Selling Tactics

Andrew Youtz asked:


You’ve heard the stories of eBay success and probably even deemed some of them unbelievable. EBay has taken internet sales by storm and many people around the world are now making a great full time living from eBay alone. I began selling on eBay in April of 2006 and quickly found just how profitable eBay can be. EBay became my primary income only 3 months after my first sale. I now make a 6 figure full time income generated only by my eBay Powerseller accounts. Here are a few tips to follow to help you get started on the road to financial freedom for yourself.

Start selling items from around your home

Go through your closets, garage, cupboards, attic and basement and look for things you don’t use or no longer need. Remember, trash is trash, but things you might think of as trash actually can be sold on eBay very easily. Selling items that you no longer need or want will help increase your feedback and allow you to build your reputation on eBay. You probably won’t get rich selling the stuff you don’t want, but it sure is a great way to remove clutter from your home and make you some extra cash.

The Feedback Score is Very Important

As mentioned above, you want to build your feedback. Shoot to get your feedback score up in the double or triple digits as quickly as possible. This will make a huge difference to your potential customers. Feedback scores are grouped together into one category whether you are buying or selling. If people want to view your feedback score (your reputation) they can visit your feedback profile area and read the comments that are left by previous buyers and sellers that you dealt with. Do people really do that? YES they do.

Sign Up With PayPal

95% of all payments I receive are made to me through PayPal. PayPal accepts credit card payments and electronic checks so you don’t even need to get a merchant account to sell on eBay or anywhere else online. PayPal is set up to be a simple and fast funding source for eBay customers and is quickly becoming one of the primary payment sources all over the internet.

Communication is very important!

EBay is all about how well you can communicate. Your item description is one of the most important factors in whether or not your item sells. Your description should tell the buyer everything about the item you are selling. Lots of quality pictures are also a very important factor to determine whether or not you make a sale. Once again look at what the other sellers are doing and take note of why some sellers just seem more credible than others. It is OK if you are selling something that is flawed or scratched as long as you tell the buyers about it in your ad. Do not be afraid to point out the condition of the item. If it is not working it can still sell. There are people looking for what you are selling. It all comes down to price and whether or not they find you a credible seller.

Be sure to communicate with the buyer before, during and after the sale. Messages sent letting customers know what is going on at all points in the process will help assure you receive a positive feedback. Be sure to send a thank you message when the item is won or purchased and additional messages when you receive payment and ship their item. In all your communications be polite and courteous. When you do this you will build an incredible reputation and people will be spreading the word about you as a great eBay seller.

Don’t get discouraged

It is likely that it will take a while to become accustom to selling on eBay and build your reputation to the point that you see regular sales. People are bargain hunting on eBay, so find items you can afford to sell, and price them so you can make the profit you want. If you have items that are hand crafted or homemade, decide if the price you can sell them at is going to be worth your time and effort. Search eBay for items similar to your own and get an idea of the price things sell for. Check your competition. Find out if hundreds of people selling the same item? Can you compete with them? Are your suppliers selling the same products on eBay? Millions of items sell on eBay daily so don’t limit yourself or get your heart set on selling one specific thing.

You can make great money selling on eBay just like the millions of eBay sellers all over the world. Whether you want to be an EBay seller part time as a hobby, or turn it into a full time business will be up to you. These 5 basic tips will help you set the foundation to build a profit producing eBay business of your own.



OMAR

Jason Kay asked:


Stories of ordinary people becoming millionaires overnight with the help of some wonderful programs are flooding us from all directions and even though many of these stories are exaggerated at best and total lies at worst, there are many ways in which you can make money, even if you are not a unique talent. Well, I don’t mean that photography does not require talent, but even beginner photographers can make money by selling their photos. Most likely you will not make your first million selling photos, but this is a viable way to earn some extra cash. Photos are a product and as with all products, you need to know what to offer and where to sell it.

What You Can Sell

For those people, who have no idea about photography, a photo is just a photo, but for people who are familiar with photography and arts in general, there are separate distinct groups of photos. The most obvious distinction of photos is based on their content, but for the purposes of selling photos, this distinction is not as important as what the photo can be used for.

The two major uses of photos are for the Web and in print. Web photos tend to be low resolution and lower quality is acceptable for them, while print photos generally are high resolution and low quality is unacceptable. As a beginner photographer, you will most likely target the Web market first because the entry barrier there is not as high as with the printing market. Additionally, if your camera is not a high-end one, your skills in photo processing will hardly be able to compensate for this, so in this case, print photos are not an option for you because of technical reasons. This shouldn’t discourage you because the Web market is vast and there is a lot of space for beginners.

