Whenever you ask for a sale, run an ad, or have a salesperson make a proposition to a customer or prospect, always tell the customer or prospect the reason why.

If you have a product or service that you can offer at a lower price than your competitor, tell the customer/prospect the reason why.  It could be because you have lower overhead or you purchase in volume.

If your price is high, tell your customer or prospect why.  You could have a far superior product than the competition. Your product could be made with better materials, or your product could last or perform ten times longer than your competitors.

It could also be three times as durable or with three times the personal stitching of similar products.

If the price of your package gives an especially appealing value, tell them why you are making the offer to them.  It could be because they are ordering from you for the first time and you want to reward them for becoming your customer, or because it’s an exclusive offer to first-time customers.

Whenever any business owner needs quick profit, I tell them to say something like: “I’m overstocked with goods and I need to get my capital out of slower moving inventory, so I’m able and willing to sell you this product this one time only at an actual loss—far less, in fact, than what any other company could or would offer this product or service for.”

Always tell the “Reason Why”.  Why should they patronize you instead of your competitors?  Tell me what you are doing, will do, or will avoid doing that makes favoring your business better for me than dealing with your competition.

Tell the customer/prospect all the reasons why.  I’ve just listed a few, but if you keep your mind on it, you can come up with many, many more.

The more factual, believable, credible and plausible the reasons you give your customers/prospects for dealing with your business, the more compelled they will be to favor you with their business.

Let me know what you think.

Technorati Tags: acquire customers, grow revenues, grow sales

You are probably wondering, “What is Ken talking about now.” 

This one thing that I’m going to go over now will get your mail opened by more people, than if you just sent an envelope.

A “Grabber” is something attached to a sales letter and its real purpose is to “get the person’s attention.”

It could be a dollar bill, a “million dollar bill”, and any type of foreign currency, a penny, a bag of sand, a small packet of aspirin, or a sports trading card.  I could go on and on listing more items that you can use as a grabber but I think you get the idea. 

I am a huge believer in using these things and I am constantly searching for new sources of “inexpensive” grabbers. 

In my consulting I try to find a unique “grabber” that would fit the situation and mailer that is designed to create a customer. 

I’ve used a pair of shoes where I started the letter off like this:

“I’ve sent you a pair of shoes for two reasons:

1.  I need a way to get my foot in the door, and,

2. Because what I have to tell you is of great importance that I needed a way to get your attention.”

I used that approach whenever I wanted to get an appointment with a decision maker or a high value client.  When I called, they knew who I was and on average, 83% of the time gave me the time to talk to them.  

Here’s another example, where I’ve used a packet of aspirin:

“I’ve sent you the packet of Aspirin because of two reasons.

1.  I wanted to get your attention and,

2. What I have to tell you will take your greatest headache away.”

The bulkier the package, the higher the chance of you getting it opened.

Have you used grabbers?  How did they work for you?

If you haven’t, how can you use them to get your prospect to open mail from your particular business?

Technorati Tags: acquire customers, grabbers, grow revenues, grow sales

It always surprises me that most companies never put themselves in their customers’ or prospects’ position.   I say this because I see so many companies that make doing business with them so hard.

For example, if someone calls your company and a telephone operator is their first contact, can that operator make a compelling response to the prospect or customer’s request?

When people come into your place of business, how well versed are your sales clerks?  How much time have you spent in preparing dialogues, questions, and advice for your people to use in interacting with your customers?

How easy is it to find things in your place of business?

How much do you take your customers and prospects for granted? 

By merely stepping outside your office and pretending like you are a prospect or customer, you should see a lot of the flaws in your operation.  Like the TV program, “Undercover Boss.”

Remember that once they are taken care of and remedied, you can dramatically improve your current and repeat business potential.

You should make sure that your place of business is inviting, informative, non-threatening, easy, educational and fun to do business with.  When this happens you will leave your competition in the dust.

