Romance Your Customers By Making The Easy Sale First
Romance Your Customers By Making The Easy Sale First
Thinking back, I realize that one of the reasons Gavin got slapped so often, is that he was trying to make a very difficult sale. He tended to fail more often than he succeeded. He just didn't know how to romance his prospects.
When dealing with your customers, are you trying to close a sale that is hard to make?
If you are advertising or selling to people who have never heard of you and you start off asking for a relatively big commitment, the answer is almost certainly yes. It is also true when trying to sell big ticket items or complex solutions to new prospects. Are you making the same mistake as Gavin, and turning off many prospects, simply because they are not ready to take such big a step?
As marketers, we can't afford to undermine our efforts with this kind of mistake. To reach a qualified prospect and get turned down is simply too expensive, and the opportunity cost is too high. Like most marketing mistakes the issues are subtle and are not always obvious to the casual observer.
The key with marketing is understand that no matter how much success you have with a program, you owe it to yourself to continually find ways to improve your results. It costs exactly the same to run a direct mail piece, a sales campaign or an advertisement that yields 2%, 3% or 4%. So why be content with any response rate, let alone a modest one? What's more, you can often get dramatic increases with only very minor changes, that cost nothing.
I have found the easiest way to increase your success rate with customers, is to get a little romance going. The key is to make the easy sale first. My young friend might have been more successful if he had built trust by inviting his prospects for coffee, getting to know them a little better and understanding what they were wanting out of a relationship. So it is with your customers. You have to be prepared to invest time and energy in building trust.
Making the easy sale first, usually involves offering something free. Let the customer try out your services at no risk. What can you offer free, without breaking the bank? The most simple gift is information. Do you have information that is useful and valuable to your prospective customers? It must not be self-serving, otherwise it defeats the purpose. The best kind of information is the kind that helps them avoid making bad buying decisions, or protects them from dangers they might not be aware of.
You can also offer a free, no obligation, consultation or service to new prospects. If your services are good and your prospects are properly qualified, the downside risk is minimal for you. You should get a lot more people trying your service and becoming customers.
Remember, I did say, make the easy sale first. You still have to sell, but it will be easier. Be clear about the benefits your prospects will get, if they take this first step. Don't make the mistake of thinking that because you are offering something free, people will automatically take you up on your offer.
However, once they do take you up on your offer, you are well on your way to developing a profitable relationship.
Romance Your Customers By Making The Easy Sale First - To learn more about this author, visit Michael Hepworth's Website.
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When I was a teenager, I had a friend Gavin, who had a very direct approach with the young ladies in the town where we lived. We used to laugh because he got a lot of slaps, and we were also envious because he was sometimes successful.
Thinking back, I realize that one of the reasons Gavin got slapped so often, is that he was trying to make a very difficult sale. He tended to fail more often than he succeeded. He just didn't know how to romance his prospects.
When dealing with your customers, are you trying to close a sale that is hard to make?
If you are advertising or selling to people who have never heard of you and you start off asking for a relatively big commitment, the answer is almost certainly yes. It is also true when trying to sell big ticket items or complex solutions to new prospects. Are you making the same mistake as Gavin, and turning off many prospects, simply because they are not ready to take such big a step?
As marketers, we can't afford to undermine our efforts with this kind of mistake. To reach a qualified prospect and get turned down is simply too expensive, and the opportunity cost is too high. Like most marketing mistakes the issues are subtle and are not always obvious to the casual observer.
The key with marketing is understand that no matter how much success you have with a program, you owe it to yourself to continually find ways to improve your results. It costs exactly the same to run a direct mail piece, a sales campaign or an advertisement that yields 2%, 3% or 4%. So why be content with any response rate, let alone a modest one? What's more, you can often get dramatic increases with only very minor changes, that cost nothing.
I have found the easiest way to increase your success rate with customers, is to get a little romance going. The key is to make the easy sale first. My young friend might have been more successful if he had built trust by inviting his prospects for coffee, getting to know them a little better and understanding what they were wanting out of a relationship. So it is with your customers. You have to be prepared to invest time and energy in building trust.
Making the easy sale first, usually involves offering something free. Let the customer try out your services at no risk. What can you offer free, without breaking the bank? The most simple gift is information. Do you have information that is useful and valuable to your prospective customers? It must not be self-serving, otherwise it defeats the purpose. The best kind of information is the kind that helps them avoid making bad buying decisions, or protects them from dangers they might not be aware of.
You can also offer a free, no obligation, consultation or service to new prospects. If your services are good and your prospects are properly qualified, the downside risk is minimal for you. You should get a lot more people trying your service and becoming customers.
