sales conversations Archives - Page 3 of 10

Breaking the Logjam of Asking People to Work with You

When it comes to having a sales conversation, you may find yourself melting into a puddle. You might hear yourself say things like, “What’s the big deal about asking people to do business with me? I know it’s just a conversation between two people, and that people don’t bite, so why can’t I seem to do it? I wish I could just get over myself.”

There are two fallacies that contribute to these inner critic conversations; understanding these lies can be a lifesaver because only then can you get over yourself and become the sales pro you’re meant to be.

Hate to Sell? You Can Fix This

by C.J. Hayden | Sales Conversations

Do you love your business but hate the selling part? Whether it’s calling prospective clients on the phone or writing persuasive emails and web copy, most self-employed professionals say that selling is the element of their business they dislike the most.

If it was possible to sell without having that feeling of discomfort in your gut, or those sweaty palms and increased heart rate, would you be willing to make a change?

Advanced Maneuvers: Getting Things Done Beyond the Basics

by Kristine Carey | Getting Things Done

As a service-based professional, you’re likely familiar with marketing basics, yet are you taking advantage of advanced maneuvers beyond those? If you’re not sure what the difference is between the basics and the advanced, keep reading to learn more about the distinction, and why you may want to consider moving beyond the familiar.

Marketing Basics are those things that apply to the foundation of your business, things that help ensure you know who to talk to, and what to offer, and how to keep your business organized. Some of these basics include:

Three Elements You Need for a Successful Marketing Foundation

by Kristine Carey | Success Ingredients & Tools

To lay a good foundation for your marketing and your business, you need essential tools and skills. In the Get Clients Now! program, we call these elements Success Ingredients. These are fundamentals that will make your marketing easier, and ensure your business is around for the long run.

Below are three different types of Success Ingredients. Having these elements in place will make your marketing activities more effective, leading to more clients and more overall business success.

40 Ways to Build Your Professional Credibility

by C.J. Hayden | Success Ingredients & Tools

It’s harder than ever for a self-employed professional to land clients unless you appear credible. Once upon a time, you could get clients based on not much more than a business card, decent clothes, and your ability to present yourself well in a conversation.

Now what happens is that prospective clients check you out online before they decide to do business with you. Even when prospects are referred to you by someone they trust, they will typically visit your website, search online for your name, or look for you on social media. If what they learn doesn’t shout “credibility” to them, you’ll have a tough time getting their business.

Put More Love in Your Marketing

by C.J. Hayden | Marketing Mindset

Do you want your clients and prospects to love you? I think most of us self-employed professionals would. When your prospects love you, closing sales is easy. When your clients love you, they keep doing business with you, and refer others to do the same.

Yet the language often used for marketing and sales reveals perspectives that don’t have much to do with love. The path to closing sales is to “overcome objections” or “don’t take no for an answer.” You’re supposed to write “killer copy” to use for a “marketing blitz” or “promotional blasts” so you can “blow away” your “targets.” You should “hone your weapons” so you can “battle for market share,” “fight for sales,” and “smash the competition.” When you succeed, you are “killing it” or “crushing it.”

Optimism: The Secret to Successful Selling

by C.J. Hayden | Marketing Mindset

Why is it that some people seem to be naturals at selling, while others struggle to close every sale or even fail completely in a role that requires them to sell? In 1982, psychologist Martin Seligman, PhD, set out to answer that question for the Metropolitan Life Insurance Company. Seligman had been studying optimism and pessimism in the laboratory for almost twenty years when Met Life heard about his research. Could Seligman help them learn how to hire more effective salespeople, they asked?

As it turned out, he could. In a series of studies for Met Life that analyzed the relationship between successful selling and the personality of the salesperson, Seligman confirmed in the field what his laboratory research had predicted — optimists make more sales than pessimists.

Are You Marketing More or Less Than You Think?

by Kristine Carey | Marketing Plans & Strategies

Unless you’re literally hiding under a rock, if you’re in business and have any clients at all, you’re doing something that qualifies as marketing. People tend to fall into two camps: those who are doing more marketing than they realize, and those who are doing less than they think.

Which camp do you fall into?

As an aside, for our purposes we’re defining marketing as getting the word out about your business, it’s services and benefits, to potential customers so that you can have a sales conversation with them and hopefully close the sale. Marketing creates opportunities to have sales conversations.

Two Ways to Make Direct Contact Easier

by Kristine Carey | Sales Conversations

When thinking about the best way to get new business, it’s often good to remember that contacting a prospect directly can be the most effective tactic. However, this can sometimes seem too scary: the thought of picking up the phone, or meeting someone for coffee, or even sending an email can send a wave of fear through your business heart.
Here are some common fears you might experience when considering reaching out to someone directly:

They’ll think I’m bothering them.
I don’t know what to say.
I’m not a good salesperson.
I’m an introvert.
I’m not good with words.
They won’t remember me.
I’m not sure how to make an offer.

Marketing or Selling: Which Is More Important?

by C.J. Hayden | Marketing Plans & Strategies

A question I often get from clients and students goes something like this: “I’ve been collecting marketing ideas… and I have a drawer full! I also have a stack of promising leads I’ve accumulated. And I know it’s important to stay visible, so I keep marketing, but then I just end up with more names in the stack. How do I prioritize all this?”

If you’ve ever wondered something similar, you may have lost sight of a very important truth — the way to win the business game is not to collect the most leads; it’s to make the most sales.

« Older Entries

Next Entries »

Pin It on Pinterest