Selling can be tough going. No question. In a world of ever shorter attention spans, it has never been more important to keep reminding potential customers, current customers and lost customers about your business. I love that old adage that “nobody gives a damn about your business but yourself”.
[By the way, did you notice I mentioned lost customers? Yes, just because you’ve lost some does not mean you can never get them back.]
Selling is about telling. Traditional methods, like putting a sales letter or postcard in the snail mail can be a great way of getting your name in front of people that matter. It goes against the grain of banging off an email, even more so a circular email that’s not targeted at any one person or business in particular. Plus, you’ll find that you put greater care into that postcard. And more personalisation.
In a world where Facebook posts and tweets have a very short lifespan – often just minutes – do try to get your message across via different means. Use a postcard to ask for a meeting. Get on the phone to ask for a meeting. Remember the Sales Process – it’s all about getting the meeting, so you can ask questions, as well as answer any that are put to you.
All the while, back this up through social media, videos, photographs and testimonials. Depending on whether, for example, you are in the B2B or B2C game, get on LinkedIn, Facebook or Twitter, as appropriate. Prospects will check you out online – now you know that’s true.
One issue I commonly come across is what used to be called “production-orientation”, whereby a small business owner is more concerned with how beautiful his product is, or where he’s buying his raw materials, or how neat his office is, than he is with selling the finished item. Trust me, this is quite common. So as I’ve said – selling is about telling.
You’ve simply got to get out there and meet potential customers. Press the flesh. Share a coffee. As one guy said to me only the other day, “learn to like coffee with strangers”. Do whatever you’ve got to do to keep your business fresh in the minds of people that matter.