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Ask My Mother? Never!

Business Success Stratgies
Strategy #32

I’ve worked with several clients who have been unsure about talking with friends and family about what they do. In fact, some of them are very successful in their businesses, and yet their friends and family don’t work with them. Why? Usually it’s because they never thought to ask their family for the business.

We make assumptions about our prospects every day. We assume they understand exactly what we do, that they will work with us “when they’re ready” and that we’re doing the best we can at any given time. These assumptions are usually not all true.

If that’s the case, and our assumptions may be wrong, how do we let our friends and family know precisely what we do? How do we tell them that we can assist them. That we want to help them, and at the same time not feel as though we are “imposing” our business on them?

Like everything else we’ve taught ourselves to do in business – we have to learn to ask.  One way to talk about your business with family and friends is to simply ask them for their help.  Here’s why this works.

Friends and family are the people who love and support you the most. They are the ones most invested in wanting you to succeed (especially those parents who would love support as they get older – are you reading this dear daughter?).  When you give them an opportunity to help you, they will.

How do you ask? Rather than asking for their business, if it makes you uncomfortable, ask them for help with your other clients. Specifically, ask if you can practice your presentation with them. Ask if they will read over a proposal you’ve written.  One thing is certain, you’ll always get a straight judgment from a family member! This will help you better your performance and provide the opening to tell your friends about your business – without “selling” them.

Remember, if what you do is valuable to others, isn’t it at least as valuable to your family and friends? And if that’s true, why would you leave them out? Now, go call your mother!

Then, call me at 831-241-1545 and we’ll talk about other ways to improve your business profits. Remember to also visit my website at www.SecureYourSuccessInc.com for help in fine-tuning your business building skills.

Standing on Common Ground

Sales Strategies for Success

Strategy #31

Have you ever tried to talk with a potential customer and you couldn’t get them to “warm up” to you? It’s frustrating and can lengthen your sales process exponentially, or even result in no sale and no follow up opportunity. Sometimes it seems as if you are each speaking a different language!

If you have not found some common ground on which to relate to your prospect, you ARE speaking a different language. Until you can find something to which your lead can relate, you have no common language. If your prospect isn’t immediately interested in your product or service, or you are meeting them at a networking event and not within a sales call setting, it can be particularly difficult to find that common ground.

You need to be observant to the clues you are being given. Who did the person come in with? What do you have in common with that person? Do they have an accent you recognize? Clues may be subtle, but they are always there. Train yourself to recognize and react to them.

Of course you need to practice your skills in asking leading questions. The kind of questions that draw out the information you seek. “Chatting” is not the same thing. You may appear to be only chatting, but in fact, you are leading the conversation in the direction you desire.

There is always one sure-fire way to relate to any prospect. It’s powerful and it works. I’ll tell you what it is, but you MUST be sure that it is always a true statement and that you are sincere when you offer it. Ready?

Find something about the person that you can compliment – and then do so. Everyone has something about themselves that you can admire or appreciate.  This sometimes requires being extra observant, but if you practice this skill, you can always find something.

Why is this so powerful? When you compliment someone on their appearance, style, accessories, manners, etc. you are demonstrating to them how smart you are. Think about it from their point of view. If you compliment me, you are observing something about me that I have purchased, worn or in some way created about myself. If you notice and appreciate it, I’ll agree with you (of course!) and think you’re brilliant for noticing. And now we have common ground.

Sometimes the best business building skills are subtle. But subtle is no less powerful. If you don’t make the connection, you never get the opportunity to get the business.

Call me today at 831-241-1545, or visit my website at www.SecureYourSuccessInc.com for help in fine-tuning your business building skills.

How to NOT Sell

Sales Strategies for Success

Strategy #30

I was excited at the opportunity to present my Business Building Through Sales program for a client’s company retreat recently. Wait! Don’t stop reading!

I know that to many of you “sales” is a dirty word. I’ve practically stopped saying the word because I watch your eyes glaze over when I do.

Sales are absolutely necessary if you expect to make money in any endeavor. Whether you offer a product or a service, if sales don’t happen, you don’t make money.

This does not mean you have to make the sale, but it does mean you have to provide for sales to take place.

Now that you’re off the hook personally, may I continue?

There are a number of ways you can position your business to make sales without doing it yourself. The first is obviously that you can hire someone else to do it.

I believe those who excel at sales are entrepreneurs, even if they work for someone else. A true sales professional must maintain his or her own prospects, motivation and follow up in order to succeed. They are also competitive – with others and with themselves. If you need someone to sell your product or service, talk with a “real” salesperson. Negotiate how you can compensate your salesperson when they perform and you don’t have to be out of pocket from the start.

You can make your business sell for you. This takes some imagination and creativity, but those are characteristics that make others want to do business with you, so they are worth pursuing. For example, if you have an office or a storefront, can your prospects easily and completely understand what you offer if they walk by and you are closed? If you only have a sign with your name on the front, they probably can’t tell.

Suppose you are an attorney or a CPA or a doctor. Your expertise might seem obvious. Unfortunately, your name and credentials alone don’t guarantee that your potential customer understands in which areas you specialize.

Why is that clarity important? Two main reasons are that (1) a person who sees your specialty may realize that it is important to talk to someone who truly understands their issue and call you and (2) neither you nor the client wastes time making an appointment to discuss something you can’t or don’t handle.

Talk with me and learn more ways you can make sales without “selling”. It’s a great year to make more $$$! Call me at 831-241-1545 and visit my website at www.SecureYourSuccessInc.com for more information about building your business profits.