The Magic of Asking
The Magic of Asking
Have you ever just stood there after making a presentation and hoped that the other person would buy. If you do, you are leaving money on the table. Discover why asking is so important.
Keywords:
SalesandMarketing,CommunicationTraining,ClosingtheSale,SalesTraining,
People say to me, Maria, I am creating brochures and I am meeting people. I am telling people about my business and I just don’t seem to be getting anywhere. Do you have any suggestions?
When I say to them, “have you asked them to buy your product or service?” I quite often get a blank stare back at me.
“Ask??” You mean I should ask.
Yes, this is a very important part of doing business, and many people have lost sales that they would have received if they had only asked for the sale.
This is called, the close.
Some people have said, “But what if they say no?” So what, the odds are in business that you will have more no’s than yes’s. You see, the more that I have studied marketing, the more I see how true that is. Just consider the no’s practice on your way to a yes.
Some of the most successful marketers out there state that a 10% conversion is good. That means 90% were either not interested or were unable to purchase at this time due to a large variety of reasons.
A no doesn’t mean the end of the world or the end of your business, it just means at this moment they are not interested.
And, ask yourself, how many sales do you believe that you will get if you don’t ask. Not asking is considered the same as leaving money on the table.
Sometimes it means, you just haven’t shown them a benefit that they can relate to.
I have seen examples of people who have changed just a word or two on their web copy and then the sales started pouring in.
If you need to learn how to ask for the sale, there are many books written on the importance of asking and many considered it one of the success secrets in business.
There are countless articles, books and courses on closing a sale and if you haven’t read any of them, I would highly recommend that you do. They go into detail on the early close, the trial close and the final close. As well, I have seen different names given to different styles.
Sadly, the reality is, many people have a sales phobia and would rather socialize at networking event and hope someone will come up and buy their product or service. And believe it or not, other people may think yes it is a good product but you are apparently just showing me today.
So, if the word sales drives you into a frenzy then start by reading, “The Aladdin Factor” by Jack Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen. It is a book on how to ask for and get what you want in every area of your life. And, has in it a formula for overcoming the seven most common “asking fears”
It is important to remember that no matter what business you are in, you are always selling yourself, product and or service and knowing how to do it well will assist and help your clients.
When you have a valuable product or service that improves people’s lives, consider it your obligation to let them know that it exists. You will feel more confident than approaching them as though you are a pest.
Just remember, it’s your job to ask and it’s ok if they say no.
Smile and go on to the person just waiting for your arrival.
Achieving Goals- The Remaining 90% – Sheer Persistence
Copyright (c) 2009 Michael A Jones
Achieving goals requires persistence! Yes, you often need a good plan. You obviously need strong desire. Practical steps need to be outlined and probably a written mission statement to clarify your thoughts also is a big help.
But all those well known goal setting steps could fizzle into oblivion if it was’t for the last crucial ingredient – PERSISTENCE! Here’s the proof: Ty Cobb set an amazing record in baseball in the year 1915 by stealing 96 bases. Seven years later Max Carey set the second-best record with 51 stolen bases.
Does this mean that Cobb was twice as good as Carey? Consider this: Cobb made 134 attempts. Carey made 53. So Carey’s average was much better. Cobb however made 81 more tries and was rewarded with 44 more stolen bases.
Frank Bettger makes this strong point on page 238 of his fascinating classic: How I Raised Myself From Failure To Success In Selling. When you get behind the big success stories in any given field, you often find the most successful have made more attempts and spent longer hours at the given task than anyone else.
To put it another way, they allow the law of averages room to work in their favor! They just keep on striking out, often against all odds.
When it comes to achieving goals, this precious characteristic, persistence, along with its bed-fellow, perseverance, is an absolute necessity.
Yes the previous six steps are also essential and crucial BUT, if you do not persist, your wonderful plan can go down the drain. Your vivid mental images can just evaporate into thin air. Achieving goals is relegated to wishful thinking.
Achieving goals means we have to just keep at it day after day after day. Then you are GUARANTEED results – eventually!
Mental Toughness
To maintain this kind of momentum you have to develop mental toughness. To be mentally tough means you minimize the effects of discouragement and you turn negatives into positives.
