Purple Diamond Marketing Blog

Your company has embraced social media marketing and you now have leads coming in from your efforts and from your website, but you are not making sales….why? Most likely it is because you haven’t developed a process for handling the leads.  Businesses continue to struggle with how to convert internet leads and what is the “correct” way of approaching the contacts you have on social media sites because they fear the backlash of coming across as “too sales focused” and not “social” enough.  But, this has also kept them from doing what they have done naturally for years with leads that they have cultivated from networking events and referrals….RESPOND!

If you want to get sales from your efforts on the internet go back to the basic 4:

1.) Respond QUICKLY to requests for info & make a genuine connection!

2.) Create TIME each day to interact and develop a relationship with the people who follow you on social media or visit your website.

[ Consider adding a "LIVE HELP" feature as part of your website to attract questions from visitors to your site . Also, use the features on the social media sites to email directly to at least 5-10 followers/contacts a day with a personal message thanking them for connecting with you and offer to meet with them one-on-one or promote a phone meeting. It helps to have a message developed by your marketing team that will get attention and a response.]

3.) Develop creative content to post to your on-line sites that will increase your followers so that you are seen as an expert in your field.

[Selling to someone who is already “SOLD” on your expertise and has chosen to “follow” you is almost as great as having a client refer their friend for your services. The key is for you to RESPOND to them in a personal way.]

4.) Ask for the sale!

[Close…close…close…..if you are lacking skills in sales consider working with a coach or hiring a salesman to help your business, but the BEST way to get a sale is to ASK for one!]

All my best to your success ~ Charlene.

“Success wears the Purple Diamond!”

Tags: Business Success, Converting Leads, Internet Marketing, Sales Tip

October is here and this past weekend I actually began my Christmas holiday shopping for my in-laws who live in Canada.  Why is this part of my Purple Diamond Marketing Blog?  Because being prepared and launching your holiday sales and marketing campaign early will capture the early shoppers and help brand your products as the holiday solution that potential shoppers are looking for.  This does not mean you need to start playing holiday music in your store or change your entire website to festive holiday colors and graphics, but a business that has products or services to offer that are perfect for gift giving should be including a message about holiday gift buying and specials that are perfect for corporate gifts on their website, email newsletters and strategically placed throughout your retail store or business. In addition, be sure to have your sales staff be proactive in contacting your top clients to give special incentives to have them shop with your company.  End of the year sales are essential to the success and growth of your business.  Do not wait to see if people will choose to shop with your business over contacting them via the phone or with a direct mail piece or an aggressive advertising campaign.  This is the time to ask your marketing staff or advertising agency for creative ideas to help sell more products during the holiday season.

How about businesses that do not have products or services that could be used as holiday gifts?  Can these businesses ignore the 4th quarter for sales?  Of course not….if your business does not  sell a product or service that can be sold to the holiday consumer market then your efforts to close business must be increased 100% to be heard over the noise of the holiday season.  If you sell computer services, financial services, personnel services, legal services, medical services or even products that just don’t often sell during the next 3 months, then I suggest you create incentives for businesses or consumers to do business with you now.  You might wish to offer an added bonus or a discount during this time or an extended warranty. The key is to get businesses or consumers to see the merit in hiring your company now.

Finally, be sure to use the next 3 months to connect with your key accounts. The new year is often a time when businesses reflect on what is working and what needs to be changed.  In years where the economy is sluggish or sales are not as strong as in past years, business owners are quick to make changes of vendors and alter the way they do business.  Do not hesitate to connect with your clients face-to-face and do your own review with them about your service.  Often even a client who was thinking of dropping your service could be saved with the face-to-face meeting that allows them the opportunity to be heard and positive changes made to improve your offerings.

Yes, the holidays are coming and the end of 2010 is less than 90 days away. Are you ready? If you need help please consider calling Purple Diamond!

All my best to your success! ~ Charlene

“Success wears the Purple Diamond!”

Tags: Advertising Plan, Advertising Strategy, Business Success, Holiday Marketing, Marketing, Sales Tip

As we approach the Memorial Holiday Weekend and the official start of summer many businesses know that this is a time in which their own business slows down because of their clients, colleagues and staff have vacations.  So, what do you do during the slower days of summer which can help to increase sales for your business?