The main buyers on the Web market are Web designers, who make sites for their clients. For many Web designers it is much easier and cheaper to buy ready-made photos than to take the pictures themselves. A solo Web designer can make 10 or even more middle-sized sites a month, which means that he or she will need at least 200-300 photos and illustrations. This does not mean that you will be able to sell 200-300 photos a month to each Web designer you contact, but even if you manage to sell him or her 10-20 photos a month, or more realistically a batch of several hundred photos for him or her to use in the next year, then you can make a lot of money.

Similar to other arts, photography also has genres. Not surprisingly, photos of people, nature and cities sell best. Another category, which is especially popular with designers, is objects of different kinds. You can shoot a light bulb, a pen, some pills, or whatever object you choose, and this may be enough. Add some unobtrusive background to it and you get a cool photo for a Web site. But be careful with copyrights because not all manufacturers will be happy if you shoot their products and make money from this. Try shooting generic products, which have no visible branding.

Similar copyright issues apply to people. If you want to shoot people and you want to be on the safe side, ask them to sign a model contract, which clarifies all the issues in regard to copyrights and sales. Very often you won’t have to hire professional models and you can shoot your friends and relatives instead. Your models don’t have to be extremely beautiful because pictures of ordinary people also sell well. Shooting friends and relatives has one more advantage - they work cheaply or free.

Nature and urban photos are always in demand, but avoid photos which look as if they were taken by tourists because they simply look too unprofessional to be sold. Abstractions are also popular, so if you are creative with PhotoShop or another image processing program you can wake up the Picasso in you.

Where You Can Sell

The type of photos you have is one of the major factors in choosing your sales channels. Basically, the options to sell your photos are the following:

1. Stock photo sites. Stock photo sites are the most popular sales channel. Stock photos are photos you have already taken, i.e. you have in stock. You open an account with a stock photo site, upload your images and every time somebody downloads your photo, you earn a commission. Different sites have different policies, but it’s not unusual to earn $40 per photo each time it is downloaded.

If your photos are popular, it is not impossible to reach dozens of downloads per week. One of the prerequisites for success is to submit sought after photos and to use the right keywords in the descriptions of your photos. The best stock photo site I have found is Shutterpoint. They provide photographers an e-commerce store-front for selling photos, handle advertising and promotion, handle all purchase transactions, provide customer service, and securely deliver images to buyers. All of these features are provided for a very reasonable fee, and in addition, other members often provide valuable feedback on your photos. This is a great way to begin your career as a professional photographer.

2. Stock agencies. Stock agencies are similar to stock photo sites, but in addition to listing your photos, they consult buyers and handle all the legal and logistical matters. Stock agencies usually deal with professional photographers mainly but there are stock agencies, which are beginner-friendly. As with stock photo sites, you usually have to decide (if you have the choice of course) whether you want to sell exclusive rights or only per use rights.

3. Sell directly to newspapers and magazines. Although this is hardly the easiest way to sell your photographs, it is worth trying. Newspapers and magazines are a very tough market to get into but can be a very high paying one. For a start, you can try your local or community media.

4. eBay and similar auctions. Auction sites, such as eBay, are one more sales outlet you can try. Yes you really can earn decent income from selling photos on eBay. This is a good alternative if you sell other products in addition to photos, but even if photos are the only thing you sell, eBay and the other auction sites can do a lot for you. Make sure to avoid small and dark photos. Listings should be created which are descriptive and include realistic prices. Check the Completed Listings option when searching to see examples of photos which have sold.

5. Freelance sites. Unlike the other options listed up to here, freelance sites are generally a place for work for hire projects. This means that usually a buyer comes and asks you to make some photos especially for him or her, but very often there are buyers who offer to purchase your already made (or stock) photos as well.

6. Your own website. Even if the other options work great for you, having your own website is a valuable sales channel. You can offer everything you like - i.e. low resolution mockups for free, paid downloads, etc. The downside is that you need to market your site, otherwise you will hardly get much traffic and, respectively, sales. Search engine optimization is a must and if you are really serious about selling your photos via your website, you can even consider starting an affiliate program.

7. Free samples. These days advertisements are something one can hardly sell without. Instead of launching an expensive campaign, you can give photos away for free but keep your logo on them. This is a kind of advertisement and it will bring you new customers.



