Eight Steps to Keeping Prospects Engaged In Your Sales Process

Ever have a prospect who reminded you of a submarine? You know the one - actively engaged on Wednesday; ready to move forward on Friday; disappears on Tuesday, never to be heard from again . . .

 You can prevent this phenomenon from occurring eight times out of ten by following these simple tips.

1. Have a clear sales process in place that you can articulate to your prospects. Step one should always include discovery, where you are qualifiying your prospects and determining their time frame for making a decision. Then, simply focus on 'closing' each prospect on taking the next step.
2. Explain the process during the first telephone call. The final step in the process should always be the day the service begins or the contract is signed.
3. Let your prospects know the average length of time it takes most people to make a decision, from the time of first inquiry to close.
4. Tell your prospects that they are 100% in control. They can tell you that they are not interested and you will accept this answer, although you will likely ask 'why' so that you can make changes in the process in the future.
5. Explain that the only thing that you ask your prospects to do is to let you know how they are feeling at each step in the process. Reinforce that 'no' is a perfectly acceptable answer.
6. Ask each prospect if s/he will commit to exploring this opportunity with you. Once they commit, explain that you are at the end of step one in your process. Ask the prospect to rate his/her interest on a 1-10 scale, with one being "not interested" and 10 being "ready to start".
7. Ask this question at the end of each interaction with your prospect.
8. ALWAYS set a time and date for your next conversation or step in the process

Article Source: Fairfield Business Solutions

inDay Speaker Series with Reid Hoffman

Posted by Greg Longstaff
Business Development Consultant
Franchise Network Specialist
greg@salesmarket.co.nz
+64 9.307.7860

Is Your Client Follow Up Professional or Painful?

We received a cold telephone call at home a couple of weeks ago from a company offering private tuition for children. Like most parents there is nothing better to stir our emotions than getting the best for our children. Their cold call was successful and we met with a sales representative a few days later.
As the meeting ended, we were promised a follow up call in a couple of days. That was fine – it gave us time to talk and were to expect a call.


Half an hour after the meeting the phone rang. This company wanted to arrange another meeting with us. We said ‘no, the lady who has just seen us is calling in a couple of days time, we’ll talk to her thank you’. We then received several more phone calls wanting to know if we had made a decision or wanted another meeting. All of them were polite and none persuasive, but all were hassling.

This is an extreme case and I’m not suggesting that all sales people hassle their prospects, but it raises the question of where the line is between respectful follow up and objectionable hassling.  In this case they didn’t seem to get it that every call lessened their chances of getting any business from us.


Let’s be honest here, when was the last time you made a follow up call to a client and they said – ‘thanks for calling. I’ve been waiting for days for you to call so that I could give you the order’. Buyers don’t do that. If they want to and are ready to do business they call you. Don’t they?
But we all know, follow up is necessary…

So How Do You Follow Up? 

Follow up is necessary. You have to progress the sale. People are busy, reprioritise and forget things. They need help in making a decision, and your call may provide that help through your ability to aid the logical decision or influence emotion.
But self serving questions don’t help or encourage anybody to buy.
Don’t pour your credibility down the drain by looking like a desperate sales person and asking the obvious questions like ‘Have you decided yet?’, or the dreaded ‘Can I do anything more to help?’
So how do you follow up, build trust and maintain credibility at the same time?



1. At every engagement with the client, set the next step then stick to it.This way you are managing the clients’ expectations, and will not appear to be hassling.  If you have agreed to talk again in a weeks time, then talk again in a weeks time. If you are sending some information by the end of the week, then send it by the end of the week. Include a note to say what will happen next, then stick to the next step.
2. When you make the follow up call be prepared to discuss their business, not yours.(Your business is what you want to know – did they receive the information, when are they going to place the order, what you can do to help?….)
Their business is about how you will:
A. Improve their process efficiency

B. Help them become more profitable

C. Find ways to get ahead of their competition

D. Anticipate and solve future problems and reduce their costs.

If you do this well, the answers to your questions of when a decision will be made and what you should do next will come out in conversation.


On long lead time opportunities, consider these ways to maintain contact and build trust with the client:

• Introduce clients to your network
• Help at a project or event
• Send some additional information, a report, or a website link that will be of use or value to the client

Be there when a client is not expecting it – eg, send a card or make a ‘good luck’ phone call.

Article Source: BusinessBlogs - by Paul Newsom NZ Sales Manager article

Forget Doing Quotes. Create Personalised Proposals to Win More Sales

Closing the sale is much easier when you present your sales prospect a professional sales proposal instead of a quote.

First, if you are doing quotes, stop it! Don't just use the MYOB automated run-of-the-mill quotation forms or programs. Instead, create value-packed sales proposals.

