A little over 10 years ago, I started a new chapter in my life.

I sold women’s shoes. Now, it may not seem glamorous, but it taught me an incredible lesson about the buying behavior of people.

You see, I thought it would be easy. But to my surprise, it wasn’t…I turned out to be pretty bad at selling shoes. So bad in fact, I quit the job before they cut my pay.

However, five years later I went back into the shoe selling business. This time, I excelled at the job.

The reason why is because I learned what makes people buy and what doesn’t. I studied many of the masters of selling and applied their information to my craft.

As a result, I was able to earn close to a full time income by working part time.

Whether you’re selling in person or in print, this will work for you.

Ready?

Here it is:

WANT will trump “need” any day of the week…

…and twice on Sunday.

Here’s why:

First, no one buys what they need. If they did, everyone would drive around in SMART cars, wear Casio wristwatches, and every break room water cooler argument about Macs and PCs would cease.

Let’s face facts: People don’t buy things because of what they are…they buy them because of what they DO for them.

To sell more of your product or service, talk about what the product does for the prospect.

And if you really want to hit a home run, talk positively about how it will make the prospect FEEL.

Here, I’ll prove it.

As many of my female readers can attest to, high heels are probably the most uncomfortable shoes in the world. But…they sell like hotcakes.

Why?

Because they give a woman the illusion of being taller and they make their legs look longer. And what happens as a result? They become more attractive.

See the difference?

It’s not about what it is…it’s about what it DOES.

If you want to know precisely what your product does for people, ask your current customers how they “feel” about your product or service.

Their answer will help you bridge the gap between what your product IS…and what it does.

Remember — features tell, but emotional benefits SELL.

©2012All Rights Reserved by Charlie Cook or Blog Post Author..

I’m going to be straight with you. If you’re in sales, you talk too much!

Or at least most sales people do, and it kills their sales.

If you want to sell more the answer is simple, just start by… When you entered the selling field, you may have thought, “Now my job is to talk and talk and talk.” So off you go. “Here it is folks. Won’t ravel, rust, or rip. Can’t blister, break, or drip. Oh, you’re going to love it. You’d better buy it now!”

The professional salesperson, the true Champion, realizes that people have two ears and one mouth, and each should be used equally. This means that after talking ten seconds, you switch your mouth off, switch your ears on, and listen for 20 seconds. This also means that instead of overwhelming your future client with words, you encourage them to talk, and you in turn listen!

Never push, give your opinion or tell people what to own. That’s what rookies and unprofessional salespeople do. They operate strictly from the position of hitting their numbers, making sales and generating a big paycheck for themselves.

Champion salespeople on the other hand, never give anyone the impression that they’re pushing them – for the simple reason that they never push. But they do lead. The Champion leads his or her buyers from the initial contact to happy involvement in owning the product or service by not talking all of the time, by listening most of the time, and by asking artful questions. In all this alert and pointed questioning, the true professional maintains a friendly attitude of interest and understanding that encourages the prospect to open up and give the desired information freely.

Have you ever been surprised at how freely you’ve talked to certain salespeople before buying from them? They were alert and interested. You felt comfortable with them. Recalling those conversations, you may think you were leading and the salesperson was following. Superficially, that was true – at first. In a deeper sense, however, that professional salesperson was leading all the way and you were following all the way.

How did that happen? The Champion encourages you to start off. Once you set your direction, he or she gets smoothly in front and begins to lead you toward any of several open paths to purchase. When artful questioning reveals which of the several paths is best, the Champion guides you smoothly and warmly to it. The halter goes over your head so softly that you never think about bucking. Instead you buy!

©2012All Rights Reserved by Charlie Cook or Blog Post Author..

Just because Santa’s old, overweight, long-haired and unshaven and dresses funny, don’t overlook his business acumen.

Santa is a marketing and sales generating expert and you can become one, too, if you follow his proven methods.

What’s that you say? You don’t believe in Santa Claus or you don’t celebrate Christmas? It’s true that Santa may be mostly mythical, but ask almost anybody who Santa is and what he does, and they’ll tell you. And there are millions of young children who are convinced he’s real! So put your doubts about Santa aside for a moment and take a look at why he’s so good at marketing and generating sales.

Knows How to Be Unique
Whether it is his trademark red suit, his unconventional transportation, his belly laugh or his occupation, Santa is, well, different. He’s one of a kind, which makes him memorable.

Gets Free Publicity
He’s a master at getting free press. He’s mentioned in the media constantly during the winter holidays. Many songs, movies and books have been written about him.

