Photos by Goldbar

Strategic steps, such as improving your relationship marketing to spur consumer engagement and rethinking practices with disappointing returns, can help you surmount unexpected slowdowns and ride the wave to unmitigated growth.

Rarely is the road to success a straight one. Inaccurate market predictions, broader economic issues, and unexpected periods of seasonality can all cause a dip in business. And when your accounting sheet reports subpar figures as a result, you may be tempted to hit the panic button. However, it may be possible to alter your course instead by taking immediate steps to identify and address difficulties head-on. After all, a bear market isn’t your time to hibernate but to attack. Rather than give in to pessimism, try one of the following action plans to prevail in slow periods.

Improve your outreach

For a case study in overcoming professional hardships, refer to Juan Carlos Barreneche, founder of Goldbar, a lucrative real estate agency on the East Coast. “In 2016, my first year in real estate, I sold one house,” he says. “In my second year, I hired a coach who told me, ‘You’re doing the right activity—you’re just not doing it consistently enough.’ I call it relationship-based marketing. Once I made this more of a consistent action, business blew up.”

In the first three years of his real estate career, Barreneche earned a remarkable $250 million in sales and recruited 1,200 new agents into his downline. He sums up his growth tactic with this tenet: “Learn exactly how to take leads from cold to warm to hot, and provide great service on the back end.” Barreneche recommends three key strategies to propel yourself from stagnation to success.

Lead generation
Build as many new relationships as you can; Barreneche strongly suggests adding five to ten new contacts per day to your organization’s CRM. His approach is to talk to virtually anyone he encounters. For instance, he’ll strike up conversations with cold leads at coffee shops, determine who may need an agent, and, even when prospects show little interest, request a referral and catalog their contact information for future engagement.

Lead nurturing
At this point, ingratiate yourself to your new contacts. “Customers’ memories are short, so stay in touch with them,” Barreneche says. You can do so by sending them items of value, such as blogs and seasonal gifts, hosting client events like happy hours, and keeping them up-to-date on pertinent industry news via email newsletters. Barreneche recommends conducting at least sixteen to eighteen touchpoints per year per contact.

Lead conversion
Arrange live meetings or send booking links to convert prospects. Be sure to map possible objections ahead of time so you are prepared to overcome them and repeatedly underscore your organization’s value proposition. Barreneche advises acting as a “concierge” to leads, guiding them down the lead funnel until conversion feels like the natural next step. “When prospects feel that you can read their minds and you behave professionally, follow up consistently, and stay in touch with them, there will be little reason to object to you,” he says, “At that point, you have built so much trust and credibility, they will likely want to work with you.”

Barreneche swears by these three steps, assuring that “anyone who implements them can get to six figures in sales.” Invest time into these fundamental techniques, and you may be better equipped to handle even the most turbulent currents in your industry.

Restrategize

What if outreach isn’t the source of your woes? You may need to adjust some of your core practices to stay competitive and endure trying times. To spark greater consumer interest, consider refreshing your organization with some novel systems.

First, determine where you can retool your efforts. If metrics such as client feedback reveal middling interest in certain products or services, identify other methods to entice consumers. Promote price drops, enrich your online services, increase your inventory of more popular products, or streamline your booking process (another of Barreneche’s favorite strategies). You could also look to successful competitors or hire an advisor for inspiration.

Then brainstorm new initiatives can you roll out to hook fresh clientele. Modify your product line, offer services that target untapped consumers, or adjust how you brand or market goods. And if your marketing strategies aren’t paying off, open social media accounts on popular platforms to attract new leads. (For more details on how to do so, go to page 30.)

It’s important to note that your efforts will go unseen unless you advertise them. Anytime you restrategize, spread the word on social media, via targeted ads, and in email newsletters. Consider this your opportunity to get back in touch with leads and drum up consumer excitement. Ultimately, their engagement is the momentous force that will propel you through difficult times.

TAKE ACTION:
If you’re experiencing or anticipating a period of slow revenue, perform
metrics to identify the cause. Then adjust your relationship marketing
and core practices to improve consumer engagement.