Chapter title here
151
Quick Ideas
to Increase Sales
By Linda Sparks
Franklin Lakes, NJ
1
151 Quick Ideas to ... fill in blank
Copyright © 2006 by Linda Sparks All rights reserved under the Pan-American and International Copyright Conventions. This book may not be reproduced, in whole or in part, in any form or by any means electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system now known or hereafter invented, without written permission from the publisher, The Career Press. 151 Quick Ideas to Increase Sales EDITED BY JODI BRANDON TYPESET BY ASTRID DERIDDER Cover design by The Visual Group Printed in the U.S.A. by Book-mart Press To order this title, please call toll-free 1-800-CAREER-1 (NJ and Canada: 201-848-0310) to order using VISA or MasterCard, or for further information on books from Career Press.
The Career Press, Inc., 3 Tice Road, PO Box 687, Franklin Lakes, NJ 07417 www.careerpress.com
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Sparks, Linda, 1958151 quick ideas to increase sales / by Linda Sparks. p. cm. Includes index. ISBN-13: 978-1-56414-915-2 ISBN-10: 1-56414-915-3 1. Selling. I. Title. II. Title: One hundred fifty-one quick ideas to increase sales. III. Title: One hundred and fifty-one quick ideas to increase sales. HF5438.25.S675 2006 658.85—dc22 2006022404
2
Contents
How to Use This Book Introduction: Putting Sales Into Perspective 1. Business Development Is the Bottom Line 2. Marketing 101: Lots of Ways to Influence Sales 3. The Three-Phase Business Development Process 4. Trust- and Rapport-Building—It’s Still Sales 5. The Formal Sales Cycle: Parts Are Parts 6. They May Be Clients Already—But It’s Still Sales 7. Clarify What You’re Really Selling 8. Understand the Lifetime Value of Your Customers 9. Understand the Impact Business Goals Have on Prospecting 10. Understand How YOU Add Value 11. Inventory Your Business Development Assets 12. Round Up Collateral Materials 13. Get More Customers—the Good Kind 14. Uncover Your Path to Sales 15. Dump the Dead Weight 16. Do You Have Brand? 17. Share Your Bounty With the Community 18. All Roads Lead to Sales 19. Advertising Has a Place 20. Public Relations Are Rich in Paybacks 21. They Call It Earned Media for a Reason 22. Publicize Your Publicity 23. The Media Is Your Friend—Not Your Mother 9 11 13 14 15 16 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37
24. 25. 26. 27. 28. 29. 30. 31. 32. 33. 34. 35. 36. 37. 38. 39. 40. 41. 42. 43. 44. 45. 46. 47. 48.
The Community Wants to Know and Love You Websites Are More Than 24/7 Brochures Pricing Strategies Are Way More Than a Discount Program Cross-Promotions Can Help You Make New Friends Let Trade Shows Show You the Way Direct Sales Aren’t Always Direct Cold Calls Can Warm Things Up—or, “The Cracker Jack Moment” A Territory Management Approach Lends Perspective Direct Mail Still Delivers Publishing Your Ideas Increases Exposure Cause Marketing Takes It to Heart Speak and Grow Rich…in Prospects and Sales Customer Referrals Are Rare Birds Event Marketing Is a Hot Property Find the Synergy Inherent in Your Own Programs Develop Sales Objectives for Improved Performance Identify the Most Efficient Strategic Approach Ideas Selling More to Existing Clients Going Beyond the Transaction Quicker Closes Equal More Time for More Sales Organize a Collaborative Workplace Innovation Gets Attention Time Organize Your Business Momentum Markers Sales: It’s Not About You
38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 50 51 52 53 55 56 57 59 60 61 62 63 64 65
49. 50. 51. 52. 53. 54. 55. 56. 57. 58. 59. 60. 61. 62. 63. 64. 65. 66. 67. 68. 69. 70. 71. 72. 73. 74.
