As a business owner, you wear many hats. You have to do all the things that keep your business running day-to-day, but you also have to find ways to attract customers to your business. After all, without customers, your business isn’t going to last very long!

There are many ways to attract the attention of potential customers and clients, but the best ways involve showing them that your business is the real deal.

Here are four ways to do just that.

Complete the Right Audits

How you run your business is important, not only to you and your employees, but also to the people buying your goods or services. They want to know that you’re running your business the right way. This is especially true if you work with other businesses.

The best way to do that is to complete the right audits. A few audits your business will want to consider include:

  • SOC audits
  • Merchandising audits
  • Health and safety audits
  • Loss prevention audits
  • Financial audits

The types of audits you need to run in order to build confidence with your customers and clients will depend on the kind of business you have. For example, regular health and safety audits for a restaurant are important, but not so important for an IT firm.

Experience and Professional Associations

Every customer wants to know how much experience you have. If you’ve been around for a long time, there’s usually a reason. That’s what customers assume anyway. Make sure your years of experience are clearly displayed on your website and consider mentioning it in your sales pitch.

If you don’t have decades of experience, you aren’t doomed! No matter how much experience you have, it’s a good idea to mention licenses, training, and any professional associations that show you’re the real deal.

Customer Testimonials

Customer testimonials matter. They provide the same function for a business as a list of references does for a job applicant, so make sure you make it easy for customers and clients to view them.

You can add written and video testimonials to your portfolio, but the type of testimonial should vary. Strive to include:

  • Customer testimonials
  • Testimonials from high profile people
  • Press releases
  • Product reviews

Take Pride in Your Appearance

First impressions matter. No matter what kind of business you have, it is always a good idea to spend a little time on your appearance. That might mean a pressed suit, but it doesn’t have to mean that! If you’re a plumber, it might just mean washing and styling your hair every morning.

The appearance of your brand matters too. If you have a physical store or office, customers and clients should be able to tell right away that you take pride in how your business and staff appear.

Online marketing and traditional marketing are good ways to get customer attention, but at the end of the day, it will all fall flat if your customers don’t think you’re the real deal. With these four tips, there will be no question that you are!