Special Articles
24 Ways to Increase Your Sales
By Peter Jason Riley
Just when we think we've grasped what's happening in business, something
changes to disrupt the precarious balance. It may occur in the economy, an
industry, and a region, a particular market or technology that alters even the
most flexible business plan.
Establishing a strategy, then staying with it, was possible for most businesses
until the last decade. Planning a year or more in advance was relatively easy.
Ups and downs would occur but with a high degree of predictability. Hitting
sales and revenue targets was almost taken for granted.
Now, dramatic changes in technology, international conditions and distribution
channels are constantly upsetting the balance. Banks are looking more like
insurance agencies and insurance agencies are quickly taking on the
characteristics of banks. Wal-Mart had long avoided selling name-brand
fashions--until the nation's department store companies were reconfigured and
downsized. Suddenly, Wal-Mart saw an opportunity to move brand-name clothing
lines.
How can a business cope with a marketplace where erratic conditions are--and
will be--the norm? What is required is a strategy that takes constant change
into account. Even with notable disruption, it is possible to attract new
customers, keep present ones and increase sales.
Here are 24 practical, useful, put-them-to-work-now ideas for building business
in unpredictable business conditions.
- Surprise the prospects. Run-of-the-mill is out; getting
attention is in. But it isn't easy, particularly amid all the clutter and
competition for attention. It's time to be innovative and dramatic. One
insurance agency, for example, offered to buy small contractors "the biggest
steak dinner in town" if it couldn't save them money on their business
insurance. This challenge was enough to make the telephone ring.
- Target the right person. The big job in marketing and sales is
getting to the right people inside a company. Addressing mail to "Facilities
Manager" or printing a "routing slip" on the outside of the envelope is
ineffective. Hitting the target is the challenge. Scoring a bull's eye means
making contact with the right individuals and is the only way to make the sale.
Taking time to be highly targeted in business communication is essential.
- Be more creative. Pushing direct-mail pieces out the door or
sending the newsletter to the mailroom isn't doing the job. Ask yourself: "Will
anyone be intrigued enough to read the mailer--before tossing it in the
wastebasket?" Ask the same question about the company newsletter. A highly
creative approach is necessary to be different and distinctive. Creativity
costs money. But, if more people read the ad, take time with the newsletter or
decide that the offer in a mailer makes sense, you have accomplished the
goal.
- Focus on what customers care about. After listening to the
admissions director talk about what should be shown in the school's new
recruiting video, the marketing consultant asked, "Is this what parents and
prospective students are interested in knowing?" Suddenly, everyone became less
confident. Someone suggested asking the student tour guides what questions the
visiting parents and kids asked? Whether creating an ad, a brochure, or a sales
presentation, knowing what the customer wants, needs and expects is what
works.
- Tell customers how to think about your company. We come to
conclusions by making comparisons. If you don't let customers and prospects
know why it is in their best interests to do business with you or buy your
product, they won't. The rating of life insurance companies makes an impact on
customers. The J.D. Powers' customer- satisfaction survey on cars and personal
computer manufacturers influences buying behavior. Wise companies spend time
and effort consciously influencing the way they are perceived by customers,
prospects, bankers and stockholders.
- Make your offers outstanding. Customers are cautious. They
don't like being put on the spot; they don't want to make a mistake. This is
why offers are essential. "Try it for 30 days...free." "We won't deposit your
credit card slip for a month." "Your satisfaction is guaranteed." "Take the car
for the weekend and drive it all you want." The goal is to overcome the
customer's reluctance.
- Be in the right place at the right time. "Why didn't I think
of you last week when we bought the new..." Some salespeople simply shrug off
such comments. "Oh, well. I can't be in the right place every time." Wrong.
Being in front of the customer is today's assignment. Developing a consistent
program for staying in front of customers regularly is the challenge. A mix of
seminars, newsletters, bulletins, fact sheets, special events and informative
articles will keep you in the customers' minds.
- Name your product or service. One of the best ways to
differentiate your products or services from all the rest is to give them
distinctive names. A building contractor with expertise in remodeling during
off-hours calls himself the "stealth" remodeler. A fuel oil dealer doesn't talk
about service--he emphasizes "ComfortCare Service." The idea is to imbue
ordinary ideas with new meaning thereby separating your company from your
competitors. Make sure, however, that the name appeals to your customers and
not just to you.
- Be relentless. Persistence is power in marketing and sales.
Far too many firms fail in their efforts because they don't follow through long
enough to produce proper results. Marketing momentum comes from a consistent
effort. Once you start a newsletter, issue it on schedule. It takes time for
customers to comprehend what you are doing and for prospects to get
acquainted--and comfortable--with a business.
- Get rid of the self-serving nonsense. Most company
publications, ads, letters, brochures, and other sales materials are filled
with words, photographs and information that do nothing more than toot the
company's horn. No one cares that the business says it is the "best," "oldest"
or the "biggest." Pictures of the staff are only interesting to the staff. A
better approach is to ask prospects what they want to know about your company.
We doubt anyone will be anxious to see pictures of the CEO, chairman of the
board or the executive vice president.
