Sales Tips and Marketing Strategies

Are you hitting or beating your sales target or quota? If not, are you blaming the market, the customers or your competition? If you are making your target are you taking the credit for yourself rather than giving it to any of these factors? Regardless of actual sales performance, success or a lack of it will be due to a combination of things. Key within these will be the sales person and their approach and skills. A significant challenge in achieving sales success is that there is no let up! Month on month you need to keep getting orders. No market is constant. There are many variables changing and a lot of organisations, and individuals, do not adapt their sales approach to suit the current situation in their market. What I want is to encourage you to look at your sales approach and offer some thoughts about how you might change it to improve your chances of success.

Whether you are in a sales role yourself or are responsible for sales within your organisation, you need to think about how you are approaching sales. Most of the time people connected with sales are good at paying attention to the “what” – i.e. what the figures are. They forecast them, they report on them, they analyse and discuss them especially when there is a shortfall! (How much time is spent analysing sales success compared with missed targets?) Not enough is spent in looking at “how” the sales were achieved, or not. This is crazy as the “whats” are an outcome of the “hows”. This is going to consider the “how” of your sales approach with the intention of delivering the “what”. Continue reading ‘You May Be Taking the Wrong Approach to Selling!’ »

With the upsurge of having business online, many of the sellers begin to realize that it is necessary to have a research on both customers and sellers so as to take advantage and make more money through online sales. When more traffic is brought to the sellers’ page and/or orders are increased, they have to hire extra salespersons to deal with their business, and this method becomes much important then. Truthfully, there’s more to hiring the right salespeople than spotting traits like persistence or enthusiasm in the conversation of introducing the latest mp4 player. What’s often missed in identifying sales excellence is a profile of behaviors that separates the average from the extraordinary salesperson. This time, let’s come to meet five different types of salespersons and choose the right salespersons when having a large business to deal with.

1.The salesperson who invests time in understanding customers rather than in simply “qualifying” them. This type of salesperson asks lots of questions to gain an in-depth understanding of the customer’s operation with the objective of uncovering what’s being done well and where there are unresolved problems. Obviously, this type of salesperson is seemed to be the perfect option for a lot of sellers.

2.The salesperson who uses knowledge to attract customers. This type of salespersons is capable of recognizing how products and services change, and what customers need. He or she builds a knowledge bond with a customer, which is based on bringing expertise, ability or offering help to analyze problems and to provide solutions to customer issues. Generally speaking, customers like this type of salespersons as they are the considerate enough to help them find the most appropriate items. For instance, when selling iphone 4 cases, they may give a few suggestions, ask the customers’ characters, the favorite color, which leads to a happy end-helping customers to find what they really need.

3.The salesperson who stays close to customers because buying decisions take longer than ever. He or she knows that customers are unpredictable when making buying decisions, while many salespersons write off customers too soon and end up losing the business to a competitor.

4.The salesperson who becomes one with customers. When talking with their customers, this type of salespersons unconsciously uses “we” rather than “I” or “they.” Nothing is contrived like saying “this mp4 is so powerful so we can use it without any worry”. They are good at putting themselves into the customers’ shoes and having empathy with them.

5.The salesperson who knows how to say no. As a matter of fact, saying NO is an art, which cannot offense the customers. Although we know that there are some sales that cannot be made, especially when they are not in the best interest of both sellers and customers, however, it is the seller’s ability that makes NO sound natural. This type of salespersons walk away from sales when it is obvious that what’s being sold won’t solve the customer’s problem. The five types of salesperson above are excellent enough for your options, which are usually ignored by most of sellers when choosing salespersons. In one word, what an excellent salesperson can do is more than selling.

One usual staple of retail stores everywhere would be the ubiquitous cash register. This device, which older individuals may recall as being a large and clunky metal box opened by a key with a green-against-black display screen, is used to ring in purchases as well as a place to keep the money from those purchases. Today, however, cash registers are still around, although they come in much more sleek and stylish models. These devices are also now just one part of a larger retail system, a system that businesses the world over are using to manage not just their stores but their businesses as well. This system is called a point of sale system, and if you look around businesses today, you will find that much like how cash registers are standard in every store, POS systems are a staple as well.

