• Work from a marketing plan
• Make it automatic
• Use low cost options
• Do it once and have it work automatically for you forever

Once you get prospects in your sales funnel you have to convert those prospects into sales.  Make sure you know how to use (click on this link to read more) the “Sales Secrets within You” to close more business than ever before.

1. Follow the stranger rules
2. Specific information is key
3. What they want
4. What they don’t want
5. What they want solved
6. Provide step-by-step progression to buy

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1. Know who you’re talking to
2. Speak to them in their language
3. Talk about what’s important to them
4. Make them curious
5. Trigger action that gets them in your marketing funnel

Need help?  Have something specific in mind?  Here are your (click on the link here) increase sales options.

With what’s going on in this time of economic turmoil you can either grab your ankles and tuck your head between your knees. OR you can make sure that you take the actions that determine your destiny.  Use this link to discover the Sales Secrets within You

Click on the link to access the recording 30 Days to Increased Sales

photo credit: digibard

Once again Uncle Sam is about to put you in a damned if you do and damned if you don’t situation.  And the real kick in the pants is he even didn’t ask you, yet again.  You have no choice in the matter yet you’ve been asked to back at least a $700 Billion dollar check.  Kind of makes you want to throw up doesn’t it?

Grrr…  It wasn’t your fault the housing marketing went in the tank.  It wasn’t your fault Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, organizations they were neither private nor government controlled, blew up.  It wasn’t your fault AIG melted down.  But you’ve been asked to pick up the tab and put the market back together again.  Kind of sounds like you and I must be one of the King’s horsemen, yeah right.

So what does all this economic upheaval, turmoil, and political posturing have to do with you?  Even if you try to stick your head in the sand and ignore it, it won’t just all go away.  The key is to keep your focus on what you can control versus what you can’t.

This is yet another one of those pivotal moments in your life where you either pull yourself up by your bootstraps and do what you can to protect you and your family…OR heaven help you if you think someone else is going to do it for you.  I know you have always taken care of yourself and did what you needed to do so now really isn’t all that different.  But the width and breadth of this economic blowout will require more focus and more focused action than ever before.

No matter what business you’re in there are 3 core principles that will keep you in business and expand your success.  First, you have to market yourself.  Second, you have to sell yourself.  Finally, you have to back up what you marketed and sold.

It sounds so easy when you put it in these simple terms.  It’s the application that’s difficult.  Because there’s so much misinformation and misunderstanding over what those 3 core principles mean in terms of actions.

When you market yourself you never want to market your business, your products, or your industry.  Prospects don’t care about those things.  They do care about getting what they want.

Before you can sell anyone anything you have to sell yourself on the value of what you offer first.  Then when you meet with a prospect you simply remain true to your purpose and meet your objective.  The purpose of a sales conversation is to understand what the prospect wants.  The objective is to agree upon next steps.

The quickest way to lasting success is long-term relationships.  You earn long-term relationships by transforming tentative beginning relationships into long-term ones.  Repeat business and referrals are a natural extension from the relationship.

So don’t let what Uncle Sam is doing through you off kilter and put your business in the tank.  Put your focus on how you can do what you’re already doing well even better.  Then take the actions that produce the greatest results and let nothing stand in your way.  And don’t forget, all of us mainstreet folks are in this together.

Are you mad as hell?  Have you vowed you aren’t going to take it anymore?  Strike back by taking control of your destiny.  Don’t hesitate.

Immediately click to get the help you need “How to Get All the Highly Qualified Leads You Want”

photo credit: austinevan

Are you afraid to ask for the sale?  Have you ever had a sales trainer suggest that you don’t ask for the sale because you don’t want to.  Insinuating you’re afraid to do something perfectly logical?

You don’t ask for the sales because you don’t want to ask for the sale BECAUSE you know there’s no logical reason to do so.  Your internal warning signals are shouting to you, “don’t make a complete fool of yourself asking for a sale you can’t make.”  Your natural fear instincts exist for a very good reason.

Those fear signals not only warn you of real physical danger they also warn you when you are about to cause emotional danger to yourself.  Don’t force yourself down a path leading to your own humiliation.  Rather change your approach and change your outcomes.

You don’t want to ask for the sale BECAUSE…

1. What you have to offer isn’t a match for what the prospect needs.  When this is the case, make and friend and walk away.  Never try to desperately force a sale that shouldn’t happen to begin with.  You will live to regret it.
2. You didn’t set yourself up right before the actual sales appointment.  Because you didn’t take the time and make the effort to set yourself up as a trusted adviser you now have to deal with the adversarial relationship most people have with salespeople.  Why dig yourself out of a whole you shouldn’t be in in the first place?
3. Even you recognize you haven’t helped the prospect uncover their “reason why” they should buy.  People aren’t going to buy to be nice and help you out.  They need real reasons to make a “yes” buying decision.  They need to believe your offer is the right offer for them.
4. You don’t like it when someone tries to pressure you into buying and you don’t want to do that to someone else.  Good for you.  Never use pressure tactics.  Those tactics might work for a one-time transaction but they back-fire when you want life-time relationships.
5. You helped them uncover a reason why they should buy, but you didn’t help them uncover the motivation to act.  You can tell because the prospect is completely logical about the offer and stays focused on data and facts.  You help them gain the motivation they need to act and act now when you help them envision the future they want in every detail.