CLARK

John V asked:


power selling on ebay is fast become a very lucritive business to have online. Everyone at least knows someone who has sold an item on ebay at some point in time. But power sellers on ebay are a rare breed that earn a full time income by selling lots of individual items of ebay for big profits and big rewards.

It doesn’t take much effort as a hobby to sell your items on ebay, but alot of people fall in love with the fact that you can work from the comfort of your own home and make tons of money selling other peoples stuff. This extra step further has infact made Power Selling On Ebay highly lucritive.

Imagine giving up your full or part time job to work on ebay. Exciting, but before you begin you need to know what you need in order for things to run smoothly.

Heres what you will need in order to become successful Power Selling On Ebay :-

1) Sign up for an account with http://ebay.com

2) A printer and computer with internet access.

3) Some merchandise

4) Camera to take photos of stock

The most important part of a proper set up is finding legit merchandise to sell to the people that will be attracted to your auctions. But before you even do this, you must be aware there are things that people want. Yes. Why sell stuff to people that they don’t want. If there is a need to be filled, then you need to fill it and sell what those people want. If you spend 20 or so minutes you will find that there are waves of popular items that people will want to buy online.

Once you find what people want to buy, you need to start selling it. Power Selling On Ebay means you sell high volumes of items instead of one or two different items. The real intelligent thing to do is to start off small then work you way up. It would be embarrassing, and stupid to buy in bulk and not test first. Otherwise you will be stuck with merchandise that nobody wants. That would be a nightmare.

You also don’t want to buy things that are heavy and bulky, or that have a high cost. Power Selling On Ebay is alot easier if you sell smaller items with less weight.

Flea markets are well known to successful ebay power sellers. It would be stupid to go to the markets and pick up the first thing and buy with hope that you will make a killing when you post it up in your ebay auctions. Before you buy think to yourself “Is there really a market for this”. Even if you think that market is a little bit weak move on to something that is popular and has a better chance of selling.

When it comes time to posting your auction you need to do the following :-

1) Select suitable items to sell.

2) Make sure you photograph items and they are clear.

3) Make sure you descriptions are clear, precise, and descriptive to increase the chance of more bids.

4) Make sure you are quick to respond to the buyer.

5) Send item quickly and communicate with the buyer during this process.

The biggest mistake you can make Power Selling On Ebay is not adhering to the rules and regulations of ebay. Follow the guidelines and give people what they want and get ready to fill your pockets with boatloads of cash.



EMMANUEL

Bob Urichuck asked:


How to sell anything, to anybody, anywhere at any price was the title of a talk given to me to deliver at the National Achievers conference in Kuala Lumpur and Singapore in 2001 in front of over 5,000 participants in each city.

Although I was fortunate to share the stage with inspiring speakers like Robert Kiyosaki, I was the only speaker on sales.

How to sell is one thing, but to how to sell anything, to anybody anywhere at any price is another. At least that is what I thought when the title was first given to me. However, the more I thought about it, the more I realized this topic, “ABC, 123 Sales Results System” covered all the bases.

Let’s first build a solid foundation for how to sell. How to sell starts with Attitude - a desire to want to sell, with a belief in yourself, that you can sell. How to sell requires you to believe in your organization, it value proposition, it’s products and services and the supporting team players.

When you believe, others will too. However, If you do not believe in yourself, your organization, it’s products and services, the supporting team players, or the market, nor will the prospect. How to sell is based first on beliefs.

Your beliefs is your foundation to how to sell successfully or not. Your beliefs determine your attitude. It is our attitude that determines how you feel. How we feel determines the actions you take. The actions you take determine your results.

When it comes to how to sell, your beliefs lead the way. Your beliefs are under your control and only you can change them. As an adult you should be able to distinguish between what is real and what is not in your beliefs and clean them up. You need to get your beliefs up to a 10 if you want to succeed in life, not only in sales.

The next step in how to sell is to ensure you demonstrate appropriate results oriented Behaviors. Behaviors are your daily habits. First do you have personal goals? If so, great as they are your guiding motivators when it comes to how to sell.

If not, how can you ever achieve goals for others, if you first cannot achieve them for yourself. You cannot give something to somebody else if you do not have it to give away in the first place.

When it comes to how to sell, our personal goals keep us focused, disciplined and motivated. Our corporate goals also keep us employed, focused, disciplines and motivated when it comes to how to sell.

However, when it comes how to sell to the market place, our behavior for results has to be targeted. Targeted to markets and prospects that will give us the quickest market positioning, reputation and results, in the shortest time frame.

