Once you start making sales and gain a client or two, you will feel like you have some momentum behind your business. You’ll find the groove of taking actions that create results, and you’ll pull in some revenue. But when you hit a point of wanting to increase sales and gain new clients, do you have reliable strategies you can use again and again to produce real results?
I’ve known business owners and digital marketers that wanted to see their transactions grow, but they don’t have any processes in place to see those goals through. Instead of a vague ambition, try an effective strategy like using scarcity. Use several targeted techniques to get clients to purchase your services.
Why Scarcity Works to Sell Services
You want to grow your digital marketing business and increase revenue. To do this, you have to convince people to purchase your services. Working to create a recurring business from current clients is a great way to gain forward movement, but you also need to have specific techniques to increase the likelihood of those transactions.
To increase sales, create a sense of urgency among the members of your audience. Urgency drives decisions. Rather than having potential buyers sit back and wait for “the right time,” cultivate the right time for them. If they want in on your special promotion of digital marketing services, they have to make a move before the time or product runs out. If you reveal that your offer won’t be available in the long run, you move your audience to act.
How can you turn the scarcity strategy into something you can use to sell on a regular basis to bring in more revenue? I’ve successfully used the scarcity strategy for years. And I’ve done it in an ethical, truthful way to stir up interest and drive sales. With scarcity, I attract both past and potential customers. And I have a few tips about how you can make this strategy work for your digital marketing business.
4 Ways to Use Scarcity to Drive Sales
Let me show you the techniques I use to create scarcity to drive sales:
1. Take Advantage of Holidays for Marketing Campaigns
You can pick any day for a deadline, but why not use one that naturally stands out? It’s like a free reminder when clients associate a date with your promotion. Use celebrations, birthdays, anniversaries, or any date that could cause people to pause and remember your promotion when they catch a glimpse of their calendar. You can set up a countdown to that date as your offer runs out, or use that day to launch a limited-time offer.
2. Price Increases or Limited-Time Sales
Tell your audience about upcoming price increases, and invite them to view your limited-time sales. Offer early bird deals for new services or products. Get the word out ahead of time, and watch the interest grow among your audience. Make sure to clearly state your deadlines to minimize confusion, and stick to your deal when that deadline approaches.
3. Offer Bonuses
I recommend limiting bonuses, but they can be a great way to increase sales when used appropriately. You can implement this technique in a few ways. Offer a bonus to people for signing up for a promotion before a deadline. Make a limited number of bonuses available, so customers have to get in on it before it runs out.
Offer something of value that customers need. For example, create a solution to a problem your customers have. Offer a product or service that increases the value or effectiveness of their current purchase. I offer bonus training that accelerates the effectiveness or speed of using the product they purchased. You could offer a consultation, a bonus service, a free trial, or a pre-made template that makes the process easier.
4. Set Up Deadlines… and Stick to Them
Consumers can see right through false offers. Plus, a curious user’s quick internet search often reveals the truthfulness and reliability of your claims. Word gets out if your business is known for flippant claims.
From the beginning, I wanted to run my business by following through on my claims. I decided I wanted to build my business ethically. So I don’t use fake scarcity. I tell the truth. If I say a deadline ends at a certain time, it doesn’t keep going. If I say a product won’t be available after a point, then it’s not available. You can’t get in through a secret door to my deals after the deadline. I don’t keep the countdown clock running indefinitely.
That said, I do have a plan if someone misses a deadline. I take inquiries about these on a case-by-case basis, but if someone takes the time to email me because they meant to get in on the deal and something came up, I sometimes have a coupon code to offer them. It can be an alternate deal. But don’t be too lenient to let people in. You need to have a plan for these situations, too, because they will come up. If you don’t want to extend your offer, you can reply with something like, “I’m sorry you missed it! Try to catch my next deal. There’s always another one around the corner.”
Do you have current strategies that you can boost by adding a scarcity technique? Which of these tips do you want to try first?
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