Is Customer Focused
While everyone knows about Santa, his marketing isn’t focused on his credentials. He rarely talks about how long he’s been in business nor does he bore people with long discussions of his work processes. Instead, he makes a huge effort to learn what people want.

It is estimated that each year over a million letters are sent to Santa. Santa supplements this effort by appearing in thousands of shopping malls around the country, listening to an average of nine thousand children per mall. He does all this just to learn what his customers want.

Gives Something Away For Free
While most of the presents under the tree are from family, including the annual fruitcake from Aunt Bernice, typically, at our house, at least one gift bears Santa’s name.

How can you not love someone who gives so many presents away each year and whose only expectation is a couple of cookies and a glass of milk?

Knows What He Is Selling
Santa knows what he is selling, and its not just games and toys. Santa sells hope, whether it is for the latest video game, a warm sweater or happiness.

How can you market your business more like Santa Claus and generate record sales, like Santa does?

1. Clarify how you and your firm are unique, and what it is that separates you from the crowd. You don’t need to put on a red suit or slide down chimneys. Define yourself by the problems you solve, the expertise you provide and what your customers say about you.

2. Get media attention for your business, not just during holidays but all year round. Sometimes imaginative stunts like appearing in a sleigh help.

3. Ask your prospects what they want and then provide services and products that give them what they’ve asked for. The better you understand their concerns, the better services or products you’ll provide.

4. Give something away for free. It could be an article, a report, a book or a workshop. Use your free offer to prompt people to contact you and demonstrate your expertise. It works for Santa and it can work for you.

5. Know what you are selling. Your products and services bring in the money, but what do they stand for? What do they represent to your clients? Sell your prospects on achieving their objectives and dreams and deliver with tangible results they can appreciate.

Whether or not you celebrate Christmas, market like Santa and you, too, can have many happy clients this and every season, without having to squeeze down a single, sooty chimney.

Happy Holidays

Charlie
MarketingForSuccess
Sell More. Profit More. Live More.

P.S. I’m headed north today to Vermont today and I’ve got one request, one present on my wishlist for the holidays.

It’s ski season, but I need your help.

Think snow!

©2012All Rights Reserved by Charlie Cook or Blog Post Author..

What’s that sound you hear at this time of year? It’s retailers ringing in huge numbers of sales. So many in fact that websites have been slowing to a crawl over the weekends.

Want to discover how you can ring in more sales and sell more services all year long? It’s easier than you think. All you need to do is make one simple change… Ever been asked the question,

“If a tree falls in the forest, does it make a sound?”

In business, the corresponding question would be,

“If the phone rings, and no one answers it, do you make a profit?”

In the first case, the answer is yes. If a tree falls in the forest, it makes a sound but in the case of your business…

if no one picks up the phone when a prospect calls, you don’t make a profit. It’s as simple as that.

Now this might seem obvious, but over and over I find smart business owners, who are letting prospects and profits slip through their fingers because they’re not answering their phone or doing it correctly.

I get this all the time. Someone comes to me because they are frustrated with the slow rate of growth of their business. Despite all their hard work, they’re not signing up enough new clients and they’re not making as much money as they want to be.

They sign up for our done-for-you online marketing and sales support system and as part of the service, we track all calls made, record them and score them.

And here’s the simple and surprising discovery we find all too often.

Despite, wanting more business, and having us ramp up their online lead generation system – our new client isn’t answering their phone.

For example, Jim recently signed up to work with me and he’s now getting 8 phone calls from prospects each week or over 32 a month from the lead generation site we built for him.

Which is great, but two-thirds of these, or 21, are going to voicemail during regular business hours and hardly any of the prospects are leaving a message.

So who cares?

Let’s take a look at the numbers. On average, when our client actually talks to a prospect, he signs up 50% for a $1500 program. And with 21 calls missed each month, he is letting over $30,000 of new business slip away.

In the case of Jim, when we showed him what was going on with all the leads he was actually getting, he explained he didn’t have anyone answering the phone because he didn’t want to pay for an answering service or train someone on staff to be responsible for incoming calls. His rationale was it was too expensive.

I’m sure you know that this is nuts. By saving a couple of hundred bucks a month, he was losing $30,000.

What happens when you don’t answer your phone?

Your prospects keep dialing until they find someone who does, and that would be one of your competitors. So if you don’t have a friendly person on staff answering your phone, get one – it’s a small investment in generating tens of thousands of dollars of new business each month.