In others words, how to sell requires you to do some homework and consider your return on time invested (R.O.T.I.). How, when and where can you maximize your R.O.T.I.?

How to sell requires the right foundation as we have learned in Attitude and Behavior. How to sell also requires that you follow a sales results system, or sales process. This is referred to having the appropriate Competencies when you are face to face with a client.

The Competencies that we are referring to here when it comes to how to sell are communication skills. The art of asking in depth questions and listening, while taking notes is fundamental when it comes to how to sell.

With competent communication skills we can build rapport, develop trust and start a relationship. The first competency step in how to sell. How to sell requires that you also qualify the prospect. With trust you can proceed to set parameters, uncover buying motivators, financial ability, and decision making processes, qualifying the prospect.

It is at the summary stage that you will know if you can help them with a solution or not. If not, let them know you cannot. If you can, proceed to prescribe them a solution. How to sell up until this point is all about building trust qualifying the prospect. That is the job of a real sales professional.

Now take note that you are asking all the questions up until this point putting you in control of the sales process. That is how to sell. How to sell is not about telling - it is not about you, your company, products, services or solutions.

How to sell professionally is about engaging the prospect into buying- it is all about them, their needs, their budget and their decision.



BRENDAN

Willard Michlin asked:


The statistics on businesses sold in California are well worth knowing. Over 70% of all businesses on the market, are not sold. Why is this?

The two strongest reasons for failure are lack of preparation and an unrealistic selling price. Valuing a business correctly tends to resolve the unrealistic selling price problem. Know when to hold the price and when to change the price also helps businesses sell quicker. But, what about the preparation points?

Lets discuss the various factors that can help you get fully prepared when selling your business.

The decision to sell – People decide to sell their businesses for many different reasons. My experience shows that the main reason is because of a failed goal or purpose, of some sort. Sellers are not happy when he or she has not been making it to their satisfaction or their original goal has not being achieved. Another truly legitimate reason is if a business owner’s health is going down hill. Lastly, sometimes it is just time to retire, and play golf or travel. Whatever your reason, it is important to identify exactly what the reason is that you want to sell your business, and to be totally honest with yourself and others on this point. The reason you might be selling does not adversely affect the selling price, but it may help the marketing activities, for the agent and make the final negotiations go easier. People really like to understand why a seller wants to get out, and they are perceptive if you are lying on that point.

How to sell it – The next part of being prepared, is to make the decision to “sell it yourself,” or use a business broker. The main advantage in selling the business yourself is that you save on the commission. Brokers, usually charge 10% of the sales price for businesses priced at less than $1 Million Dollars. This can seem like a lot of money but it isn’t. If you do the marketing yourself, you would have to cover all cost of advertising the business and take all the time necessary to talk to every inquiry. Have you looked at what an add costs in the Los Angeles Times? Imagine putting in an advertisement every week for 6 months. You could take your wife on a first class cruise around the world for that much money. (Sorry Norman Chandler.)

The advantages in using a broker are many. Brokers have established marketing lines that allow them to offer your business to lots of people, in a short period of time. They know the market and are well versed in all the potential pitfalls involved in selling a business. They handle all costs associated with marketing and packaging the business and they are only paid if and when the business sells. No legitimate brokerage asks for upfront fees. You need to decide, are you going to sell it yourself or use a competent broker? I did say a competent broker; there are both good and bad brokers as in any business.

Who you should not try selling it to – When people think about selling their business, they often think of selling it to their competitors or employees. This is actually not a good idea. A competitor’s value of your business is based entirely on advantages they would be achieving, if you were not in business and therefore not hindering the expansion of their business. They look at what the net effect would be if they owned your resources (clients, territories, inventories, etc.)

Also, competitors historically are only willing to buy a similar business, for 20-33% of the price that an outsider would pay for your business. This is because the insider knows the headaches of your business and discounts the price because of them. Also many competitors will appear to be interested in buying your business, as a way to find out trade secrets. Many times they never had any real interest in buying your business at all.

Employees, when buying a business from their employer do like the idea of all the perks of ownership, but in truth, they do not like the responsibilities and potential liabilities that come with ownership. A really big problem is when employees know that a business is for sale; they usually start looking around for a new employer. I really cannot say this strongly enough. When selling your business, it is not a good idea to go to your competitors and / or employees, as a starting point.