Create an Opportunity-Focused Strategic Account Profile Go Wide and Deep With Key Contacts Mission Possible—Mission Profitable Market Position Matters Be a Budget Bandit Are You Speaking Their Language? Customer Satisfaction Connects Us All Knowledge of the Competition Inspires Confidence Industry Insights Shine a Bright Light When Opportunity Knocks, Who Will Get the Door? Income and Expense Streams Mean Business Staffing Gaps Cut a Wide Path Interesting Fellows Short-Term Goals Are Golden Big Red Truck Tap Into the Momentum Present in the Universe Referrals Come Easier With Celebration Regulate This! Patriotism Serves Up American Consumers It’s Fair to Say Partnering With Worthy Causes Helps You Make New Friends A Mother’s Day Makeover Information Overload Meets Relevant Intelligence Be Bold: Stand for Something Be Real: Share Yourself and Your Stories Be Kind: Show Genuine Interest and Concern
67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 87 88 89 90 92 93 94 95
75. 76. 77. 78. 79. 80. 81. 82. 83. 84. 85. 86. 87. 88. 89. 90. 91. 92. 93. 94. 95. 96. 97. 98. 99. 100. 101. 102. 103. 104.
Talk Easily About Money: Pricing Talk Easily About Money: Add-On Projects Talk Easily About Money: Invoicing Understand the Value of a No-Sale Retail Stores Put Up a Good Front The Principle of the Loss Leader Convenience Stores Give You Gas Popular Brands Use Celebrities to Strengthen Credibility So Many Choices, So Little Time Inventors Use Infomercials to Tell a Complex Story Big Tickets Get Big Thanks A Chocolate on Your Pillow Independent Consultants Go One-on-One Consultants Live Their Work Home Builders Do the Work Big Business Inspires Big Ideas Marketing Is a Hard Number Coffee Shops Invite Us to Hang Out Free Cell Phones Aren’t Free A Web-Based Business Thrives on Visitors Converting From Free to Fee Affiliate Programs Multiply Your Efforts Events Accomplish Success With Grassroots Efforts Events Rally Corporate Support Not-for-Profits Get People to Help Them Sell Galleries and Museums Host Special Showings Do You Want BBQ With That Windshield? Bloggers Stir the Water The Bookstore Bonanza Scrip Bank Multiplies the Love
96 97 98 100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 113 114 115 116 117 119 120 121 122 123 124 125 126 127 129
105. 106. 107. 108. 109. 110. 111. 112. 113. 114. 115. 116. 117. 118. 119. 120. 121. 122. 123. 124. 125. 126. 127. 128. 129. 130. 131. 132. 133. 134. 135. 136.
Media Outlets Take Their Own Medicine Retirement Communities Give Away Vacations Harley Davidson Builds Community You Can Do It, We Can Help! Organizations Have Long Memory Real Estate Agents Do Open Houses Buffet Style Feeds the Masses Assisted Living Assists Future Prospects More People Selling Is Better Make Sure Everyone Knows What You Sell Keep Employees Engaged Develop Your Corporate Information Bite Suppliers Can Help You Sell Customers Can Help You Sell The Community Can Help You Sell 100 Percent Participation in Intelligence-Gathering An Attitude for Business Development Skills for Business Development Everyday Things That Impact Sales How to Lose a Customer Product Category Makeover Microwave Customers Target Market Overview Plan Ahead to Keep Them Talking 5 Levels of Deep Study Solutions to Your Customer’s Problems Build Memorable Sales Presentations Daily Nourishment Essentials Stay in Front of Your Clients Every Week Invest in Yourself Become an Expert (It’s Easier Than You Think) Keep Your Promises
130 131 132 134 135 136 137 138 139 140 141 143 144 145 146 147 148 149 150 151 153 154 155 156 158 159 160 161 163 164 165 166
137. Use the Buddy System 138. Go on Retreat 139. When You Feel the Pull 140. Changing Places 141. Reality Check 101: Income 142. Reality Check 102: Target Market 143. Reality Check 103: Approach 144. We Manage What We Measure 145. Leading and Lagging Indicators 146. Measure What Matters to Customers 147. Measure What Matters in Your Business 148. Say Thank You—Often 149. Live Thankfully 150. A View of Abundance 151. Celebrate and Reward Success Appendix Index About the Author
167 168 169 170 172 173 174 175 176 178 179 180 181 182 183 185 187 191
How to Use This Book
