Every business has been there — that moment when work dries up after a period of heavy sales only a few weeks or months before.
Known as feast or famine, this type of cycle can make it hard to pay your bills or handle payroll when the number of paying customers has dwindled. Unless you’re actively working to save money during those high peaks, you might even have to close your doors due to a lack of cash flow.
The good news? Consistent business is possible for the long term if you have the right marketing efforts in place. Here’s what you need to know about the feast or famine cycle and how to use digital advertising as a way to avoid it.
Feast or Famine Meaning
The idiom feast or famine is a pretty old one that most people easily recognize. Essentially, it means having periods where your business is super busy compared to times when sales are quite slow. Comparable periods of excess and lack, for example.
Small businesses are especially susceptible to this type of issue, as they haven’t had the time to build up a high level of repeat customers. Some industries are just more prone to this problem simply because what they do is limited by changes in seasons, weather, or economic trends.
Top Tips for Minimizing Slow Periods in Sales With Digital Marketing
While the feast or famine roller coaster is something that all industries go through, there are things you can do to help keep the slower periods from being detrimental to your company’s success. Here are a few ways a strong digital marketing strategy can help reduce the effects.
Use Paid Advertising All Year Long
The best way to ensure your digital marketing continues to work for you through both busy and slow periods is to use paid advertising all year long.
Yes, even during the time you’re super swamped with customers.
The reason for this is that you always want to remain top-of-mind with your target market. They might not need you today, but see your paid ad in their Google search and keep you in mind for six months down the road.
Simply put, the easiest way to ensure your dry spells are as minimal as possible is to constantly keep those pay-per-click ads going.
Work on Your SEO and Content Marketing
Search engine optimization (SEO) and content marketing are two easy ways to help reduce slow sales periods in your building materials or construction business. Why? If your website is already primed to show up for top keywords on Google, then someone can find your company and become a lead any time of the year.
Likewise, content marketing through blogging, videos, and other forms of media is a good way to showcase your skills, products, and expertise to gain trust with your potential customers. If you’re working on this process throughout the year, then you should always have those who want a quote or further information from your sales reps.
Constantly Reach Out to Potential Clients
Another tip to reduce slow periods in your business is to constantly reach out to potential clients via social media. While this is usually best for LinkedIn, you could find other platforms where these customers are posting regularly and use that to your advantage.
Generally, all it takes is a brief, direct message sent by one of your sales reps from your company account that explains who you are, what you do, and how you would love for them to keep you in mind for the future.
Your sales team can also do this with cold emailing, which is still a very viable lead generation tool these days.
Start an Email List
Another way you can keep those slower seasons to a minimum is to start an email list. Of course, you’ll need to get permission before adding your customers to it, but most won’t mind.
Then continue to send messages once a week or every two weeks to ensure they remember who you are. You can include links to blog posts, tips, or whatever else makes sense for your specific niche.
The end result? They’ll remember who you are and be more than happy to get in touch, even if it is technically the off-season.
Wrap Up: Beating Sales Slumps in the Building Industry
Whether you’re an architect, building supply manufacturer, interior designer, or other related business, there are numerous ways to use digital marketing to avoid those feast or famine cycle periods.
In fact, this strategy is an excellent method for staying ahead of the competition, building relationships with customers that increase long-term loyalty, and generally increasing your overall rate for attracting potential clients.
Ready to learn how ER Marketing can help increase your online visibility and improve your lead generation process to prevent a feast or famine situation in your business? Please contact us today for details.