The first thing I recommend is that if you have not had a vacation and you are working 12 hour days, 7 days a week, you really need to take a week at the beginning of the summer and RELAX and ENERGIZE yourself!  Think back to when you were in college cramming for finals and trying to exist on 2-3 hours of sleep a night.  Let’s face it, you became a walking zombie who only got through the week of hell because you knew that there was an end date to exam week and then a vacation break directly after.  As a business owner, learning to recognize the signs of “burn-out” is key to your success and longevity in the industry.  Stepping away from your business and in to a week or two of fun and relaxation will have you refreshed and ready to make the most of working the remaining days of summer with new ideas and a vitality that could be missing right now.

The second thing I recommend to do during the quieter months of summer is to prospect for new business.  Attend business networking groups that are outside your local area, go to workshops and seminars that attract businesses that could be potential clients, and spend time taking key clients that may still be working hard like you out to lunch or for a day of golf as a way of thanking them for their business. Use this time to  reach out to your customers with cards or emails during the slower months which will help with retention and possibly expand your business if you add a “refer-a-friend” program in the newsletter.

Finally, the summer is a great time to meet and do planning for your marketing for the remaining year and in to 2011.  One of the biggest problems that small businesses have is that they are always putting out fires and often do not have time for real planning or creating a strategy for their marketing.  Their websites never get updated, they still struggle with understanding how to position social on-line networking as a way to market their business and they seldom analyze what the ROI is for the advertisements that they are currently running.   The hit or miss type of marketing they have done all year often is a result of being hurried and the summer months allows the time to organize, regroup and make a successful plan.

In addition to these three things, summer is a great time to do an office make-over or have a professional organizer help you to set-up systems that work for your business.  Move your desk,  paint the walls, add a few plants and have an organizer help you to get rid of the piles of paper and watch how fast your sales improve when your work space is one that you are happier working in!

All my best to your success!

~Charlene

“Success wears the Purple Diamond!”

Tags: Advertising Strategy, Business Success, Marketing, Sales Tip

Targeting your market is simply defining who your primary customer will be. The market should be measurable, sufficiently large and reachable!

LET GO OF YOUR FEAR!

Target marketing cannot work and offer the sales results you need until you let go of your fear.  “EVERYONE” is not a target market. The fear factor is one of the key reasons people fail at selling or marketing their product.  Most business owners have never worked for other companies as a “straight commission” sales person so they are not familiar with going after the “A” client and optimizing their sales day so that it results in closing key revenue accounts.  They have not learned through time and aggravation and small paychecks that you can work just as hard with a small sale as you can a bigger client and that your closing ratio improves when you zero in on a potential market that is more likely to buy the product.

“Sales is a numbers game”.  This is something my sales manager loved to say to me when I used to sell TV advertising campaigns and he was right.  If I have an average of 8 hours of selling time in a day, who should I spend that time going after? What will be my strategy and who do I “Focus” my time on so that I make the most money and have long-term relationship accounts?

FOCUS…FOCUS…FOCUS!!!

There are only so many hours in a day and so much of an advertising, marketing and sales budget… remaining focused on what you wish to accomplish is the first step to determining your target market.

• WHAT IS YOUR GOAL?

• WHAT DOES YOUR IDEAL CUSTOMER LOOK LIKE?

*Who are they?         *Where are they located?      How will you reach them?

• WHO DO YOU FOCUS ON AS A POTENTIAL OR “LIKELY” CLIENT & WHERE WILL YOU FIND THEM?

BUY TWO  CUPS OF COFFEE & INTERVIEW YOUR CLIENTS!

You would be amazed at how helpful people can be when you just ask them for their help. For most of us we cannot afford to pay a big marketing company to do an in-depth analysis of who are “target market” is so what does a small business do? Buy 2 cups of coffee and ask your clients for 20 to 30 minutes of their time for an informal interview about them.

What you need to find out [if possible] from the interview:

• Age or Age Group?
• Male or Female?
• Socio-Economic or Ethnic Group?
• Education level?
• Marital Status?
• Do they have kids?
• Psychographics???                                                                                                                                              [Their beliefs, likes, dislikes, personality, why they bought your product, etc]

• Income Level?  What do they regularly spend money on?
• Profession?
• Location?

NOTE: before the internet and on-line social networking the location  was pretty straight forward to where do they live, work and buy goods and services, but today you need to know if they are tech savy, belong to Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin, etc and if they prefer to shop on-line or at the store directly or both.

• Do they read the newspaper [which one and is this on-line or in print]? What radio station do they listen to and what TV shows do they watch? Are they a member   of any local business groups or read any business publications?

• Finally, this is a KEY question to ask them: WHAT SERVICES COULD YOU PROVIDE THAT WOULD MAKE LIFE EASIER FOR THEM???

