More Sales Made Easy
Nick Roberts
Our well-loved President of the Hawkes Bay Chamber of Commerce Murray Douglas says that the biggest constraint on HB business over the years has been generating and maintaining sales. Responding to my Tweet that selling was easy if you get your marketing right, a contact commented that’s all very well but no one’s buying.
Reflecting upon that, it seems to me that the trick is to get the extra business from your competition who are still selling. Easier said than done?
Analyse your competitors and look for their weaknesses and then focus on their weak spots e.g. if they do a good job but are expensive base your selling on price. If their prices are competitive but their service is poor, focus on adding value. These days great customer service is not enough - you must reduce all the costs of doing business with you, not just monetary, but time, effort and emotional costs e.g. automated answering!
Avoid your competitors’ weak spots, but build upon their strengths. What are they doing well? Why have they got to where they are today?
To analyse your competitors do some research, mystery shop them or organise an on-line or pavement survey. Get out and about and talk to customers, prospects and your trade association. Ask me for my Competitor Analysis worksheet.
If you do the same as everyone else, you’ll be perceived as the same. Don’t be put off by people saying it won’t work - if you don’t try, you’ll never know and the worst that can happen is that you will learn how to do it better next time. Otherwise, you’ll be left behind by others with more imagination!
If you have any tax or business queries of any kind telephone 0800 ASK NICK, e-mail nick@abac.co.nz or use “Contact Us” on www.abac.co.nz. The information in this article is of a general nature and should not be relied upon as a substitute for specific advice.
