We’ve all gone through slow times in our businesses, and many industries even have certain times of the year when things slow down for everyone. For example, it doesn’t take first hand experience to understand that few people will be investing in an air conditioning unit during the winter months (even here in sunny Florida) or a heating unit during the summer months, but as business owners, especially small business owners, we need to insure that we avoid that as much as possible since we typically don’t have the financial resources to weather the dry periods as effectively as a larger company might.

That being said, by taking a few simple steps and leveraging your time a little more effectively, you can do a lot to keep your pipeline steady even during the slow times.

• If you run the type of business where people come to you, and they’re not, get out there and make contact with them. You could try printing and signing a letter to each of the businesses in your building offering some sort of incentive for doing business with you, and then hand delivering them. You would probably get some results by simply mailing them, but you will begin to establish a relationship be getting out their and introducing yourself.
• Maintain a consistent email campaign with your clients. They have already purchased from you in the past and when the need arises, they will be more likely to purchase from you than from someone else. Stay at the top of their minds.
• Blog regularly with relevant and useful information. Not only will it give your visitors a reason to come back to your site more regularly (and search engines too) but it will also keep your mind sharp and help you to come up with more ideas to improve your business.
• Increase your advertising. Most people conduct their advertising incorrectly by decreasing it when business is slow. Think about it like excursive and you’ll see how ineffective that is. If you exercised only when you were in great shape, but then slowed down if you got a little overweight or even stopped all together if you became obese with the intent on exercising again when you got into better shape – how do you think it would work out for you?
• Become well known by speaking in public on your area of expertise, networking and volunteering in organizations that you believe in. The more exposure you have the better your chances of generating new business. A side benefit is that the more time you spend actively interacting with a variety of people, the better you will become at presenting yourself more effectively.
• Send referrals. If you know someone whose product or service would be a benefit to someone else who is actively looking for that type of thing, by all means, put both parties in contact with each other. People are more likely to help others who help them.