusive deals for your most loyal customers.

Always reward your customers. And for the most loyal ones, add an extra layer of exclusivity. Make them feel special. Let them know, you recognize and reward your brand advocates.

Here are some hands-on marketing techniques to help you accomplish that.

ACTIONABLE MARKETING TACTICS:

• Create frequent shopper programs to encourage repeat purchases.

• Use strategic partnerships to bundle exclusive deals across industries.

• Incentives loyal customers to bring their network to special events organized just for them.

• Turn your most loyal customers into referral partners and affiliates.

Design Your Own Bouquet of Marketing Tactics

Generating cash flow requires tremendous discipline.

You have to focus constantly on generating new flows of income while at the same time learning to maneuver expenses in such a way that it benefits your business long-term. Understanding the tax game is of vital importance here. So is the notion of good debt that will allow you to invest in assets and grow your business exponentially.

There is no right or wrong marketing tactics. You have to test different strategies and techniques in order to know what resonates most with your ideal customers.

I encourage you to be open-minded and try out a wide range of online and offline marketing tactics.

Think cross-channel.

Develop industry and non-industry specific campaigns and try them out on different customer segments.

Don’t be afraid to experiment. What works for one company, might not work for you and vice versa. There is no one-size-fits-all promotion that is suitable for all individuals and that’s perfectly fine. Be creative. Build your own bouquet of marketing goodies.

What marketing tactics have proven to work for you over and over again?

Originally published on my blog at StrengthInBusiness.com.