- Tell them everything you know. Spill the beans, so to speak.
Since today's customers want information, knowledge and helpful ideas, do
everything you can to share everything you know. This is the only way to become
a valued resource to your customers. When people use your ideas, they will buy
what you sell.
- Be generous. No one wants to do business with firms operating
on a one-way street. Buy a new car and the dealer hands you a 20-cent plastic
key holder! It sends a message that this dealer doesn't understand his
customers. You may forget the car, but you will never forget the lousy key
ring! Another auto dealer delivers the new car to your office. What a
difference. This dealer sends a powerful message--our customers are
important.
- Make prospect identification your mission. The single most
important daily activity in any business is prospect identification. By making
prospecting a continuing process, companies produce a steady flow of new sales
leads. They never stop asking, "Who do we want to do business with if we have
the chance?" Then make sure all prospects are entered into a database so they
can be cultivated over a period of time.
- Scrutinize your corporate identity. Yes, how a company
presents itself makes a difference. Is the logo appropriate? Is it dated? Does
it communicate the right message and the correct image? Is the president the
only one who understands it? What about the company colors? Are they
reminiscent of the late '50s? Do the letterhead, mailing labels and business
cards convey a strong, positive message? Or, are they dull and ordinary
looking? If you don't think this is important, your competitors will be
thrilled. Corporate identity is the face you put on your company.
- Write customer-centered letters. Most business letters have
cold, impersonal words. "As per our conversation..." "Pursuant to our
agreement..." When was the last time you heard anyone talk this way at lunch
(other than perhaps a lawyer)? Yet, give the same executives a pen and they
become stilted. There is no reason why business letters should not be warm,
friendly, conversational, interesting--and customer-centered. Write as if you
were the one reading it. Should a letter end at the bottom of the first page?
Yes, if that's what it takes to tell the story? But it may take two, four or
six pages. A letter should be as long as necessary and always interesting to
the reader.
- Develop the fine art of faceting. It's the facets that give a
diamond its sparkle and appeal. It's the same with a business. Find different
ways to tell your story and look for new, unique angles or facets of the
business, product or service. This takes effort but it's essential to develop
and sustain customer interest. Nothing is easier to ignore faster than a boring
business.
- Focus on why customers should break down the doors to do business
with you. "What makes us different from others in the same business?
What sets us apart? Why do we deserve to be in business?" Get beyond the usual,
trite responses such as "we give great service" or "we've been in business for
63 years." Dig deeper and get at the valid reasons why you deserve the
customers' business.
- Develop a sense of excitement. There is little or no action
without a sense of urgency. Certainly sales are few and far between if there is
no urgency for the customer to place the order. Dull destroys business because
it pushes away customers. The goal is to create what can be called the "I
wonder what they are going to do next" attitude. This is the light that draws
the customers toward a business.
- Tell the story one piece at a time. There's a tendency to jam
everything about a business into one brochure, ad or newsletter. "What have we
left out?" is the most common question. The difficult job is to pull it all
apart, break ideas into their component parts and then roll out a continuing,
intriguing campaign. Communicating a message over a period of time works best
because it allows it to sink in slowly.
- Make your marketing match your business. Review your
marketing materials carefully. If you want to be know as a first-class
organization, do your brochures and sell sheets convey that message? What
improvements can be made? How can the company's image be sharpened? The answers
to these questions will point you in the right direction.
- Personalize your communications. The day of letters beginning
with "Dear Friend," "Dear Customer" or "Dear Valued Customer" is gone. What
could be more ridiculous than "An important message to our valued clients"?
Yet, this the way the letter began from a company president who takes pride in
delivering personal service." Don't bother mailing a letter that isn't
personalized with an individual's name. There is tremendous power in
personalization. Use it. It makes customers and prospects feel you actually
know who they are and that you're talking directly to them.
- Take advantage of testimonials. In today's competitive market
place, a company's credibility increases with the use of appropriate
testimonials. Let your customers blow your horn for you. Why are some customers
reluctant to give a testimonial? They may lack experience in expressing
themselves and may feel that you will be disappointed with their customers. A
better way is to interview them, then prepare comments for their approval. This
assures them and provides testimonials that will work best for you.
- Give your customers the opportunity to respond. Getting your
message into the marketplace is important. But getting customers to respond to
it is the real test. Always offer opportunities to ask for additional
information, to state a question or request a sample. Discovering what's on the
customer's mind is all-important.
- Make marketing your business mission. Marketing often becomes
a business priority only when sales are down. This shotgun approach simply
doesn't work. Communicating the company's message is an ongoing process and the
task is to develop new and interesting ways to get the message across. The
challenge is to create an atmosphere so that people want to do business with
you--instead of someone else.
These 24 methods help a company's sales increase no matter what the state of
the economy or the intensity of the competition. Even though quality is
important, it isn't good enough today to produce the best product or to offer
the most comprehensive service. The primary goal is to create conditions so
that the customer will want what you sell. This is where these 24
down-to-earth, practical suggestions can make a major difference.