In the world of instant gratification and platforms that offer services for super cheap, it’s often challenging to stay competitive and reach new customers. It’s also extremely important to keep your current customers coming back for your products or services. Being relevant and relatable can often be tough, but it is possible. Gaining more exposure and getting new customers can take a lot of work, but you can also have people do it for you by creating content that people will want to share. As a small business owner, these are some ways that I have grown my business.

1. Start A Blog

Lots of people read blogs. It’s a way to build a following and get customer loyalty. People love hearing your story and about your process. Write about the history and inspiration of that product or service that you’re selling. So, add a blog to your site. Post mini blog posts on social media. Share your blog posts on social media and with your friends and family. New blog posts will keep people coming back to your site and share your stuff. This means more reoccurring customers. Blogs also help your website stay at the top of search engines. 

2. Make It Relatable

No matter if you’re a big or small business, it’s important to give people a reason to shop or hire you. Think about life insurance companies, they always play on your emotions. Their tag lines always say something along the lines of “don’t leave your loved ones without anything, take care of them.” People relate to that. Advertise in a way that people will relate and want to buy your product or your services because they need or want them.

3. Use Simple Words

A lot of the people who are looking at your website/social media won’t be interested in reading complicated words and local expressions. They may not understand those hard words you use, or the language you use may not be their native language. So make it easy on people and use simple words and stay away from expressions. I promise, from my personal experience as a foreigner living in Europe, it makes it much easier to understand.

4. Use More Than One Language 

If you’re a Dutch company and you want to reach more people, then translate the text on your website, advertisements, and social media posts to English. You’ll have so many more customers that way. Some people just won’t want to come to your website because they can’t understand what in the world it says. This is the same if you’re a business in the USA. Arguably, the second language in the USA is Spanish. So make sure everything is in both English and Spanish. If you can’t translate it yourself, then hire someone to do it. Whatever you pay for a translator, you’ll most likely make it back in sales.

5. Social Media

A lot of people underestimate the power of social media. Social media can help your business reach customers that you’d otherwise not reach. So many people are on Facebook, Instagram, Tiktok, and more such platforms. People love seeing the process of how things are done. Give them what they want and they may become your customers. Don’t forget to interact with your followers as well. This is so important.

6. Offer Discounts and A Loyalty Program 

Most people love a good bargain, especially Dutch people. My manicurist offered me a free pedicure after 5 manicures. I love that. You can also offer a discount when someone buys in bulk. This can apply to services and products. Perhaps offer a loyalty program. Like your customers who sign up for it can get a discount once in a while or something like that. People want to support you, they just need a reason to stay.

7. Do Your Cultural Research

There’s nothing more insensitive than saying a product is, for example, French, and you know absolutely nothing about the origins of that product and what it’s called in French. Do your research before advertising or listing anything as exotic or foreign. Offended customers will never come back. I guarantee you that. 

As someone who does a lot of these things for a living, I have firsthand experience that these things that I wrote about above help businesses grow and gain more exposure. If you’re having trouble with any of these things or you simply don’t have the time to blog or post on social media, I’d be happy to do it for you. Check out my website for more details, or just send me an email to discuss. I wish you lots of luck with reaching more customers!

Follow me on my Instagram and my Facebook where I post all about living in the Netherlands and more.

The featured photo was taken by Ioana Hariga.

What do you find is important when it comes to ways to reach more customers?