subject: Part 2 Of The 12 Concepts [print this page] Today we are going to continue on that same train of thought. The next major concept you need to implement is to:
1) Renew your sales efforts- There are several ways to increase your sales the following five are some of the most important.
a) Advertising- Many times when the going gets tough the tough start cutting cost. Now although that is not a bad thing, and in most situations it is the right decision. However, you have to make sure you are cutting the appropriate costs. The worst area you can skimp on in recessionary times is your marketing/advertising efforts. The heart and sole of every company from non-profit to all-profit depend entirely on generating clients. Think of it this way; as other people start cutting their marketing/advertising budgets and spend less and less on advertising they are giving up market share. This gives you the ability to start picking up the competitions clients. Your marketing dollars not only go farther in bad times, they buy you more!
b) Hold Sales Meetings- there is a reason that sales people get the lions share of income in most companies, they are the heart and soul, without them- no sales- no money! It is important that you make sure your sales guys are educated and motivated. The best thing I ever did for one of my sales companies was to hire an outside sales coach. You need to come to the point where you realize that you may not know everything about sales and get an outside perspective. Although I have been in sales professionally for over a decade, I was shocked at the ideas and systems our sales coach introduced. It not only motivated our sales people but it sky rocketed our productivity and thus profit.
c) Update your web-site - Regardless of who you are or where you live you have heard of the "I Phone" and even though it may not be in your pocket chances are that you know somebody who has one. The world has made drastic changes and it is continuing to change. And we truly have become a mobile nation. It is more common for somebody to look at your web-site than your business card, for them to Google your name then look your number up in a phone book. No matter what market you are in your web-site is a direct reflection of you and your company; it needs to be the best it can be!
d) Get creative- It is time to sit down and look at the tools you are using for your marketing. To often business owners get stuck in a rut and rarely change or modify their marketing. When is the last time you used a PPC campaign, looked for leads on social networking sites, sent out an e-card? If you are still praying that the all mighty will just lead people to your company, you may want to sit down and see what you can do to help out.
e) Be Transparent- The best thing to motivate sales people is the knowledge of what is possible. I have been in multiple sales environments and the ones that have the greatest success are the ones where people are inspired by their peers. Any sales person worth his/her weight can tell you the exact commission from any sale. Post your sales results, reward good behavior and let people know what the most successful sales person is doing. Remember there is not "I" in team but there is in "Monie". Okay so that last slogan was a little bit of a stretch but if you sound it out phonetically it makes sense.
f) 80/20- Remember the 80/20 rule, namely that 80% of your business will come from 20 percent of your clients. It is important that you make sure you do all you can to keep your clients once you have them. It is much easier to keep a client than it is to find new ones. Customer service is important but more important is telling the truth and being consistent. I have seen two huge clients who although treated poorly, in my opinion, kept buying. The simple reason, the sales people, staff, and management were always consistent and always told the truth. It was not the answer that the client always wanted, but the results were meet and all needs eventually fulfilled.
Last but not least remember that when you are trimming the proverbial fat that you don't trim in the wrong places! Namely you need to make sure that you are surrounding yourself by good people. One of my favorite quotes about employees says "people are your most important asset and they aren't even on your balance sheet."
by: Tasha Gill
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