Despite the emergence of technology in recent decades, the best way to grow a small business is through offline interactions.
Now yes, online interactions are valuable beyond belief AFTER you already made a successful business (50k+ per month). If this is not your situation, genuine, in-person advertisement is the best way to advance to the online stage.
Do NOT mistake my use of advertisement as a door-to-door interaction, rather the connotation of advertisement reflects a much more genuine experience.
To sell your product, you must first flaunt your expertise through a presentation, meeting, or demonstration. During this event, mention subtly your business and your services/products you offer at the beginning and middle of the interaction.
Do NOT mention your business towards the end as that will become both an annoyance and a turn-off for potential customers. Remember, you want customers to fly in due to your expertise, not because of your advertising that arose a sense of obligation.
Again, I know exactly what you are thinking: “A customer is a customer”, “Any income will help your business”, etc.
The reason these obligatory purchases do not benefit your business is for two reasons, 1.) the customer will be less likely to enjoy your product and refer it to others and 2.) obligatory purchases are not reliable, leading to an inconsistent flow of income.
All in all, entrepreneurship is a risk. That risk is not meant to be enhanced by feeding off the guilt of your customers. Rather, stacking up genuine consumers due to personal interactions generates a demographic that will purchase multiple products, refer your business on major platforms, and recommend your product to friends and family.
Prime Example
One of the numerous success stories using this method comes from life coach and business adviser David Bayer. Bayer and his wife had spent years spending thousands of dollars on courses to grow a business and even went through hundreds of hours creating a webinar-to-email-to-paid digital course loop.
This hard work concluded with exactly 0 dollars in revenue. Not ONE person purchased their digital program after working through the necessary steps taught in the courses they took.
On the verge of conceding entrepreneurship, Bayer was invited to a meeting where he presented a 90-minute slide-show to only 15 entrepreneurs. Bayer only mentioned his profession in the introductory sides.
After an impressive showcase, Bayer (without promoting his services) was approached by three entrepreneurs eager to work with him further. So much so that all 3 were willing to pay 9,000 dollars each to enroll in a 6-month period where Bayer advised their business.
The takeaway of this story is this: a short showing of expertise to a small group netted David Bayer $27,000, yet his digital loop that had hundreds of thousands if not millions of impressions netted David Bayer not a single dime.
After all, this makes perfect sense. Are you more willing to buy from a trusted individual who showed off his/her skill set in person or from a Facebook ad that is a nuisance to your mindless feed scrolling?
How you can replicate Bayer’s success
To put this method into practice, simply attend a meeting, schedule a presentation in front of a group, or give a speech at an event. One specific recommendation to increase business is a TED Talk as you will present to a large, engaged audience that is looking to be informed.
Take part in ethical practice (no manipulation) and try to make it a conversation-friendly atmosphere (answer questions, interact with the audience, etc.). The stronger the relationship built between you and the potential customer, the more likely the potential customer is to purchase your product.
These relationships are key and the strength of consumer-producer relationships will decide the proportion of sales caused by recommendations.
After you find success with this method, meaning 50k+ per month in reliable income, refer to a later article on how to scale your business digitally. A link will be attached to this article as soon as that one is posted.
DISCLAIMER: For this method to work, you must possess a valuable skill-set and you must offer a desirable product or service.
Great article.
Thank you Oscar!