As an example, let's say you are working with a prospect and you're dealing with a committee of three decision makers. Also imagine they are seated around a conference table for for a meeting to determine who gets the business. You're not there either by phone or in person to represent yourself. What's left is your sales proposal. In order to stand outfrom the others it has be spectacular. Let's assume there are three suppliers involved. Two of the suppliers have submitted boring boiler-plate quotations that scream out, "Hey, here's my price."These are the people who are perceived as "vendors." The person who likely gets the business is the one who is perceived as adding value, at THEIR price. This is accomplished with a dynamic proposal. Here are three ways to add pizzazz and value to your sales proposals:

1.The cover page is your headline. If there are three decision makers, be sure you have each person's namein large type on the front cover. Add a line that says "Especially prepared for____." Put the date of the decision making meeting on the front cover too, not the date you send it. This also forces you to find out when the decision is going to be made. (You are askingthat, aren't you?"

2. Include an organisation chart. Create a chart that includes the names of two to three people in your organisation who are most likely to have some interaction with your potential customer. Traditional organisation charts usually include names and titles. Go beyond that and include telephone numbers, fax numbers, e-mail addresses, direct dial extensions and a digital photograph the size of a postage stamp situated in the box.Including this contact information draws attention to the accessibility of all key people--exactly what you want. Having pictures adds faces to the names. You can score some major points by introducing your support team.

3. Include a Benefits Page. At the top of this page, in very large type, put "(Their Company) Benefit Page". List seven facts or features about your company and or products. But of course facts are simply facts. Under each fact express a benefit. This benefit statement should be indented, bold faced, slightly larger type, and printed in red so it jumps off the page at anyone who is looking at it.Begin each benefit statement with these words: "Which means ……."This page should be positioned as the page before your first page of pricing. What this means is your potential customer gets to see your benefits before he sees your pricing. That's a smart move and makes closing the sale easier for you.

Article Source: By Jim Meisenheimer

Greg Longstaff
Business Development Consultant
Franchise Network Specialist
greg@salesmarket.co.nz
+64 9.307.7860

Marketing on a Shoestring

Let's face it. if you're in business today then looking at getting the best return for every dollar is something we all have to do. Much of the marketing money that businesses spend has come under scrutiny and it's about time.

Mark Stevens, Author of one of my favourite marketing books Your Marketing Sucks says:

"Marketing is not about spending money on things such as advertising, direct mail, and PR. Those are just tools. Marketing is about growing your business - its revenue, its profit and valuation."

If you think of your marketing in terms of which 'tools' you spend your money on then think again. Marketing for most businesses is now about generating good quality leads or prospects that become wonderful clients.

The good news is many of the most effective marketing tools are virtually free and often go under the radar. They may not give you a nice warm feeling or put your name up in lights but they can be directly linked to sales, can save you money, and done well, will lead to great customers. They do however take some effort and commitment, and because of this you can safely assume most of your competitors won't bother!

The hottest tip first - How to spend less on marketing

Most marketers won't tell you this but often when you stop some of your marketing you will see no difference! Except the money you will save. The trick is to know what to stop, what to continue with and what new things to do. If you stop altogether then you are likely to get into trouble so choose carefully.

Start by reviewing how much you spend on marketing and the results you are getting.

Measure where your leads are coming from by listing all the marketing you are currently doing (free and at a cost) then track which ones are generating you the best leads. This is not necessarily the most leads - but those that convert to sales the easiest and are great customers to have. After a period of time you should have a clear indication of what is working and what is not. Stop all those that are not working. Of course you could always phone your customers and ask them where and how they heard about you. You can do this in conjunction with the next point too..

An easiest place to start for more sales - for free.

This one will cost you nothing. Start with a blank piece of paper or a simple word document. Make a list of all the people your business knows. These could be friends, family, customers, suppliers, prospects of yourself and your staff. If you have a database already then this job is so much easier!

Go through your list and highlight the people that are a good fit with your business and who you would like as customers;

• people who have bought from you in the past and should buy from you again.
• people who have talked about buying from you and have just never got around to it.
• people who said they knew others who would be interested in what you sell.
• people who you know but you have never offered your services to.

Note that you need to list the people, not the companies. All sales are done between people and even if you sell to very large corporates, it still comes back to the relationships and trust you can build with the key people. Also remember that the single best way to grow any business is by making it easier for your current customers to buy from you again. These people know you. Know your services, and hopefully value you and what you do. They will decide quicker.

Next you need to contact each one. For those who you know pick up the phone. It may be obvious but people just don't do it. It doesn't need to be a hard sales call. It can be as simple asa courtesy call or you can be completely up front and tell them that you are working out who are likely to be your customers over the next month or year, and you were just wondering where they were at in terms of your services and products. Being this up front can cut through a lot of guessing and wasted time and effort. People appreciate it too. If you are looking for another angle consider doing a quick survey on them and get some feedback on their experience of your services recently and ask some questions about their plans for the near future. Just by talking (and more importantly, listening) you will learn something and you may even get a good prospect or sale out of it. At worst you will have contacted a potential customer or even a friend.