Then, when you hear the phone ringing, it’s the sound of ringing in new sales or new money going into your bank account.

Want to talk about how to ring in more sales for your company?

Just email Lauren at Lauren (at) marketingforsuccess (dot) com with your phone number and she’ll give you call. And when she does, make sure to answer.

To your success,

Charlie
MarketingforSuccess

P.S. We’ll all be ringing in the New Year in a few weeks.

Do you have a plan to ring in more sales in 2012?

If not, let’s talk.

©2012All Rights Reserved by Charlie Cook or Blog Post Author..

You’ve got a great product, great marketing and tons of loyal clients. Your business has been growing and you’re finally at the point where you feel comfortable taking some risks.

You could sit back, kick your feet up and get comfortable. But there’s a whole new market that you’re probably missing…

In the past, most companies divided territories by geographical area. Today, many salespeople specialize in particular products or services and concentrate on clients who have needs that match the products no matter where they are on the planet So, companies are more likely to claim as your territory any client who has a need for your specialty. That means your client base may well be anywhere in the world. If that’s the case with you, you’ll do very little face-to-face selling and a whole lot of remote closing.

What do you do when you’re not able to close face-to-face? Well, when you close from a distance, you call upon your skills as a closer and rely on the wonders of technology like phones, fax machines (yes, some industries still find this a successful way to do business), the Internet, email, and express or overnight delivery services.

Let’s say you’ve presented to International, Inc. in Los Angeles. You’re now back home in Boise, Idaho. Your presentation was precisely detailed. You established great rapport with the three committee members and followed up with thank you notes to each person before you left L.A. They told you they had to make a decision by today (a week later). What are your chances of getting the agreement? Very good if you answer “yes” to the following questions:

Did you call either yesterday or the day before to check to see if the clients had any remaining questions about the ability of your product to satisfy their needs?
Did you arrange a specific time for their call today?
Have you reread your entire file on this account so all the details are fresh in your mind?
Do you have your brief summary review (your list of everything they agreed they like about your product) filled with emotional involvement phrases that will help them feel what it will be like AFTER they take ownership?
Do you have a solid closing question prepared and rehearsed?

Every “yes” you answer here brings you closer to getting the big YES from your clients. Even if the potential clients dismissed you with a “We’ll get back to you” that doesn’t mean you sit and stay like a good puppy until they call you. You’re a professional. You’re proactive.

Calling a day or two before the decision to see if anything new has come up doesn’t make you a pest. Making this call is a courtesy and a way to protect your interest in the client. You can be the competition is trying to lobby for their product. So, why shouldn’t you?

©2012All Rights Reserved by Charlie Cook or Blog Post Author..

I finally did it.

I stopped in St. Louis and went to the top of the Gateway Arch with my wife and three kids.

Talk about… an amazing view! At 630 feet tall, it’s just about the tallest structure for hundreds of miles.

To one side, you see downtown St. Louis, including the courthouse where the Dred Scott decision was issued, as well as the baseball field where the Cardinals play. To the other side, you see the Mississippi River and a great expanse of land stretching toward the east.

I highly recommend it.

But what does this have to do with boosting your sales?

Plenty, actually.

The trips to the top of the arch are well-orchestrated. They are staggered every 5 minutes. And every single person, family, and group is photographed before making the 4-minute ascent.

Being photographed is not that unusual.

They do it on organized bicycling rides, rafting trips, and roller coaster rides. When you finish, you see your picture rotating on a TV screen. You can buy it… if you want.

But at the Gateway Arch in St. Louis they don’t show you your picture on a TV screen.

They actually print your picture!

All the printed pictures are organized on a board according to the time you went up. You can pick up the picture and look at it. You start to feel as if the picture in your hands already belongs to you.

A person walks over.

“It’s $20 to for the picture. Plus, you get a fridge magnet frame for your picture and a night-time picture of the arch for free.”

“What happens if we don’t buy our picture?” you ask.

“Oh, we just throw it away.”

And in that simple exchange more photos are sold than probably any other tourist attraction in the United States.

After all, I don’t want them to throw away a picture of my family. How dare they! I like that picture!

So I hand them a $20 bill.

I now have a picture of my family hanging on my fridge. We’re about to go to the top of the St. Louis Gateway Arch. And there is a nice magnet frame holding the picture in place.

You see, the emotional cost of saying “no” (and letting them throw away the picture) was higher than the real financial cost.

And so I paid.

Just as hundreds of other families do.

- What can you do to create a sense ownership before you’ve completed the sale?