Here’s a list of to do’s:

1. Educate your customers. You cannot educate too much.

2. Inform them.  Let them know what you are up to.

3. Make calling or coming in to your business desirable.

4. Make ordering easy.

5. Over deliver in your service.

I’ve always said, “Inspect what you expect.”   I always called my own offices to make sure the phones were answered the way I wanted them to be answered.  Have you done the same?

Have you called your own restaurant to make reservations and listened to the way your staff answered the phone and responded to you?  Try it sometimes. 

When you make the corrections you will see a remarkable difference in the growth of your business.

Let me know what you think.

Technorati Tags: customer experience, customer loyalty, Customer Retention, customer satisfaction, customer service, loyal customers, retaining customers, Undercover Boss

It never fails to astound me that when I’m looking through a magazine or newspaper and reading the ads, that not only do they all look alike and are boring, but almost none of them ask for a response.

Go grab a magazine right now and look through the display ads.  You’ll see ads saying things like: “Open an account”; “Apply now”; “Get started”.  But there is no direct-response mechanism.

Most of the ads are just institutional ones that just tout the company and end with the telephone number, the website address, or the name of the company.  They are not direct-response ads that encourage the reader to contact the company to get something the reader wants and by which the company can create a lead or customer.

The ads merely talk about how great the company is. The ad designer then hopes that the ad copy and images are so great that people hop on the phone, or whatever, and contact the company.

If your prospect sets your ad or sales letter aside to “deal with it later”, you have probably lost them as a customer.  What I suggest is that you should do everything you can think of to induce and create an immediate response from them.

First, make sure that you offer a free report, a free sample, a free service or whatever with each ad you create.

Then along with that, include deadlines of some sort to make the reader think twice about not acting NOW.  Here are some examples:

1. Penalty pricing.  Let them know that the prices will go up on a certain date.

2. Have your offer expire by a certain date.

3. Have a “Mystery Bonus” if they respond within the next 24 hours.

4. Let them know there is a limited supply and that you may run out.  Even if you do not have a limited supply, you can create an illusion that there is.  You can say, “We will return your check uncashed if we run out of the item.”  This suggests that there is a limited supply without you even saying there is.

I’m sure you get the idea.  The first thing I’d like you to do is to get out your ads and promotions. Review them with the thought of what you can add that will motivate the prospect to immediately respond. 

Let me know what you come up with. 

Technorati Tags: acquiring leads, attracting leads, attracting prospects, customer acquisition, lead generation, prospect conversion

In my opinion, a newsletter is the most useful tool in maintaining relationships with customers and keeping them interested in you, your business, your products and your services. 

Since “publications” get better readership than “sales materials” and articles get more readership than ads, it just makes sense to put your messages into the format of a publication, and insert your “sales message” into the context of the article.

If you already have a newsletter, then my advice is to make it into an informative vehicle for getting your message out to your customers and prospects.   Your message should be weaved into a story that your readers can relate to; don’t make it “salesy”.

 Remember to keep it about your customer—make it primarily educational.  If you are going to promote a product, make sure the promotion is within the context of the “good” of the readers.  If you make it primarily about you, you’ll lose.

If you don’t already have a newsletter, start one.  If you are not ready to start one, send helpful articles or reports like I talked about in my blog post, “The 1000 List And 90% conversion”.  Here is the link for those of you who haven’t read it: http://www.kenvarga.com/news/the-1000-list/     

If you market B2B, another alternative would be to use my newsletter articles while you plan out and develop your own. 

 You can use my newsletter as a jumping off point for developing your relationship with prospects.  For instance, you can forward one of my weekly marketing tips to them with a note that says something like:

“We not only help our customers with (your products or service), but we also help them to grow their business and create more customers. “

“When I came across this article, I forwarded it to our customers/clients.  But then I thought of you and how it would help you grow your business, so even though you aren’t currently one of our customers, I know this article will help you create more customers and perhaps you would think of us when you need (your product or service.) After applying the ideas in this newsletter, please let me know how it has helped you with your business and in generating more customers.”

