Декабрь 2011

How To Expand Your Salesforce Without Hiring Anyone

We all know that all businesses have to sell to survive, let alone prosper. Most businesses will have some sort of specialist sales function, but this could be a small percentage of the total number of employees. If non sales people, who have contact with the customer, could be trained to promote your services or products in an appropriate way, how much extra business could that generate?

Those not directly involved in sales often have preconceived ideas about selling and sales people and a lot of those ideas are negative. The word, ‘salesperson’ itself has certain connotations. Pushy, spivvy, lack of integrity, questionable honesty to name just a few. And what’s a good salesperson? Well maybe someone who can palm you off with something that you don’t want. We think of such things as double-glazing and time-share and there are lots of horror stories about people’s experiences from dealing with such unscrupulous sales people. The word, ‘selling’ conjures up all of these images and it’s not an image that many want to be associated with.

So the first thing that we need to make clear is that relationship selling is a very different thing. With relationship selling, you do not sell anything as such. You ask the customer what they need or want and show how this can be achieved with the use of your services. This is something that non-sales people can feel comfortable with and therefore do.

There is no place for those high pressure selling techniques; no place for tricks; no attempts to force the customer to buy and no place for the guilt trip so often used in the pensions and insurance industries (‘…if you had died before I arrived here tonight, what kind of mess would you have left your family in? Yuk!)

If the customer does not, at the moment, need what you have to offer, then you have nothing to sell. If you do manage to palm them off with something that they don’t really want, then they will be dissatisfied and they won’t buy from you again. Whereas if you just say that, unfortunately, you don’t seem able to help at the moment but that you’ll keep in touch, even promising to come back in three months time, perhaps, then you’ve been honest and you’ve still got a contact. If you sell encyclopaedias, then you only sell to each customer once, so it doesn’t matter so much if you’ve conned them. With relationship selling, you are selling an ongoing relationship, hopefully for many years. If you con your customers at any time, the relationship is lost.

Businesses need to grow to survive so they need to sell. And by selling more, they increase the job security of their staff as well as the probability of providing more interesting work in an expanding company. Everyone understands this, but to conquor the inertia non-sales people have to promoting their products and services, they need to develop the skills to sell in a ‘non-salesey’ way.

Something that all businesses are searching for is a Unique Selling Point. What is it that makes you different, better than your competitors? You have to be honest with this one and say, ‘Nothing really’. You can bet your competitors know as much about the service that you both provide as you do. You can bet that they are as technically able. You can bet they try as hard. It’s a truth of life that any time you do find yourself one step ahead, your competitors will soon mimic what you do and thus close the gap. (You must, of course, keep on searching. If you don’t search for something extra, then you will soon fall behind.)

So, if the products and quality of service you sell are more or less identical to your competitors, why should a prospective customer choose you rather than them? Well, assuming you’ve got your product and pricing about right, then the only difference is the people. Business is about people. One company does not do business with another company. People from one company do business with people from another company. To be successful you need to get on with your contact. You don’t have to be bosom buddies and slap each other heartily on the back each time you meet but you do need to get on well enough to do business. Your customers need to trust you.

Training your customer support, accounts, quality control, transport etc functions in Relationship Selling techniques will strengthen the relationship with your customers and provide opportunities for additional business. Your salesforce has just grown dramatically!

To quote from Mark McCormack, ‘All things being equal, people will always buy from a friend. All things being not quite so equal, people will still buy from a friend!’

How to Make Money Through the Power of Your Voice

Copyright (c) 2009 James Roche

Fact: You will sell more when people know, like and trust you.

Fact: People trust you when they feel connected to you.

Fact: Your voice can reach out and connect with people more powerfully than your written words.

The power of sound can’t be underestimated…especially in your marketing. Your voice tells a lot about who you are. When people hear your voice, they connect with you at a much deeper level than if they just read your words.

That’s why integrating audio into your marketing helps you convert more visitors to sales. I’m about to show you how to use your voice in your marketing to increase conversions, generate more sales and grow your list.

For all the ideas below I recommend you use an inexpensive service called Audio Acrobat. Here are the three key ways to leverage your voice to make-money:

1. Use Audio on Your Website Landing Page

Your website is your gateway to connect with people. But most entrepreneurs miss this huge opportunity to develop trust. Instead of a static, boring landing page why not add an audio message from you? It’s like welcoming people into your home — greet them with enthusiasm.

