marketing / sales
Education is the Perfect Sales Tool
There is one fact in the world of sales that every business owner or sales representative must take into consideration. People don’t like to be pushed into buying something. So how do you sell your product or service, especially when they don’t know they need you?
You need to inform them how they would benefit by being a customer. Education is the answer. Many people will say ‘no’ because they don’t know they should say ‘yes!’ My industry, home inventory, is just continuing to gain recognition and familiarity. However, there are still quite a few people who don’t understand the reasons why they should have a thorough document of their belongings.
If people don’t know they need your product or service, you certainly can’t expect them to buy it. So the answer lies in this statement – you need to provide knowledge so they can make an educated decision to buy. Knowledge gives them permission to purchase!
The key in educating your potential clients is to know what they don’t know, and know where their interests are. Listening to their concerns can guide you to the proper discussion to solve their pain, ease their fear, or provide peace of mind.
For example, when someone is talking about their fear of a loss due to a tornado or fire, I explain why people need an inventory even though they have insurance (you still need to remember what you owned and sometimes prove it, plus compile a written list of each item). If they are preparing to move, I share stories customers have told us about the losses they experienced because they didn’t create their own inventory prior to the movers packing the truck.
If someone is voicing the need to store household items that their kids are bringing home from college for the summer, we discuss why they should complete an inventory of all items placed in that storage unit. Stories about losses during a move or placing items in storage inform people of the importance of having an inventory of their belongings.
This method of sales – educating so people will buy – is much easier than the “push” type of selling. Trying to convince people to buy something they don’t realize they need is futile. It is much easier to provide knowledge so your prospect is making an educated decision. Then, instead of asking why they should purchase your product or service, they are asking how soon they can get it!
Education is the key to growing our nationally certified inventory business, and most likely, your product or service as well.
The If-Then Planning Solution for Blogs
Today’s special guest blog post is by my friend and professional writer and ghost blogger Rhoda Israelov, owner of Say It For You. By Rhoda Israelov All businesses, from corporate blog writing to inventory management, should know about – and tell all their customers about – Dr. Heidi Grant Halvorson’s If-Then planning. “No willpower? No problem,” says Halvorson. The If-Then solution is a technique “uniquely useful when it comes to resisting temptation and building good habits.”As a blog content writer offering business blogging assistance, I can relate to the part about building good habits. Perseverance is one if the four P’s of corporate blog writing, requiring what I often call “drill sergeant discipline” to keep posting frequently enough to create impact. In fact, as Rick Short, Indium Director of Marketing Communications, puts it, “If you can’t keep up the discipline of posting frequently, find a new hobby!If-Then planning spells out exactly what you will do if any particular kind of critical situation arises. The “If” can be a time and place, or an event. The “then” details what actions you will take whenever that occurs.In the world of inventory, disaster victims are required to provide a list of items they are claiming for insurance reimbursement or replacement, complete with price paid and date purchased, “If-Then” planning includes thorough documentation created prior to the loss. IF there is a flood, fire, or theft, THEN I will go to my safety deposit box and retrieve my detailed list of assets…Contingency planning needs to play a role in corporate blogging training as well. While perhaps not on the level of fires or floods, there are elements of “disaster avoidance” in any company’s online marketing strategy and tactics development.IF’s
- If I run out of ideas for blog posts….
- If a reader posts a negative comment…
- If there’s some bad press about my industry in general…
- If I can’t tell whether my blog is having the desired effect…
- If new competition arises in my market…
What is going to be your “THEN” if any one of these contingencies arrives? In next week’s Say It For You blog posts, I’ll be suggesting some “THENs” by way of offering more business blogging help.. But, whether you’re doing your own writing for business or working with a professional ghost blogger like me to create content, having a contingency plan is as good an idea in blogging for business as it is in protecting your possessions!
Be cautious of what you post on social media
Many of you have heard of or might even know of someone who was burglarized as a result of posting that they are on vacation on Twitter, Facebook or other social media site. You might say, “Love Alaska – see you when we get back next week!” But that says to a burglar, “You have 5 days to go clean out my house.”
There is a great urge to send photos and talk about your adventures. We recently returned from Alaska, and while there wanted to post our photos and share our trip with everyone. But because we are aware of the results some have experienced, we refrained.
Our working vacation was mostly for the purpose of on-site training for the owners of Northern Inventory, who purchased our turnkey package that helps others start their own personal property inventory business. However, we did take a few hours to enjoy the breath-taking beauty of Alaska’s scenery.
We look forward to future travels while we train others throughout the United States. If you know of someone who is looking for a business opportunity, please forward this newsletter to them. They can learn about the turnkey package here.
Don’t call the cops – just unsubscribe instead
My friend Patric Welch, owner of Noobie, found himself in a pickle recently. He has a lot of contests (I haven’t won one yet, darnit) and the content entrants are automatically subscribed to his weekly enewsletter as part of his terms and conditions. That makes sense to me, and I actually feel it should be expected.
But apparently many new subscribers reported his email as spam. In Patric’s words, this ”got Noobie in a wee bit of trouble with the email police.” He politely asked these contest-winner-wannabes to just unsubscribe rather than reporting the email as spam.