GO TO A QUIET PLACE & ANALYZE YOUR DATA

Try to survey as many customers as possible either in person or on the phone and then go to a quiet room or place so that you can analyze ALL your data and look for patterns or similarities.  Maybe you notice that most of your clients are females ages 35-55 who have a college degree, hold professional positions, have an income of over $125,000 per year and prefer to save time by shopping on-line.  Or, the majority of your clients might have children and so they are looking for family oriented activities that are geared for saving money and are good for the environment or their health.

DO YOU LIKE THE GROUP THAT STANDS OUT & ARE YOU MAKING $$$?

Hopefully, the data you get from your current base of clients that help you determine the target market is in-line with your goals for your business.  For instance, if you find that you have attracted many customers who are difficult to service because their needs are so unique and you do not feel you are making a profit with the time invested, you may need to discard that group as your target market, but use what you have learned to help determine what you could do either in your marketing material or sales process to reach a more ideal target market and increase your profits!

*CREATE MARKETING MATERIAL, ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS & YOUR SALES APPROACH AROUND THE GROUP YOU NOW KNOW AS YOUR TARGET MARKET!

AIM, FOCUS & SHOOT at the TARGET!!!

LEARN FROM YOUR MISTAKES & SEE THEM AS AN INVESTMENT!

Target Marketing saves companies both time and money by helping them to know who the best prospect is for their business and how to appeal to them as a consumer.  Even the biggest companies have made mistakes in marketing that cost them money and valuable time, but knowing what didn’t work and why, can be as important as what does work!

All my best to your success!

~Charlene

“Success wears the Purple Diamond!”

Tags: Business Success, Sales Tip, Target Marketing

When was the last time you walked in to a gift shop or jewelry store and there were no price tags on any of the items?  Did you ask the store clerk for help or did you make the assumption that if you had to ask the price you just might not be able to afford the product and walked out? The decision to post prices is up to the owner, but this marketing coach highly recommends posting your prices when you know for sure that your prices are very competitive or the best around.  Most consumers are in a hurry and even if they have the time to shop they will tell you that they like to know what the price is before they decide to buy.  However, if you have a high ticketed price and you have a sales clerk who is able to close difficult sales then leaving the price tag off and allowing your clerk the opportunity to engage with the shopper is a better strategy.

Also, if you find that certain items in your store are not being sold as frequently as others you might wish to “bundle” them with other items that are more popular.  A local gift shop merchant used this strategy when creating holiday gift baskets for last minute shoppers.  She looked around her store and saw the items that were collecting dust and put them in attractive baskets with some of the quick sale items that everyone commonly buys.  She didn’t mark-up the cost for the basket or bow or her time for assembling the holiday gift arrangement, but was thrilled to have shoppers buy the baskets for the regular price of all the items in the gift basket arrangement.    She used a clever way of “bundling” items to get the end result she needed.  Even if you are a service provider, consider ways that you can add value and increase sales by offering several of your services for one flat price. This is a great way to get a running start for higher sales in 2010!

All my best to your success!

~Charlene

“Success wears the Purple Diamond!”

Tags: Business Success, Pricing Products, Sales Tip

Negative advertising or selling your products or services by putting the competition down is one marketing strategy that has been used successfully by political candidates and by some of the larger companies like Apple and Microsoft. Though this technique has certainly received attention in the political arena and on some TV commercials, is it the best way to sell for a small business? Most top sales people will share that a direct attack on a competitor’s product is not nearly effective as focusing on why your own product is unique and what the potential client needs. Promoting what you have to offer, pointing out the benefits to your product, as opposed to slamming what your competitor offers will carry you further in business.

Think of the last time you were in a situation when someone was talking badly about someone else? How did it make you feel? What if you knew the other person that was being talked poorly about and it was someone you like? You may have spoken up or chose to remain silent, but after they left did you wonder who else that person speaks poorly about and if they would ever slam you? Slamming your competitor when on a sales call can work the same way. Whether it is based on facts or falsely perceived facts, it still makes people feel uncomfortable and that can turn against you. Taking the high road and choosing to speak only to your own strengths supports that you are confident with your product offering and not selling out of fear. Even when I am asked by a potential client to tell them why I am better than a competitor I select my words carefully and speak from my strengths and not someone else’s weaknesses.

There will always be a percentage of sales people who use negative selling to close a deal, just like there will always be negative ad campaigns during political races. However, if you are a small business selling locally it will serve you better if you focus on what your own strengths are and not a competitor’s weakness. Be confident in what you have to offer a potential client and try not to let fear take over your sales pitch. Happy selling!

All my best to your success!
~Charlene

“Success wears the Purple Diamond!”

Tags: Sales Tip