Four shoestrings to new customers

1. Direct mail
Create a list of the people who you don't know and who should buy your products or services.

The telephone call works well if you have some cold calling skills but if not then look to another traditional and almost free tool - a snail mail posted personal letter. Follow this up with a polite telephone call. Once you have written your letter then it is only the cost of the stamp, envelope and piece of paper. You can't really get a much cheaper shoestring! You can find out more about how to write a great direct mail letter in The Nuts and Bolts of Direct Mail Lettersin mymarketingexpert or you can get our very popular handbook by the same name atwww.mymarketingexpert.co.nz

2. Database marketing
Marketing on a shoestring is all about reaching people directly. To make this easy, inexpensive and effective you will need to have a current, accurate and flexible customer database. This will cost you a little to set up but there are very low cost options available online or you can purchase something purpose built for less than $500. It is a no brainer when it comes to spending some of your marketing budget.

3. Networking
Meeting people through traditional and the more trendy online networking forums can be very cost effective. Many networking options are free and even if not the cost is nominal. If you select the right places, groups and even times of day you can meet many new people and get introduced to exactly the right potential people.

4. Publicity
Offering credible, news worthy stories about your business or industry can get you a huge amount of exposure with your potential customers at no cost. The trick with getting free articles and editorials about your business is to have a strong news angle that will be of value to the editor of the publications and of interest to their readers. Don't just think about traditional printed newspapers and magazines but look wider at online publications, newsletters, websites.

Article Source: My Marketing Expert

Greg Longstaff
Business Development Consultant
Franchise Network Specialist
greg@salesmarket.co.nz
+64 9.307.7860

Marketing works better when you have the numbers to back it up

by Lisa Kember⁴,  Constant Contact Regional Development Director, Southern Ontario

As a marketer, small business owner, or nonprofit manager, you're likely obsessed with numbers. Usually those numbers have to do with sales, donations, event attendees, or operating costs. But there are other ways to gauge how successful (or not) a marketing program has been.
Email marketing and social media offer a wealth of options and success metrics. It's one reason why both have grown in popularity in recent years. After all, you can see how many people open an email, but you can't see how many people open an envelope.
Here are 5 ways to get data that will tell you how successful you are in your various marketing efforts, and how that data can contribute to your bottom-line results:
1. Email metrics Conventional email metrics, like open rate and click-through rate⁵, can instantly tell you whether your subscribers are opening and engaging with your message, so you can easily tell how effectively you've captured people's attention and prompted them to act. And you can compare your results to others too: Average open rates⁶ range from 17% to 28%, depending on industry and type of organization. So if you're a business-to-business organization and you're getting a 38% open rate, you know you're doing well.
2. Shares These days, knowing how far beyond subscribers' inboxes your email went is becoming a critical metric to measure. It's all well and good for one person to click on the links in an email, but if the content was so compelling that the person felt the need to share it on social media, then that extends the reach of your message even further. Constant Contact's email reports⁷ display the number of shares your emails get, and even say where your messages were shared (on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, or someplace else). Of course, you won't get any sharing data if you don't enable your emails to be shared, so make sure to turn on the Social Share bar⁸ the next time you send a campaign.
3. Follower count While the number of Twitter followers you have is only half the equation⁹ (the other half being what you do with those followers), measuring your growth in audience¹⁰ is a significant metric to track over time. Follower count is not going to skyrocket overnight, but if you note the number of people who follow you each month, you'll likely see growth on a consistent basis.
4. Facebook Insights Yes, Facebook seems easy to measure because you can see how many fans, likes, and comments you get. But you can learn so much more about how well you're doing on Facebook by taking advantage of the site's free Page Insights analytics tool¹¹, which tells Page admins information such as demographics and how many people are visiting the Page during a selected time period. Facebook Insights can also tell you how many new "Likes" you got over a period of time, and where those new Likes came from, which can help you better spread the word about your Page to new fans.
5. Klout An increasingly important metric is your Klout score¹², which measures your online influence. The score is a quick, numerical rating of that influence, based on everything from comments to shares to number of Twitter followers. While there's debate about the validity of Klout scores¹³, some people look at the number to determine the credibility of a business or organization, especially when it comes to social media expertise. For you, a high Klout score could lead to more speaking opportunities. And having customers with high Klout scores opens the door to greater word of mouth marketing.
While sales or donations may be the final determination of how successful your business or organization is, these other metrics  can help you gauge how well you're doing in the meantime

Article Source: Constant Contact

Greg Longstaff
Business Development Consultant
Franchise Network Specialist
greg@salesmarket.co.nz
+64 9.307.7860

The Simple Art of Networking

Networking is something you either love or you hate. However, whichever side of the fence you sit it is something that can quickly change the fortunes of your business. It is not difficult, not expensive and done well, can generate exactly the sort of business you want right now. If you have done your networking well, when business starts to slow down, kicking in a little extra networking can turn it around in as little as one hour and for next to no expense.

If you think you are just not cut out for networking, and it's all about pushing your products and services then think again! With the right attitude and approach you may even enjoy it!

The simple art of networking to grow your business

Networking - online or offline - even the word is enough to send many capable business owners diving for cover with excuses like "I'm just too busy, maybe next month", "I'm really not good at that sort of thing", and "Oh God, I'd rather do the dishes!" Well it's time to take a whole new look at networking because targeted, planned, well executed networking can be one of the most effective marketing activities you will ever do.