You don’t want to ask for the sale because you know the prospect isn’t ready.  All too often you and the sales trainers you work only focus on closing statements.  As long as you place all your attention on the closing you’ll never correct the problems that make closing so difficult.

You’ll want to ask for the sale when you adjust your marketing and sales conversations to make closing a natural conclusion to a great conversation.  You won’t be afraid to close because you’ll know its right.  In fact, in most cases you won’t have to “close” because the prospect will do it for you.

photo credit: lexdenn

Often times business owners are afraid of marketing.  They think it’s mysterious, costly, and difficult.   At it’s most basic level marketing is simply telling the story you want to tell.

I’d like you to go over to Jim Kukral’s blog and look at the picture of Senators McCain and Obama.

Now watch this video introducing Governor Palin

Depending on whether you’re a Republican or a Democrat you will interpret these two stories differently.  I’d love your comments sharing the story you get from each.

The important point is to look at the story you’re telling in your communications.  Look at any and all marketing communications and images you have in your business.  What story do they tell?

If they only talk about you they aren’t telling any story because no one will pay attention long enough to get your message.  If they talk about a product or service you’re likely to tell the same non-story.

What story do you want to tell?  Why is that story important to the receiver?  Would it make the receiver curious and lead them to want to know more?  Ideally that’s exactly what you want.

Make sure your sales marketing strategies are working for you.

photo credit: Yosi-

I was reading another blog where the blog owner was promoting a book written by one of the well known internet gurus.  One of the other readers commented that he thought this particular person might be a scammer.   Whether the person is or not it brings up an important point.

As a small business owner or independent sales professional the acts of those before you precede you.  When your prospects view you as a salesperson they treat you the way they do because of all the unscrupulous salespeople they’ve ever encountered or heard tales of.  You suffer the consequences of actions you did not take and would not take ever.

Honestly, it SUCKS it’s unfair and I wish it wasn’t so.  So what do you do about it?  There are three things you absolutely must do.

First, never ever do anything to help or in any way promote any business that isn’t 100% ethical that doesn’t add value to the people who buy from them.  No matter if that business is owned by your own brother or someone you never liked anyway.  You simply can’t afford to have your reputation tarnished by association with the wrong characters.

Often you think if a business has a really big name they must be the best.  Therefore, going with that business is the safe choice.  Yet, you’ve often found the opposite is true.  You’ll never get the attention and care from a big name big box business that you would from a small business who focuses on people like you.  You”re just a number to the big business and they really could care less if you do business with them or not.  The little business cares very deeply because they always want you to have something positive to say about their business even if you had to return what you purchased for a refund.

The second important thing you must do is position yourself as an expert rather than a salesperson from that first connection.  That way you’ll never have to deal with the defense mechanisms your prospects put up to protect themselves from you.  Read more about how here…

7 Secrets to All the Highly Qualified Leads You Want

Finally, always ask yourself how the customer wants to be treated.  Notice I didn’t say how you’d like to be treated rather how they want to be treated.  It’s really nothing more than committing to treating every person with kindness, respect, and dignity.  Doing so won’t keep you from making mistakes, but when you do make a mistake and you’ve already demonstrated your commitment to treating others with kindness, respect, and dignity your customers will be much more understanding and willing to give you a chance to make things right.

photo credit: tboard

As humans we absolutely love a good story.  If you paid any attention to the DNC last week and the announcement of the republican nominee for Vice President you’ve heard a number of good stories.  Each nominee from both parties has shared a story telling the voters who they are.  There’s a reason for that and a reason it’s critically important for you in your business.

What I want you to realize is that stories are among the most powerful and effective sales and marketing tools you have at your disposal.  Every one can and should have a story.  Top producing businesses and sales people all have a great story to tell.

A wonderful thing about stories is they’re memorable and repeatable.  When your story resonates with your market they’ll pass your story on to others acting as an unpaid marketing force for you.  Stories that resonate are relevant, emotional, and meaningful to the listener.

Stories are a no risk way to connect with a prospect.  As long as you tell the right story to the right people at the right time for the right reasons you can powerfully make your point without triggering the listeners defenses.  The rewards from a good story are huge.

Stories increase your credibility.  They make you more likable.  They make you more trustworthy.  They make you easier to connect with.

One of my favorite stories as a little girl was the tale of Chicken Little.  An acorn fell on Chicken Littles head.  She was convinced the sky was falling and ran to tell all her friends.  Turkey Lurkey, Goosey Loosey, and Ducky Lucky took Chicken Little at face value and ran with her to tell the King about this terrible crisis.  Along the way Foxey Loxey met up with the frightened group and offered them safety in his fox lair.  The Kings dogs came along and chased Foxey Loxey away just in time.  To this day Chicken Little carries an umbrella as she walks through the woods.   This story makes a point without having to spell it out for you in explicit language.  Good stories make the right points for you at the right time in your marketing communications and sales conversations.

Top producing businesses understand your story can carve out the space you own in a prospects mind.  Coke generated curiosity and interest when they shared the story of how their beverage was originally formulated by a pharmacist who sold the top secret formula to them.  Then they created the story of how Coke brought the world together.  Then they developed the whole rivalry story with Pepsi over which drink is preferred.  You can use story to carve out your space too and keep your prospects excited and engaged in your business.

Would you like to hear the stories of the top producers?  (click here –>) to Hear it from the Experts yourself.