What Should You Do When Business Is Slow?
There's no doubt that the past couple of years have been tough for a lot of freelancers.
During the lockdown years, there was a huge increase in people starting their own businesses. This was fine when business was booming and money was flying around, but that was never going to last forever.
The economic impacts of Brexit and the pandemic caught up with us, the cost of living increased, and the rise of AI cannot be ignored. All these things are taking their toll.
Like many freelancers, I've seen a decrease in enquiries over the last 18 months. My ideal clients are freelancers and when the market is tough, mentoring isn't seen as a priority.
I could make the argument that if you are struggling to get clients, then working with me is exactly what you should be doing. But, as a freelancer myself, I completely understand why people are hesitant to invest.
Fortunately, I've structured my business in a way that means I can withstand a few quiet periods. But although I can withstand them, I don't ignore them. I don't sit around waiting for things to pick back up. I take steps to make those quiet periods as painless as possible.
Adapt to the market
Running a business requires flexibility. That doesn't mean you have to be flexible with your boundaries. It doesn't mean you have to take on crappy clients or low-paying work. And it doesn't mean you have to stop doing the things you love.
It just means that you need to adapt.
Invest in yourself
Maybe it's time to learn a new skill, get some outside help, do some training or invest in your expertise.
Back in January, I started using three new platforms. I've been learning how to use these platforms. I've been experimenting. I've been researching.
And because I've been doing this, I have new knowledge and experience to share with my clients.
I can help them decide whether they should invest time and effort into this type of marketing or whether there is a better option for their business. I can talk through the advantages and disadvantages of email newsletters. I can advise on the pros and cons of each platform. I can help with setting up a publication or membership programme on Ghost, Beehiiv or Substack.
How could you develop new skills or knowledge that would benefit your clients?
Change who you work with
Just because some industries are struggling doesn't mean every industry is struggling. You could adapt your business by changing who you work with.
Follow the money. Pay attention to where government funding is going. Look at which industries are booming and figure out how you can market your services to them.
Change your marketing strategy
I've mentioned a few times how LinkedIn is no longer generating the sort of business it used to for me. And that's part of why I started my content marketing experiment.
I'm not dropping LinkedIn, but I have changed how I use it. And I'm introducing new marketing channels.
If you are no longer getting the results you once got from your marketing, it might be time to try something new or change the way you approach things.
Diversify your products or services
My 12-week programme is excellent, but it also involves a big commitment of time and money which is a barrier for a lot of freelancers in the current economic climate.
So last year, I launched mentoring lite - a rolling monthly programme that allows you to get my support without long-term commitment or a large upfront investment.
And next month, I'm launching my group programme - Write With Lisa - which is super affordable at just £20 per month.
I'm finding ways to make my support more affordable and accessible without devaluing what I offer.
Could you adapt your products and services or introduce new ones?
Be proactive
There are plenty of ways to adapt when times are tough. The key is being proactive. Don't wait for the market to pick back up. Find a way to get yourself back on track.
If you've seen a slump in sales in recent years, make some changes. And if you don't know where to start with that, drop me an email. Those changes don't have to involve huge investments of money.
Your weekly ten-minute task
The weekly ten-minute tasks are short, simple tasks that should take around ten minutes to complete (although you can spend longer if you want to). The goal is to help you improve your sales and marketing processes.
Completing these tasks won't magically transform your business, but doing one small thing each week to improve is better than doing nothing. So block out ten minutes in the next few days and complete the below task.
Update one thing on your website
There's always something we can improve on when it comes to our website, so this week's task is to update one thing.
It could be:
• Tweaking the home page copy
• Amending your About section
• Adding some new client feedback
• Updating your images
• Adding some internal links from an older blog post to a newer one or vice versa
• Updating your services pages
• Changing your call to action copy
• Cutting down your choice of services
• Rewriting your meta description
Or it could be just giving it a once-over read to check for any errors
Weekly anagrams
Sometimes you need a little break from work or something to get your brain going while you have your morning brew. That's where the weekly anagrams come in.
And this week they are all Lord of the Rings characters:
- fang lad
- do for
- all egos
- oar rang
- lo glum
If you are unfamiliar with how anagrams work: An anagram is a word or phrase formed by rearranging the letters of a different word or phrase, using all the original letters only once.
Feel free to send me your answers once you’ve got them all – there’s no prize, but it’s always good to share your achievements. I'll give you the answers in next week's email.
And talking of answers, here are the answers to last week's anagrams:
- lem = Elm
- nut shore chest = Horse Chestnut
- poke my nuzzle = Monkey Puzzle
- crib shrivel = Silver Birch
- coy smear = Sycamore
Thanks for reading
That's it from me this week. As always, if you'd like my help with anything sales, marketing or business-related, you can book 90 minutes with me.