Every quick idea in this book has been selected to directly or indirectly help you gain and retain customers, create relationships, and build a successful business. Don’t try to implement all 151 ideas at once, because some won’t be a good fit right now. Read through all 151 quick ideas and select only those that can really make a difference at the moment. Don’t worry, you’ll go back and review the others periodically. Label your ideas… Implement now. Review again in 30 days. Pass the idea along to _________. Involve your staff in selecting and implementing these ideas, and don’t forget to give credit for their success! Invest in additional copies of this book and distribute them among your staff. Get everyone involved in selecting and recommending various quick ideas. Revisit this book every 90 days. As your business changes, you will find new quick ideas that might suit you better now that competition is heating up. Remember, all the ideas in this book have been proven in businesses across the United States and around the world. They have worked for others and will work for you!
9
Introduction: Putting Sales Into Perspective
Because you are reading this book, it is clear that you are looking for new ways to improve your sales. Let’s begin our work together with something that will change the way you see the role of the salesperson and the ways in which the sales team interacts with the rest of your organization. To increase your sales you need to gain a broader perspective of your organization that will allow you to increase the resources you can bring to bear on the sales function. At its lowest common denominator, sales is an individual transaction performed between the salesperson and a customer—essentially, a single action of selling. What you need to keep in mind is that each individual sales transaction is the combined effort of many people—every employee in your organization; inputs received from your suppliers; the feedback and support from customers and prospects; and the very essence of the communities in which you produce and sell your solutions. Add to this the particular place your product/ service holds in the range of possible solutions available to your customers and you are beginning to see how truly rich your new perspective should be. If all of these assets are to be understood and brought to bear in your sales efforts, then you will need to operationalize this new perspective. You will want to: Clarify the roles that non-sales employees play in the business development process.
11
151 Quick Ideas to Increase Sales Review the entire marketing mix in your organization for new and creative ways to connect with customers and prospects to make more sales. Make sure everyone in your organization is knowledgeable about and friendly toward the sales process. Recognize that the sales function is a business development continuum that ranges from indirect promotions to people you don’t even know yet, to proactive customer and account management.
12
1
Business Development Is the Bottom Line
If a sale is an individual transaction, then the organization’s overall sales function should embody a broader perspective that can be referred to as business development. It’s all about developing new business for your organization. Business development principles should be known and carried out in every nook and cranny of the organization, and by just about everyone in the organization. It all works in a cycle. When your organization develops new products or services, the goal is attracting and retaining specific customers. Servicing customer accounts with honesty, accuracy, and integrity closes the loop on this cycle of business development by making sure that customers have no reason to leave you and every reason Assignment to stick around and Develop a transaction map provide very valuable that tracks your products/servicreferrals. And finally, es. I challenge you to find an every strategic plan element that cannot be tied to has, at its core, goals business development. Separateto acquire and retain ly, create a process list that details customers. Almost the steps that make up your foreverything done in mal sales activities. Make this fun your organization has by picking up a new box of craya clear and practical ons and invite everyone in the tie to good business organization to come by and add development. their own contributions.
13
151 Quick Ideas to Increase Sales
Documenting a complete business development continuum for your organization will help everyone recognize their existing inter-dependence.
The whole is worth far more than the sum of its parts.