Jack Black, in his illuminating book “MindStore”, uses a computer expression to combat negativity – “Delete that Programme”. Whenever a negative thought comes into your mind or when others make negative comments, say to yourself, “Delete that Programme” and replace it with a positive thought.
When, for example, you find yourself thinking along the lines that this is not working, it’s useless and a complete waste of time, get your mental toughness to kick in by repeating to yourself “DELETE THAT PROGRAMME”.
Instead think: “What do I need to do to make this work!” Admittedly, negative mental habits are hard to break. It takes time and persistence but oh, the rewards when you do!
The Remaining 90%
Do we understand then why the title of this article emphasizes the importance of sheer persistence? It really does come down to that. Just keep on going, persist, persist, persist, and let the good old law of averages work for you.
Achieving goals WILL become your reality!
This goal setting article is a part of Michael’s 20 minute goal setting tutorial. For more information on each of seven key steps go to: http://www.about-goal-setting.com Article Source:http://www.articlesbase.com/self-improvement-articles/achieving-goals-the-remaining-90-sheer-persistence-928130.html
Tips on Starting A Small Business
Tips on Starting A Small Business
Small business have many challenges to stay afloat. Many budding entrepreneurs think that all they need is an idea or product and a bit of work and the money will come rolling in. If you have ever run a small business – even a home based business – you will know there’s much more to it than that! Here I outline some of the preparations that need to be taken before a new business can be successful.
Keywords:
small business
Small businesses have many challenges to stay afloat. Many budding entrepreneurs think that all they need is an idea or product, a name for their small business, and a bit of work and the product will sell itself and money will come rolling in. If you have ever run a small business – even a home based business – you will know there’s much more to it than that!
The first thing you, as a potential small business owner must always do, is research your market. Then research your competition, then the available supply for your product or service, and find your unique selling position. This alone can take weeks often months.
Once you are satisfied that there is a market for your product or service then you need to sort out your business plan and cash flow projections.
Small businesses may appear low cost but many suck up substantial capital before they turn a profit so now, unless you are very fortunate, you must sort out how to finance your small business. Do you remortgage your house? look for investment partners? borrow from friends or family? or approach the bank? Whichever you choose you need to convince others that your small business will be profitable and they will get a return on their money.
Once finances are in place the hard work starts. You may have premises to arrange, suppliers to sort out, staff to recruit and mangage, accounts to keep, products to design or source, lawyers to consult, accountants to hire and we must not forget in all of this market and get the all important customers to look at and purchase your products.
To do that you have to advertise your small business, but where and at what cost? Don’t forget you have to provide customer support and accept returns. Then there’s waste disposal … and on and on.
Who’s paying for all of this – in simple terms you, and your friends, investors and/or your bank are paying, until you are selling sufficient product or service to cover the costs – usually many months or even years away.
New small businesses rarely return a profit in the first year and frequently not for two or three years. Make sure you can finance it properly.
Is it worth doing it? That’s your decision but every year tens of thousands of people do start their own business and many are succesful and reap the rewards of all that hard work. But many also fail, and all too often it’s due to lack of preparation
If you’re about to set off on your new business venture prepare well and Good Luck. With good planning, persistence and a lot of hard work you too can build a profitable small business.
Internet Merchant Account Benefits
Internet Merchant Account Benefits
Anyone who is in business these days is probably considering the benefits of an Internet merchant account. After all, applying for a merchant account is fast, easy, and usually inexpensive, although some underwriters charge for the privilege of submitting an online application. A merchant account offers the means of accepting credit card payments from your customers, and this is a benefit that many entrepreneurs are finding to be increasingly valuable. Research shows that mor…
Keywords:
Internet Merchant Account Benefits
Anyone who is in business these days is probably considering the benefits of an Internet merchant account. After all, applying for a merchant account is fast, easy, and usually inexpensive, although some underwriters charge for the privilege of submitting an online application. A merchant account offers the means of accepting credit card payments from your customers, and this is a benefit that many entrepreneurs are finding to be increasingly valuable. Research shows that more and more consumers prefer to use a credit card when they go shopping, whether at the mall or online, so it makes sense for a business owner to provide this payment option in addition to cash, check, or debit methods of payment.
