Internet Marketing
The Web as a sales tool

Secret of Salesmanship

The most important secret of salesmanship is to find out what the other fellow wants, then help him find the best way to get it!

So how does your web site meet this criteria? What is the visitor looking for on your site and do you get them there quickly and easily?

Enthusiasm

To become enthusiastic - Act enthusiastically.  Force yourself to act enthusiastic, and you'll become enthusiastic!

I've lost count of the drab, dull web sites out there. Pictures, colour, words can all help jazz up a site and portray enthusiasm for your products and services.

Creative Selling

The Idea Area : You don't sell an article - you sell an idea.

The Needs Area : Observation of real motives behind peoples actions and reactions.

The Feelings Area : Influence of emotions. Seek to discover the human being in your customer.

The Habit Area : A strong sales blocker. Recognise sound judgement that guided him. Don't find fault. Make him your partner.

The Low Pressure Area : Win your customer before winning the order.

The Quality Area : No article is bought solely on quality. First sell the idea, then utility and only then quality.

The Price Area : Relate price to value customer receives.

The Inner Conviction Area : Be a R.E.P. believer - Representative, Enterprise and Product.

The Reasoning Area : Avoid arguments - questions lead there quicker than assertions.

The Objection Area : There are no sales without objections - tackle them.

The Access Area : Preparation, calling technique, timing, proper offer made to proper person, gain entry and create a selling climate.

The Selling Process Area : A I D A (Attention, Interest, Desire, Action)

The Appeal Area : Planned selling, choosing one sales point and dropping another, changing a few words, altering the tone.

The Conference Selling Area : Analysis of attitudes, knowledge and role expectations he will meet.

The Customer Relations Area : Complaints can lead to increased sales if they are treated properly.

Simply take all the points above and see how your web site fairs.

Building a Sales Presentation

Thinking through the process of building an actual face to face sales presentation you will see that your web site project is really very similar....

1. What do you want to sell? You must know what it is you wish to sell before you can PREPARE how to sell it.
2. Make a List, actual or mental, of all the advantages and disadvantages.
3. Do any of the advantages answer any disadvantages? If so, you have already overcome some objections.
4. Find answers to all disadvantages Seek your own solutions first.
5. Where real problems exist take any of 3 steps:-
a. Minimise the problem OR
b. Avoid all discussion of it OR
c. Change your plan and seek advice
6. List advantages (Benefits) in order of importance.
7. Build your presentation based on Interest and Desire. Use your advantages but anticipate likely objections (disadvantages).
8. Keep it interesting but brief and to the point.
9. You now have a basic sales presentation.

NOW MAKE IT PERSONAL

10. Is it relevant to the particular buyer?
11. Have you taken into account that particular buyers likely reaction?
12. What volume should you go for?
13. Have you used historical records to help you? (not hinder you)
14. Have you now got good reasons for why he should buy that amount?
15. Can you justify them?
16. Now is the time to think about your method of Introduction - "The attention getter".
17. Are visuals recquired? Samples? Special flyers?

FINAL CHECK

18. Do a quick run through of your sales presentation and refine where necessary.
19. Are you convinced? Did it sound good?
20. Run through it one more time just before you go into seeing the buyer.

POST CALL ANALYSIS

21. How did it go?
22. Can you use it again?
23. Do you need to do further work on it?
24. Any objections you couldn't handle?

ALWAYS REMEMBER

a. The Buyer will only buy if you have given him enough good reasons to buy.
b. They must be convincing reasons and answer his needs.
c. The Buyer will only buy the amount you want if he can see justification to do so.

and finally be prepared to be innovative... here is one of my favourite poems that show where the lack of innovations gets you :-)

THE CALF PATH

One day through the primeval wood
A calf walked home as good calves should;
But made a trail all bent askew,
A crooked trail as all calves do.
Since then three hundred years have fled,
And I infer the calf is dead.

But still he left behind his trail,
And thereby hangs my moral tale.
The trail was taken up next day
By a lone dog that passed that way;
And then a wise bell-wethered sheep
Pursued the trail o'er vale and steep.
And drew the flock behind him too
As good bell-wethers always do.
And from that day, o'er hill and glade,
through those old woods a path was made.

And many men would in and out,
And dogged and turned and bent about,
And uttered words of righteous wrath
Because 'twas such a crooked path;
But still they followed - do not laugh -
The first migrations of that calf,
And through this winding wood-way stalked
Because he wobbled when he walked.
This forrest path became a lane
That bent and turned and turned again;
This crooked lane became a road,
Where many a poor horse with his load
Toiled on beneath the burning sun,
And traveled some three miles in one
And thus a centuary and a half
They trod the footsteps of that calf.

The years passed on in swiftness fleet,
The road became a village street;
And this before men were aware,
A city's crowded throughfare.
And soon the central street was this
Of a renowned metropolis;
And men two centuries and a half
Trod in the footsteps of that calf.
Each day a hundred thousand rout
Followed this zigzag calf about
And o'er crooked journey went
The traffic of a continent.
A hundred thousand men were led
By one calf near three centuries dead.
They followed still his crooked way
And lost one hundred years a day;
For such reverence is lent
To well established precedent.

A moral lesson this might teach
Were I ordained and called to preach;
For men are prone to go it blind
Along the calf path of the mind
And work away from sun to sun
To do what other men have done.
They follow in the beaten track
And out and in, and forth and back,
And still their devious course pursue,
To keep the path that others do,
They keep the path a sacred groove,
Along which all their lives they move.
But how the wise old wood-gods laugh,
Who saw the first primeval calf
Ah, many things this tale might teach -
But I am not ordained to preach.

Sir Walter Foss 1895

So having read this go look at your current web site and see how it fairs :-)