Should I reach out to past customers during an economic downturn?

Absolutely - and make it personal, one-on-one outreach. Contact every single person who has ever purchased from you, but not through batch emails. Send individual text messages, handwritten letters, postcards, personally written emails, Instagram DMs, or LinkedIn messages. The easiest customer to get is one you already have. Check in on how they’re doing, ask open-ended questions to start conversations, and make sure your work is still appreciated. Don’t be salesy - your goal is genuine connection and conversation. If you’re just starting and have no sales yet, do this with every Instagram follower and email subscriber. This is how sales conversations begin, and it’s something you should be doing all the time but especially during slow periods.

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Asked by artists wanting to reconnect with buyers · Answered by Patrick Shanahan · art-marketing-podcast · 2025-04-24