Things that will help with the sale – A part of being prepared is to have your accounting records up to date, available and complete. This will make it much easier to get started on selling the business and to close a deal quicker. Try to put together the following before you start;

a) 2 years of profit and loss statements for the business

b) The most recent twelve to eighteen months of sales – listed by month

c) List of all equipment, with estimated market value as used equipment in place, not at fire sale prices.

d) Current list of inventories – if any

e) Copies of any property lease, equipment leases and other business related documents, such as current health department certificate as in the case of a restaurant, or OSHA spray booth permit.

f) List of all perks you personally get out of the business (these, added back into the financial reports, increase the profit figures for the business, thereby making the business more valuable).

g) A brief description of the business; what it does; the area it covers and the future expansion possibilities.

Changing the way you keep your accounting records – If you are one of the few people who do not keep accurate books, then today is the day to change your record keeping. If you are writing off everything in the world against your business, you do not need to change that action in order to sell your business. Just be able to pick out those items that a buyer wouldn’t incur if they bought the business and be able to give this information to a buyer or broker. The more important change that is needed is to take 100% of all sales and services and get them deposited in the bank and recorded as sales. If you are unwilling to do this for tax reasons, I understand. This is critical to getting the highest price. Declaring all your income, also allows you to sleep better, knowing that you are keeping books that you can show any buyer or any government official. If you feel that recording all income will also raise your income taxes, then stop worrying. There are some very good accountants around who know how to save taxes legally. If you cannot find one, I will find one for you.

Negotiation and flexibility – One of the reasons some brokers are worth their weight in gold, is because they are very good at negotiation and know how to create win-win situations. They keep the parties talking and know how to work the offers until the business is sold. You should be prepared to be flexible while negotiating the sale of your business, also. Do not for example insist on ‘all-cash for the business and nothing else’. This sort of inflexible approach will usually kill a deal before it gets started. Also, let your broker do his or her job; do not discuss price and terms with prospective buyers directly. Let your broker know what points you are willing to negotiate and which you are not, in advance of getting offers. This will help to get more offers.

Most of all you want to do everything you can to make sure a deal to sell your business is concluded as quickly as possible. There is a law with regard to selling a business. “The more time that passes, the harder it is to sell a business, and the easier it is for a business deal to fall apart.” So, do what you can to expedite the sale of your business and work with your broker.



ALONZO

Drew Stevens asked:


Copyright (c) 2008 Drew Stevens PhD

Athletes practice, students practice, musicians practice, business professionals should practice, strategic selling professionals must practice. If you tire of working so hard and not achieving, perhaps now is the time to treat your profession like an athlete does. Start thinking like an athlete so that you have the inside track for your profession. Here is a new seven-step formula to create your success.

Strategic account professionals lack a methodology to remain on track with clients. They, like any professional, need a global positioning system to comprehend the relationship, the pipeline, and the close. Similar to methods an athlete practices to achieve success, here is a method for strategic success.

P - Prepare Competitive Intelligence

Customers no longer desire focus on product; they want to understand results. The only method to remediate this issue is the creation of a client-competitive intelligence program. Use investigative tools that promote the client’s organizational comprehension, industry knowledge, and even competitive trends and pressures. A sincere understanding of client issues assists in promoting a strong relationship.

R - Relationships.

The differentiation lies here. Clients today deserve and desire a trusting guided relationship with their account manager. Clients know more about the products and services you sell than you do. A new process is required: movement from product presentations to value. Clients need to understand the impact your offering has on their need and how quickly it assists.

A - Alliances

Strategic selling professionals require alliances. The network one builds provides useful insight into client account activity. The myriad of networks sellers use to remain visible, insightful, and competitive provides client value.

C - Customer Loyalty

Eighty percent of most organizations believe they deliver exemplary customer service. Ironically, less then twenty percent do. According to research by consultancy Bain and Company, only eight percent of companies really deliver on customer service. In fact, U.S. corporations lose half their customers every five years. Loyal customers become adjuncts to the marketing department. Make certain your organization invests in programs that promote customer loyalty. It makes strategic selling much easier.

T - Tools Promoting Value

There are too many barriers to selling. To lessen impediments, the best professionals learn to strategically view accounts as trusted partners. Avatars return calls quickly, communicate account issues inter-departmentally, and decrease silos and bureaucracy. When clients obtain information wherever, whenever, and however, their representatives value results from service, expediency, and commitment.

I - Invest in Technology

Technology is about connectivity. We all feel overwhelmed by the quantities of e-mail and voice mail. However, technology provides the competitive advantage of maintaining customer connections. Preserve clients with proper communication. The best rule of thumb is once or twice per month, either by telephone or in person.