I get quite a few emails and newsletters daily (many unsolicited), as I’m sure everyone does. But how do you decide when to report and when to unsubscribe? If I’m aware of their existence, I probably have met them somewhere, maybe given them my card, or possibly someone else gave them my info, or I could be on a networking list of members that is shared with other members.
My take on it is if I know – or at least know of – the person, it’s a no-brainer. If I don’t want to receive the emails I unsubscribe. (It’s quite easy. Just go to the underlined word “unsubscribe” and click.) There are many reasons to report spam. But consider the repercusions to that person that you do know. Save the reporting for those who are truly spammers, and treat the others as you’d like to be treated (unsubscribed, not reported). Contact the email police when it’s a true emergency (spam).
That’s my take on it – what is yours?
4 babies, 2 phones and 1 great sales rep
As small business owners, we always pay special attention to the type of customer service we receive when purchasing products or services. You see, with our personal property inventory service, we believe (and our surveys support our belief) that we provide more than expected – and we will always do that. No matter what it takes. It’s nice to be the recipient of this special care, too.
Today we visited Verizon’s store at the Metropolis Mall in Plainfield and met Brian, the ultimate in customer service. He was more than just helpful – he was over-the-top-helpful. He asked questions regarding what we wanted our phones “to do”. Then he listened. And then he didn’t sell us what we didn’t need. He also reviewed our calling patterns and found a better & less expensive plan for us. There was never one second we felt pressured. (We walked out with 2 new Blackberries.)
WAS THIS A GREAT CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE OR WHAT!?!
Are you ready for a new phone or other Verizon wireless product(s)? Go see him, please.Enjoy a great shopping experience. His name is Brian Scott, a 2008 Winner’s Circle recipient. I’m sure you’ll be just as pleased as we are.
Oh! One other reason to buy from him – he, his wife and 2-year-old-son are welcoming quads (3 boys, 1 girl) into the family around Thanksgiving. He could use some big bucks! Can you imagine HIS cell phone bill in about 12 years?
9-year-old mindsets in the blogging world
When I was a kid in Alliance, Ohio, a neighbor boy was always a sore loser. He was they type who, if he got mad, would go home and take the ball with him. There were other times when he would cheat or argue. Now, mind you, this is a group of 9 and 10 year olds. Taking the ball and leaving, arguing for a ruling in his favor, all have a point here. He lived by the mantra of “If I can’t win, no one gets to win.”
Unfortunately, there appears to be 9-year-old-mindset people in the blogging world, too. Kyle Lacy’s (a leader in the social media arena) Top 50 Blog Contest Authenticity, Transparency, and the Top 50 Blog Contest has encountered some of this type of immature attitude.
This isn’t a contest to win hundreds of thousands of dollars, or a trip, or jewelry, or even a new laptop. The prize dollar value is minimal. The high value is being named “top blogger in Indiana” and that could be why some have the mindset of “If I can’t win, no one gets to win.” Shame on them – if I knew who it was, I’d call their mother!
Seriously, though, Kyle’s company, Brandswag, spent the weekend cleaning out all the fake votes. Now, more than ever, I encourage everyone to vote so those wanting to ruin something will see that all they did was bring more attention and success to a great idea.
Mom always told me to share – she was right
Social media is often used to share knowledge, and there are many people doing just that. You can learn something on just about any topic you choose – earning money as an MLM associate, how to “go green”, exercise and diet, how to grow your business, gardening, the law of attraction, marketing, customer service, car maintenance, travel, and even social media itself … the list goes on forever.
When we started our personal property inventory company, one of our goals was and still is to educate people on the many reasons they need to have a list of their home and business belongings. So we did and still do the standard, tried-and-true methods. One is speaking engagements. We enjoy sharing our knowledge at Kiwanis, Sertoma, Rotary, Chambers of Commerce and church group meetings, explaining why one needs a home or business inventory and also how to compile one. I write a blog and electronic newsletter; I provide articles as a guest author for others’ email and paper newsletters and blogs; and enjoy being a regular columnist for the Morgan County Business Leader.
Once we got comfortable with Facebook and Twitter, we thought it would be a great way to reach more people by offering our knowledge through this venue. Though every day we reach out to people who are posting or tweeting about insurance, burglaries, fires, estate planning, divorce, etc., we have organized an “event” per se. Each month, we establish a time for “Ask the Experts” and monitor questions and comments on Facebook and Twitter – a specific time to focus on providing the knowledge others are seeking regarding the need for an inventory. In between the questions, we post pertinent information such as “Be sure not to overload your extension cords when decorating for the holidays” and remind people to check their smoke alarm batteries.
In addition to reaching out to our followers, we are providing an opportunity for them to ask for help when they might otherwise hesitate. Social media is a new information highway that, used for the better good, can be an excellent tool to provide knowledge, to pay it forward, to give to others – to share.
How can you use social media to meet or enhance your business’ mission statement?
Stop Go Wait
I recently started to “clean out” my Twitter account, and some of my reasons for doing so are included in a previous post.