A point of sale, by definition, is actually the location where a business transaction occurs. For example, the point of sale in a supermarket would be the checkout counter. Usually, the cash register is placed where these point of sales are, and are the centerpiece for a point of sale system. Point of sale systems came about when electronic cash registers were first used in stores. Electronic cash registers that had the ability to register sales and even print reports allowed business owners to have a clear picture of the daily and periodic performance of their stores.

Seeing that, entrepreneurs set out to create a system that would not only facilitate a business transaction (like what a cash register did), but one that would also be able to manage all aspects of a retail business.

Today’s POS systems are advanced computer systems that not only ring up purchases but can also be used to print out reports, manage stock, devise marketing campaigns, and can even give a business owner remote access to his store. These are all possible with today’s advanced technology, as software and hardware today have combined to give these business owners a comprehensive retail management system in the form of the point of sale system.

Apart from the capability to register a sale, these POS systems can also do the following things:

1) Stock control

2) Marketing

3) Business Intelligence

4) Logistics

Apart from those functions, the typical modern POS system can also set up a virtual store for those looking to migrate their business to the internet. In this day and age, this is a must, as most retail companies already have websites that act as their virtual stores, online venues where they market and sell their product to the ever-growing number of people online. This system is also cloud-based and has dedicated servers, meaning that there is no need to install software on different computers and that your data can be safely stored and easily accessed when you need it.

The advantages of using these systems for a retail business are unparalleled. Now, business owners can actually manage their store accurately, according to real-time information they see from the actual performance of their business. Truly, point of sale systems are a must-have for any retail business looking to succeed.

Ask the Right Questions and Actually Listen

What’s the difference between a ”consultative” salesperson and an average salesperson? A “consultative” salesperson differs from the average salesperson by becoming an advisor and an expert to your customer. It means asking questions and helping a client make wise choices based on what they want versus old-school sales approaches that feel pushy to the customer. The employee may still be doing much of the talking, but they are strategic in asking questions and listening actively. Open-ended questions get the customer talking, sometimes even selling themselves. That would make things easy!

“To serve one must listen to almost anything without losing one’s temper or self-confidence.”

-Robert Frost

Another trademark technique is more of a old-school approach, hard-closing. This technique is used to get the sale and essentially convince the customer to commit to something. This practice is more commonly used by sales people in an effort to close a one-time sale, where less care is place on the long-term relationship with the customer. When using a consultative sales approach, you look after your customer’s best interest. Once you know what matters most to your customer, you can sell based on the values they care about. Understanding your customer’s needs and wants allows you to better “personalize the offer.” Skilled and successful salespeople who use a consultative selling approach build loyalty and long-term relationship with their customers.

Once you understand what it means to take the consultative approach to selling, we must consider the way we word questions. It is about learning from or qualifying the prospect in order to provide the best service possible and then recommending as much product as is appropriate. Just as critical is the ability to hear, listen and understand what is being said by the customer and to know how that relates to what you have to offer. Good salespeople understand that getting their customers to talk and give information about themselves is one of the most important skills they can utilize.

Here are three key questioning techniques that will assist you get information in a conversational way:

1. Open-Ended Questions

2. Probing Questions

3. Close-Ended

If you ask open-ended questions you will get a variety of responses from your customer. This type of questioning injects a conversational and “human-touch” into the interaction. Open-ended questions begin with the words who, what, when, where, why and how.

Follow-up questions are also open-ended and utilize the 5 w’s and how. However, this type of questioning is built upon the answer to the previous question. Follow-up questions are a tool used for extracting more information about a customer. They show that you are not only hearing your customer’s response, but that you also understand and care about them.

The final element in the questioning trio has a specific purpose, to steer a conversation back to the task at hand (selling) or to ask for the business (be willing to go for “No”). Close ended questions allow for control of a conversation and are best used during restating for trial closes.

When you are actually listening, the customer will feel acknowledged in the conversation. A note here: Be conscious of how your tone affects the effectiveness of your response. Ensure that you have identified the basic needs of the customer and review, if necessary, the details of what they are after. This is one way to let your customer know that you are actively listening and that you will meet their needs. If you need to ask clarifying questions to get specific details, don’t be afraid to do it. It shows both humility and interest.

Be sure to, to show the customer you are actively listening: restate, let them talk, utilize the 5w’s, build the relationship, use their name, display curiosity and be purely interested. The more you can incorporate these tips into your conversations with the customer, the more they will make note that you are actually listening and ready to help.

