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How to Keep Sales Up In A Down Economy

Written by: Terry Pennington

Article Overview: If you are a small business owner the best way to sustain and increase your revenues during these difficult times is to avoid marketing pitfalls and think proactively. This article outlines steps to help you create an environment where your customers will promote your business for you. – Read the article.

How to Keep Sales Up In A Down Economy

It’s a frightening thing when sales start dropping off and it gets even more serious when businesses react by cutting back on their sales and marketing efforts. Don’t fall into that trap.

How can your prospects buy from you if they don’t know you’re out there? Don’t let this economy overwhelm you. Practice prudent management but market decisively and Act, Don’t React.

Here’s What Not To Do
Don’t stop promoting and don’t start discounting or couponing. Doing so may cause gross sales to initially decrease at a slower rate but your profits will drop. Discounting reduces your selling price in your customer’s perception but it doesn’t reduce your costs—it just erodes your profit margin. If you are already discounting or couponing develop a program to work your way out of it profitably.

Think Proactively
Look at your customer base. What do you know about them? Why do they buy from you? What do they really think about your business? Do the same with your prospects. Next, determine what opportunities exist to increase top-of-mind awareness of your firm, and its products, in your public’s minds? How? Ask them. Conduct some simple straightforward research.

Convert Customers into “Your Fan Club”
Take a few minutes out of everyday and put yourself in their shoes. Offer service beyond the expected--it will payoff big. Capitalize by delivering unexpected quality.

Benefit from Commitment
Create an environment for your Customers to promote you. If you don’t have a website...get one. But make sure it meets your customer’s needs and provides them with feedback directly to you. Include a Blog and if you’ve followed the advice this article offers before you know it, your customers will be promoting you.

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Article Tags: benefit from, blog, couponing, customer base, economy, fan club, few minutes, gross sales, marketing efforts, mind awareness, perception, profit margin, profits, prospects, prudent management, quality benefit, sales and marketing, shoes, unexpected quality



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Online Sales and Marketing vs Traditional - Hi Evan, I am noticing that many of the posts in the Sales/Marketing section deal with online marketing, SEM and and SEO and Affiliates. I was wondering if it might be a good idea to separate that section into two; 1) Online Sales and Marketing; 2) Traditional Sales and Marketing
Re: Online Sales and Marketing vs Traditional - [quote="ltrahan":31w9r2iz]Hi Evan, I am noticing that many of the posts in the Sales/Marketing section deal with online marketing, SEM and and SEO and Affiliates. I was wondering if it might be a good idea to separate that section into two; 1) Online Sales and Marketing; 2) Traditional Sales and Marketing[/quote:31w9r2iz] I second the request...
Hello From Marietta GA! - Hello All! My name is Tim Naylor and I am in Direct Sales! I am glad I have found EC's sites and I hope to learn and share a lot!
taxes in canada - Well in Canada we only have a few provinces and the Sales tax is slightly different. Here in Ontario the Goods & Services tax has reduced to 5% from 7% in the last year due to the promises made by the government in place.
Re: Watch What you Read - I agree. i believe more video's should be like Jeffery Gitomers video's under his Sales rant. They are typically not more than 3 minutes. His model seems to be; 1. Main Message (or Point) 2. Example 3. Next steps to put it into Action take away the extra "blabber" and you've got viewers that will come back.


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