This now opens the door to start developing a relationship with your prospect, which could lead to them becoming your customer. 

When you forward the articles to customers, just send them a note letting them know that you found the article helpful and you thought they might also.

Again, this type of communication will help you build relationship.

So take a look at your newsletter and add items that will help your customer/prospect with their business, health, family, and many other things that are happening in their lives.  And if you don’t yet have your own newsletter, find a way to be in front of your customers and prospects regularly using at least one of the suggestions I just gave you.

Let’s hear what you think in the comment section below about using the power of newsletters.

Technorati Tags: Customer Conversion, customer relationship, Customer Retention, newsletter, newsletter marketing, newsletters, prospect conversion

Close to 90% of the businesses I consult with never precisely determine the needs, desires, or the requirements of the people to whom they are trying to sell.

Few companies seek to meet their customers’ needs. How can you expect to fill someone’s needs and desires, if you never take the time to understand them? 

The companies that understand their customers’ needs, desires, and attempt to satisfy them always end up with all of the business.  Have you noticed this?

You can end up with all the business too—only if you will take the time to learn what your customers’ needs and desires are.

Let’s go into this in greater detail.

To persuade someone to favor you with their business, you normally have to offer to satisfy some need or desire.  Here are just some possible needs people would like fulfilled: 

• Convenience

• Lasts longer

• Looks better

• Better quality

• Saves time

• Performs better

• Saves you money

• Makes life less difficult

• Etc .

I can go on and on, but you get the idea. 

Ask yourself this question: “What do your customers want or need most in the product or service you offer?”

Do they want the top of the line product or service? Or, do they want highly personalized service, attention, advice and/or instruction?

Do they want the convenience of knowing they can go down the block and get if from you, or the knowledge that your company stocks or offers more items, sizes, or products than any other company?

Perhaps they want to acquire the kind of goods or services you sell at the lowest price. Or maybe price isn’t what they are after.  They might want the best guarantee or service to support the sale.

I don’t know what needs or desires your potential customer seeks more than anything else, but that customer does want fulfillment of some definitive need or a combination of needs.

Start by realizing that no one can be all things to all people.  You will dilute your image when you try to do that.

To begin with, you must determine which needs you can fill, consistent with who you are, and what your business is.

Then confirm by asking your clients, prospects, and customers.  Have your salespeople do the same. 

Let your customers tell you which specific needs they most want fulfilled and then determine which of these needs you can actually fulfill.

Remember this though.  Don’t do this in silence or behind the scenes.  Make sure your customers and prospects learn that your business listened and that you finally did something to satisfy the fulfilled needs of your customers.  You must educate and point out that your company is fulfilling those needs for your customers.

Once you determine precisely what your customers’ needs and desires are, you must commit to fulfilling them.

If you determine that service is the critical element, offer the best service, the fastest service, the most skilled service people, the most knowledgeable staff, etc.

If you promise the lowest price, keep that promise. Integrity requires that you keep your promises.  If you don’t genuinely fulfill the needs and desires you say you will, your customers will soon abandon you.

Above all, just ask your customers what their needs and desires are.  Their answers could result in a million dollars worth of business for you.

Technorati Tags: what client needs, what client wants, what clients need, what clients want, what customer needs, what customer wants, what customers need, what customers want

I was recently reminded of Seth Godin’s book with the same title when I was looking at new cars the other day (the original title was: “All Marketers Are Liars”).  The salesman was very polite and talkative, which isn’t bad.  He started telling all kinds of stories, and when I asked him for further information and where I can find it, based on his story, he couldn’t give me the information.  

Seth says in his book, “When you find a story that works, live that story, make sure it is a true story, authentic, and subject to scrutiny”. 

This particular salesman had stories, but they were not authentic.  They were designed to get a sale only.  They weren’t the result of a story the company was committed to wholeheartedly and as a reason for being.

