Quick Tips
A Special Thank You
You know how important it is to thank customers who give you referrals. Beef up your thanks by including a lottery ticket with each thank-you note. Write "Thanks a million for the referral, I hope you win a million!" It costs very little, generates goodwill and laughs, and often results in another referral.
Mobile Business Cards
Does your company have a delivery vehicle? If so, visit your local print shop and have your business card reproduced as a magnet. Then letter this message on the truck: "Take a free business card." Place a dozen of the magnets on the truck -- they'll stick no matter how fast the truck moves!
What You Need To Know About Your Competitors
You'll be well prepared to win the battle if you know these things about your competitors.
- Locations and phone numbers
- Style of selling: aggressive, adaptive, creative, etc.
- Pricing policies
- Discounts offered
- Frequency of promotions -- and their success rate
- Services and add-ons offered
- Image in the industry
- Presence in your territory
- Strengths and weakness of products and services
- New players or products on the horizon
Mandatory Reading Club
Employees can learn a lot by reading business publications and industry newsletters. However, if not pressed to read, many employees won't find the time. Combat this by starting a mandatory reading club with your employees. Once a week (or month, depending on your schedule) have a "reading meeting." Require each employee to bring one article that they think could have an impact on how the company does business. Have them summarize the article and then discuss it.
First Impression
Try this simple tip to help you project a good first impression: Notice the color of a person's eyes as you shake hands. Why it works: You'll gain strong eye contact in a way that shows you're interested in what the person has to say.
Deflect Interruptions
Deflect minor interruptions when you're on a tight deadline with this approach: "I'd like to give you a hand, but I'm on a major project with a tight deadline. If 10 minutes of my time would help, come back at 4:45 and we'll talk."
Create and Capture Add-On Sales
Unless you always insist on cash up front, every customer eventually receives a bill from your company. So if you're looking for a way to stimulate and encourage additional sales, you should put your bills to work for you.
One Retailer realized that many of his customers were going to other stores because they weren't aware that he carried tools and provided tile delivery. To correct this, he designed a new billing statement with a short message highlighting the advantages of shopping at his store.
Start Your Day Off Right
Build momentum in your first 15 minutes each day. Schedule an important task that won't take long to complete. Finish that job without interruption as soon as you arrive. The positive push of getting a top priority task completed will propel you through the remainder of the day.
Follow Up Pays
Most companies devote 90% of their marketing budget to producing sales leads and just 10% to following up on them. Yet studies reveal that only 26% of inquirers plan to buy within six months. Although 18% say they don't plan to buy, the remaining 56% say they'll buy eventually. These statistics prove that successful salespeople must be willing to invest time into each sales relationship.
A Little Attention Please
The managers of a customer service department decided to try an experiment. Over a period of time, they painted the walls of the work area then repainted them several times. Results: Workers? productivity rose with each coat of paint. But research into the productivity gains revealed that workers weren't responding to the color changes.
Instead, they liked the attention the company was giving them and their work environment. Although you probably don't want to paint the walls every week, look around. What small changes might improve your team morale?