You can apply for an Internet merchant account from many banks and other financial institutions or professional lenders. But you really need to work with one that is scrupulous and affordable. Check the Better Business Bureau about any company for which you have little information. Even though you cannot get a clear-cut business rating from the BBB, you will be able to find out if there are complaints lodged against the company and how these were resolved. You might also want to ask for a reference or check the company’s Website for testimonials, although you may want to check these out, as well. When you settle on a company to work with, apply for the merchant account by following the guidelines. As with a personal credit account, you will probably get an answer within a few days. If approved, you can get busy setting up your Internet site to accept customers’ credit card payments.
The way an Internet merchant account works is that it provides you with a gateway to channel credit card payments from your Website through a processing system to be deposited into your specified account. The underwriter will collect transaction or percentage fees for this service, and you should negotiate these before applying for the merchant account. Once the service is in place, however, you should not expect any new fees to be added, although again, you need to clarify this with your account provider. Make sure your Internet site remains functionally interactive, and that any broken links or inoperative services are immediately repaired. Customers who find out-of-date information at your site are unlikely to return, and they may tell others about their negative perceptions, costing you additional customers.
Your Internet merchant account can escalate your profits and reduce costs because your site can function without constant human supervision or interaction. Of course, it is important to have a customer service representative available to respond to consumer problems, and sometimes the underwriter provides this service. Generally, your Website can operate without much help from you except periodic monitoring to be sure everything is working as it should.
Talk with your banker, colleagues, or associates about the advantages of a merchant account. Make a business plan to see how this service might fit in with future growth. Then consider applying for your company’s Internet merchant account.
Training the New Network Marketing Distributor: Laying Down a Track To Run On – Step 1 of 3
Training the New Network Marketing Distributor: Laying Down a Track To Run On – Step 1 of 3
To be successful in network marketing, new distributors need to learn from someone who is already successful. When new distributors know how to proceed, they can build their downline with confidence. Only one person in a hundred is a “self-starter.” The other 99 will require that you invest time into their success, and show them how to begin.
Keywords:
mlm, network marketing, network marketing training, mlm training, train, teach, training, new, training new dowline, downline, amway
Most people who get into a network marketing program want things to happen quickly. Initial presentations usually touch on the way money can be made, and the numbers often look staggering. What most of those initial presentations don’t explain is how difficult it is to get started and to acquire the skills needed for success in network marketing.
For many new distributors, this is their first venture into network marketing. They are unsure about how to begin and often are tentative in their initial approaches. That can be the “kiss of death” for a presentation. After all, who wants to go into business with someone who is not sure about what they are doing?
To be successful in network marketing, new distributors need to learn from someone who is already successful. When new distributors know how to proceed, they can build their downline with confidence. Only one person in a hundred is a “self-starter.” The other 99 will require that you invest time into their success, and show them how to begin.
There are three steps to building your downline:
1. Laying Down A Track to Run On
2. Being a Good MLM Sponsor
3. Working Depth With Your MLM Downline
Today, let’s talk about the first step, i.e.
Step 1 — Laying Down A Track to Run On
Making sure your downline has a “track to run on” means they must first learn about the company:
• facts and information about the management team;
• product features and benefits;
• compensation plan and how you make money;
• enrolling prospects and order processing;
• who your upline is; and
• developing their presentation portfolio.
In addition to the above, having a track to run on involves knowing how to:
• develop effective communication skills, i.e. to speak with people in a way that reduces tension, neutralizes objections, and increases participation;
• use tools (e.g. websites, CDs & DVDs, newspapers, brochures, etc.);
• promote home meetings, regional gatherings and conventions;
• share information with warm and cold market, leads, referrals;
• edify upline leaders; and
• conduct an effective 3 way call.
When you sign up a new distributor, immediately have them make a list of ten prospects. Then, you should send each of those prospects some company information and a short note stating that you are sending the information to them at the request of a mutual friend. If you have an informational website, include the URL in your letter. After the information has gone out, have your new distributors follow up with their prospects and set up a three-way call.