Epilogue
2
Marketing 101: Lots of Ways to Influence Sales
In order to make more sales, it’s a good idea to look at the wide range of methods you have available to influence customers and prospects. Often we lose sight of the fact that direct sales activities represent only one of many essential elements of an overall marketing mix—one tool in the Assignment business development toolbox. For some the Make a list of the eleterm sales has become ments you know of from your passé, even unseemly. marketing mix that impact The term marketing has your business development been substituted in polite success. Rank them in order conversation in order to of importance and add cateprotect sensitivities. But gories you don’t think are just substituting the word covered here. Keep the list; marketing in place of by the time you finish this sales has not changed the book you’ll be adding more! reality of the situation.
14
Quick Ideas 2 to 3 Sales must be made if your organization is going to continue to stay in business. Many things influence the prospect along the business development continuum, so it pays to understand the other elements in the marketing mix and how they might help you to make a sale. Some of the elements that make up a typical marketing mix are advertising, public relations, Websites, pricing strategies, cross promotions, trade shows, special events, direct sales, and publishing and speaking.
Epilogue
There are 64 colors in the crayon box, and all of the colors can help you make a nice picture. There are more elements than you think.
3
The Three-Phase Business Development Process
In the grand scheme of things—business development things, that is—there exists a basic, three-phase process: u Phase One: Getting to Know You u Phase Two: Formal Sales u Phase Three: Customer and Account Management Although it is easiest to describe this as a linear process, as if the prospect/customer moves along a flat continuum from
15
151 Quick Ideas to Increase Sales
one phase to the next, the fact is that all three phases represent a dynamic series of transitions and feedback. Phase One starts with the organization floating its image and message in the prospect/customer pool. When the potential prospect recognizes that your firm is one of its options for a solution to a problem, then we transition to Phase Two and Formal Sales. Once the sale is made we make the formal transition to Phase Three: Customer and Account Management. Because most organizations tend to be stronger in one phase of the business development process than they are in the other two, the sales effort can sometimes lose momenAssignment tum. It is important that everyone in the organizaMake a list of the tion understands how each strengths and weaknesses of these phases plays out you feel your organization and the impact they each has in each of these phases. have on business development success.
Epilogue
Good things tend to come in threes.
4
Trust- and Rapport-Building— It’s Still Sales
The first phase in business development begins with letting people get to know you. A great deal of the groundwork
16
Quick Ideas 3 to 4 with prospects is laid out before you even get to meet them. They will make judgments about you based on your “brand.” Your brand is who and what you are in the eyes of others. Assignment How, when, and what prosBecome active in a pects learn about you, your professional, business, organization, and your soluor community group tions in this early stage can that will put you in proxhave a dramatic impact on imity of your future your success at moving them prospects, and let them to sales. get to know you. For example, in a professional services environment, being known as a forwardthinking, approachable professional who participates openly in a local business association may be the perfect groundwork for this phase. You and the future prospect may not even know each other yet, but you have begun a path of trust by sharing a common interest and “bumping into each other” professionally. Most small businesses don’t have unlimited funds to perform expensive marketing activities. Choosing how you promote your organization in this phase will say a lot to potential prospects. Do you value similar things? Do you speak their language? The goal is to be well known to them by the time they need your particular product or service.
Epilogue
Time is money. Be truly present in the community you wish to serve.
17
151 Quick Ideas to Increase Sales
5
The Formal Sales Cycle: Parts Are Parts
The formal sales phase of the business development continuum is triggered when the prospect admits a specific need and recognizes your firm as a potential supplier of the solution. This is the point when a lead turns into a prospect. You will close more sales if you recognize the distinct components of this phase and keep your actions on track. Discovery: Develop a systematic approach to gathering the customer information you need to develop a solution. Proposal: The proposal represents your offer of services or products in response to the prospect’s request for assistance. If you have performed a discovery process, you will be able to speak to the situation much more completely than your competition. The proposal represents the technical aspects of the solution you propose. Presentation: The presentation of the proposal Assignment document (or your product) is your opportunity to conThink about creative vince the prospect to choose ways to present your soyour solution. Treat the prelutions to prospects. Think sentation as an important as a stage manager, an orappointment with your proschestra conductor, or even pect regardless of whether it a high school teacher prewas pre-scheduled or not. paring an important lesson Build a case for your solufor a group of preoccupied tion by demonstrating that teenagers.
