A Marketing Frame of Mind?

It is tough being in business to-day – a truism no question – but how far are the difficulties compounded by our own frame of mind?

Are you sitting around bemoaning your “fate” or are you doing something positive to change the situation? How far is the recession real or a product of our own negative mindsets? Are we allowing the current environment to dominate our thinking or are we doing something positive to become masters of our own destiny?

There is no question that business has got tougher in a set of economic circumstances that have affected the whole world – and there is no denying that it is more difficult to do business now than it was a year or two back. But by the same token, the world has not come to a standstill – people still have to eat; they still want to find ways to spend their recreational time; they still have to travel and so on. But they have been forced to be more selective, more discriminating and expect more for their money. And, businesses that sharpen up their marketing strategies are the ones who will take advantage of this.

So how have you responded? Are you taking this opportunity to re-invent your business? Do you have a plan to get you through the next 12 months until circumstances improve? And that plan needs to start and end with how are you going to find new customers and how are you going to satisfy the needs of your existing customers better.

So where do you start?

First – Talk to Your Customers
Try talking to your customers – we mean really talking to them to get inside their heads and find out what they expect from you and what they need to help them in these testing times. Use this opportunity to find out what they think they will need in the future – how can you make their lives easier? How can you ensure that you meet their needs better?

Second – Find Ways to Re-Invent Your Business
Start with a clean slate and decide how you can use what your customers have told you to generate more business, to do business more efficiently, to add value to what you are offering and to generate the loyalty that will be invaluable in the future. Find new and better ways to provide what your customers want because the chances are that your competitors are sitting around worrying about how they will pay the bills at the end of the month.

Third – Develop a Brand New Marketing Plan
Give your business an injection of focus and direction. Set yourself some challenging new marketing goals – you may not achieve all of them but having a clear set of objectives should give you and your team renewed energy and enthusiasm. Remember that your competitors are faced with the same issues that confront you – your reaction to the current climate is what can differentiate your business and make it successful in these trying times. Your attitude and your response will make all the difference.

So, talk to your customers, hear what they are saying, reconfigure your business from the outside in and put a plan in place to make it happen.

Small Business Sales Prospecting

Whether we like it or not every small business needs an action plan for prospecting new clients.

If you’re a one-man-band, or just aren’t big enough to have a dedicated sales person, it’s probably left up to you to do the cold calling.

It’s a fact that most new business doesn’t fall in your lap and most prospects aren’t sitting there just waiting for your call. So what can you do to develop a system that’s painless and takes the “energy trap” out of the sales process?

First: Build up a prospect list. A database of who you could target, their contact details and what potential value they could have for your business. Then prioritise this from most important to least important.
Second: Prepare a document that details your competitive advantage (why they should buy from you), the benefits of your product/service and, if possible, some testimonials from people that enjoyed a long association with you. You can have this document layed-up nicely as a presentation document, or you could just have the knowledge in your head. But, do make sure you’ve given it enough thought so that you sound positive and confident when speaking to your prospects.
Third: Set up a meeting and visit the prospects. Outline up front what the agenda is for the meeting (to introduce yourself and share with them the benefits of dealing with you) and then make sure you are early for the appointment! Determine your objective for this call, remember it takes between 5-7 points of contact for someone to switch to you, so make sure you have thought through each point of contact carefully.
Fourth: Follow up with a thank you note and action anything coming out of the meeting quickly and efficiently.

On average “they say” that sales is purely a numbers game. See 10 people you’ll get 1 Yes! So it’s not a field for the feint hearted. Stick to it, do the numbers and check your conversion ratio. If you aren’t converting at this level either your prospect list is not needing what you offer, your offer isn’t right or your sales approach is lacking.

Remember to do a post-mortem on your call cycle conversions regularly to ensure you aren’t wasting time and effort in unprofitable markets. Complete a marketing plan with a strong personal selling element in order to set sales objectives, action plans and measurable performance criteria.