Great networking is a very cost, time and energy efficient marketing activity - a recipe all businesses love! But before we delve into the details of what great networking entails, and how to use it effectively in marketing your business, let's just clear up a few misconceptions.

What effective networking is not.

• Net coffee
• Net meeting
• Net chatting
• Net drinking. NetWORKing is WORK!

What effective networking is.

Networking is all about building relationships with others for mutual gain. It's an opportunity to work together with people to grow your business while also ensuring that they are receiving benefits from their relationship with you. It's a two-way street of mutual support and assistance.

Networking is a very active marketing tactic. It's an activity you need to plan, prepare for, set goals around, and regularly evaluate and measure the effectiveness of.

Networking is a very low cost or even free marketing activity. It doesn't take large amounts of cash or require a big proportion of your marketing budget. However there may be some hidden costs that need to be accounted for.

Networking is a very effective way to gain the people and practical resources you need to grow your business. It is a tried and true method of finding customers, suppliers and staff, learning about your competitors and gaining new skills to assist you in managing and growing your business.

Getting Ready to Network - The Right Attitude

Success at networking does take the right attitude and the right approach:

• Remember 'Givers Gain". Approach networking with what you can give to others, and how you can help them solve problems.
• What can you give to the people you meet
• Think about what is in it for them.
• Be generous
• Aim to be memorable!
• Will they remember you?
• What will they remember about you?
• Will you be the person they talk about when someone asks them how the event went?
• What will they say about meeting you?
• What have you given them to help them remember you?
• Have fun - and look like you are having fun!
• Remember people do business with people, no matter what you are selling, so always start by establishing a good relationship with the person at an individual level.

"A mans feelings of goodwill towards others is the strongest magnet for drawing goodwill towards himself."
Lord Chesterfield 1694 - 1771 English Statesman

Get the whole story

To develop your own networking skills, upgrade your membership to Standard or Full to access the complete October issue of mymarketingexpert featuring:

• A simple 4-step guide to effective networking
• How to assess whether your business card is working for you, and if not what to do about it
• Knowing where to network
• An 11 point checklist to rate and improve your own networking ability
• The 6 traits of great networkers
• 22 tips on how to start and engage in conversation with people you don't know
• 10 things to take with you to networking events
• Plus 10 additional networking tips to give you that extra level of confidence

Article Source: mymarketingexpert

Greg Longstaff
Business Development Consultant
Franchise Network Specialist
greg@salesmarket.co.nz
+64 9.307.7860

The Art of Asking Questions

How well do you ask questions? From my experience, most managers don't think about this issue. After all, you don't usually find "the ability to ask questions" on any list of managerial competencies; nor is it an explicit part of the curriculum of business schools or executive educationprograms. But asking questions effectively is a major underlying part of a manager's job — which suggests that it might be worth giving this skill a little more focus.

We've all experienced times when we've failed at being good questioners, perhaps without realizing it. For example, not long ago I sat in on a meeting where a project team was reviewing its progress with a senior executive sponsor. During the presentation it was clear from his body language that the executive was uncomfortable with the direction that the team was taking. As a result, without any real questioning of the team, he deferred approval of the next steps until he could have a further discussion with the team leader. When he met with the team leader later, he ripped into him for allowing the team to go off-course. Eventually the team leader was able to explain the thinking behind the plan, convinced the executive that they would indeed achieve their objectives, and was given the go-ahead to proceed. But in the meantime the team had lost its momentum (and a week of productivity), and began to focus more on pleasing the sponsor rather than doing the project in the best way.

This is not an isolated incident. Many managers don't know how to probe the thought process of their subordinates, colleagues, and bosses — and instead make assumptions about the basis of their actions. And when those assumptions are wrong, all sorts of dysfunctional patterns can be created. In a financial services firm, for example, a major product upgrade was delayed by months because the product and IT managers had different assumptions about what was to be delivered by when, and kept blaming each other for delays. When a third party finally helped them to ask the right questions, they were able to come up with a plan that satisfied both, and quickly produced incremental revenue for the product.

There are three areas where improved "questioning" can strengthen managerial effectiveness; and it might be worth considering how you can improve your skills in each one.

First is the ability to ask questions about yourself. All of us fall into unproductive habits, sometimes unconsciously. Good managers therefore are always asking themselves and others about what they could do better or differently. Finding the right time and approach for asking these questions in a way that invites constructive and candid responses is critical.

Second is the ability to ask questions about plans and projects. The examples mentioned above both fall into this category. The challenge with questioning projects is to do so in a way that not only advances the work, but that also builds relationships and helps the people involved to learn and develop. This doesn't mean that your questions can't be tough and direct, but the probing needs to be in the spirit of accelerating progress, illuminating unconscious assumptions and solving problems. This is in contrast to some managers who (perhaps out of their own insecurity) ask review questions either to prove that they are the smartest one in the room, or to make someone squirm. On the other hand, many of the best managers I've seen have an uncanny ability to engage in Socratic dialogue that helps people reach their own conclusions about what can be done to improve a plan or project, which of course leads to much more ownership and learning.