Utilizing the 5 w’s, gather information about the customer. Restate facts for clarification and then make sure that what you communicate in a way that satisfies what they want. Always remember, you need to be a consultant in the eyes of the prospect. You will consult with them about their needs and find ways to get them what they want. They found you, they came to your place of business, and they want to spend their money.

Solar chargers are becoming more popular owe to our dependance on high tech gadgets from cell-phones to computers to portable audio and video devices to digital cameras. As such, solar chargers and other related solar powered products are among the in demand hardware in stores.

Solar chargers are typically responsible in converting light from the sun into electricity. This energy is then stored in the battery which powers gadgets and equipment which are used every day.

There are many kinds of solar chargers, within them are :

1 – Adaptable solar chargers which can sometimes be rolled and carried in a back pack.

2 – Foldable solar chargers which generally comes with moveable solar energy panels which are carried in cars or mounted on the roof of a recreational vehicle or RV. The foldable type is also believed to be an alternative sort of power, since it fundamentally works where there’s daylight.

3 – Solar battery re-chargers are cartable chargers which re-charge batteries for tiny gadgets like cell telephones, iPods, MP3 machine, PSP and flashlights. Stronger solar battery energisers can power PCs and other electronic hardware.

As a trusted seller it’s also crucial to inform your customers that solar chargers work together with the electrical power needed by the device to be used. To find the watts required, you have to take a look at the output rating of the device’s adapter. The rating will say how many watts are generated by the adapter. Should it lack this information, it should at least state amperes and volts rating.

It’s also advisable that the power supply should comprise the equivalent watt rating of the device or gadget you want to charge. Correspondingly, smaller watt rating if used with a higher watt rating gadget will take longer charging time.

Among the solar chargers in the market, here are the preferred choice:

The Brunton Solar Chargers work well with computers and smaller gizmos. It even works with movable solar energy panels.

Light-weight Coleman Solar Chargers are favourites for computers.

The convenient Solio Solar battery re-charger is another must-have due to its internal batteries and its innovative compound series that can be charged by either solar or by electricity.

Sunsei solar chargers change solar power to electricity which recharges batteries.

Aside from these, there are other solar chargers which come in different specifications and eye-catching design. Be certain to do the research and remember that manufacturers are always helpful in introducing their new products.

To further convince your consumer, below are a selection of the advantages of a solar battery re-energiser :

1. It stores power for use later.
2. The stored energy is useful in the event you are camping or enjoying the outdoors.
3. It may also serve as an emergency kit for both the home and auto, in cases of accident, bad weather, or if there’s power cut off.
4. It’s also eco friendly because it produces energy from the sun.

Some are purchasers are not simply convinced with all the sales talk. The best thing you need to do is provide photos of the specific parts of the product and describe each of their functions. If you can have a slide show presentation, the better.

Selling solar chargers is a challenge but once you know how to approach your customers and popularize your products, you’ll be having your hands full of interested individuals wanting to know more about solar chargers and buy them from you. Just remember the data presented above and you’re on your way to becoming a top seller of solar chargers.

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Article marketing is the oldest and the most effective forms of online marketing. Given below are a few tips that you can use right away to enhance your article marketing campaign. When you get into article marketing, you should go for a niche that you are already familiar with. This would not only increase the speed of your article marketing but will also allow you to focus more in one area. You have to make sure that every effort that you put into your article marketing campaign will go a long way, so why not start off on the right note? For example, if you have no idea about the “dog training” niche and you want to promote an ebook on this subject using article marketing, then it’s better that you first gain some knowledge about it before jumping in. It matters not if you’re writing the articles or you’re having them ghostwritten. Whoever’s writing the article should have knowledge of the subject in question. If you don’t do this step, then your business isn’t going to expand very much. Another simple strategy that everyone overlooks is creating an article marketing plan.

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You’ll want to write articles that talk about the same niche, but you’ll also want to bring up other talking points. Basically, you will be able to make articles that expand your subject matter in a way that will allow you to create many articles over time. Just ensure that you’re always providing unique information and that your readers find the info useable. In summary, the article marketing strategies discussed above are not enough, and that’s why you should keep on discovering new ones on a regular basis.