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The sun is shining, the birdies are mooing, the cows are tweeting, and the question that stalks all entrepreneurs raises its head again:
Are you doing what sells?
Think about it. How do you increase your own bottom line? By securing customers, fulfilling purchase orders and other timely actions, of course. But are you even getting to that starting point *of* new customers by doing the following things that sell?
One of the components of a great entrepreneur is the ability to sell. Sell what? Why, confidence, of course…the heart-felt belief that you can not only fulfill your customers’ needs, but also go above and beyond by being reliable in the future.
- Is that coming out in your website/service presentation? Even more important, can you deliver on what you promise during your sales pitch?
Doing what sells doesn’t mean promising the world in hopes the economy destroys your customers’ business before you fail at meeting their needs, of course. At the same time, doing what sells shouldn’t be preying on customer dreams and swaying them to your services, if you yourself are not sure of your ability to make things happen.
Doing what sells means *providing solutions* for your customer base. For example, don’t assume that because everyone is dying to make money in this economy, it’s okay to push selling opportunities like MLMs to people who couldn’t sell their way out of a wet paper bag. Sure, you might make one short-term sale, but then you’ve lost the long-term upsells and followups because you’ll have lost your credibility.
That is certainly NOT doing what sells.
Instead (and it’s astounding how many entrepreneurs forget this), use a first-contact opportunity to *listen* intently to both your prospective customers’ needs AND wants. What are the underlying currents that could sink or swim you? Are there any personal touches you can offer, such as up-to-the-minute information on your industry that they might not have at their fingertips? Knowledge is power, of course…and if you showcase to your customer that you are a source of that, you’re one crucial step ahead of all your competitors.
Some resources where other sales professionals discuss the art of their trade and benefit by targeted resources can be found at
http://www.salesandmarketing.com
http://www.salesengineering.com/
Remember, running face first into a brick wall again and again just because it feels so darned good when you stop is NOT doing what sells. If you’ve been trying the same thing again and again with no appreciable results, STOP! Reevaluate what you’re doing, what are the variables involved, and how you can do some controlled tweaking to measure improving success. Your career and bank account will thank you for it.
Posted by rh in Rich Hermit, Tutorials, Infoproduct