18
Quick Ideas 5 to 6 you understand the prospect’s situation, the desire for this type of product or service, and why your particular offer is the one that offers maximum satisfaction.
Epilogue
What you have to offer is not nearly as important as what your prospect thinks of it.
6
They May Be Clients Already— But It’s Still Sales
Once a sale has been made with a new customer you have triggered the third phase of the business development continuum: the customer/account management phase. It is important to note that this is not the end of the continuum. Customers represent the best source of add-on sales and qualified referrals, and the level of operational feedback that drives innovation and fuels public relations efforts. They may be customers, but some of your most productive sales activities will occur in and around these accounts. Contracting: The prospect becomes a customer at the moment of agreement. Whether you have a retail transaction or a written agreement, or simply do business with a handshake, this represents an important transition in the relationship. The prospect has chosen you and can reinforce his or her own decision by inviting others to choose you as well.
19
151 Quick Ideas to Increase Sales
Add-On Sales: If Assignment you effectively engage your customer and do Analyze your customer your job well, there will base and determine what peroften be new opportunicentage of your sales comes ties to serve. This is a from repeat customers or rebeautiful thing, but you ferrals from those customers. need to be prepared to handle it. Plan ahead for the potential needs of your customers and develop a proactive approach to recognize, quote, and close add-on business. If needs fall outside your offerings, be prepared with a thoughtful referral. Customers as Champions: Nothing can help your sales more than customers singing your praises, providing you with qualified referrals, and simply being a good partner. This final element in the business development continuum brings you full circle and places new leads directly into the trust and rapport phase of your program.
Epilogue
Treat customers as if they are your best prospects— because they are!
7
Clarify What You’re Really Selling
A pile of rocks is just a pile of rocks, right? Why should we get all sentimental about a pile of rocks? What if this particular pile of rocks was going to become a stone path in the Johnsons’
20
Quick Ideas 6 to 8 backyard? What if the purpose of the path was for Mrs. Johnson while she carried her infant son? The Johnsons need help choosing a product that Assignment will be appropriate for this Develop simple quespath. They may need intions that you can use with stallation tips to make sure qualified prospects to estabthey get the best possible lish a productive dialogue. results. Many retailers Your goal should always be would simply load the prodto learn enough about their uct with no concern for situation to help deliver the helping the customer make best possible solution. the best choice. Customers rarely need the products or services you sell. What they are really looking for are solutions to problems and new opportunities. Understand this simple truth and you will increase your sales.
Epilogue
Silence is not golden when it comes to your customers.
8
Understand the Lifetime Value of Your Customers
In order to make the sales you desire, be prepared to make the necessary investment. If there were a store that sold customers—good customers—how much would you be willing to spend? Consider this example.
21
151 Quick Ideas to Increase Sales
A local ladies’ department store wants to attract more professional women. These women spend an average of $150 on each visit to the store. The store’s cost of goods sold is about 50 percent, so its gross profit is $75 on each sale. On average, these women visit the store four times per year, so these particular shoppers are each worth $300 in gross profits per year. If a client remains a regular for three years, she has a lifeAssignment time value of $900. Perform the kind of How much can the deanalysis discussed here partment store afford to spend on a low, medium, and to acquire one of these highly high value account from desirable regular customers? your list of customers. How much advertising, direct See how much you can mail, or sales perks should it afford to spend. invest?
Epilogue
Make new friends, but keep the old—they are gold.