Ask yourself what the single most important objective is for your landing page. What do you want people to do? Because your landing page needs to direct people to take some sort of action, like signing up for your Ezine or Special Report. Here’s a sample of the message I use on my landing page.

«Hey there it’s James Roche, The Info Product Guy calling in from beautiful Fort Lauderdale, Florida and if you’re looking for information on how to create info products and a marketing strategy that makes you money, you are in the right place. I’d like to give you FREE instant access to a couple things here. The first is my free Special Report — it’s called «3 Simple Secrets to Creating Info Products that Make You Money.» And I also want to give you a FREE subscription to my bi-monthly ezine that I publish. It’s called, «Info Marketing (…without thinking too hard!)» It’s got tons of great tips and strategies for you and your business. Just enter your name and email in the boxes below and I’ll send you all the details within 5 minutes via email.

So fill that in and click the button that say’s «Claim my report now» and I will see you on the next page.

I’m looking forward to giving you information that will change your business and change your life.»

2. Record Your Client Coaching Calls

If you’re a coach or consultant you can record all your client sessions and offer it to them as an added bonus. It’s a huge value to your client because they don’t have to take as many frantic notes during the call. It’s good for you because you can now offer an info product customized for each unique client.

For this service I recommend, Audio Acrobat it’s easy to record calls. As you start the call, place your client on hold and dial into your Audio Acrobat account (You don’t need two phone lines.) After the call simply go online to your account and a link to download the phone call is sitting there waiting for you. Finally, email this link to your client — it takes less than 3 minutes total.

3. Deliver and Record Teleclasses to Make Info Products

Just like you can make custom info products for your individual clients, you can also make info products for everyone by recording your teleclasses. Use the same method as above, except this time use a group conference line. Deliver your teleclass and within minutes you have the audio ready for you to sell online. It’s so fun!

When delivering a teleclass I recommend you stand up. You want your energy up. In fact, if you exaggerate your voice to be extra happy…the amazing thing is, it sounds normal in the recording. (And likewise, if you sound normal on the teleclass, you’ll sound dull on the recording.)

The power of your voice can make-you-money…IF you know how to leverage your voice the right way. Break the cold, distant barrier of the internet and reach out to people with the warmth of your own voice. As a final resource for you, if you have the ability to edit your own audio recordings you can add music to the front and back of every call.

How To Improve the Look of Your Garage Floor

Copyright (c) 2009 Michael Atma

When we think about concrete floors we tend to remember Dad’s garage floor — all gray and boring except for the oil spills where the automobile was parked. But with some imagination and the use of modern treatments for concrete, it is now a glamorous alternative to other types of contemporary flooring.

Concrete Polished is a suitable product for all types of applications. Domestic uses include patios, external courtyards, entertainment areas, rumpus rooms and garages, while in the commercial arena the uses are almost endless. Showrooms, restaurants, supermarkets, warehouses and factories, instead of using the traditional tiles/carpet combination, are discovering the delights of glistening polished concrete floors.

What are the advantages over traditional flooring?

Concrete is already one of the most widely used building materials, and can be customized to suit any environment. Once concrete is polished many other advantages become evident. It is:

— Hard wearing.
— Resistant to heat, UV rays and discoloration from oil and hydraulic fluid spills, tyre marks etc.
— Abrasion resistant — especially useful in industrial applications.
— Light reflective, thus creating a light and bright environment for work or play.
— Dust resistant, making it essential flooring for asthmatics and hay fever sufferers.
— Glossy without being slippery.
— Easy to clean — no rugs, mats or carpets to store dust and dirt.
— Extremely low maintenance — concrete polished once, just clean and forget.
— Energy efficient. It is cool in summer as the concrete absorbs ground moisture, keeping it cool — during the winter months, once heated the thermal mass retains heat for longer periods than other surfaces such as tiles ot timber.

How is polished concrete made?

When you take normal concrete and apply a special finishing process which results in a glossy sheen this is called ‘Polished Concrete’.

How long does it take?

Depending on the size of the area, and the condition of the concrete, it takes 3 to 4 days for a typical domestic application. Getting a great result for the new polished concrete floor is a bit like getting a great result when painting a house. It all depends on the preparation, and if the concrete is in good condition, the first day may be taken up diamond grinding to expose stone or salt and pepper look. Over the next two days expect to see uv polyurethane top coats with non slip if required.

For some minor disruption to the usual routine, the reward on the final day will be a glorious polished concrete floor — gleaming, clean, easy to maintain, very long wearing. and be the envy of family, friends and neighbors alike.