Remember, I did say, make the easy sale first. You still have to sell, but it will be easier. Be clear about the benefits your prospects will get, if they take this first step. Don't make the mistake of thinking that because you are offering something free, people will automatically take you up on your offer.
However, once they do take you up on your offer, you are well on your way to developing a profitable relationship.
Romance Your Customers By Making The Easy Sale First - To learn more about this author, visit Michael Hepworth's Website.
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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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Leanne Hoagland-SmithAre your sales where you want them to be? Will you be one of the few who achieves sales or business success or one of the many who have failed to change? Are you tired of being told you are like everyone else? Then you may find my first book on sales of interest. Be the Red Jacket in the Sea of Gray Suits, The Keys to Unlocking Sales available at Amazon or at http://www.processspecialist.com/red-jacket.htm. This book is a reflection of my no-nonsense approach to improving sales to overall business results. If you are truly committed to making sustainable changes, then I can help you secure a positive return on your investment because I focus on executable solutions not telling you the problems you already know you have. From training to corporate (group) coaching to executive one on one coaching, my approach is to assess, create awareness, build a goal driven action plan and then execute. The bottom line question is "Not do you or your employees know it, but do you or they want to do it?" Please call for a free strategy session at 219.759.5601. - Visit Leanne Hoagland-Smith's Website |
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Cheryl MatthynssensCheryl is a life skills coach, licensed Chemical Dependency Counselor and a 20 year entrepreneur. Cheryl's dedication to achieving a life of balance led to her expanding her teaching from the simple managing of life's daily challenges to adding financial well being as well. A direct marketer with DrinkACT, she is gaining ground in the online community with her concepts of making sure business owners, entreprenuers and employees have well rounded life styles. She opened up a small affiliate site - The Balance Guide- to help others find resources for mental and emotional well being. Visit Cheryl's blog to see more of the diversity beyond business she has began offering online at www.thebalanceguide.blogspot.com - Visit Cheryl Matthynssens's Website |
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David AchesonDavid Acheson is the founder of DCJA Consultancy. DCJA Consultancy is a management consultancy business specialising in B2B sales consultancy. They offer bespoke and packaged sales consultancy including Sales Optimisation Review, Interim Sales Management, Sales & Marketing Review, 1:1 Sales & Management Staff Analysis, Management Training, Solution Sales Training, Creation of New Pay Plan, KPI's, run Customer Feedback Campaigns, assist with Recruitment, Coaching, Appraisals and set up Strategic Marketing Campaigns. David spent his early career in accountancy and then moved into sales in 1982, working in Office Equipment, IT, Advertising, Training, Outsourcing and Consultancy. He has held many Senior Positions in SMBs and Global Organisations including Head of Sales Operations & Head of Business Development. His knowledge, skills and great experience of the Sales Industry has led to David making keynote speeches and running educational sessions to key businesses through organisations including The Chamber of Commerce and Business Link. - Visit David Acheson's Website |
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Linda RichardsonLinda Richardson is the Founder and Executive Chairwoman of Richardson, a global sales training and performance improvement company. As a recognized leader in the industry, she has won the coveted Stevie Award for Lifetime Achievement in Sales Excellence and she was identified by Training Industry, Inc. as one of the “Top 20 Most Influential Training Professionals.” Ms. Richardson is credited with the movement to Consultative Selling and is the author of ten books on selling and sales management, including Sales Coaching — Making the Great Leap from Sales Manager to Sales Coach, and Stop Telling, Start Selling. She teaches sales and management at the Wharton Graduate School of the University of Pennsylvania and the Wharton Executive Development Center. Linda is a frequent speaker at industry and client conferences, has been published extensively in industry and training journals, and has been featured in numerous publications, including The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Nation’s Business, Selling Power, Success, and The Conference Board Magazine. Learn more about Richardson's sales training and performance improvement solutions at http://www.richardson.com web - Visit Linda Richardson's Website |
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Jay Kubassek(Jay's Full Bio: EvanCarmichael.com/jaykubassek) In five years, Canadian-born entrepreneur Jay Kubassek went from selling mufflers at a Midas franchise to revolutionizing Internet marketing with the 2004 launch of CarbonCopyPRO, a online marketing education company, now worth over $20 million with customers in over 160 countries.
As an independent film producer, his upstart film fund Aliquot Films is currently producing a films with Spike Lee and Abel Fererra (starring Ethan Hawke and Dennis Hopper.)
Jay's entrepreneurial spirit is irrepressible. He’s the owner of five companies, a professional speaker and trainer, international real estate developer/investor, extreme sport enthusiast and emerging philanthropist. Jay resides in NYC with his wife Jamie, son Milo and dog Cooper. Visit Jay's official website: www.JayKubassek.com - Visit Jay Kubassek's Website |
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