- What can you do to make it emotionally painful to say “no” to your offer?

Answer these questions and you may have just discovered a better way to sell than 95% of your competitors.

-Ryan Healy

P.S. Want to learn how to sell in print? Or improve your online conversion rates? Get instant access to all my best copywriting tips at CopywritingCode.com.

©2012All Rights Reserved by Charlie Cook or Blog Post Author..

I recently spent a month in Florida, mostly in the Sarasota, Tampa, and St. Petersburg areas.

I noticed something while I was down there.

That is, there are far more beggars in Florida than there are in Colorado.It’s hard to go anywhere without being panhandled.

Not only that, the beggars in Florida are much more aggressive. They walk in between cars stopped at busy intersections doing their best to make eye contact. They make you uncomfortable.

Clearly, these men and women are professionals.

One man in particular stood out to me.

As he used body language to communicate with me through the windshield, he held up his index finger, raised his eyebrows, and mouthed:

“Just one penny? Just one penny?”

I gave him a dollar.

After all, who gives a poor man just a penny?

There are a few sales lessons hidden in this brief story.

First, persistence often pays off. This man didn’t give up easily. He did whatever he could to get people to make eye contact.

Second, by reducing the requirements of your request, you can get more people to say yes. This man didn’t ask for a dollar. He also didn’t make a vague request like “anything helps.” He asked for just a penny. That’s an easy request to agree to.

Third, by differentiating yourself from others, you can stand out, get attention, and achieve the results you want. After all, this man didn’t hold up a cardboard sign like so many beggars do; he walked between cars and communicated with body language instead.

Summing up: Persistence combined with the right offer and a unique approach can be wonderfully effective.

-Ryan Healy

P.S. Want to learn how to sell in print? Get instant access to all my best copywriting tips at CopywritingCode.com.

©2012All Rights Reserved by Charlie Cook or Blog Post Author..

Have you ever been forced to choose between two products? We’ve all been there – you’re standing in front of the cooler trying to decide which bottled water to choose. You make a quick decision, for the one that strikes you first, but little do you realize that your decision was made before you even stepped up to that cooler…

Factors like celebrity endorsements, packaging, and other forms of advertising affected your decision. How many times have you doubted your subconscious, only to find out you really should have listened it to begin with?

When selling, you have every right to be concerned with perceptions on both sides of the selling equation. It’s important to pay attention to how others perceive us from the very first contact whether it’s in person, over the phone or something that’s written. The message you’re sending could be worlds way from the one you actually want to give off.

UCLA did a study on the initial impression clients had of a salesperson they ended up purchasing from. 10,000 product purchasers were asked: “Thinking back to when you said yes to the representative, what were the reasons that you did? What comes to mind?” The responses might not be what you’d expect.

Seven percent of those 10,000 people said “yes” because of the representative’s product knowledge. Thirty-eight percent said “yes” because of voice quality and the words they used. However, 55% said “yes” because of the first impression–the way the salespeople walked in and carried themselves. They had an aura of confidence in the product and their ability that led the client to trust them and then make the purchase.

What you can’t forget is that the moment a potential customer first lays eyes on you they instantly start to gauge you emotionally. Of course, this is done on a subconscious level. They’re not outright thinking, “He’s slouching. He ‘s probably having a terrible day.” Or, “Her shirt has a stain on it. She can’t possibly be prepared to help me.”

It’s much less direct than that. It’s their reaction to your body language, your voice or how you use words.

Here are some simple subtleties you can work into your selling style to increase the chances your prospects will say “yes”:

• Give them the impression, both verbally and with your movements, that you’re ‘on their team.’ If you’re meeting in person, stand slightly beside them rather than face to face. If on the phone or using written word, imply the following: “I understand how you feel.” Or, “I’ve been in that situation myself,” as long as it’s true. This adds a feeling that you’re an ally, rather than the enemy salesperson.

• In long distance communications, pay attention to their vocabulary. Try to match their level rather than talking down to them or using words that are too casual for the situation.

Sales can be quite entertaining if you just let it… Challenge yourself to send exactly the messages you desire in both word and action.

Then, work on seeing how quickly you can connect with each client you meet and work to serve their needs in the manner they will best respond to.

©2012All Rights Reserved by Charlie Cook or Blog Post Author..

When I think about what it means to have a partnership, I think about marriage.

Let’s face it; you know you want your husband to look good for your high school reunion so that you, in turn, look good.

When you become someone’s partner you do whatever you can to help… that partner succeed, and they will do the same for you.

