It costs five to 10 times more to win a new customer than to keep an existing one. John Downes looks at what you should do when youthink your business is a success

Previous Business 2000 articles have focused on the challenges facing entrepreneurs trying to get their fledgling business off the ground.

Underlining the importance of persistence, innovation, leadership and market research, we have outlined some of the key qualities it takes to successfully build a business from scratch.

Now imagine that same business 20 years down the line.

Imagine also that it finds itself with a product (or products) which, though successfully established in the market, have seen their sales stagnate: although they are not decreasing, they are not getting any bigger, either.

This then gives rise to the risk that a new entrant to the market, or even an existing competitor, could seek to take away some of its business.

Clearly, this poses a serious threat to our fictional company.

So what techniques could it employ to generate new sales of an already established product?

Mr Dermot McConkey is managing director of McConkey Performance Management, which advises companies trying to increase their sales.

"One of the biggest obstacles is complacency, the idea that you can leave well enough alone," he believes. The tendency is to believe that when I have got you on board, you'll come back to me. But it costs five to 10 times more to win a new customer than to keep an existing customer you have a rapport and relationship already.

So it's what you do after you have done what you're expected to do that counts."

With this in mind, Mr McConkey says he tells his clients that they need to have knowledge of their products, customers and their industry; they must be proactive in their attitude, even in the face of refusals; they need to be skilful enough to know what they are doing; and they should develop good habits, such as time-management and a healthy working routine.

There are also four key factors which, he says, are important in any attempt to generate new sales of an existing product:

time - can people get the product any quicker?;

money - can they get it any cheaper?;

quality - is it a good label, for example, or does it provide a good service?; and

quantity - how much of the product do you get for your money?

Any move in one of these could help the company sell more of their product, he says.

For example, a bank looking to market its products to its clients might make experts available to advise them, thereby increasing the quality of the service that the bank provides.

Equally, if a supermarket changes the price of a product, or introduces a loyalty card scheme, it means customers are getting more value for their money, and might buy more of that product.

Selling, however, is not necessarily the same as marketing, says Mr McConkey.

"You are selling the sizzle in the sausage," he explains.

"It is a faith thing, you are getting people to try out a product by selling, you are getting people to want your product. To get someone to act, you have to make them realise they will have something they didn't have before."

With this in mind, Mr McConkey believes it is essential that companies regularly train their staff in how best to increase their sales.

The most accomplished sellers he knows are those who are able to identify what their prospective customer wants, he says.

Ms Sam Fitzpatrick, communications manager with Musgrave SuperValu-Centra, agrees that the most important starting point is a good knowledge of your target market.

One of the best ways to do this, she says, is through market research conducted with the ultimate aim of increasing sales.

"It's about knowing your customer's needs and wants," she says. "You need to know who exactly your customer is, and clarify that you are actually marketing to the right person."

This can be achieved through in-store promotions, such as "buy one, get one free" offers, for example, or special price reductions, she says.

But while a price promotion will appeal to all consumers, with other types of promotion the critical importance of good market research again becomes clear: it is essential to tailor any promotional programme to your target market.

For example, a student will have very different priorities than a housewife out shopping for her family.

"When you are trying to revitalise sales, you need to look at new avenues as well," she says.

"For example, home delivery or internet orders some of our stores would do a lot of email business, with people emailing in their lists at lunchtime and picking it up on their way home," she says.

As we have seen, generating new sales of an existing product clearly requires a large amount of planning, enthusiasm, energy and market knowledge.

It is interesting to note, then, the close similarities between these attributes and those which are so important even when you are only starting out.