“Where are customers hiding?” asked Duane Cummings as he kicked off his session on lead generation at Best of Success. “New customers are hiding right where someone else left them.”

Cummings, the founder of The Sensational Group, believes finding new customers is relatively easy as long as you have good habits and treat your existing customer base well. “If you’re not successful with your current customers, then why go searching for more? The grass is always greener over there if you don’t take care of your own grass.”

Contractors have do analyze their own customer service methods and make sure they are up to par. “There are exceptions, but the new customer you seek is probably someone else’s old or existing customer,” he said. “Once you realize that, you will begin working to ensure your existing or old customers don’t become someone else’s new ones.”

The first step to finding new customers is to formulate a plan — and make sure everyone at your company knows what it is. “You must define, identify and list the customers you want,” he said. “Do you have a clear and detailed plan that has been shared with your team? Everyone has to know what the plan is to succeed.”

Another key to increasing sales lies in establishing the company’s brand and developing a clear, consistent message. “Don’t try to be all things to all people,” he advised. “It will ruin your business.”

According to Cummings, focused, determined, passionate leadership at the top is essential for business success. “Have you communicated with your team the fact that you will inevitably succeed?” he asked. “Do your customers enjoy seeing you? Do you make people feel happy? Does the mood of the team mirror yours?”

 Cummings urged attendees to challenge themselves to improve their businesses. “Do something, even if it’s wrong,” he said. “Be better today than you were yesterday. Treat your current customers like they were brand new — and your only customer.”