9
Understand the Impact Business Goals Have on Prospecting
There was a marketing team for a statewide professional association that was suffering from a constant barrage of new ideas and demands from their president. As a thought leader in the industry, he was constantly asking the marketing staff to work on new projects. This might have been fun and exciting if
22
Quick Ideas 8 to 10 the old demands went away when the new arrived—but Assignment they didn’t. Instead of picking a The boss was unwilling sales goal, try this backto set clear business goals, wards planning approach. but the marketing team had Look at your budget and figto make a few assumptions ure out how many more to maintain their sanity. customers you will need to They needed to set baseachieve it. line goals for each of the organization’s key income streams in order to keep their work in perspective. The team established the following baseline factors relating to sales growth to help them to determine how much time and attention needed to be invested in acquiring new customers: u What are our primary revenue streams? u What does our account (customer) retention look like?
Epilogue
There are only so many hours in the day. Use a little creativity to determine the activities that will give you the best payoff.
10
Understand How YOU Add Value
Every salesperson has a role in business development, and you’ll likely make more sales when you fully understand yours. A salesperson at a value-added reseller (such as a computer store) helps the customer make sense of all the options.
23
151 Quick Ideas to Increase Sales
He or she may find people willing to drive an extra distance to buy from someone with special skills and knowledge. If you find yourself in this type of role, keep yourself sharp and tuned into the options, and you will retain your competitive edge. A salesperson for a contractor may have the Assignment role of managing deadlines Take a close look at the relating to a request for probusiness you’re in and write posal and demonstrating to down the ways you add valthe buying committee that ue for your customer. doing business with his firm is the best option. It would be wrong for him to get so caught up in the technical aspects of the proposal document that he lost track of his primary role as the salesperson. If you are a person who wears many hats inside the organization, you will need to take special care when you shift into your sales role.
Epilogue
Knowing how you make a difference for your customers will keep you focused on important issues.
11
Inventory Your Business Development Assets
Every organization has major assets that can be leveraged toward developing new business. Instead of starting with the
24
Quick Ideas 10 to 11 sales goals and performance shortfalls, take a look at some often-overlooked assets and see how they can lead the way in your sales strategy. Consider leveraging assets such as existing customers, your staff and facilities, and your company’s reputation. A marketing company that has a staff of subject-matter experts can develop a strategic approach to share information with the business community and allow qualified prospects a chance to sample the type of expertise they could expect from this organization as paid counsel. White papers, articles in the local business publications, and informational Websites are just the beginning. A hardware store with a busy street-front location and filled with on-trend inventory can host a home-improvement program on a local radio station and let walk-in customers supply some of the program content. A celebrity shopper would add some fun. An event with a strong charity cause and a large Assignment spectator following can inMake a list of your orcrease participation or ganization’s greatest assets. attendance by developing a Consider how you can bring grassroots effort encouragthem to bear on the business ing experienced spectators development goals. to attend again, invite a neighbor, and help double the impact on the charity.
Epilogue
Leading with your best shot just might help you win the round.
25
151 Quick Ideas to Increase Sales
12
Round Up Collateral Materials
Communicating with your key audiences will inAssignment crease your sales. To lay the Get a three-ring binder groundwork for developing and a set of tabs and collect a communications strategy, your samples. This will bestart by gathering samples come a reference guide of all the tools, tricks, and when you sit down with othtales that have been used in ers to establish a strategic the past to communicate inapproach to increasing sales. formation to your audience. For example, organizations that develop detailed proposals as part of their approach often create works of art that never find their way into routine sales collaterals. Retailers tend to reminisce about that one record-breaking sale, but often fail to capture the principles of the offer, the details of the sales results, and the potential environmental factors that played a major part. Look for: existing customers lists; profiles and buying histories; market potential reports; internal and external newsletters; mission, vision, and value statements; business and marketing plans; PowerPoint presentations; advertising copy; competitor analysis; annual reports; employee lists; organization charts; and financial statements. Nothing compares to sitting in a planning meeting and being able to provide a voice of reason because you have the facts right in front of you.