I didn’t make that decision on a whim. It was based on conversations with marketing professionals and also reading other blogs and articles about the value of social media and connecting to build professional and personal relationships. I must be honest, it made me feel bad that I wasn’t doing justice to each and every friend and follower. I asked for feedback regarding this decision because I just wasn’t sure yet what to do.
I chose to stop cleaning and wait for people to respond before continuing. After further deliberation, I decided to not just stop what I was doing, but instead to add more, reciprocating all who were following me (with a few necessary exceptions). Why the change?
First, I received an email from J.S. Perkins (@TheSCICoach on Twitter); I trust, admire and respect her on a personal and a business level. She pointed out a few things to consider. For example …
Think of Twitter, FB or any other networks you’re on as the “real world” … You may know these people casually or not at all, but if they’re aware of you, they may recommend you to a friend or relative who has concern for personal possessions in their home.
Many of us are on Twitter, FB and the other networks to promote our businesses in addition to developing new relationships. I am one of those people. She made some great points, so I stopped to give it more thought.
Then, a comment on that previous blog arrived. And a couple friends posted thoughts on my Facebook page. Next came a couple phone calls, another email and a few Twitter Direct Messages stating,”I enjoy your posts. Please don’t ‘clean me out’” and “I’m new to Twitter, and like following you, please keep me in your follow” and similar remarks.
All of this really made me start to think …
- Does it matter how many are in the follow/following categories?
- The number of people won’t keep me from developing those relationships I’m seeking.
- Is it a bad thing that I’m not communicating each and every day with each and every one, and they with me?
- Don’t I go to networking events to meet more people? And will I develop a relationship with each person I meet?
- I know quite a few people, and I don’t see them face-to-face every day nor do I talk to them every day, but that doesn’t mean I don’t care about them, it doesn’t mean I don’t want to stay in touch with them. If we cross paths, and we have something of interest for the other, we’ll take the time to talk. And sometimes we seek each other out.
- And based on some of the comments – I’m bringing value to others!
That last thought was the key to changing my mind – value to others. And isn’t that, ultimately, why we’re all on the various social networking sites – to create opportunities, offer connections, share, educate, help and bring value?
So … Quality or Quantity? I no longer think it’s an either/or decision. Isn’t there plenty of room for both?
We talk, tweet and follow – but do we communicate?
I started clearing out my Twitter following/followers over the weekend. It’s a big job. So big that I have set aside an hour a day until I’m done (or it would turn into a marathon). Why do I want to “clear it out” rather than find more new followers?
I wasn’t communicating any more with most of my ‘peeps’. There is no right or wrong reason to be on social media sites. We are all participating for many different reasons. Some want volume to push their product. And that is one of the reasons I’m on Twitter. I want people to learn about our inventory services. I also want to educate why you need an inventory of what you and your business own. But the main reason I’m on Twitter is to develop business and personal relationships.
While I was reading some posts, I realized that all I was doing was reading them. There were very few people scrolling by who I know or am having conversations with.
Now, of course, there are insurance companies and estate attorneys I follow, and those who offer great motivational quotes, and some because they are just plain entertaining. But that said, that means that there are more than 2000 people who I don’t talk to AND who don’t talk to me. To be honest, have nothing in common.
This wonderful phenomenon called social media helps you find people you want to meet. But then what? Amassing a huge following just creates one-way conversations. So why bother? Where’s the ‘social’ in that? Isn’t the point to build relationships? The relationships aren’t happening if you’re not communicating.
I don’t know about you, but I’d rather have 10 raving fans who will help me find customers than have 1000 people who “follow” me but don’t know me, don’t know what my company is, and even worse, that they don’t CARE!
And I’d rather have 10 friends who know me, care about what I have to say than 1000 people who watch my avatar go by without interest.
When people stop following me, I won’t feel bad. And when people see I have stopped following them, they shouldn’t take it personally. We can’t be everything to everybody. But we can be of value to those we have real relationships with.
Real friends. Real business associates. REAL COMMUNICATION!
What do you think? Agree? Disagree?
Looking at cold calls a new way
Like most sales people (business owners included), cold calls rank high on the list of things we hate to do. Though most of our business comes through referrals, we do have to make cold calls also.
I have avoided making them as much as possible. Until recently. I watched a video by Bill Bartmann on iLearning Global that helped me change my thought process.
When we think of “cold”, we pull in, take a defensive stand, cross arms and shiver. Now, what a way to create a negative attitude for yourself just before making a phone call! To someone you’re hoping will become a customer! And we all wonder why cold calls don’t work?!?
How would you like to change that “cold” attitude? Put yourself in a position of anticipation for new business! Make “new” calls. The word “new” allows you to feel open, excited and in anticipation of new things. You’ll be in a much better frame of mind, and that frame of mind brings a positive attitude with it. So, as Bartmann says, think of your “cold” calls as “new” calls. It’s all in your head. Change the way you look at things, and you’ll change what you expect. Change what you expect, and you’ll change the results.
Now, pick up the phone and make some “new” calls!
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