Build Your Credibility

Thursday, 29 September 2011

When you are marketing products and services it is crucial that you are able to build credibility with perspective clients. It is interesting to watch and see how salespeople that are as honest as the day is long can come across as untrustworthy by not paying attention to this important communication skill. Likewise, there are a vast number of less than honest folks that are perceived as paragons of integrity due to their ability to master necessary communication skills. This happens because credibility exists in the mind of the perceiver, it is a matter of perception and not fact. But how do we make sure that we meet the desired standards and make the grade? (more…)

The Power of Questions

Friday, 29 July 2011

Effective marketing professionals make good use of questions throughout the persuasion process to help lead consumers to purchase decisions. Questions can be used to clarify statements, determine values, understand objections and focus the conversation. All of these are powerful tools at your disposal that should not be forgotten in the midst of letting consumers know why they should buy your product using a your strongest selling points… (more…)

The Power of The Written Word

Thursday, 4 November 2010

All of the five human senses are not equal when it comes to the way our brain processes them. Each of us has a primary sense and we respond more strongly to that sense than the others. Generally sight and hearing are the most prominent and of those, more people respond to visual sensations than auditory. This means more of us can remember what we see than those that remember any other sensation. (more…)

A Simple Way to Add Credibility to Your Pitches

Thursday, 21 October 2010

Among a few other things, there is very consistently one thing that I notice veteran marketers and advertisers do that their junior associates regularly seem to overlook. This is a very powerful tool that we see marketing giants utilize on a regular basis that seems to often get lost when ad creation and sales gets down to the small business level. What is this powerful tactic? (more…)

Never Assume

Monday, 4 October 2010

Savvy business people don’t fall into the trap of making assumptions about others. They don’t assume others can’t afford their product, they don’t assume others understand them and they don’t assume others agree with them. Each of these is a mistake that many have made time and time again, but if you can get out of the trap of assumptive thinking, you have a real advantage in the world of business. Let’s examine each of these ideas in detail: (more…)

Address The Fears Your Potential Buyers Have

Thursday, 5 August 2010

Fear is often one of the most powerful motivators affecting your potential buyers. By being aware of these fears that are often operating at very subtle or subconscious levels, you can dramatically increase your ability to sell. By knowing what these fears are, you can help your customers address and overcome any that they may be experiencing, leaving them to purchase your product with confidence and peace of mind. (more…)

Take BETTER Care of Your Customers

Thursday, 22 July 2010

Over the past few years sales and marketing staffs have made a switch from a focus that was mostly aimed at acquiring new customers to an approach that has a focus on retaining and selling more to their current customer base and leveraging the relationships that they already have. While I am sure you have seen the statistics on how it costs 5 times more to find a new customer than it costs to sell to an existing one, do you have a plan on how to leverage those relationships? Is it to sell, sell, sell or is it to take better care of your customers and build the relationship?

Nobody likes to be sold, but everyone appreciates someone taking care of him or her and in business it is no different. But how do you take better care of your customers? (more…)

Their Reasons, Not Yours

Friday, 9 July 2010

All to often I see ads and sales presentations where the emphasis is on the features of a product and the presentation is trying to create excitement about how fantastic all of these features are and they completely fail to address how the product will help solve the needs that their customers have. These presentations always seem to be looking the wrong direction since individuals make purchases based on their needs and not what a company thinks is exciting about a product. Savvy advertisers and sales people know this and base great ads on solving the needs of their target market rather than creating show-off ads detailing all the great features that their products have. (more…)

Move to a Long-Term Relationship Approach

Thursday, 1 July 2010

All to often when organizations and individuals are focused on getting sales today they create a short-term view of a customer’s value and in doing so greatly undervalue the worth of a customer. By focusing on building relationships a natural shift occurs in how organizations and individuals view the value of customers to a perspective more focused on the long-term value of a customer to an organization. This change of perspective can filter down through out the entire organization to create a much more effective way of doing business. (more…)

The Secret to Successful Selling

Thursday, 17 June 2010

Highly skilled sales professionals utilize a secret technique on a regular basis that is so simple it will probably shock you. But it is a technique that amateur sales people and those that wash out of the business never learn or master. It is also a technique that each of us has complete and total access to at any point in our sales efforts. But before we get to the secret lets ask ourselves, “Why does someone buy from a particular sales person or company?” It is because they are confident that the purchase will solve a need or want that they have and it is within this psychological paradigm that we find the secret to successful selling. (more…)