When you do this, you (1) get your new distributors to immediately begin building their organization, (2) get sponsor and distributor working together, and (3) your new distributors will know what to do when they sign up someone, i.e. exactly what you have done for them! This stimulates business and creates tremendous momentum in the downline.
Sounds simple, but many sponsors violate this strategy. If it’s done right, and your new distributors see how easy your success is to duplicate, you will find that them running on that same track, teaching their downline how to get started. You’ll see business builders emerging, and that’s when your business will really take off.
Bruce Bailey, Ph.D.
Why Your Small Business Needs a Corporate Identity Package
Why Your Small Business Needs a Corporate Identity Package
Many small business owners think corporate identity packages are just for big corporations, not their small business. But, they may be missing out on an important component for their small business success. Find out why in this short article.
Keywords:
corporate identity package, small business identity package, business card, letterhead
If you’re like many small business owners, you might be wondering just what a corporate identity package is. And if you already know what it is, you might be wondering why your small business would need one. After all, you’re just a small business, not one of those big corporations. What’s in it for you?
Just as the name implies, a corporate identity package identifies your company to potential clients, suppliers and the general public. It includes your business name, small business logo, your logotype (just a fancy way of saying how things are placed, which font you use, spacing, and other things like that) your motto or company slogan, and associated printed material– your business card, and letterhead, envelope and forms.
When you started your small business, you might have dreamed of becoming more than just another small business. Maybe you even dreamed about becoming a big business some time in the future. And even if you’re a completely practical entrepreneur and didn’t have those dreams, you need to attract customers in order to keep your small business open. A corporate identity package can help you do that.
Write a couple of big corporations, ask a question and request a business card. They’ll send your answer on their letterhead, in their company envelopes, and include a company business card. If you take a moment or two to look at big corporations’ identity packages, you’ll soon notice a few important things in common.
Their corporate identity package looks professional. What makes a big corporation look professional? I think one key is simplicity. Generally, a large corporation has a simple symbol or even just graphically represents their name as their logo. Take the Coca-cola logo for example. Or Toyota. Or Cameco Corporation. They’re all very simple.
When you look at their corporate identity package, you see quality. They use only high quality printing services and paper. Sure, that’s going to cost a little more, but it’ll be worth it in the end because its an integral representation of your small business’ image. You could print your corporate identity package yourself using your home printer, lightweight paper and business card templates, but how is that going to look? Will that produce the professional image you’re after?
Their logotype is consistent. Big businesses use exactly the same color for their logo and their background every time. They use consistent fonts. Their slogan for example, would consistently be in Times New Roman, never a different font or even a similar font, but exactly the same font, and always in the same proportion to the logo. Spacing is consistent. Spacing between letters and between lines is also always exactly the same proportion. Their secret is designing in vector form so their logo can be enlarged or reduced without changing proportion.
Their corporate identity package matches exactly. Their letterhead, envelopes, business cards all match. And if you ordered something from them, the invoice and the statement you’d get at the end of the month would match too. Perfectly.
Here’s another reason to take a little time to look at big corporations’ identity packages: you can use what they do to create an identity for your own small business. What they do works, and they do big business, so if you want to do big business too, why reinvent the wheel? Copy what they’ve done. No, I don’t mean you should copy another company’s logo. Just copy the way they’ve done things. Take their ideas and use them.
You probably don’t have the luxury of spending the amount of dollars a big corporation does on their identity. In fact, they sometimes spend millions on their corporate identity. So how do you get a professional look at a small business price?
You can do it yourself or you can hire a design professional to do it for you, sometimes at minimal cost, or even free. Here’s one idea. You can sometimes find good student graphic designers who’ll design your logo for you in exchange for allowing them to put it in their portfolio. In any case, if they do charge you a fee, it will be a whole lot less than what a professional graphic designer would charge. Besides it’ll feel good to be helping a “poor student”.
So, why should you have a small business identity package? What’s in it for you? If you do it right; if you have a corporate identity package that looks professional, is of high quality, has a consistent logotype, and matches perfectly, you’re going to look just like the big guys even if you’re the smallest business in town.