Finally, practice asking questions about the organization. Although usually unspoken, managers have an obligation to always look for ways that the organization as a whole can function more effectively. To do this, they need to ask questions about practices, processes, and structures: Why do we do things this way? Is there a better approach? Asking these questions in a way that does not trigger defensiveness and that is seen as constructive is an important skill for managers.

Most of us never think about how to frame our questions. Giving this process some explicit thought however might not only make you a better manager; it might also help others improve their inquiry skills as well.

Have you seen good and bad examples of how to ask questions? What's your own self-assessment? Are you asking yourself the right questions?

Article Source: Ron Ashkenas


Greg Longstaff
Business Development Consultant
Franchise Network Specialist
greg@salesmarket.co.nz
+64 9.307.7860

Stealing Business From the Competition

If you place prospecting calls (hopefully Smart Calls) you probably often hear, "I already buy from X-Company," or, "We’re happy with who we’re using."


I know, at this point you feel like saying,


"X Company! What a bunch of losers. How can you be so dumb?"


Almost as bad–and what many salespeople actually do–is data-dumping a pitch explaining why your company is better. It’s confrontational, and only causes the prospect to harden his defenses. 
Another strategy is to simply make a quick exit. Which might not be bad, depending upon your industry, and the quality and quantity of names you have to work on. Many stockbrokers take this route. After all, repeatedly running into a brick wall, rebounding off, reloading and ramming into it again isn’t the most efficient use of time if you have stacks of other leads staring you in the eye. Plus it hurts after a while.


But if your prospect pool is relatively finite, you can’t afford to burn through names. You need to take the next step.


Get Them Talking Your best approach is to engage the prospect in a two-way conversation. You see, prospects often say "I’m happy with my supplier," because it’s an easy way to get rid of a salesperson. It’s instinctive. It’s easy. Jumping into a pitch at this point not only falls on deaf ears, it’s unwise because you don’t yet know anything about them.


Engaging them in conversation, however, gets them involved, and gives you material you can work with.


A suggested route is to learn why they selected their present vendor. Once you know what influenced that behavior, you have insight into what to say so they’ll consider you.


But DO NOT say, "Why did you choose them?"


The reason is that "Why?" puts them on the defensive. It forces them to justify their selection. And it can be interpreted as an attack of their reasoning. You might as well poke them in the ribs with a sharp stick and then try to sell to them.


Saying, "Oh I’m sorry to hear that," or, "Any particular reason you use them?" has the same effect.


Instead, you want to ask questions that open them up, build rapport, and ease into a conversation about how they chose their supplier, again avoiding the stern "Why?" word.


For example,


"What influenced the decision to select them?"


"What prompted the decision to go with them?"


Notice that the last two questions take the emphasis off the person, and place it instead on the decision. It’s non adversarial, and is a soft way to get them talking.


By the way, I don’t favor the oft-recommended "What do you like best about them?" Some might argue it gives you insight into what they want in a vendor. I maintain it asks them to reinforce their decision to pick their existing vendor–the exact opposite of what we truly want to accomplish.


The Competitions’ Weaknesses What you should do now is ask questions designed to extract information not only on what his needs are, but also to point out your strengths and the competitors’ weaknesses.


For example, if you know X Company has poor quality–allowing them to charge that lower price–instead of blatantly slamming X’s workmanship, you’d ask a question to shed light on it:


"How often do you have customers return for service because of defective parts?"


"What do you do in situations when the units overheat?"


Now it’s not YOU disparaging the competition; they’re doing it for you. More importantly, they’re reliving their negative experiences as they explain them. Delicious.


I don’t want to paint too rosy of a picture here. Despite your best efforts, in most cases the prospect still won’t budge. Then your best tactic is to keep the door open for the future. After all, we’ve all had those written-off, discarded prospects who surprised us with a phone call announcing,


"You called us a couple of months ago, and we’d like to do business with you."


Here are additional questions that can make that happen more often.


"Do you have a backup supplier?"


"What type of contingency do you have in place if something were to happen where you needed something in an emergency?"


"If anything were to happen with your existing supplier, could I be on the list of people you would consider?"


Or tell them,


"Please put my name and number in your vendor’s file. If anything happens where they can’t provide you something when you need it, would you please give me a call.


Selling against someone’s existing vendor can be difficult–if you make it that way. Instead, get them talking, and you might find out exactly what you need to do to get your foot in the door.

Article Source: Art Sobczak - Business By Phone


Greg Longstaff
Business Development Consultant
Franchise Network Specialist
greg@salesmarket.co.nz
+64 021.677.992

Find the Reason for the Delay

Here’s a situation I heard several times while reviewing recordings from salespeople.

Prospect: "We’re not ready yet. Give me a call back later in the quarter."

Sales Rep: "Umm, how about the beginning of June?"

Prospect: "Sure."

Here’s another.

Prospect: "We’re still giving it some consideration. Just not ready yet."

Sales Rep: "OK, how about if I call you back in a couple of months?"

Prospect: That’s fine.

One more:

Prospect: "Not a good time for it now. Maybe later."

Sales Rep: "Well, how about I check back with you at the end of the summer?"

