7 Key Tactics For
The Small Business Owner
Summary:
For most folks,
owning your own business is a dream come true.
The freedom of being your own boss and succeeding to the best of your
ability are facts of life for the small business owner.
Keywords:
testimonials,
upselling, headlines
Article Body:
For most folks,
owning your own business is a dream come true.
The freedom of being your own boss and succeeding to the best of your
ability are facts of life for the small business owner. Sure, there's more stress than what you
probably imagined when you were creating your grand plans, but with a little
strategy and planning you can overcome any tough spot you get in. There are 7 tactics developed by successful
marketers that are sure to make your business as successful as theirs.
1. Create One of a Kind Selling Point
If you want to stand out from the crowd, create a unique selling proposition
that stresses the benefits the customers will receive from doing business with
you. Will they get faster service? Go ahead and dramatize it, but keep the
customer at the focus..."Get free overnight delivery!" Hey, it tells the customer...you get quick
service and a shipping discount. Two
definite benefits in one statement.
Why should someone buy from you and not your competitor? I hate to deal a blow to your ego, but it
really has nothing to do with you, your product, or your service. Yeah, it's a little self-centered, but
customers are attracted by offers that point out the things that benefit
THEM.
Don't go out on a limb to create new products and services to get
attention. Just, add a special benefit
to the ones you already have... maybe it's quicker service. The most effective things to emphasize are
benefits that your competition cannot or is not willing to give.
2. Use Testimonials
Hey, we all know that business owners think their products or services are the
best thing going, but it's what the current customers think about it that
really matters to your prospective customers.
They're the ones who see things from their point of view... what they
have to say about the business has an impact.
Testimonials play an important part in advertising - especially for small
businesses. Yeah, big businesses with
well-known names don't have to worry about it, but small companies can use
testimonials as marketing tools to build credibility.
Think about it...how else can we gain credibility than by creating a group of
satisfied customers and shouting what they have to say? Let's look at some ways we can make
testimonials an effective part of our marketing campaigns.
3. Upsell
Upselling is one of the most successful marketing trends today. Everywhere you go, someone is trying to get
you to buy more. From McDonald's with its
supersize options to clothing stores that try to sell you shoes to match your
outfit, everyone's jumping on the bandwagon.
Why? It works!
Your customers already know that you have great products and provide
satisfactory service. They trust you to
come through for them. Think about it... it's much easier to make sales to someone you
already have a relationship with.
Use every opportunity to increase your sales volume within the customer
audience you already have. Do you have a
product that goes with the one they are purchasing? Offer it to them at the register. It's a proven and effective method for
increasing sales. You may be shocked at
the additional sales you can generate from those who are already buying from
you.
4. Make Your Price Seem Smaller
Divide and conquer... The old war tactic
works in marketing too! When the price
seems too steep, break it down into "buyable" size bites. A $120 item is only 12 low monthly payments
of $10. A $365 purchase would only cost
$1 per day. Now that sounds affordable!
5. Paint The Benefits Pretty
Customers buy because they want to enjoy the benefits of the purchase. A lady might buy a dress because she wants to
feel sexy, or a man will buy a book because he finds pleasure in reading. Emotions are the key element that drives
purchases.
Use word pictures to stir up the emotions that will instigate the sale. Let them "feel" the benefits, and
they'll be more apt to head for the cash register. Put them where you want them.
6. Create Attention Getting
Headlines
Are you ready to capture your reader's attention with a great copy? The headline is the place to start. How often do you scan the newspaper's
headlines before you decide whether or not to read the article? Yeah, that's where we lose or gain the reader's
interest, so it's a pretty important part of the advertisement.
A good headline should telegraph its message in twelve words or less. Double-check those headlines. Do they make a
promise of a positive benefit, or ask a provocative question? Don't settle for
less than attention-grabbing statements.
7. Provide An Offer They Can't
Resist
Is your deal too good to pass up? If
not, you need to improve it. Hey, I'm
not talking about cutting prices even more...you've still got to make a profit. You can make the deal sweeter just by
increasing the reader's knowledge of the value of the product or adding bonuses
that are perceived as valuable, but cost you little.
Motivate buyers with expirations. Yeah,
an open-ended offer encourages procrastination...which leads ...yep, to nowhere. When the customer knows he has
until Saturday to purchase an item he'll pay more for on Sunday, he'll make it
a priority to head for your shop.
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