Dont Just Make a Sale
Dont Just Make a Sale
Even though many business people have come to realise their existing customers can be a productive source of new business, there is something that is often overlooked. It is easier to achieve a regular flow of sales if you treat each sale as part of a 'process' rather than as a one-off 'event'.
If you view each sale simply as an individual event you will miss valuable opportunities to enhance your customer relationships, attract more customers, keep the opposition at bay, boost your sales and enjoy higher profits.
Once the sale is 'made', you will need a plan of action to capitalize on and expand your relationship with this customer. Sometimes the after-sale activities may require more attention and planning than was needed to gain the sale in the first place.
The traditional advertising/sales process attempts to move customers through a process known as AIDA - Attention, Interest, Desire, Action. I like to expand this acronym to AIDAA, with the extra A standing for After the Sale.
For business-to-business sales there are numerous worthwhile, and relevant, ways to follow up on a sale. In a business-to-consumer environment there are similar opportunities.
This after-sale support is necessary to close the loop and encourage the customer to buy from you again. Try these ideas:
A telephone call/letter reminding the purchaser of customer service options.
Offer complementary services from you at a special rate.
Periodic letters (or brochures or postcards) reminding the customer of other products your business offers.
In-person courtesy calls to keep in touch with purchasers of high-value low-frequency business goods or services.
A timely reminder of a service that is due or a suggestion of consumables that may be required for the original item purchased.
A relevant offer from another business (sent by you) that will be perceived as useful and valuable by your customer.
Some older sales programs emphasis closing 'techniques' and stress how sales is a 'numbers game'. The more calls you make, the more presentations you make, and the more sales you close. The focus is on completing one sale and moving onto the next. Often the quality of the customer and your relationship with them is ignored.
There is some truth to this simplified approach, and a disciplined sales person will attempt to maximise the number of calls they make. However, a longer-term customer-centric approach to your selling activities will yield greater results for your business, your sales people and your customers.
It's your choice…you can just make a sale, or you can manage the sales process to create a lasting relationship that will cause your customer to want to buy from you again.
Which outcome are you focused on?
Dont Just Make a Sale - To learn more about this author, visit Stuart Ayling's Website.
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No business can survive without the lifeblood of profitable sales pulsing through it.
Even though many business people have come to realise their existing customers can be a productive source of new business, there is something that is often overlooked. It is easier to achieve a regular flow of sales if you treat each sale as part of a 'process' rather than as a one-off 'event'.
If you view each sale simply as an individual event you will miss valuable opportunities to enhance your customer relationships, attract more customers, keep the opposition at bay, boost your sales and enjoy higher profits.
Once the sale is 'made', you will need a plan of action to capitalize on and expand your relationship with this customer. Sometimes the after-sale activities may require more attention and planning than was needed to gain the sale in the first place.
The traditional advertising/sales process attempts to move customers through a process known as AIDA - Attention, Interest, Desire, Action. I like to expand this acronym to AIDAA, with the extra A standing for After the Sale.
For business-to-business sales there are numerous worthwhile, and relevant, ways to follow up on a sale. In a business-to-consumer environment there are similar opportunities.
This after-sale support is necessary to close the loop and encourage the customer to buy from you again. Try these ideas:
A telephone call/letter reminding the purchaser of customer service options.
Offer complementary services from you at a special rate.
Periodic letters (or brochures or postcards) reminding the customer of other products your business offers.
In-person courtesy calls to keep in touch with purchasers of high-value low-frequency business goods or services.
A timely reminder of a service that is due or a suggestion of consumables that may be required for the original item purchased.
A relevant offer from another business (sent by you) that will be perceived as useful and valuable by your customer.
Some older sales programs emphasis closing 'techniques' and stress how sales is a 'numbers game'. The more calls you make, the more presentations you make, and the more sales you close. The focus is on completing one sale and moving onto the next. Often the quality of the customer and your relationship with them is ignored.
There is some truth to this simplified approach, and a disciplined sales person will attempt to maximise the number of calls they make. However, a longer-term customer-centric approach to your selling activities will yield greater results for your business, your sales people and your customers.
It's your choice…you can just make a sale, or you can manage the sales process to create a lasting relationship that will cause your customer to want to buy from you again.
Which outcome are you focused on?
Dont Just Make a Sale - To learn more about this author, visit Stuart Ayling's Website.
Like this article? Share it with your friends
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David BarrDavid Barr is the President of Venture Opportunities, Inc. David has been a professional business broker/intermediary since 1980 focusing on General Business Brokerage and Mergers and Acquisitions representing client transaction value from $400,000 to $20,000,000. Mr. Barr has handled the sale of over four hundred and fifty companies. David earned a university degree from the State University of New York majoring in economics and business. David holds the Mergers and Acquisition Master Intermediary and the Certified Business Intermediary designations from the International Business Brokers Association. He is also a Senior Business Analyst and a Texas licensed Real Estate Agent. For more information about David and Venture Opportunities, visit www.bizdealmaker.com. - Visit David Barr's Website |
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Kim CastleWith nearly two decades in the advertising and design business, with clients like Domino's Pizza, General Motors, Direct TV, Pedigree, Wolfgang Puck, Higher Octave Music, Hollywood Celebrity Products, Disney, and Paramount, as well as thousands of entrepreneurs around the world define, structure, communicate, and position their business for greater profits, BrandU(R) co-creators Kim Castle and W. Vito Montone discovered that entrepreneurs could experience the same power that big brands command for a fraction of the cost with the world's only process-based results-drive Integral approach to business creation. BrandU(R) is helping entrepreneurs grow with the power of extreme clarity from idea...to brand...to market(TM) and helping one million entrepreneurs become successful and whole so that they can make a difference in the world. Are you one of them? If you want to experience clarity all the way to the bank(TM), get started now at http://www.brandu.com. - Visit Kim Castle's Website |
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George LudwigGeorge Ludwig is a recognized authority on sales strategy and peak performance psychology. An international speaker, trainer, and corporate consultant, he helps clients like Johnson & Johnson, Abbott Laboratories, Northwestern Mutual, CIGNA, and numerous others improve sales force effectiveness and performance. Though it's George's strategies and processes that help corporations increase productivity and performance, it's his tremendous energy and dynamism that spark the transformation. Again and again, clients remark on his amazing ability to unleash human capacity and inspire men and women to break out of their comfort zones. The result is a whole new type of salesperson. His customized presentations teach achievers to make stunning advances in their lives. From helping salespeople realize cherished dreams to helping corporations exponentially accelerate revenue streams, George Ludwig leaves audiences and individuals empowered, emboldened, and clamoring for more. George is the best-selling author of Power Selling: Seven Strategies for Cracking the Sales Code and Wise Moves: 60 Quick Tips to Improve Your Position in Life & Business. - Visit George Ludwig's Website |
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