If a story can’t stand up to scrutiny, as in my experience, you lose a customer and a sale. Eventually it catches up to you. 
Seth gives an example in his book about a glass maker.

According to Georg Riedel’s message on the glass maker web site, “The delivery of a wine’s message, its bouquet and taste, depends on the form of the glass…”

Robert Parker, Jr, the king of wine reviewers, said, “The finest glasses for both technical and hedonistic purposes are those made by Riedel.  The effect of these glasses on fine wine is profound.  I cannot emphasize enough what a difference they make.”

Perhaps thousands of others are now believers.  “Millions of wine drinkers around the world have been persuaded that a $200 bottle of wine (or a cheap bottle of Two-Buck Chuck) tastes better when served in the proper Rieidel glass.”

But when the proper scientific tests were done that eliminated “any chance that the subject would know the shape of the glass, there is absolutely zero detectible difference between glasses.  A $1 glass and a $20 glass deliver exactly the same impact on the wine: none.”

The idea that the form of a glass makes a difference is the story.  They sell millions of dollars’ worth of glasses every year.  The resulting perception is that the glasses help you to enjoy your wine more than you did before drinking it in a Reidel Glass.

“Marketing apparently makes wine taste better.”  It seems that “an expensive glass and the story that goes with it, has more of an impact on the taste of wine than the oak casks it’s brewed in.  Georg Riedel makes your wine taste better by telling you a story.”

Very interesting lesson!

What story can you tell about your product or service?

But before you answer and rush off to create a story, you may want to get a copy of Seth’s book and read it.  There is much more to the story of creating a story…the most important being that it must be authentic.  But when you get this right, it is one of the most powerful things you can do for your business.

Technorati Tags: all marketers are liars, all marketers tell stories, business story, Georg Riedel, robert parker jr, Seth Godin

Convincing “Almost Customers” to do business with you.

All of us have a hoard of prospects that were initially attracted to us for some reason or another.  It could have been your ad that attracted them, a direct mail piece, or any other method you might have used to attract that prospect.

Once you have attracted a prospect to look at you, they are very close to buying from you.  I call these “Almost Customers,” because they have yet to do business with you.

Here are some ideas for converting them into buying customers.

1. In my experience there are 6 questions you must ask yourself and get answers for. Potential customers will not buy from you until all of the 6 questions are answered. Your potential customer may not think of all of these questions, but they will become your customers if you will answer these questions for them

a. Precisely what are you offering?

b. How should they get it from you?

c. Why do they need or want it?

d. How fast can they get it?

e. What if they don’t like it after they get it?

f. What do they need to do to get it?

Also, if you have a website, make sure that you answer these 6 questions and state them prominently.

Again, it’s not about features but about benefits.  Your customer is only thinking, “What’s in it for me.”  So answer these 6 questions around providing benefits.

2. Set up a system to consistently follow-up with your prospect.  In my experience, most prospects don’t buy the first time they see or hear about you.  If you have a system to follow-up, they will eventually buy from you, especially if you’ve answered the prior 6 questions.

Your follow-up can be as extensive as sending them a weekly newsletter with useful information, as I do, or as simple as contacting them occasionally with a new offer.

3. Make a memorable Impression the first time they are in contact with you.  Think of powerful reasons for prospects and customers to think of you, especially when they encounter a competitor.

Again, in my experience, most prospects who do not buy from you the first time, will come back to buy later.

4.  Send a “Thank-You” message after the sale.  It means a lot to them.  Just think about all of the Thank-You messages you received whenever you purchased something.  Perhaps like most of us, you never received a “Thank-You” message after making a purchase.  Can you just imagine how your customer will feel when you are the only one to send them a “Thank-You” message? You will indelibly leave an imprint in their mind that you are one of the few business owners that appreciate their patronage.

If you have other ideas that we can share with our readers, let me know.

Technorati Tags: Client conversion, Customer Conversion, turning prospects into clients, turning prospects into customers