EPC Technologies Online Marketing Blog

Increasing Sales 

Here’s the steps to increasing sales:

1.    Qualify Your Prospect – Maximizing your time is important, so the faster you can determine if you’ve got a potential customer the better.  Determine who the “Decision Maker” is, do you have a good rapport with him/her, is their a problem you can solve or do they know there’s a problem?  You may have the greatest hammer in the world, but if all this prospect uses is screws – you can’t sell your product.

2.    Gain Trust – Price and product benefits are obvious buying factors, but less obvious ones are intuition, impressions, and rapport.  Prospects are just as apt to buy for emotional reasons as practical ones, so you need to show them you are most like them, you’re sincere, you keep your word, and are honest.  If you say you’ll see them on Tuesday, make sure you keep your word.  Don’t make a promise you don’t intend on keeping.

3.    Define Your Unique Position – Your product or service provides your customer with a specific benefit or group of benefits.  Make sure it isn’t the same as your competition. Why does your company stand out? Let them know the difference.

4.    LISTEN! – Most salespeople are guilty of “overselling”, and often miss the sentence from the prospect that says, “You’re right.   We’ll take it.” Listen to your prospect as he answers open-ended questions, and even listen to his tone and inflections of speech.  Uncover the problem, and then provide the solution and stop talking.

5.    Stay Focused – Too many small business owners spend all their time putting out fires instead of making sales.  Spend at least 60% of your time trying to produce revenue.  The sales window of 9am-5pm is small, so plan your selling time accordingly.  Schedule non-sales generating duties outside this time.

6.    Polish Your Presentation – Don’t take your sales presentation for granted.  Practice your pitch.  You’ve spent a lot of money perfecting your product or service, take the time to develop a comfortable, confident, effective presentation.

7.    Do Your Homework – Research your prospects so that you can ask better questions, show better under-standing of his business, and be more prepared and confident before your meet.

8.    Learn From Success – Many entrepreneurs have success in one industry with one type of client, and then don’t focus on getting more of the same type.   If you’ve been successful selling to doctors and publishers, call on other doctors and publishers and refer to the successes you’ve had.  Prospects will trust you more if they know you have previous experience with others in their field.  You also spend less time establishing your credibility with them.

These are just a few of more than 50 or more ways to increase your sales revenue, but they are valuable in helping you to accomplish one very important goal – TO SELL THE MOST PRODUCT OR SERVICE IN THE LEAST AMOUNT OF TIME.  Remember, the only difference between an average baseball player and an All-Star is just one more hit in every 10 at bats.  Step up to the plate and sell, sell,
sell.

10 STEPS TO SUCCESS IN DIRECT SALES

 

Every year thousands of men and women across America sign on with

direct selling firm-Tupperware, Amway, or a cosmetic

company-hoping to make money enough for new draperies, a new

davenport, or some new clothes. They sell a little merchandise to

a few relatives and close friends. Then they are through. They

quit before they give themselves a chance to learn the basics of

success in sales. “I am simply not a born salesperson,” they

often say.

No one is born a salesperson, any more than one is born a doctor

or born a lawyer. Sales is a profession. To be successful in any

profession one must learn not only the basic techniques, but also

how to apply those techniques. Success in sales makes use of all

the abilities one is born with, plus all those acquired through

education and experience.

If you are looking for a career opportunity or “extra income” to

help with the family budget, direct selling offers you

dream-fulfilling possibilities. However, you must give yourself

time to learn the techniques of sales. Ask yourself. “How long

does a doctor to be study? A lawyer to be study?”

WHAT IS DIRECT SELLING?

Direct selling is marketing a product directly to the consumer

with no middleman involved. Most reliable firms are members of

the National Association of Direct Selling

Companies. They bring to the public fine products that are

modestly priced in order to insure mass consumption.

Most direct selling companies furnish their representatives with

a starter kit and essential supplies below-cost prices. In many

instances the investment is under $100.

There is an old adage which says “Give a man a fish and you feed

him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a

lifetime.”

 

Many of them were able to change their lives for the better. They

took their families on nice vacations. They purchased a piano or

an organ and provided music lessons for their children. They

saved money for college education. They redecorated their homes,

bought needed furniture. One highly successful saleslady built a

new home.

The rewards of direct selling are many

1. You can be your own boss.

2. You can set your own hours.

3. You can own your own businesses with little or no investment.

4. You can pay yourself more than any boss would ever pay you.

5. You can give yourself regular raises as your business grows.

It is only fair to tell you that there are failures, too. There

are people who will not work for themselves. When working for a

boss, they rise early, are well-groomed, and get to the office on

time. However, when they are their own boss, they are still in a

bathrobe, drinking one more cup of coffee at 11:00 A.M.