C - Competitive Differentiation

Differentiation stems from doing things the competition does not. However, you cannot design a strategic program if you do not understand the competitive field. Conduct homework to discern competitive characteristics. Develop useful methods designed around client need. Most important, focus on the result and the client outcome, NOT on your organizational outcome—that is client value.

E - Evaluation

Exemplars for strategic selling constantly evaluate programs. Great strategists employ a team of advisors that understand issues, refrain from tactics, and ask great questions. Seek new answers to old issues and produce better outcomes.

Similar to an athlete seeking to gain a competitive advantage, you too must seek the inside track. Clients today are more discretionary. Ensure your success with proper relationships that enable competitive advantage, insight, and availability and watch your goals become reality.

© 2008. Drew J. Stevens. All rights reserved.



DEVIN

Sean McPhcat asked:


Hard selling is when you go straight to the point and start to try to sell your product without any finesse. It is simply telling your prospective buyer that he should buy your product. Now this hard-core approach may work in some instances but the majority of your prospective buyers will be put off the sale by this approach. Here are 10 good reasons to change your sales tactics.

1. People **** being sold to: hard sell will bring out the worst in people. When aggressive sales techniques are used this will prompt the prospective buyer to be aggressive as well and act negatively to the sales person. Pretty soon they are ready to argue with you and you know the sale is completely lost.

2. Hard sell will intimidate your prospective buyer: This sales tactic will intimidate some buyers and again cause them to have less interest in the sale. Intimidation will again give your prospective buyer negative feelings towards the sale. They will not have a very good feeling about your company when they see the sort of sales people you hire. This is another factor that will cause you to lose the sales

3. Hard sell makes you sound desperate to sell and this will always put off your buyer. The buyer can sense when the sales person is desperate to sell a product to them. The buyer wonders why the seller is so desperate and is immediately suspicious. This suspicion will turn into mistrust of the truth in what the sales person is saying. The buyer will very likely not buy the product.

4. Hard sell in sales copy will often use hype and prospective buyers can see right through this. Prospective buyers are savvier than they were and will not put up with hype. They want the facts not some pie in the sky promise. If sales copy tries to push the sale with this type of tactic there will be no sale.

5. Prospects need a reason to buy: hard sell does not allow time to explain benefits and what the prospective buyer can expect from the product. Hard sell usually uses features rather than benefits. Benefits are the reason for a customer to buy. You must answer the quest on every prospective buyers mind “What’s in it for me?”

6. You need to build rapport with prospective buyers: building a relationship with your potential buyer is a very important part of selling. You will not only make a sale on the initial product you will build confidence in your buyer. When the buyer has confidence, they will very likely purchase another related product from your company. If you use hard sell you cannot build this all-important relationship. Ultimately you will lose not only the initial sale but also a valuable long-term customer.

7. Soft sell will allow the reader to make his own decision without being pushed into a sale. As mentioned people do not like to be sold to, they do not want to feel that someone is dictating to them and telling them that they have to buy something. Most people want to feel that they are making their own decisions and soft sell will do this for them.

8. Soft sell always outsells hard sell: it is a proven fact that soft sell always outsells soft sell. This is because people can be persuaded but do not like to be forced into a sale. Hard sell is literally pushing your product at your prospective customer and not giving them a chance to say no. Soft sell on the other hand is offering your prospective buyer a product and allowing them to make the decision to buy.

9. It is easier and more enjoyable to use soft sell tactics: soft sell will allow you to use more sales strategies. It is a more enjoyable way to sell because you can talk to the customer, demonstrate benefits and build up a good rapport with your prospective buyer. It is more enjoyable to talk with your buyer and get to know him rather than pushing a sale on him.

10. Soft sell is a powerful way of pre selling products and warming your customer for the sale. When you warm your prospective buyer for the sale, you will be far more successful in selling your product or service. People like to know more about products before they buy and pre selling will allow you to do this for them.

Hard sell rarely works because of the above reasons. Additionally there is a stereotype of the pushy sales person using hard sell tactics. When hard sell is used this image comes into the prospects mind and prevents them from accepting the sale. In this way you will lose many sales.



SAMMIE

Ari Galper asked:


Sometimes we can all use a friendly reminder to keep us from backsliding into old ways of thinking about selling that lead us down the wrong path with potential clients.