Prospect: "OK."

Notice the trend? What’s happening here?

The salesperson is in no better of a position after the call than he was before it. Actually, he is worse off, since he has now scheduled a follow-up call to a person who may never buy anything. This is why some salespeople are always busy, but never show any real results. And it compounds over time.

In each situation, the salesperson validated the delay by suggesting a call back time, instead of focusing on the reason for any interest, and the delay.

Two Rules

Fellow salesperson, I implore you to follow two basic premises:

1. If you’re ultimately going to get a "no," it’s much better to hear it today than six weeks, six months, or six calls from now.

2. If you’re placing a follow-up call, know why.

Consider that if you allow someone to put you off, and you ultimately hear a "no" on the very next call (if you’re lucky), you likely didn’t just waste that one additional call. Think of how many attempts it might have taken to finally reach them. To illustrate the magnitude of this problem over time, multiply that number by the number of times you let some people put you off. Then multiply that by the number of times this happens to you per week. Mind boggling!

Recommendations

OK, so what should you do?

Again, let’s find out why they say what they do. Don’t dwell on the "when" of a call back; instead focus on WHY they feel a call back would even be necessary.

Let’s take each of the aforementioned examples and provide better responses.

Prospect: "We’re not ready yet. Give me a call back later in the quarter."

Sales Rep: "I’ll be happy to give you a call back. What will make that a better time for you? What will have to happen for you to move on it?"

Prospect: "We’re still giving it some consideration. Just not there yet."

Sales Rep: "I see. What is it that you are considering?"

One more:

Prospect: "Not a good time for it now. Maybe later."

Sales Rep: "Hmm, what would make later a better time?"

Notice, again, that we’re trying to understand the reason for the delay. And we’re using their terms whenever possible.

And don’t think that this approach is pushy; it’s simply direct. If there is a future event that would make later a better time for them, so be it. Let’s just find out what it is.


Article Source:  Art Sobczak

Greg Longstaff
Business Development Consultant
Franchise Network Specialist
greg@salesmarket.co.nz
+64 9.307.7860

Getting more customers to say "YES''

One of the biggest barriers to achieving a successful sale, and getting the potential customer to say "yes" is the sales person or even business owner, who doesn't actually consider themselves to be 'in sales'. This is particularly prevalent in the professions, with companies such as dentists, accountants and lawyers.

If you are not selling. how do you expect your business to make money? If you don't make a sale, you aren't making money and if you aren't making money then unfortunately, eventually, your business will fail!

'Selling' seems to get a bad rap, and is sometimes viewed as a not altogether 'honourable' thing to do, with salespeople viewed as being pretty close to con artists! The image of a salesman trying to bully a potential customer into buying something he/she doesn't really want is a familiar one.

But this isn't selling!

Selling is about solutions

Selling isn't about conning people, it's about helping them. And it shouldn't be about ticks in a box, numbers on a chart or counting items sold; it's about finding out what your customer wants, then developing your product and/or service to meet that need or solve their problems.

The better you are at doing that, the more successful you will be at selling.

It's also worth noting that any marketing you are doing, whether its email newsletters, expos, tweeting or updating your Facebook status to name but a few, isn't actually selling. These are marketing tactics to help you achieve the sale; they bring potential customers to you - then it's your job to convert that interest into a sale.

Do you know if your tactics are working for you? Does the marketing you do actually increase your bottom line? If your marketing doesn't ultimately result in increased sales, then consider reviewing what you're doing and trying something else.

Ask yourself just how much focus your business puts into sales. Who is selling and what are you doing to encourage and make it easy for people to buy from you? Don't keep yourself busy with witty tweets or chirpy, chatty newsletters if they don't ultimately help to solve your customers' problems or result in a sale.

Selling is just one half of a critical business equation

A successful sale is a 'win-win' exchange. You feel good because you've made a sale, and the customer feels good because you've solved his/her problem. They will leave your business satisfied, will tell their friends and are likely to come back again.

Selling is actually one half of a 2-way exchange process - you are selling, and the customer is buying. Your potential customer wants what you can offer them - and it's worth more to them than the money in their pocket.

Issue Twenty-Six (April 2011) of Mymarketingexpert showed you how to create and follow a clearly defined, step-by-step sales process. This issue will take a closer look at the other side of the exchange - the buying process. This shows you how to identify and understand your customer, and the steps they go through before, during and after they make a purchase. By doing this, you can tailor your sales process to match your customer's buying process - and increase the chances of them saying "yes" to what you are offering.

Remember selling isn't about forcing a product or service on a potential customer that they don't particularly want. It's about best meeting their needs and solving their problems - and the better you understand these needs and provide solutions to the problems, the more likely it is that the customer will say "yes" and you will complete the sale.

Article Source: Mymarketingexpert

Greg Longstaff
Business Development Consultant
Franchise Network Specialist
greg@salesmarket.co.nz
+64 9.307.7860

Come and learn the secrets of outstanding customer service!

The team at Inspired invites you to attend our Thoughts@Fort business briefing:

Come and learn the secrets of outstanding customer service!

