What is the mantra in business today–more sales! Who can blame us. It is a tough year! So what to do about it? How do we get prospects to say “I would like to learn more about what you offering?” Many of you are spending many more hours cold calling, networking and beating the bushes. Here are a few ways that that extra effort may pay off much better:
- You need to be selling what they want. Think of it from their point of view, how does your widget save them money or make them money?
- You need to be selling something they can’t get anywhere else. That doesn’t mean it is not available elsewhere–you just have a better offer. That could be for a number of reasons. You are easier to do business with. You can give them the exact quantity they need when they need it. Your item truly is higher quality and you can tell them specifically why (i.e. our product is tested by a certified third party). Your customer service is genuinely better and you can give them a specific proof point (i.e. problems addressed within 24 hours). These reasons must be things your competitors don’t do.
- You need to be clear about what your company stands for. Do you have a well articulated, rehearsed and effective 30 second elevator speech that is designed to be sure they want to hear more?
- Your visible presence needs to be consistent with your message and highly professional. The number one place most prospective clients go to check you out is your website. How does it look? Is it up to date? Is it professionally done? Does your site compete with others in your industry or niche effectively? This is a cost-effective calling card that, when done right, puts your best foot forward, and opens the door to further communication. In fact, I invite you to visit my recently launched new site. Here were some clear goals:
- Be visually appealing
- Make the message obvious
- Answer the question “why Reynolds Consulting LLC ?” right away
- Make the ability to join my community–newsletter and blog–really easy
- Simple navigation
- Offer case studies on clients across industries so hopefully they can find one they relate to; weave testimonials throughout each section so they don’t have to look far to see what my clients think
- Communicate my values to increase their sense of the kind of person they are doing business with
- Have a quality site as good as any company in my industry–even the heavy hitters
- Be a thought leader with published content and recommended reading
- An action step on every page
- my website is www.reynolds-consulting.com. Check it out and let me know what you think.
What are you doing to fill your pipeline? What has worked best for you? What would you add to the list? Happy Selling!
