Category: Sales

Many would agree that selling services and products are at the foundation of any successful business. If there aren’t any sales, there’s no money to keep up with bills and the business collapses. But there are so many less obvious “sales” that are just as crucial to your success. Without making these sales, and consistently, your costs will skyrocket. You must make these sales with your support team, not with your prospects.

Your support team is comprised of your suppliers, employees, and outsourced services. You’ll have to use a unique approach for each of these “sales,” so that they will be motivated to provide quality service, take on additional duties, and extend your credit and terms. But your suppliers, employees, and outsourced services all have one thing in common—they need to believe that you have their best interests are at heart before they will give their effort, time, products, and loyalty to you. When they do, though, they can significantly cut your costs, turnover rates, and your need for cash. This significantly boosts your chances for success!

Suppliers. Show that you appreciate the risks suppliers take with your new or growing company. Share your challenges, aspirations, and new opportunities regularly. This will relieve some of their fears once they take a chance by extending your credit and terms—therefore enabling you to grow. Your suppliers worry that you will pay bills late or be a “beg pay.” Create a long-term plan so they know you won’t ditch them for someone else. They have to be assured that they can grow along with you. It takes a lot of time and strategy to prove that you really do have their best interests at heart.

Employees. Your people are the key to your success, but only if they understand that you’re giving them security, a career opportunity, a chance to contribute, guidance, respect, and time off. They need to know exactly how their job affects sales (however removed it may be), why their work is important, and how it shapes their career. Prove that you have their best interests at heart so they will appreciate performance-based pay, bonus structures, and more decision-making influence.

Outsourced Services. Show that you appreciate your outsourced services by communicating your expectations. Make sure you have policies in place that are clear on deadlines and requirements, that constantly improve communication, and that explain the reasons behind your requirements. Make it obvious that you’re easy to work with—make sure your criticism is constructive, and that you give more praise than criticism. Try asking, “What can we do on our end to help you be more efficient?” That can be an effective “sales pitch” for these people.

Plain and simple: Negotiating your business relationships is a sale in itself. They need to know that they can trust you, and that you fit into their growth and development. Understand what their fears are, and work to relieve them. You can do this by demonstrating that you are a true partner and ally, and you will live up to their expectations. You want to help them reach their goals—not just your own.

The only alternative to making these “sales” is to waste money on turnover, high interest, higher supply costs, short payment terms, and lost corporate knowledge. Startups cannot afford to lose this money—it’s better spent growing your business.

This concept is not usually taught in school or covered by the entrepreneurial media. But once you prove you really do have your team’s best interests at heart, you will spend less and generate more!

For more, read on: http://c-suitenetworkadvisors.com/advisor/michael-houlihan-and-bonnie-harvey/

We’ve seen it a million times—physical product brands spread themselves too thin before they’re established. Some brands offer too many choices, and their principal message gets lost in the marketplace. And others expand too quickly into territories that they can’t handle, and they lose their dependable status. Why is this?

When a brand can’t achieve its true target market quickly enough, they second-guess their mission, trying to be all things to all types of people. They think they’ll do better quicker by speaking to a wider audience. But instead of being the leader in a close race, they become lost in the bigger battle.

Their sales team may cry, “If only we had (this or that type of) product…” As the pressure to make sales is on, brand builders can easily give in to this persistent plea.

Establishing yourself in the marketplace is hard enough without blurring your core message. We tell brand builders to stick to their guns—the fewer, the better! You have to distinguish your brand when you’re a new player. Sure, it’ll take a long time to draw and keep customers who appreciate your unique approach. But this is when patience and perseverance really pay off.

When we started Barefoot Wine, we entered with a large-size format that wasn’t as common as the standard smaller size of most wine. But this set us apart! It made us a newcomer in the big bottle category. And the choice was simple for the customer—only two types of wine, a varietal white and a varietal red. That’s it! It was easy for both the buyer and customer. People don’t like having too many choices.

We thought, “Could we sell more with a pink?” So, we tried it. It worked! Then we thought, “How about other varietals? And why not expand the line with the smaller, more popular size bottles?” Retailers responded quickly— “Which ones would you like to trade out for the new ones?” We were killing our own brand! Total sales hit a plateau for two years!

Looking back, we should have waited until we were more established in the market before adding more choices. Now, we advise our clients to avoid exceeding their “brand width”!

Another mistake some brand builders make is thinking that their product will sell well in other territories just because it sells well in their territory. The big risk is expanding prematurely, before they know enough or have the money to service what they sell in new territories.

It’s easy to forget about the importance of your own time when selling in your own backyard. Because you are doing all the merchandising, policing, and maybe even delivery, you might not have a handle on the cost of sales in a new territory, where you need to hire people to do this work. And without any new hires, you quickly learn what you’re up against—poor representation, out-of-stocks, and the competition taking advantage of your absence.

We made this exact mistake. We misunderstood the cost of sales in 2 new territories, and we expanded too quickly. And we actually had to withdraw from those markets for many years before we could afford to hire our own representatives there. We tarnished our brand in the process. It took us years to bounce back.

At first glance, it might seem counterintuitive to restrict your territory and your offerings when you’re just starting out, but you’ll be thankful that you built your brand on a solid and simple foundation.

For more, read on: http://c-suitenetworkadvisors.com/advisor/michael-houlihan-and-bonnie-harvey/