 

If you can be your own boss and discipline yourself to do what

has to be done when it has to be done, direct selling offers a

most unusual earning opportunity.

THE TEN STEPS

Here are ten steps that will assure your success:

1. BE A GOAL SETTER. What do you want to accomplish? Do you want

to save for college education for your children? A new car? A

new home? You can have whatever you want, but you must want it

enough to do the things that have to be done to get it. Whatever

your goal, write it down and set a target date for reaching it.

Divide the time period into blocks of achievement that are

reachable. Work consistently toward accomplishing each day, each

week, each month what you set out to do. Goal-setting is a must

in every area of life. Little is ever accomplished without

definite goals.

2. BE A LIST MAKER. Each evening list all the things you want to

get done the following day. That gives you an organized approach

to each day. As each task is finished, mark it off your list. It

is amazing how much gets done when one works with a

“things-to-do” list. Also, have a notebook listing appointments,

potential clients, repeat clients, and referrals, and keep it

with you at all times. You will be adding to it constantly.

3. BE ENTHUSIASTIC. Enthusiasm is the high-octane “fuel” that

salespeople run on. Enthusiasm generates its own energy. Energy

and good health are synonymous with busy, happy people, people

who are achieving.

4. RECOGNIZE THAT THE MAGIC WORD IN SALES IS “ASK.” In direct

sales we don’t have to wait for business to come to us. We create

our own business by asking for it. Ask for appointments, then you

can do business. Ask for business, then you will close sales. Ask

for referrals, then you always have a full list of potential

clients. Be quietly, yet firmly aggressive.

5. EXPECT NO’S. Realize that no’s are not personal. In sales, as

perhaps nowhere else, the law of averages works. Every no gets

you closer to a yes. Keep track of your ratio. It will help

improve your techniques. Are you getting ten no’s to one yes? Is

your ratio five to one? Remember, the yes’s are your income. Also

remember that “no” does not necessarily mean “no.” Often a “no”

is simply a stall for more time to think. It may be a request for

more information about your product or your service. What your

client is actually buying is assurance. Assure here by your

helpful attitude and your complete honesty, that you want what is

best for her. She will most likely respect you and do business

with you.

6. SCHEDULE TIME WISELY. A schedule is the roadmap by which

salespeople travel. It takes the frustration out of the day. It

assures that the necessary things get done and get done on time.

Plan your work then work your plan.

7. BE POSITIVE IN YOUR ATTITUDE. Success in sales, as in all

areas of life is 90 percent attitude and 10 percent aptitude. All

of us must work at developing habits of constructive thinking. I

am proud to be a salesperson. Sales make the wheels of our

economy turn. Bernard Baruch, advisor to several presidents, is

quoted as saying, “If every salesperson sat down and took no

orders for twenty-four hours, it would bankrupt our country!”

Every company that manufactures any kind of product depends upon

salespeople to move that product. Without salespeople business

would be paralyzed.

Remember, sales is one of the highest paid of all professions.

Statistics show that good salespeople enjoy incomes far above the

average.

8. HAVE AN OFFICE AREA. Most direct salespeople work from their

own homes, but it is essential to have a place where you can work

in a organized and efficient manner. An office plus a strict

working schedule gives you dignity. Both are absolutely essential

for efficient operation and accurate record keeping, so important

to the success of any business.

9. BE INVOLVED. Most sales organization offer contests to

stimulate production. Include winning contests as part of your

business goals. Contests make your business fun as well as adding

considerable dollar value to your income.

10. LEARN TO HANDLE MONEY INTELLIGENTLY. A regular nine-to-five

job usually means a paycheck at the end of the second week.

Direct sales “reps” handle money constantly. Direct sales is

instant income and constant income. Therefore. it is absolutely

necessary to become an efficient money manager.

Deposit every penny collected from  clients into a checking account set up especially for its

business. Since bank statements show an exact record of all

monies collected, and business expenses can be verified by

canceled checks, record keeping becomes simple and accurate.

Everything except a few “petty cash” transactions can be directly

taken from bank statements.

 

Money saved regularly and put at interest, soon develops a second

income in addition to earned income. A long-term goal, which is

realistic in direct sales, is to be able to live in retirement

off the interest earned on savings.

Would financial security mean a lot to you? If so, ask yourself

these questions:

* Am I honest?

* Do I really like people?

* Am I willing to learn?

* Am I willing to work?

* Am I capable of being my own boss?

If your answers are yes, to find a good product

for the direct sales market, one that you like, one that fills

the need of a lot of people, and go to work for yourself! .You

can turn dreams into reality.

Get What You Want in 7 Powerful Steps

In my most recent columns we’ve covered issues about improving your business and marketing, but today let’s start right at the beginning.