And if you look like the big guys, you just might have a chance to play with the big guys. And what if, just what if, your corporate identity package helped you, even just a little, to realize the dream you had of someday owning a big business when you started your small business?
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Wholesalers in a Nutshell – Will they Deal with You?
Wholesalers in a Nutshell – Will they Deal with You?
This article throws light on the issue of dealing successfully with wholesalers and the various types of wholesalers that exist in the industry.
Keywords:
Wholesale,Wholesalers,Wholesaler,Manufacturer,Retailer,Merchant
What is a wholesaler? In a nutshell, it is a company that buys (usually directly) from a manufacturer in large quantities at a discount, then pieces out the product into smaller quantities that are then sold for a higher price. The usual chain of product goes: Manufacturer > Wholesaler > Retailer > Customer.
Services provided by wholesalers involve both manufacturers and retailers. Producers, once the product is manufactured, begin incurring storage costs as well as logistical issues involved with keeping product onsite. Wholesalers usually pay transportation costs, as well as reducing costs involved with producer storage by removing manufactured product to a warehouser’s own utilities, providing financial benefits as well. These costs incurred by a warehouser can be spread among many more products than a retailer or producer, thereby reducing the per-item cost to a retailer. A warehouser also takes the burden off the producer for possible detrimental stockpiling of goods, as the warehouser often has agreements to purchase certain quantities in exchange for reduced product costs, reassuring the manufacturer that there will be a market for certain production levels and allowing manufacture at the most efficient levels possible.
There are three different general classifications of wholesalers, defined by criteria such as whether the wholesaler is independently owned or owned by a producer, whether the wholesaler takes title to the products they handle, or lastly by range of services, the most relevant of which known as Merchant Wholesale will be the primary topic in this article.
“Merchant wholesalers take title [ownership] to product they deal in, assume risk and buy and resell products to other wholesalers, to retailers, or to other business customers” (Ferrell & Pride, 2003). This is further broken down into Full-service wholesalers and Limited-service wholesalers.
Full-service wholesalers include General-merchandise, Limited-line and Specialty-line classifications. General-merchandise wholesalers carry a wide variety of products, but do not specialize within product lines.
Limited-line carry fewer products, but with more specialization in the few product types they deal in. Grocery wholesalers fall under this category.
Specialty-line wholesalers deal in very few products but with high specialization in their chosen product line(s), such as only dealing in pharmaceuticals.
Full-service wholesalers provide the widest range of services, such as quantity breakdowns, financial assistance and credit, marketing services and product availability. Full-service wholesalers usually earn a higher profit margin than other wholesalers, but operating expenses are much higher as well.
Limited service wholesalers specialize in fewer functions than Full-service wholesalers, generally allowing the producer or the customer to provide most functions. These wholesalers include Cash-and-carry companies, Trucking companies, Drop-shippers or Mail-order firms. Limited service wholesalers take title to products but usually do not provide many of the services a Full-service wholesaler does, like marketing, retailer site selection or personnel training. Due to the limited nature of their services, they have lower operating costs but are also limited to lower profit margins as well.
Wholesalers, in order to keep their operating expenses down, often deal only with companies or with clients able to meet minimum orders, whether monetary or by item count. This can make things difficult on a small business or sole proprietorship looking to reduce cost-of-goods-sold. However, there are many wholesalers or wholesaler-like companies that cater to smaller-volume customers. This is where companies like Costco or Wal-mart’s Sam’s Club come in–as Costco and Sam’s Club are not technically wholesalers, but direct-retailers with lower operating costs, buying in smaller bulk volumes from a company that uses this business plan is often a viable compromise between the lower rates but logistical issues of a standard wholesaler, and the lower profit margins of buying from a retailer, and may make all the difference to a small company operating on a shoestring.
© 2005, Wholesale Pages UK. All rights reserved.
Seaside Heights Public Relations Talky Blog #45 5/16/08
jackbuster asked:
Video Blog from the Seaside Heights Office of Public Relations from May 16, 2008. Topics include: 1. Mother’s Day 2008 2. Rare May Nor’
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