New Thinking = New Results

Maybe it’s time to take a different approach. Maybe we need to seriously analyze our sales thinking so we can identify why we’re not making more sales. Take a look at the table below and thinkabout your current selling mindset. How would your selling behaviors change if you changed your sales thinking?

Traditional Sales Mindset Vs Unlock The Game™ Mindset

1. Always deliver a strong sales pitch. Vs Stop the sales pitch — and start a conversation.

2. Your central objective is always to close the sale. Vs Your central goal is always to discover whether you and your potential client are a good fit.

3. When you lose a sale, it’s usually at the end of the sales process. Vs When you lose a sale, it’s usually right at the beginning of the sales process.

4. Rejection is a normal part of selling. Vs Sales pressure is the only cause of rejection. Rejection should never happen.

5. Keep chasing every potential client until you get a yes or a no. Vs Never chase a potential client — you’ll only trigger more sales pressure.

6. When a prospect offers objections, challenge and/or counter them. Vs When a potential client offers objections, uncover the truth behind them.

7. If a potential client challenges the value of your product or service, you must defend yourself and explain the value. Vs Never defend yourself or what you have to offer — it only creates more sales pressure.

Let’s take a closer look at these central Unlock The Game™ concepts so you can begin to open up your current sales thinking and become more effective in your selling activities:

1) Stop the sales pitch — and start a conversation.

When you call someone, avoid making a mini-presentation about yourself, your company, and what you have to offer. Start with an opening conversational phrase that focuses on a specific problem that your product or service solves. If you don’t know what this is, ask your current customers why they purchased your solution. One example of an opening phrase might be, “I’m just calling to see if you’d be open to some different ideas related to lowering the risk of any computer downtime you may be having in your company?” Notice that you are not pitching your solution with this opening phrase.

2) Your central goal is always to discover whether you and your potential client are a good fit.

Let go of trying to “close the sale” or “get the appointment”– and you will discover that you don’t have to take responsibility for moving the sales process forward. If you simply focus your conversation on problems that you can help potential clients solve, and if you don’t jump the gun by trying to move the sales process forward, you will find that potential clients will actually bring you into their buying process.

3) When you lose a sale, it’s usually right at the beginning of the sales process.

If you believe that you lose sales because you make a mistake at the end of the process, take a look back at how you began the relationship. Did you start with a presentation? Did you use traditional sales language like, “We have a solution that I believe you really need” or “Others in your industry have bought our solution, so you should consider it as well”?

When you use traditional sales language, potential clients can’t help but label you with the negative stereotype of “salesperson.” This makes it almost impossible for them to relate to you from a position of trust. And if trust isn’t established at the outset, honest communication about the problems they’re trying to solve, and how you might be able to help them, becomes impossible too.

4) Sales pressure is the only cause of rejection. Rejection should never happen.

Rejection happens for only one reason: Something you said, as subtle as it might have been, triggered a defensive reaction from your potential client. Yes, something you said. To eliminate rejection, simply shift your mindset so that you give up the hidden agenda of hoping to make a sale. Instead, everything you say and do should stem from the basic mindset that you are there to help potential clients. This makes you able to ask, “Would you be open to talking about issues you might be having affecting your business?”

5) Never chase a potential client–you’ll only trigger more sales pressure.

“Chasing” potential clients has always been considered normal and necessary, but it’s rooted in the macho selling image that, “If you don’t keep chasing, it means you’re giving up — and that means you’re a failure.” This is dead wrong! Instead of chasing potential clients, tell them that you would like to avoid anything that resembles the old cat-and-mouse chasing game by scheduling a time for your next chat.

6) When a potential client offers objections, uncover the truth behind them.

Most traditional sales programs spend a lot of time focusing on “overcoming objections.” These tactics only put more sales pressure on potential clients and also fail to explore or understand the truth behind what the potential client is saying. When you hear, “We don’t have the budget,” “Send me information,” or “Call me in a few months,” do you think you’re hearing the truth, or do you suspect that these are polite evasions designed to end the conversation?

Rather than trying to counter objections, you can uncover the truth by replying, “That’s not a problem” — no matter what clients are “objecting” to — and then using gentle, dignified language that invites them to reveal the truth about their situation.

7) Never defend yourself or what you have to offer — it only creates more sales pressure.

When a potential client says, “Why should I choose you over your competition?,” your first, instinctive reaction is probably to start defending your product or service because you want to convince them to buy. But what do you think goes through your potential client’s mind at that point?