You’re really getting tired of the 9 to 5 “rat race” and are thinking about chucking it for your own business.   All your friends keep telling you that you could do for yourself just what you’re doing now for your boss. Why shouldn’t you profit from your ideas instead of him/her?

You keep thinking about it because you know that you’ll never be monetarily where you want to be with a weekly paycheck, but what business would you start?

Before you pack in that weekly paycheck, this is the time to evaluate yourself and your future and it takes some real, down to heart honesty.  You want to change your life for the better, so let’s start.

Did you know that you have the potential to do and be anything you want?  People have different perceptions of the ideal life, and it ranges from obtaining financial freedom to as simple as owning a new pair of sneakers. Unfortunately, many fail to reach their aspirations because they can’t get a solid, clear picture in their mind of what they want.

Take the next few days and embark on a fact-finding journey that will be a life-changing experience.  Get a pad and pencil and start with this first step:

STEP 1 - KNOW EXACTLY WHAT YOU WANT – Be specific in your passions, then focus all your efforts on that particular desire.

Those who always change their minds and those who give up easily when the going gets tough will never get anywhere.  If you’re a bit confused and aren’t sure what you really want in life answer these questions:

1. What makes your heart beat with excitement?
2. What makes you happy?
3. What are you constantly thinking of day and night?
4. What do you want to do with the rest of your life?
5. What do you enjoy doing?
6. What are your obsessions?
7. What things make you jump for joy?

Write down all your possible answers to the above questions.  Write down everything, no matter how silly or unimportant it seems. Put all your desires on paper that answers any of the above questions.

When that’s done, go back and circle five to seven items that interest you the most.  Then evaluate and choose with your heart, not your mind, the one and only thing worthy to spend all your time and resources on and that brings out the best in you.

Now you may wind up with something like, “I want to play quarterback for the RAMS.”  If you’re over 20 I’d say that isn’t too viable a choice, but you could do something related to football or sports.  How about starting a sports publication?  Or perhaps a sporting goods retail business, sports memorabilia business, or even a gym could be the answer.  You can always read books and surf the net to help you in your search.

The most important thing to remember, no matter how “pie in the sky” it seems, is to USE YOUR HEART.  Others may disagree with you, but you should be firm with what you really want.  Others may offer comments or advice, but the final decision is always yours to make.  You should concentrate on what you want, not what others want.

Remember you only get one shot at living your life.   There are no replays and you don’t get to do it over.  You may not do it right, but at least you’re doing it.  Too many lives have been lived in quiet desperation waiting until – until they had saved a nest egg, until the children are out of school, until I retire, and they depart this life before “until” ever arrives.

Don’t go to sleep tonight without making a decision on WHAT YOU REALLY WANT IN LIFE MORE THAN ANYTHING ELSE.

Then spend a few days evaluating how to make it possible and make a living at it.  Begin living every day as if it were the last day you had – never leaving anything to be done next week, next month, or next year. 

There will always be bills, things will always break down eventually and need replacing, there may be storms and earthquakes and repairs – but there will only be one life for you to live. It can’t be put on “hold”!

The final outcome of your efforts may be in the future, but you’re living each day by taking steps toward that outcome. 

SECRETS OF MILLION DOLLAR SALES LETTERS –

FOR MAIL CAMPAIGN & INTERNET

             Regardless of what you’re trying to sell, you really can’t sell it without “talking” with your prospective buyer.  An in attempting to sell anything on the Internet, the sales letter you send out is when and how you talk to your prospect.

 

 

            All winning sales letters “talk” to the prospect by creating an image in the mind of the reader.  They set “the scene” by appealing to a desire or need; and then they flow smoothly into the “visionary” part of the sales pitch by describing in detail how “wonderful” life will be and, how “good” the prospect is going to feel after he’s purchased your product.  This is the “body or guts” of a sales letter.

 

 

 

            Overall, a winning sales letter follows a time-tested and proven formula:  1)  Get his attention  2)  Get him interested in what you can do for him  3)  Make him desire the benefits of your product so badly his mouth begins to water  4)  Demand action from him - tell him to click the right button or send for whatever it is you’re selling without delay - any procrastination on his part might cause him to lose out.  This is called the “AIDA” formula (Attention, Interest, Desire and

 

Action) -  it works.

