How do I get more sales on my own to grow my business?

If you’ve ever started a business or are in that phase right now, I’m SURE you’ve come across this issue: getting enough sales consistently to support growing the business to the next level.

All the info in the internet is overwhelming, and honestly a lot of it is now outdated because the recent pandemic has, in fact, changed everything as we know it and it keeps changing every week.

From our daily routines, to the way we do business and interact with our family members – Coronavirus has really taken control of our lives and since we were not prepared for something like this, many business owners were left in the dust without knowing how to really adapt to save their business.

In this post, I’ll share with you 5 actions to take to get you a sale by the end of the week and 1 simple hack to get you closing the sale without having to try too hard.

 

The Winners Don’t Stall

You know, many businesses DID close in the past year. over 40% of small businesses had to shut their doors permanently as the pandemic unfolded… That number went over 100,000 businesses in California alone.

To me, it’s very sad that small business was hit so hard and that the owners were not able to save what they built. A lot of it, is being caught off guard and commercial rent being so high. But I did see a great number of it was due to the small business not being able to creatively adapt to the changing economy and consumer needs for convenience.

Not everyone failed, not every business suffered.

Convenience Always Wins

Walmart and Amazon are the kings of convenience. It’s not a coincidence that they are also the giants in the marketplace. It’s hard to compete with big name brands because they have brand recognition, huge marketing budgets and footprint in every city in the nation it seems.

I don’t recommend you take on these monsters, but as a small business you CAN learn to use their secrets to your advantage by rethinking the customer experience to make it more convenient for the consumer, simplify the sales process, add new ways to close a sale with you or products/services at different price points.

Loyalty Can Overcome Anything

My husbands’ business is in Landscaping. When we first started we were nervous because what you hear in society is that gardeners and housekeepers are professions that would be the first to go if anything bad were to ever happen. They are considered a convenience, luxury, not exactly essential.

Well, we were especially nervous when the pandemic finally hit home and everything changed in what seemed like days. We braced for a huge loss of customers, income, etc. WELL we were happy to find that it didn’t go that way.

Over the years we built up a clientele that felt so connected to my husband’s company and the service they provide for them, that they didn’t let him go like we thought. Many even gave him surprise raises in their monthly service payment.

That’s what happens when you build a brand around actually caring about the person you serve, there is a power in being authentically there for them. When it comes down to it – they will be there for you too. So using your network to build a following organically is ideal to come before spending any money on ads.

 

So how do you get more sales to take your biz to the next level?

Here are 5 actions that will get your biz more sales:

1. Understand the problem and your consumer 110%

2. Identify your exact ideal customer, where they are online and what they NEED

3. Take great quality photos 

4. Create and share valuable content

5. Craft a winning customer experience
   

   Everyone you come across is on a journey. Take initiative and design the path that takes your audience from finding you, then working with you to recommending you. When you are proactive instead of reactive, you show up where your customers are looking at the perfect time. Your consistency in their journey will have them liking you, trusting your business and decision to work with you over others.

The Ideal Customer Experience

There are many parts that make up the sum of the total experience one has with your business.

Every sales process has a timeline.

Depending on the industry and if you are product or service-based, an audience expects 5-21 points of contact with your brand before deciding on the sale. A point of contact can be something as simple as seeing your logo on your store front, seeing your ad on Facebook, your latest post on Instagram or coming across your before and after pictures on Pinterest. So the business owners that expect a sale from the very first time you run 1 ad are actually setting themselves up for disappointment because if it’s the absolute first time the person is finding out about you and your product/service then they most likely will not buy right away.

That is why it’s so hard to go from 0 – 1 but not as hard to go from 1-100. You are building rapport from scratch, and just like we personally do when we meet someone new, your audience doesn’t like you, trust you or want to work with you RIGHT AWAY. Doesn’t mean ever, just means you have to take a bit more interest in them and in helping solve their problem.

People don’t get inspired to take action if they are comfortable where they are. The one thing take make them move is when they are finally uncomfortable. All growth becomes uncomfortable, and one will not consider help until their problem becomes bigger than they can solve themselves.

This is where you come in.

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One simple hack that changes the perspective of the sales conversation to your benefit, is to consider trying this:

Speaking from a place of passion for what you do & simplifying the process to buy as much as possible.

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One tip that works specifically for the sales conversation in the Service industry is:

Talk about the problem 90% of the time, how much you know about it 5% of it

People like to work with those who truly CARE and understand their problem. The part you talk about how you can solve it has to be direct, confident (throw in a relevant Case Study or Client win) and ending with ONE simple next step.

When this trick first occurred to me, and my husband implemented it with his prospects during the sales conversation – it doubled his closing rate THAT SAME WEEK. It was awesome, because the leads were almost closing the sale themselves since they felt truly understood and were sure he was the right person for the job.

What if I feel that I can’t do everything myself anymore?

If this all seems like too much for you to make time for, I can help you implement it by taking some of the more complicated tasks off your plate or simply taking over and doing it for you.