Customer Experience Management …

with Ivan Smith from KiwiHost

KiwiHost is New Zealand’s largest provider of customer experience management programmes, assisting over 30,000 businesses and 250,000 Kiwi’s with developing customer service skills.

Ivan is KiwiHost’s primary Auckland workshop awarded facilitator and has over 30 years exposure working at the front line of customer service, through to heading several international customer focussed businesses.

Ivan’s presentation details the findings of a Kiwi consumer market survey undertaken in conjunction with JRA:

• What do customers want?
• Satisfaction levels across various sectors of business
• Level of service perception
• What happens when a customer doesn't receive good service?
• What do I need to do about it?
• How can I gain competitive edge?
• What abilities and attitudes do my staff need?

When: 13th September 2011

Level 8, 57 Fort Street

(On-street parking is available on Fort St, or in the nearby carpark buildings)

Registrations & refreshments from 5:00pm

Session 5:30pm - 6:30pm

RSVP

Email: katie.pinfold@inspired.co.nz or

Phone Nadine on 09 309 2561 or Fax 09 309 7798

Download pdf Registration Form, click here.

Article Source: BuyaBiz Blog

Greg Longstaff
Business Development Consultant
Franchise Network Specialist
greg@salesmarket.co.nz
+64 9.307.7860

Quick Campaign Ideas to Spur Your Marketing

Smaller efforts can help engage customers more frequently



It's a busy time of year, with a number of events and holidays approaching -- Memorial Day, Father's Day, graduations, Fourth of July, and summer itself. But you don't need a significant event like a holiday to plan a smaller campaign that will spur donations, get consumers to visit your store or web site, or will just say, "Thank you."

To ensure we're on the same page, we're defining a "campaign" as a specific mix of communications that will help you reach a marketing goal. A campaign is not necessarily a single email that's going out on a specific day. It could be a series of emails going out, along with social media posts that are designed to drive customers, members, or supporters to take action. It could even include a physical event such as an open house, fundraising dinner, auction, or customer appreciation day.

In an effort to spur your campaign planning, here are six ideas to get you started:

Invite customers to a special event at your location:  If you want customers to come to your store, give them a reason to drop in by hosting an event. Every spring, a stove shop in my town hosts a customer appreciation event featuring free food. Customers get a chance to ask the staff questions about cleaning out stoves for the summer and getting them ready for next season. While the event does not feature a big sales push, the shop does tie its early-buy program deadline for next season's wood to the date of the open house. Customers will be spending money that day, so the shop gives them free food and plenty of advice as a thank you.

Introduce a new product or service: Apple is well known for keeping secret exactly what it's announcing until the second it's unveiled. You're not Apple; tell people about your latest product or newest service. Maybe those on your email list get the news first, before those connected with you on social media hear about it.

Know your current events: Is there something happening in town or your industry that impacts your customers and/or your business? Chime in by sharing links to related articles along with your take on the issue. Ask your customers to share their opinion, to start a dialogue and get a discussion going. Just remember to keep it civil!

Information is always appreciated: You're the expert, so share some of that expertise with your customers and clients without always asking for a sale. For instance, a painter could share tips for how to paint around a window or along a ceiling without making a mess. This is helpful advice for customers doing small projects. And when they need help with a bigger project, who are they most likely going to call? The business that helped them in the past.

Say thanks: When was the last time you told your customers how much you appreciate their business? Send an email that says simply, "Thank you for being a customer." You could even add in a special, unusual offer. Or, if you've recently made some changes to your business or organization as a result of customer or member feedback, share those changes and say the reason you're making them is a direct result of their input.

Share videos: Video is a great way to engage with your customers and members. Why not create a campaign around a new set of videos you've created? They could be casual messages from you or your employees; customer testimonials about your products or services, or quick demonstrations about how to use your products. People love to watch video, so give them something to view.

The goal of this type of campaign planning is to remove the fear of planning for an entire year or around specific events or holidays. By breaking your marketing efforts into smaller tasks, you can be more nimble and can engage your customers and members on a more frequent basis.

Article Source: Constant Contact

Performance Management Surveys

The purpose for a business to be involved in a Performance Management Survey (Mystery Shopper) is to get feedback on how customers perceive how you really treat them. Having used this program before with other businesses, I have always found this is the best way to learn what we can  improve, that will lead to a direct effect to increasing your bottom line.


Generally speaking most businesses greet people well and handle the enquiry politely, however there are three areas everyone needs to work on to turn the opportunity into a converted customer.

Questioning Skills
Closing the sale
Follow up


So in your qualifying questions, did you show interest in them and ask:

..... for their business card? (Then you know their name…and remember to use it)
Ask questions about their business (possible up-sell opportunities, add on’s etc). If they are looking for a footpath sign why wouldn't you offer them vehicle graphics for example.

Is there anyone else involved in deciding whether your proposal is acceptable?
When were you looking at getting this done? Did you ask them how they found out about you?
Was it the current high profile marketing or were they just walking/driving by and noticed your great signs and came on in? Or, did a satisfied customer tell them they should go see you because you are the best in the business? How do you really know if they came in because they were aware of your current promotion?