Epilogue
There’s no place like home to find the things that matter most and are most effective.
26
Quick Ideas 12 to 13
13
Get More Customers—the Good Kind
As a salesperson, you make a big investment in developing new business, so why not target more of the customers you want? It’s easier to acquire good customers when you know what you’re looking for. Retailers with point-of-sale technology and customer-loyalty programs lead the pack in customer intelligence. Small professional services firms know their customers as well as the Assignment back of their hand. Work through your cliLook for the natural ent list and make notes in two sorters in your customer columns. List what you like profiles and their buying about them in column one pattern. Don’t be worried and what you don’t in colabout what you don’t umn two. When you are know; focus on what you finished, highlight the acdo know about your cuscounts that you’d like to tomers and highlight the replicate. Complete the aselements that will help you signment in Idea 14 to help reach out to prospects target more of the customthat mirror your favorite ers you desire. customers.
Epilogue
All customers are not created equal. It’s up to you to go after the type of customers you want.
27
151 Quick Ideas to Increase Sales
14
Uncover Your Path to Sales
Would you like to put yourself on a better path to sales? An industrial builder reviewed all their new customers for the past two years. These prospects learned that a high percentage of their business was related to local business owners looking for a new building site. They would drive into small industrial parks near their present site and see one of the builder’s small construction signs at a work site. These signs are practically free and single-handedly represent the company’s best element in the path to more sales. They had no idea! Needless to Assignment say, they now put them Examine your customer everywhere possible— list and trace the path backgetting them up early wards. You’re trying to and leaving them as long uncover the elements that inas possible. They also fluenced them along the way. enhanced signage on all If they came from a customthe firm’s trucks and er referral—consider how the trailers. The result was referring partner came into increased sales! the fold before them.
Epilogue
Knowledge of the past can greatly enhance the future.
28
Quick Ideas 14 to 15
15
Dump the Dead Weight
Here’s the harsh reality: A customer pays you for your products and services or you pay them for the privilege of serving them. You decide. A restaurant that has been overusing coupons to increase traffic may find that it has attracted the wrong type of customers: customers who won’t visit without combining coupons and low-cost menu items (to the point of eliminating profitability from the transactions) are not helping the business. Promotional strategies, such as the one in this example, can be a legitimate element in the marketing mix, if the promotion helps you to attract profitable customers. BeAssignment cause the coupons were Determine the customconceived as important to ers or the categories of business development, the customers present in your restaurant needs to considmix of business that are holder every dollar it is not ing your business back from charging these customers respectable profitability. against its marketing budNow decide if you want to get. This has not been a eliminate them or dilute their good investment of its marinfluence by strategically keting dollars, and the balancing your mix. restaurant needs to make a change.
Epilogue
Don’t forget to consider the future impact of low- or noprofit accounts.
29
151 Quick Ideas to Increase Sales
16
Do You Have Brand?
Branding 101 tells us to brand through repetition, consistency, and fulfillment. This includes the way we perform our sales efforts. If you’ve set your sights on increasing sales, it pays to take a look at your brand to ensure it represents who and what you truly are in the marketplace. There are many organizations that present Assignment themselves one way in their corporate marketing proDo you maintain your grams and then establish a branding strategy across completely different peryour marketing mix? Does spective in their sales the message in your curactivities. Make sure you rent brand represent your and the company sales primary value proposition? strategies are in alignment Does your brand message with the brand strategy. connect and resonate with your audience? If you have a strong brand then consider it an asset in your business development efforts and leverage the heck out of it. If you have a weak brand, work to make it stronger while hanging onto the good parts. If you have no brand at all, you’re starting with a clean slate. Get some professional help to get started.
Epilogue
If it walks like a dog, smells like a dog, and barks like a dog, people will likely assume it’s a dog.
30
Quick Ideas 16 to 17
17
Share Your Bounty With the Community
One of the best ways to position you and your firm in your targe