 

 

 

            On your website, your sales page should be the length of what it would be

 

if were doing a mailing, or longer if you’re using bullets to emphasize benefits to build the desire.  Of course on the Internet you don’t have to worry about letterhead stationery or the cost of postage, which is a considerable savings.  If, however, you want to also do a mailing campaign then the following would apply.  The sales letters in mailings that pull in the most sales are almost always two pages with 1 1/2 spaces between lines.  For really big ticket items, they’ll run at least four pages. - on an 11 by 17 sheet of paper folded in half.  If your sales letter is only two pages in length, there’s nothing wrong with running it on the front and back of one sheet of 8 1/2 by 11 paper.  However, your sales letter should always be on letterhead paper - your letterhead printed, and including your logo and business motto if you have one.

 

 

 

            Regardless of the length of your sales letter, it should do one thing, and that’s sell, and sell hard!  If you intend to close the sale, you’ve got to do it with your sales letter.  You should never be “wishy-washy” with your sales letter. You do the actual selling and the closing of that sale with your sales letter - any brochure or circular you send along with in your mailing will just reinforce what you say in the sales letter.

 

 

 

            There’s been a great deal of discussion in the past few years regarding just how long a sales letter should be.  A lot of people are asking:  Will people really take the time to read a long sales letter?  The answer is a simple and time-tested yes indeed!  Surveys and tests over the years emphatically prove that “longer sales letters” pull even better than the shorter ones, so don’t worry about the length of your sales letter - just make sure that it sells your product for you!

 

 

 

            The “inside secret” is to make your sales letter so interesting, and “visionary” with the benefits you’re offering to the reader, that he can’t resist reading it all the way through.  You break up the “work” of reading by using short, punchy sentences, underlining important points you’re trying to make, with the use of subheadlines, indentations and even the use of a second color, and leaving lots of white space around it.  On your website, the sales letter should run down the middle of the page so the viewer doesn’t have to keep adjusting the screen to see the whole sentence. This is very distracting and more apt to send that client to another website than losing patience reading a long letter.

 

 

 

            Relative to the brochures and circulars you may want to include in your mailing with your sales letter - providing the materials you’re enclosing are of the best quality, they will generally reinforce the sale for you.  But, if they are of poor quality, look cheap and don’t compliment your sales letter, then you shouldn’t be using them.  Another thing, it will definitely classify you as an independent home worker if you hand-stamp your name/address on these brochures or advertising circulars instead of having them printed.

 

 

 

            Whenever possible, and so long as you have really good brochures to send out, have your printer run them through his press and print your name/address - even your telephone number and company logo - on them before you send them out.  The thing is, you want your prospect to think of you as his supplier - the company - and not as just another independent entrepreneur.  Sure, you can get by with less expense but you’ll end up with fewer orders and in the end, less profits.

 

 

 

            Another thing that’s been bandied about and discussed from every direction for years is whether to use a post office box number or your street address.  Personally, I don’t like Post Office Boxes in a business address - because it transmits an aura of instability or temporary location.  If your business is run from home, get a mail box from a post box vendor that has a street address.  Then your address looks like, 1234 Willow Lane, #567, Your Town, and the box number could appear to the reader as a Suite number.  However, if you live in a remote area where your address is 7890 Main St., RFD 42, Box 123, Your Town, then you have no choice but to include both your post office box number, AND, your street address on your sales letter.  When doing it strictly for your website, put your street address, telephone number, and email address at the bottom of the page.  More than likely, the customer will contact you by email, but it conveys dependability if that Internet buyer sees that you’re willing to give your address. This kind of open display of your honesty will give you credibility and dispel the thought of you being just another “fly-by-night” mail order company in the mind of your prospect.

 

 

 

            Above all else, you’ve got to include some sort of ordering page or coupon if you’re mailing.  The coupon has to be as simple and as easy for the prospect to fill out and return to you as you can possible make it. The order page on your website should already be filled out, with perhaps just the shipping left to choice.  If your product is an eBook or software to be instantly downloaded, then you don’t have any options to be chosen.   A great many sales are lost because this order coupon is just too complicated for the would-be buyer to follow.  Don’t get fancy!  Keep it simple, and you’ll find your prospects responding with glee.

 

 

 

            Should you or shouldn’t you include in your mailing a self-addressed reply envelope?  There are a lot of variables, as well as, pros and cons to this question. Overall, when you send out a “winning” sales letter to a good mailing list, a return reply envelope will increase your response tremendously.

 

 

 

            Tests of  late seem to indicate that it isn’t that big a deal or difference in responses relative to whether you do or don’t pre-stamp the return reply envelope.  Again, the decision here will rest primarily on the product you’re selling and the mailing list you’re using.  Our recommendation is that you experiment - try it both ways - with subsequent mailings and decide for yourself from there.

 

 

AKON INVESTIGATED FOR TOSSING KID OFFSTAGE: But was the whole thing part of his act? *Akon is being investigated by police in Fishkill, New York after footage leaked to the Internet showing him hurling a concertgoer into the crowd during a concert.
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