Sales Letters – Part One

Writing Sales Letters that Work

Developing effective sales letters, whether they’re going to be sent through the post or by email are one of the most effective and inexpensive ways you can get your message out there.

One of the benefits is that you can tailor it so that the recipient feels that it’s been personally written and that you have taken the time and trouble to talk directly to them.

In order to get your creativity fired up why not try some of these tried and tested methods for developing sales letters that really work.

Tell a story that connects with your customers

By drafting copy that your target market can instantly connect with you will not only be able to share with them some of the benefits of dealing with you but also illustrate to them that you understand the challenges and frustrations they’re facing.

Example: ‘”When I started my own small business the biggest problem I faced was how to market effectively on a shoestring. I was scared to try things that could turn into expensive mistakes and was paralysed to the point where I did nothing. You see I’m not a natural marketer but I’m really good at cutting hair! Then I purchased The Small Business Marketing Toolbox and I suddenly understood that there was a lot I could do that didn’t cost anything at all. Now I have the peace of mind of knowing I can focus on my real job and find and keep customers at the same time!”

Copy written in story-line format has the greatest appeal. By sharing a short story that connects with the reader’s situation, you are empathizing with them and they feel an automatic sense of alignment to you and your product. Don’t be scared to use long copy where you draw out your story for added effect. People WILL read long copy… IF they find it really interesting.

Cheap Market Research Options

Many small businesses do not have the funds, expertise or time to implement market research. However, without this they cannot track changes, trends and the buying behaviours of their existing or potential customers.

Most small businesses are also predominantly inwardly focused and usually miss important shifts in their target market’s behaviour and also changing opportunities in the market because they don’t utilise even the most basic market research methods.

There are three important things you should be doing to ensure you look outward from your business to connect with and listen to your customers’ insights, the competitor’s movements and, most importantly, market changes. Try one of these this week:

First: Call a meeting with all your staff that interact face-to-face or telephonically with your customers. Remember that these employees are your ear to the ground and ask them to share with you what the customers are currently saying and doing so that you can leverage this for your gain.

Second: Get out and meet with your customers by travelling with your sales team, getting behind the counter again yourself and personally phoning some of your most loyal clients to thank them for their business and, at the same time, as them what they like about doing business with you, what they don’t like and what they’d like to see you change in order to make doing business with you easier.

Third: Share information with your staff whether it is good, bad or indifferent. Often small business owners withhold information not realizing that it hinders the ability of staff to work harder and smarter for the benefit of the business. In order for your staff to respond quickly and efficiently you need to arm them with the information, tools and proposed action plan to be able to raise the bar and capture new business.

These are three simple steps you can do this week. They cost no money and take very little time, so select at least one to open the lines of communication and put it into action today.

Do we really know what makes our business tick?

This for me is one of the key questions which we need to answer – what really drives our business? Lest we forget, business is based on people. It is all about relationships and one-on-one conversation – how do we as supplier best understand, interpret and meet the needs of you, our “consumer” now and in the future. Yet a great deal of what I saw and what I am seeing increasingly in the marketplace is a constant and ever increasing supply of software products to automate the customer interface.

I can remember Marketing 1.01 and the expression that customers are individuals and will express themselves as such in their buying behaviour as long as they have the money and the choice to be able to do so. I have long been convinced in the school of hard knocks and by observation of successful businesses over many years that those businesses which cultivate and maintain rich and meaningful dialogue with their customers are the ones which have prospered in the long run. And yet we are confronted with a plethora of “Customer relationship” software solutions purporting to automate a large portion of the customer relationship interface.

I am sure that there is a role for these and that, utilised effectively, they can help to reduce costs and increase effectiveness. The key is not to be seduced into thinking that they can in any shape, way or form, take the place of real customer intimacy – the type of relationships that take time to build but which become the foundation stones of enduringly successful businesses.

And we cannot even begin to think about the implementation of the CRM software systems which may automate much or even parts of the customer interface UNLESS we understand very clearly what makes our business tick. We need to be sure of what connects our brand DNA  to our customers. We need to stand back and think once again that customers are individuals, are unique and each holds a unique relationship with our business. Threaten that, and you threaten the core of your brand. Lose sight of it in the excitement and mystique of fancy new software and you run the real risk of undermining the real core of your business’ existence – the special nature of the personal relationships which you have with your key customers – and that is step one on the slippery slope to oblivion!

So by all means look for software that will ENABLE – that will give you savings, better and faster information and a broader base of communication. But never ever lose sight of the fact that your customers see their relationship with you as an intensely personal and individual one – between living organisms not databases

Business Marketing Plan

There are always a number of critical success factors that you need to take into account when developing a business marketing plan.

First, you need to assess what your desired outcome is. What’s your business objective, what are the milestones on which you’ll determine whether the marketing’s been effective, or not effective? If you clearly define, up front, what you would like marketing to do for you, you are better positioned to manage the business marketing planning implementation and therefore are more likely to stay on track.

Second, you need to take a good look at the macro environment within which you trade. Is there anything happening that could affect your ability to maintain sales or pick up additional sales? For example is there a strong chance that a change in legislation could significantly impact your ability to run your business effectively. How is the current economic crunch going to affect the spending habits of your existing/potential customers? You need to look at all the macro issues to ensure you are not caught unawares with a side on swipe that capsizes your marketing and business needs.

Third, clearly define who you are targeting. What makes a good customer for you? A lot of business marketing plans define “everyone” as their target market, but this clearly cannot be the case, it’s just lazy strategy development. Challenge yourself, and your team. Describe the type of people that have problems you can provide the solution to. What is the problem? Who are the people? Where do they live? What do they read etc? Really focus your brainstorming and drill it down until you get into the minds and hearts of the type of people that are ideal customers for you. Focus in this area will ensure the rest of your marketing plan will be based on a solid foundation. Lack of focus in defining your primary target market will mean a business marketing plan that is wishy-washy, unstructured and ineffective.

Last but not least, decide what you want to tell those people about you, your products or your services that will make them sit up and take note. For example what are the benefits of people using your products/services in order to solve their problem? What makes you an essential product/service?
People only buy products and services because they have a need (real or perceived) that needs satisfying. The job of your business marketing plan is to determine what that need is and then work with your team to deliver the solutions to those needs profitably!

If you’d like to develop an effective business marketing plan follow the link now.

Cleaning Up Messy Business

If your business is in a mess, and your thoughts are in a mess then everything is perfectly aligned! Do you agree?

Whether we like it or not our businesses are a direct mirror of what our thoughts have created and if our minds are currently bouncing all over the place then more likely than not so are our staff. And, who feels that first … the customer!

Now, more than ever, you need to develop a business strategy to assist you in gathering your thoughts and preparing a plan of action that allows you to think through the options twice, and act once. This will enable you to step into your business on a daily basis displaying confident leadership that will have your staff and customers wanting to support you. After all, everyone likes to follow a confident leader.

You can start developing a clear plan of action today by developing a business strategy that will enable you to begin where you are, right now, no matter what your circumstances but will ensure you don’t stay in the same situation in the months ahead.

First though you have to get your mind right. You have to really want to change how you think and what you do. No-one can do that for you.

Don’t let fear, worry or anxiety freeze your future. Develop a business strategy now and you’ll see the difference in how you feel, how you act and what results you get.

Why wait?