Get All Access for $5/mo

5 Last-Minute Sales Strategies to Onboard New Clients In a Week's Time Make sure you're not caught out by a lull in your business.

By Aimee Tariq Edited by Dan Bova

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

skynesher | Getty Images

Do you have enough clients? You almost surely don't. A business is like a shark -- it has to keep moving forward; otherwise it dies. If you're not constantly adding new clients, you'll be caught off guard if your old sources of income dry up.

Related: Long-Term Customer Loyalty Starts (or Ends) With Your Earliest Interactions

That's why, when the end of the month has arrived, the bills are due, and the revenue's just not where it should be, it's time to find some new clients as fast as possible.

True, if you're stuck trying to find new clients at the last minute, it's not the end of the world. You'll have to work hard to onboard anyone new. But that will be possible if you know what you're doing. Here are some solutions to take:

1. Target a narrow segment with Facebook advertising.

Facebook's advertising capabilities are incredible. With its huge reach, great advertising tools and range of follow-up options, it's a perfect choice for finding new clients fast. When I emailed Michael Laurens, founder of the Agency Accelerator Mastermind Program, this was one of the biggest tips he had for me.

"Facebook is the move if you're trying to bring new clients on board," Laurens said. "Sure, it's not quite as proactive as going out and contacting people yourself -- but it's scalable on a level that your time isn't. Creating a sales funnel through an ad campaign and supplementing it with chatbots and other automated response methods is a great way to bring new clients on fast."

Next, once you've designed your offer, try using one of Facebook's Look-alike audiences based on the customers you already have. If your creative is good and your targeting is correct, you'll start seeing results quickly. Just ask Digital Hyve, which -- according to a case study published by Facebook itself -- used Lookalike audiences to double bookings for one of its clients.

2. Revisit old leads and prospects.

There's an old, and widely accepted -- according to Online Marketing Institute -- idea that every marketer needs between seven and 13 "touches" with a lead before he or she becomes a client. If you haven't had a system set up to turn leads into clients, you probably haven't even reached seven yet.

Go back and revisit some of your older leads and prospects and reach out to them. See what their current condition is -- are they prospering? Are they still in the same line of work? How have you changed the way you do business to address their concerns? Reestablish contact if you haven't talked in a while. Since you've already begun creating a relationship, you'll be surprised how quickly you can bring them back from the dead.

Related: Eight Client Onboarding Practices You Should Ditch Right Now

Pete Williams, co-founder of Infiniti Telecommunications, as Inc reported, won an ICON award in 2017 for his work building campaigns that revived old leads for the company. Those leads significantly boosted the company's client base by just making sure no one fell through the cracks.

This is something you can do, too.

3. Create a compelling offer.

The first thing you have to do when you're trying to get new clients on board fast is give them a reason to be interested. Present them with a low-friction introductory offer. Free trials are great, as are giveaways. Give people a reason to be interested.

There's a reason coupons and discount codes have such a time-honored history -- they work. So do trials. Giving something to customers for free or at a discount to get them in the door is a great way to get them into a database and browsing the rest of your offerings. To learn more about this, I called Nik Robbins, partner at Be Top Local. Simply put, he said, one of his biggest tips was to find a way to get people in the door.

"There are so many offers out there right now that it's hard to distinguish yourself," he said. "If you're able to get people in the door, you've already got a leg up. Offering something for free or discounted is a great way to do that. With our particular audience -- medical professionals -- it often takes the form of a free consultation. But it depends on your industry."

4. Put together a clear landing page.

Whatever method you use to contact new leads, you need something to show them. That's where landing pages come in. Having good creative will put you ahead of the curve in terms of showing people what you can offer, and a landing page that communicates your offer clearly and concisely will help you turn new and old leads into clients.

There are tons of examples of landing page optimization changing a business's trajectory, but one of the best is Majestic Wine, which turned its old, out-of-date landing page into a cleaner, simpler design. The result? As published in a case study by VWO, it was a 200 percent increase in conversions. When you're trying to bring on new clients fast, that extra conversion rate matters.

5. Don't forget about email.

STR Software was having trouble competing with its much bigger competitors in the field of enterprise resource planning. So the company implemented a content marketing strategy. It created a resource called the BI Publisher University, then gated it to capture emails.

Once those emails were captured, STR began an email campaign that sent customers back to that central resource as things were added. That campaign the Curata blog noted, was the best campaign STR ever ran, bumping itswebsite visits up by over 50 percent.

Facebook is sexier, and older methods like individual emailing and calling are time-tested, but email marketing should be a cornerstone of your client onboarding for a reason. Make sure you're putting your offer in people's inboxes, not just in their news feed.

Related: What to Do When Your Ideal Customer Isn't Who You Expected

If you're looking at the end of the month and wondering where the clients you need are going to come from, don't fear -- it's time to get resourceful. Implement these tips to bring new clients on board and make sure you're not caught out by a lull in your business.

Aimee Tariq

Founder and CEO of A Life With Health

Aimee Tariq is most passionate about empowering professionals to live their best lives by removing toxic triggers and maximizing energy, focus and productivity. At the age of 23 she became a no. 1 bestselling author for health optimization.

Want to be an Entrepreneur Leadership Network contributor? Apply now to join.

Editor's Pick

Side Hustle

At 16, She Started a Side Hustle While 'Stuck at Home.' Now It's on Track to Earn Over $3.1 Million This Year.

Evangelina Petrakis, 21, was in high school when she posted on social media for fun — then realized a business opportunity.

Health & Wellness

I'm a CEO, Founder and Father of 2 — Here Are 3 Practices That Help Me Maintain My Sanity.

This is a combination of active practices that I've put together over a decade of my intense entrepreneurial journey.

Business News

Remote Work Enthusiast Kevin O'Leary Does TV Appearance Wearing Suit Jacket, Tie and Pajama Bottoms

"Shark Tank" star Kevin O'Leary looks all business—until you see the wide view.

Business News

Are Apple Smart Glasses in the Works? Apple Is Eyeing Meta's Ran-Ban Success Story, According to a New Report.

Meta has sold more than 700,000 pairs of smart glasses, with demand even ahead of supply at one point.

Money & Finance

The 'Richest' U.S. City Probably Isn't Where You Think It Is

It's not located in New York or California.

Business News

Hybrid Workers Were Put to the Test Against Fully In-Office Employees — Here's Who Came Out On Top

Productivity barely changed whether employees were in the office or not. However, hybrid workers reported better job satisfaction than in-office workers.