When we first meet new clients, they often say their current marketing isn’t working, and they can’t figure out why. They’re doing everything right, but still getting nowhere, and they call us hoping that with some new designs and bigger campaigns, their business will turn around.

Lots of times there’s a simple fix, but too often there’s something deeper that even the best advertising can’t fix. The problem may be in your business itself. Fix these things first, and you’ll get a much better return on your marketing, and a better return on your business in general.

Clean up.

Try to see your storefront or restaurant with fresh eyes.

• Are the windows and doors clean?
• Is the carpet or flooring worn out?
• Any stained or missing ceiling tiles?
• Burned out light bulbs?
• Are your signage and fixtures shop-worn?
• Do your menus have lots of hand-written edits?
• How about the exterior – is your parking lot clean?
• Is your exterior signage in good shape?
• Are the sidewalks clean?
• Any weeds growing up through the sidewalk or parking lot?

Retrain your staff (and yourself!)

Your customers should feel like guests in your home. Your staff needs to go out of their way to make them feel welcome.

• Do you greet every customer enthusiastically?
• Does your staff welcome customers?
• Is your staff helpful to customers?
• Are they on their phones?

Check your negative reviews

Sure it’ll hurt your feelings, but this feedback is invaluable. It’ll tell you exactly what you need to fix.

• Look for recurring themes – unhelpful staff, dirty interior / exterior, slow service, etc.
• Share the results with your staff.
• Put your staff to work fixing these issues.
• Respond kindly and politely to negative reviews.
• Show the customer you value them.
• Offer a solution, or point out changes you’ve made to fix the issue.
• Remember that your kind, polite response isn’t for the complainer’s benefit. It’s to show other people that the negative review has been rectified, the problems are fixed, and therefore the negative review no longer applies. It also shows that you value your customers. This is key to bringing in new customers!

Advertising your business before fixing these issues will actually do more harm than good.

Once you have your house in order, THEN it’s time to advertise. That’s when we can show off your new and improved business, invite new people to check you out, and former customers to give you another shot. We can focus on getting good feedback to improve your online reviews and push old reviews down and out of sight.

Need some help? Call Surefire at (484) 378-4033.

We can help put together a checklist to get your business in order.
Then we’ll develop winning campaigns to turn your business around and put you back on top!