Granted it may sometimes be for selfish reasons, but nonetheless, partnerships work. This same idea can be utilized when it comes to marketing for your business. This process is known as co-marketing—a concept I feel is somewhat of a hidden gem in the business world.

With the entrance of new social media sites and e-mail marketing tactics, it makes sense that partnerships with other companies are falling down on the list of priorities. Social media is trendy and new, so co-marketing with another company may seem old fashion and not worth the effort; however this is not the case.

Co-marketing is as successful as ever, but it has unfortunately lost publicity. This causes newer, less established companies to miss the advantages of co-marketing. In some cases, newer companies are actually unsure about what it means to co-market.

Co-marketing is basically an agreement between two complementary companies that allows for each company to market the other, thus increasing exposure. The key word here is “complementary.” Some startup companies shy away when they hear the idea of marketing for a different company, but you are not partnering up with your competition. For example, a dentist may work with an orthodontist, or a financial planner may work with an insurance agent. Consider a few of the advantages below:

5 Advantages of Co-Marketing
1. Increased exposure/referrals—With a partnership, you will suddenly have access to all of your partner’s customers and clients. This access usually does not allow you to just e-mail and call whoever you want, but it should get you some referrals. Part of a partner’s job is to refer your company, so you will suddenly be in the minds of an entirely new group of people.

2. Benefit from a company’s reputation—When deciding to co-market, you obviously want to make sure the company you’re working with has a good reputation. If they do, then the referral should pan out. In other words, the exposure you get will not be like the exposure you would get if you put an ad in the paper. These people will be hearing about your company from a company they already trust. Furthermore, partnerships should stem from companies that have a similar target audience to your target audience, giving you yet another advantage.

3. Sharing expenses and profits—Co-marketing usually involves sharing a profit as well as sharing advertising expenses. If you were to place both your logo and your partner’s logo in an ad in the paper or in an e-mail newsletter, you will be getting double the exposure while saving money on advertising expenses. If someone recognizes one logo, they may look at the ad and then see the other. If just your one company logo been present, they may never have looked.

4. Use each other’s talents—Chances are your company and the company you’re working with have different advantages when it comes to marketing. For example, you may know a lot more about the market or have better connections in the field, but your partner company may be very creative and have great writers who can produce unique ads.

5. Create lasting relationships—There may be a time one day when you want to partner with another additional company, so creating a relationship early may help lead you to another company connection. Basically, this is a way to network on a larger scale. If your partner company becomes the next Google and you have a good relationship, you could really benefit.

Although there are a great many advantages to co-marketing, there are a few things that could go terribly wrong; therefore you must make sure that you do your research before jumping into a partnership. Make sure you learn about the company’s management, reputation, and the expectations they have for a partnership. Get real numbers when it comes to ideas another company may have—really make sure they can sell you on the idea.

©2012All Rights Reserved by Charlie Cook or Blog Post Author..

What’s holding you back from the success of your dreams?

Do you ever catch yourself thinking or saying the following?“If only I could get a better break.”

“If only I had more money.”

“If only I would’ve married the right person.”

“If only I worked for the right company.”

“If only I had the right parents.”

Those statements show a lack of personal accountability. Do you pull back from taking full personal responsibility for yourself?

Many of us do. We think that a parent, a teacher, a friend, a boss, a spouse, the company we worked for, or some governmental program should shoulder our burden for turning our lives into what we want them to be. This approach can’t get the job done.

Of course there are times that getting assistance of some sort from others can be critical to our success, but “assistance” by definition means we’re already doing the job and others come to join in helping us.

It doesn’t mean waiting on the sidelines of life until someone else comes to take you along with them on a success journey. If someone else does come along and offer you such a thing, it will be to join them on their journey and their idea of success might not be anything like yours.

What does it mean to wait and depend on others for your success? That you’ll always be disappointed. Unless you take complete control of your life and assume full personal responsibility for yourself, who will?

No one will.

Every dollar you earn is worth ten given to you. Earned money builds the self-image of self-reliance; given money creates the self-image of other-dependence. This is why some families stay on welfare for generations.

Hangers-on and free-loaders are the most frustrated people on earth because they don’t even realize that they have created their own frustrations. You can’t be successful and happy until you earn the respect of the toughest, hardest to fool, and most important judge in the world: yourself.

So find the closest mirror. Look yourself right in the eye and say, “The life I’m living right now is of my own creation. If I want more, I will make it happen!”

©2012All Rights Reserved by Charlie Cook or Blog Post Author..