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Seven Secrets of Closing Deals with Women Why Entrepreneurs Need to Focus on Women
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| Guest post by: Gerry Myers |
Article Overview: Women have different buying patterns, thought processes and experiences than men do. Therefore, closing deals with women requires knowing what they want and what motivates them to buy.
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Free Download - Women - The Myths The Realities Things Successful Entrepreneurs Should Know By Gerry Myers |
Seven Secrets of Closing Deals with Women Why Entrepreneurs Need to Focus on Women
It’s not news that women and men are different — physically, emotionally, and mentally. Each gender communicates, thinks, operates, and manages with a unique style. Neither is right or wrong. They are just different. As a result, many entrepreneurs are taking the time to learn some of the secrets about doing business with women.
1. The Conference Room Isn’t a Battlefield. Much of what I have read on closing the sale used words such as “the game plan,” “pre-game strategy,” and “the attack plan.” I got the feeling that the initial business handshake was going to be followed by “go to your corners and come out fighting.” Closing deals with women is about relationships, not battles. Build trust, show integrity and listen to what she says.
2. The 3 Rs You Didn’t Learn in School — Relationship, Respect and Results. Establishing a relationship will guarantee a long-term, loyal business association, rather than an isolated sale. Women converse more with each other. They recommend, refer and repeat doing business with people they like and respect. Closing a deal with a woman may take longer, but it is worth the time and effort.
3. If You Want My Money, Don’t Call Me Honey. Valuing women as employees, colleagues, business associates, clients and customers is important to doing business with them. Women notice small things — how you address them versus their male coworkers, for instance. Savvy business men and women recognize that many women are the purchasing agents for their businesses, families and themselves. When doing business, these financially confident women seek out companies that value them and accommodate their needs.
4. What Works for the Gander Doesn’t Always Work for the Goose. When spoken to at length, women nod to confirm they are listening, not to convey their approval or acceptance of the deal. A man’s nod more often signifies agreement. Executives used to spouting orders or salesmen who do the majority of the talking need to readjust their strategies when dealing with women. Women will listen politely, but then may fail to buy. This confuses the salesperson who thought the sale was closed.
5. To Be, or Not To Be. There are many things women are not. They are not too emotional to run multi-million dollar companies successfully. They are not too illogical and irrational to make sound business decisions. They are not indecisive or incapable of making a decision because they consider all the options first. While they may function differently than men, they are a highly responsible, dependable, loyal group. To close deals with women, rather they are executives, business owners or homemakers, realize who they are and who they aren’t.
6. Applaud Her Intelligence. Today, women are more educated than at any other time in history. More than one third of Ph.D. candidates and medical school graduates are women, as are 55 percent of university students. Women owned businesses outpace overall business growth two to one. There are approximately 8 million women business owners who generate more than $2.3 trillion dollars in revenue annually. They employ 35 percent more people than all the Fortune 500 companies combined worldwide, employing one out of every four workers. Understand her power to help your company grow.
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About the Author: Gerry Myers RSS for Gerry's articles - Visit Gerry's website Gerry Myers is CEO/founder of Advisory Link (AL). AL helps corporations in marketing and selling to women, as well as recruiting, retaining and promoting women in the organization. In addition to development and overseeing the innovative Women’s Advisory Boards program, she creates and facilitates Exec-U-Links, which are peer coaching groups. One example is the Women Executives and Business Owners. AL’s website is www.advisorylink-dfw.com Myers has written for or been featured in The New York Times, The Financial Post, The Dallas Business Journal, Honolulu Weekly, Toronto Star and Working Woman, to name a few. Myers is author of Targeting the New Professional Woman: How to Market and Sell to Today's 57 Million Working Women. She is co-author with Jack Canfield, Dr. Warren Bennis and others in the upcoming book, Leading the Way to Success. Myers is past president of the DFW National Association of Women Business Owners and of the D/FW AWN and has served on the advisory boards of UNT Dept of Marketing & Logistics, Women's Leadership Exchange, Women's Resource Center of the Dallas Metropolitan YWCA, Girls Inc., etc. She is an alumnus of Leadership America, Class of 2003. Click here to visit Gerry's website Women The Myths The Realities Things Successful Entrepreneurs Should Know Women Business Owners Continue to Thrive Seven Secrets of Closing Deals with Women Why Entrepreneurs Need to Focus on Women |
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