So even after doing all this, is our job now done? I mean they only wanted a price after all? They never said they were ready to consider purchasing did they? So after going through the above scenario with a customer and you have got all the right answers why wouldn’t you just happen to ask “would you like us to get started on this for you?
You know  "closing the sale"

It never ceases to astound me how many people think they just wanted a price! As we all know price is just a small part of the buyer’s decision , so this is where your question skills need to make sure that $$ don’t walk out the door to your competition.

Finally, many businesses just give a price and then sit back and wait for the customer to come back to them. If you haven't asked enough questions they WILL NOT have made up their mind!

You will have a much stronger bottom line if you pick up the phone and ask your customers when will they be ready to buy from you! "What else do you need to know before you can make a decision?"


ALWAYS FOLLOW UP!

Performance Management Surveys will identify all these areas and more. Use these reports as a tool to improve on how you are really perceived by your customers.

Greg Longstaff
Business Development Consultant
Franchise Network Specialist
greg@salesmarket.co.nz
+64 021.677.992

Sales Person Wanted - HUNTERS ONLY (Must Not be Pushy)

Having been involved in sales and marketing within the franchise sector, some people think that franchisors are only about driving sales. To me good business is about sustainable profit. Profit and good cash flow is what we all should be managing at all times, no matter what the market is doing.

Pushy Sales Person
Yet it never ceases to amaze me how many people think that it’s rude to ask questions of a potential customer that will assist them to make a decision to purchase. “I don’t like to be a pushy sales person” people tell me. “I hate it when I go into a business to enquire about something and a sales person gets pushy with me!” I’m not talking about being annoying, I’m talking about helping a potential customer to find a solution to their problem. If we treat their queries as "just an enquiry," they will more than likely continue their enquiries until they get all their answers.... with your competition! My observation is they usually purchase from the last place they enquired with……. So if you’re the first business they enquire with,  why wouldn’t you endeavor to make sure they don't go anywhere else?  If you treat your potential customers one or two question as "just an enquiry," you are in fact making them work harder to find a solution.


Find Solutions
Why not work harder to find a solution for them, which will then in turn give you the sale.
Sales should = Profit.

After all, why do we market/advertise in the first place? Is it to drive people to our business just to tell them the price of our product/service? I see so many businesses do this. They are spending money on advertising which creates awareness, only to dismiss a potential sale as a tire kicker!

Don’t be scared of what might happen
In so called challenging times why do so many business owners tell me business is quiet? If I sit in their business for even half a day and count how may times the phone rings, or ask how many quotes/proposals they are working on I find a signicant about of $$ on the drawing board, that if it all came to fruition would cause the owner another problem… I'm talking about being under resourced with staff to be able to manage the work load.


But is that such a bad problem to have? I don’t think so!

Greg Longstaff
Business Development Consultant
Franchise Network Specialist
greg@salesmarket.co.nz
+64 9 3077860

Tips How to Deal with Customer Sales Complaints

For all businesses to survive, sales may be critical, but customer satisfaction is even for more critical and the decisive factor that helps to sustain businesses. This is because a satisfied customer will keep returning for more and this will drive sales higher. 


This fact has made customer service an important part of business and since it holds the key to long term business relationships, In today’s world the customer is king and he needs to be handled well or else he will move to competitors of the business.


Customers are very clear about what they want and will not hesitate to complain if they feel they have not received what was promised. Businesses have to handle customer sales complaints right if they wish to retain customers. In fact, the manner in which the complaints are handled, defines the long term relationship with the customer.

Steps for dealing with customer complaints

1. Courtesy and patience while hearing a complaint- The most important thing when an angry, dissatisfied or unhappy customer contacts you, is to show him respect, courtesy and patiently hear him out. It may be difficult since the first inclination is to deny the faults found, but this would put off the customer.
2. Log the complaint and acknowledge its receipt- The customer must be told that his complaint has been accepted and logged so that corrective action can be taken. This appeases the customer and he would like to believe that it has made an impact.
3. Investigate and inform- As a matter of policy, any sales complaint received, must be investigated. It has to have an element of truth however small, and it is essential to identify the source of the mistake, and immediately rectify it. Whatever action is action, must then be communicated to the customer, so that he is satisfied. The faster this is done, the better for the business, since the customer will be impressed with the promptness of the action, and he will feel good that the business cares about what he has to say.
4. Following up later- Once the complaint has been addressed it is a good strategy to follow it up after a few days or weeks with the customer to know whether he is satisfied.

Some rules for handling customer sales complaints

Irrespective of what the product or service is, some universal rules apply for handling customer sales complaints. These include the following:

• Honesty and ethical behavior- is always appreciated by customers and helps a business rise in their esteem.
• Being fair rather than partial- an impartial approach is important to do justice to the staff and the customer
• Efficiency and quick action- it helps the business and pleases the customer
• Accountability- Giving contact details to a customer, makes him believe that the business is accountable and helps its image.

Customer relationships need to be maintained for successful businesses and handling their complaints well is one critical step in the larger game plan.


Article Source: www.salestar.com