In part one of this article we discussed the seven organizational
resources that are critical to optimize, and three questions you
must answer in any prospects mind if you are to successfully
market and sell your product or service.
In part two we talked about the four groups you should consider
marketing to. Now we need to look at The Four Phases To
Marketing Success.
There are four specific phases that you can incorporate in your
marketing program.
1. Generate, identify and acquire prospects
If you are to fill your pipeline with possible prospects and
potential sales, you will need to gain as many qualified
prospects as possible, and that you can realistically work with.
This is considered the starting point of marketing programs for
new companies, or companies that need to grow their client base.
Advertising is a common way to gather prospects. Many companies
fall in to the trap of institutional advertising. Institutional
advertising has no immediate proposition, no call to action, and
does not deliver measurable results. This type of advertising
may work for a bank or for McDonalds, but it is expensive and
does not usually yield anywhere near acceptable returns for the
businesses I work with.
Direct response advertising does offer a specific proposition
that causes the audience to respond now and ultimately generates
profits that justify that form of advertising. It is measurable
and you get immediate results. Direct response advertising is
profitable (at least it should be), and you should be able to
justify your advertising based on the profits you generate.
I teach clients four or five excellent ways of generating
prospects. You should have several in your arsenal as well,.
Then you will have a consistent flow of new prospects to work
with.
2. Convert Prospects into Clients
Some organizations are great at generating prospects. They have
hundreds or even thousands of new prospects a week. But, they
are relatively weak at converting those prospects in to clients.
It is a waste of money to just create prospects. If you are not
converting your prospects at an acceptable rate, then you are
wasting advertising dollars.
One of the best ways to convert a prospect is with “Risk
Removal.” Clients have to feel comfortable parting with their
money. They must feel at least as comfortable with your product
or service as they do with their hard earned dollars in their
pockets.
You can remove risk one of two ways. The first is that you can
reverse the risk through a great warranty. Maybe you offer a
money back guarantee or you guarantee that your price is the
lowest. You could guarantee a specific level of service. All of
these types of guarantees gives your prospects a sense of
comfort, and increases their willingness to invest in you.
Secondly, you can also share the risk. One on my clients has
thousands of letters from his clients saying how great his
company is and how the price and service is superior to everyone
else they considered before making the purchase.
When prospective clients see and read these letters, they are put
at ease and the sale is much easier to make.
3. Make Every Sale More Profitable.
Why make a $500.00 sale when you could turn it into a $750.00
sale? “Up selling” is a very important part of growing your
business. McDonalds does this with their “Super Size” package.
They used to ask you if you wanted an apple pie with your order.
If you sell cellular phones, you could add on a leather case, an
extra charger, or extended warranty. Get the idea?
For all of your major products and services you should have
pre-created products and services that you can add on after the
client makes the purchasing decision. The initial choice to buy
is the toughest for your client. Once they make this choice it
will be relatively easy to decide to add additional value to
their purchase with one of your add-on items.
Other ways to increase the size of your order are with unique
services and exclusive products. Create three ways that you can
increase the size of your sale and start using them right away!
4. Make Every Client More Valuable Over Time
Since selling to existing clients is the easiest and fastest way
to increase your business, this is the first phase that an
established business should look at if they are to strategically
grow their business.
Know your clients needs. If they invest in one product, are they
likely to need another similar product or service? Can you make
a special offer to existing clients to see an immediate boost in
sales? Maybe you could form a joint venture with another
business that could sell your clients services. Inserts and
coupons to existing clients work wonders in many industries.
Manage your relationships with your current clients and look for
ways to deliver more value to them. This will lead to a growth
in business and profits.
Look over all four of these areas. Where are you the strongest?
Which area might you be weak in? As you look to build your
business, you may choose to focus on one or two areas. If you
are a new organization you will be looking to create more
prospects. If you have been in business for a while, then making
every customer more valuable over time is critical.
Ultimately you should excel in all four phases as you look to
Build a Better Biz.
