Marketing Your Small Business
Despite having a fantastic product or service, having distributed brochures and fliers, having networked with people in the city Chamber of Commerce for marketing and getting an enviable spot in the latest Yellow Pages, you find that no one is buying. What could be wrong with your marketing style? There could be a variety of reasons for customers not swarming your store or visiting your website. You have to consider the following seven basic reasons for this.
1. Inconvenience
Present day generations, who are used to high-speed Internet connectivity and fast foods, seek instant gratification. You have to offer hassle free sales process or else many customers will seek other outlets.
- Do you provide multiple payment options?
- If it’s a website you have, is navigation through your website easy and do the web pages open promptly? As per studies, visitors to websites move on if they are unable to locate what they need within 20 seconds. Likewise, can your physical storefront be easily located?
- Are adequate customer services provided by you? Is a sales representative within reach when needed? Is adequate product information available to enable customers to come to well thought of decisions?
- Are your working hours as per customer convenience?
2. Product Or Service You Are Marketing Is Not Required By The Customer
It is likely that the customer may not feel the need for your product. As a salesperson you have got to convince them that they do. Instead of projecting the product’s features, highlight how the use of this product will save their time and money in addition to making their home a comfort zone. Build up a rosy picture with the use of words like “wouldn’t it be great if…” and “imagine” etc. Encourage their visualization of the benefits: “What is the prospect of this product easing your life?”
3. Your Product or Service is Not Understood by the Customer
If you have introduced a relatively new product or service, you will have to convince people about its usefulness before you can sell it. For example, the services of a virtual assistant could be utilized. A virtual assistant was virtually unknown in the marketing field two years ago, and hardly anyone knew what it did. Now of course the public has learned its use, after the word got out through various trade organizations. Today, virtual assistance has grown to become the seventh fastest developing industry in the US, a study of Mitsubishi Research Institute of Sept. 2000 claims. Once, people were unaware that they could obtain remote assistance from independent contractors for their businesses. Now, having learnt of the benefits of a virtual assistant, people are actively looking for them.
4. You Have Not Generated Enough Trust from Your Customers
Many of the obstacles related to sales in a small business can to a large extent be overcome by maintaining good customer relationship. Do you think that customers have trust in you? Do you think they are willing to enter into business with you? Try out these questions:
* Do you deliver what you promise (e.g., timely deliveries, crucial technical support, fulfilling warranties and accepting returns)?
* Are you perceived as an authority in your sphere of business? To appear so, go in for writing and getting articles published and conduct workshops. You could join various forums or discussion groups online for giving expert advice in your line of business.
* If you have made a web page, does your site show your P.O. box or physical address prominently? (Presence of a physical address builds trust.)
* Do you maintain an active presence and thus visibility in the community?
* Do you offer online sales over a server with high security? Is this aspect of security projected to customers?
* Do you offer shopping privacy to your online customers?
* Do you offer money-back guarantees?
5. Your Quality is Perceived as Poor
Perception is what makes the difference in selling a product or service. Your product will remain inferior if it is believed so by the customers. You have to reverse this perception. Yours may be a small business, but you have to compete with the best and literally show the customer that you maintain quality, as, one belie3ves what one sees. Make samples available, which they can tested, felt and seen.
6. The Value is Perceived as Poor
Do your competitors virtually “give away” things? In these circumstances you have to demonstrate to your customers the reasons why your products or services have to be paid for. What does your product or service offer which your competitor’s doesn’t? Is it warranties? It is superior quality? Is it better customer service or the best technical support?
7. Not having Asked For The Sale
If you have covered the first six points well, it can’t be taken for granted that you will get the requisite sales. You definitely have to ask. Ensure that your leaflets and brochures contain words like “Order today!” or “Reserve yours today.”
The above tips may not help you close all the deals, but knowledge of why some sales fail to go through will definitely help in getting the better of the competition. Wish you luck!
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Tags: Chamber Of Commerce, City Chamber Of Commerce, Comfort Zone, Customer Convenience, Customer Services, Fliers, High Speed Internet, High Speed Internet Connectivity, Inconvenience, Instant Gratification, Networked, Payment Options, Physical Storefront, Sales Representative, Salesperson, Time And Money