If youre not first youre last

During economic downturns, businesses can thrive by adopting strategies such as reevaluating their vision, innovating, streamlining operations, boosting sales, leveraging existing accounts, forming strategic alliances, engaging in guerrilla marketing, excelling in customer service, utilizing small business advantages, securing quick wins, reaffirming their purpose, leading compassionately, and specializing.

Reactivate your power base

We all have a network of contacts, whether we realize it or not. This includes friends, family, past employers, competitors - anyone we've done business with. To get ahead in a tough market, reconnect with everyone in your network and ask them for help. Reaching out will require effort but will pay off. People prefer working with those they know and like. By reconnecting, you position yourself for more opportunities. Call or email everyone you know. Don't try to sell anything yet, just catch up. Rebuild networks you've neglected due to other priorities. Your goal is to get people talking and thinking about you again. More connections means more chances to survive and succeed. So start reactivating your network, filling your calendar with meetings. Any attention is better than none. The more people in your corner, the more likely you'll come out on top.

Re-engage past clients

Reaching out to past clients during challenging times presents an opportunity, not an imposition. A proactive call or visit lets you catch up personally while offering an improved product or service that could enhance their situation. People usually appreciate that type of outreach from a helpful advisor. Not everyone will be interested in what you’re presenting. That’s quite normal. If they decline your offer, shift the focus back to service by asking if there’s anything you could do to increase the value of their original purchase. Follow up your call with a written note reaffirming your genuine interest in building the relationship, not just making an immediate sale. Staying connected and showing professionalism strengthens perceptions. Contacting past clients keeps you positive and busy while often yielding referrals and sales over time. Integrating follow-up outreach into your regular procedures makes sound strategic sense.

Increase personal visits

Making personal visits is the most powerful way to connect with clients and advance your position in the marketplace. You can't beat meeting people in person, looking them in the eye, and building relationships. Politicians and top salespeople have long understood this. Getting out into the real world gives you a huge leg up over someone unwilling to make the effort. The marketplace tends to reward those who do whatever it takes to get ahead. In-person meetings also provide an opportunity to gather firsthand information about client needs. By showing up in person, you stand out from the competition and get people thinking about you and your offerings. You don't need to overdo it for this to be effective. A quick visit to say hello, ask how things are going, and see if you can help with any problems can make a real impact. If you commit to just one client visit per day for the next 21 days, you may be amazed at the energy and opportunities it injects into your business.

Convert the unsold

There are likely many people who have considered your product but decided not to purchase it for various reasons. A proven way to grow your business is to methodically reconnect with these prospects and give them another chance to buy. Studies confirm that most salespeople give up too quickly - 80% of sales occur after the fifth contact yet only 10% of sales reps go beyond three attempts. This leaves significant missed revenue that you can capture by persistently following up. Review your notes and database to identify prospects that slipped away previously. Reach back out and restart the sales process. If they purchased elsewhere, emphasize your ongoing commitment to help regardless. Keep providing reasons to do business until they feel compelled to become a customer. Invest substantial time demonstrating your determination to earn their trust. Too many salespeople retreat after initial rejection when prospects may simply be doing a better sales job. Persist with grit when hearing “no.” with tenacity, you'll gain mindshare so that when prospects need your product, you’ll be top-of-mind and halfway to a sale. As the saying goes: "follow up. Follow up. Follow up. Persistence always pays."

Build referral streams

When asking existing clients for referrals, avoid simply saying "who else do you know that could use my product or service?". They likely won't be able to think of anyone. Instead, ask things like "if you did know someone, who would that be?", "why did you think of him?", and "how do you spell his last name and why did you think he might be interested?". The downside of making a sale is losing a good prospect. To offset that, build a pipeline of fresh prospects by consistently asking each new customer to nominate their replacement. Unless you systematically replace prospects-turned-customers, you won't survive. Identifying potential customers, closing deals, replacing clients with new prospects, and exceeding expectations – in that order – is key to staying in business. Ask everyone for referrals, even those who don't presently buy from you. People generally won't be upset and will see it as confidence in what you offer. Just find the best way to do so. As basil king said "go at it boldly, and you'll find unexpected forces closing round you and coming to your aid."

To advance in business or career, know your audience deeply, communicate clearly without jargon, organize content with ease of reading in mind, seek constructive feedback, and use tools like grammar checkers and online resources to improve writing skills. Mastering these elements enhances leadership and transforms communication, driving success.

Use a-c power scheduling

It's vital to maintain focus and productivity during economic downturns. Use the slowdown as an opportunity to advance while others scale back. Increase your activity rate to demonstrate resilience and determination. Productive options include: taking a new job to build skills, starting a side business, direct marketing, solving market problems, joining mastermind groups, reading, volunteering, seeking office, developing services, upgrading systems, and learning technologies. Structure a rigid schedule to ensure productivity. Set firm sleep and wake times to maximize energy. Pack days with client outreach, marketing, repackaging ideas, and calls. Schedule physical activity, reading, and healthy eating. Allow some time for organizational tasks. Over half your schedule should directly interact with prospective clients and decision makers. Follow this advance and conquer schedule rigorously. Stay busy expanding your business while others read gloomy news. Consistently increase the frequency, speed, and reach of activities. Nightly, schedule the next day's tasks so you systematically learn to accomplish more in less time.

Have the a-c attitude

Advance and conquer is a mindset of focusing on the positive rather than dwelling on fears and negativity. To make it work, stay upbeat despite naysayers. Do something small daily that makes you feel good, like going for a walk or giving a coworker a genuine compliment. Record goals in the morning and evening, thinking ahead. Leave positive notes around work. Give yourself pep talks. Exercise daily. Read uplifting books or take possibility thinking courses. Vividly write future goals in the present tense. Create and stick to a productive schedule. Post a sign saying "no negative thinking allowed here" and get others to honor that. Eliminate substances so you can think clearly. Consistently replace any negative thoughts with positive ideas and take charge of your thinking. View problems as opportunities for future growth, which is the truth. Increase urgency and pay more attention to positive outcomes than issues. It may be hard work but very rewarding.