Something like, “This ’salesperson’ is trying to sell me on why what they have to offer is better, but I **** feeling as if I’m being sold.” Rather than defending yourself, try suggesting that you aren’t going to try to convince them of anything because that would only create sales pressure. Instead, ask them about the key problems that they are trying to solve, and then explore how your product or service might solve those problems –without ever trying to persuade.. Let potential clients feel that they can choose you without feeling “sold.”

You too can improve your sales effectiveness if you are open minded and willing to try a new and more natural selling approach.



BRYAN

Ronald W. Firquain asked:


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I think the best method of selling Electronic Books on eBay is to build a large, constantly expanding, automated e-book business on eBay which requires regular promotion. Description: LIST OF FREE e-BOOK SITES Buying Electronic Books on eBay is huge right now, I personally have brought hundreds, maybe thousands many for 99 page some less some more. The startup cost for selling Digital Books on eBay is much less than physical products. Passive Viral Marketing Profits Selling Electronic Books On eBay is delivered in PDF format and is viewable on any computer.

Selling e-Books On eBay is delivered in pdf format and is viewable on any operating system.

e-Books are completely free to create and free to distribute. Digital Book are slowly becoming the new medium for delivering book content. Electronic Books can also be printed for off-line reading as well. e-Books will not take up precious space in you home as they are digital products and can be stored on your computer or web server. e-Books are a digital product, which means the same item can be sold over and over again and each time it sells you make more money.

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Electronic Books are a great item to sell, as there are no printing or shipping costs. Digital Book get delivered to customers through email, in the form of a digital download. Digital Books are not only easy and fast to create, but fast to market as well. Digital Books Get The Right Information At The Beginning You can make it in the world on the internet and make a good profit along way as well. e-Book about cooking, Digital Book about cleaning, child rearing, golf, cars and anything else you can think of. Electronic books that solve problems sell best because people generally are lazy and want their problems solved for them.



EARL

N. Robbins asked:


Almost every online business follows a basic model. This is a tried and tested system that would allow you to effectively sell your products in the World Wide Web. It is an automated system that could act as your sales agent 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, even when you’re offline. Have you followed this basic model so far?

Let’s have a checklist:

? Have you pinpointed your target market?

? Have you come up with a product to sell?

? Have you created a search engine-optimized website?

? Have you promoted your website well, through article marketing, forum marketing, blogs, and outside links?

? Have you come up with a sales page for your product?

? Are you garnering enough traffic for your sales page?

? Have you integrated a follow-up system in your website?

? Have you determined a price for your product?

If you have done all these things, then there is no reason why you shouldn’t rake in some substantial earnings.

The only concern left that we have to tackle is how to sustain your profit. Surely, if you’d gather a stable stream of visitors for your web page, you’d be able to generate some sales. But you should always aim for more.

And this can be done through cross-selling and back selling.

Cross-selling involves the sale of products related to the main products you are selling. For example, you are selling an eBook on dog grooming. You could offer supportive products like dog grooming kits, dog instructional videos, and the likes. You don’t have to come up with these products yourself. You could simply look for other online businesses offering these items, and you could sign up as their affiliate. As an affiliate, you just have to refer people to the other business’ sales page, and when the visitors you have referred would decide to make some purchases, you’ll get a commission for every sale!

Back selling is slightly more complicated. It involves offering your other products at the exact points of sale. Points of sale are those moments during the instruction when your customers are most willing to purchase something. By offering them other products during these times, there is a higher likelihood that they’d buy from you! These points of sale can be broken down into:

? That moment when your customer clicks on the order button. He will be diverted to a new page for his payment details. You could include a pop-up for this page advertising your other products. Better yet, the pop-ups could even employ urgency marketing to better your chances of bagging more sales.

? That moment when your customer has just purchased a product from you. Normally, he’ll be redirected to a Thank You page. In the Thank You page, you could advertise other offers as well.

When automating your online business, do keep these in mind. If you manage to integrate cross-selling and back selling tactics in specific points of your website, you’d be able to rake in more profit! It’s as simple as that!

Do you need some products to cross promote of to offer at the backend of every deal? You could check out the many affiliate programs online. For sure, there is one which is relevant to the subject your business is servicing. Simply choose the products that complement what you’re offering, or at the very least, target the same audience your own products are aiming for. This would provide for you the greatest chance of success when it comes to the aforementioned supplements for your online sales.

NOTE: You have full permission to reprint this article within your website or newsletter as long as you leave the article fully intact and include the “About The Author” resource box. Thanks! :-



THURMAN