As a small business owner, you have to know sales inside and out. You likely already began this process when applying for start-up funding. You had to come up with a business plan and appeal to other entities to get financed – you had to sell everyone on you.
However, running a successful business is about much more than getting your initial funding. From there, it’s only just beginning.
Starting out you’re going to have fewer resources than bigger and/or already established businesses in your industry. You need to study, learn, and master all the sales tips you can find. Because you have less of a marketing budget and less experience, every bit of effort (financial or otherwise) you put toward sales needs to count.
1. Pay Attention to Marketing Trends
First, you need to pay attention to the marketing trends in your industry. What are your competitors doing? Can you emulate it, even if on a smaller scale?
Additionally, you need to pay attention to what consumers are responding to. For example, what’s one thing almost every American adult has in common? The answer is social media – Facebook alone has nearly 2.4 billion users worldwide.
Once you’ve picked up on today’s marketing trends, start researching how you can incorporate them into your advertising budget. Here are some examples of strong marketing trends that can benefit companies across the industrial board:
- Social media marketing (paid and organic)
- Influencer marketing (mostly for retailers)
- Email marketing
- SEO marketing
- Content marketing
- PPC marketing
2. Learn How to Negotiate and Overcome Objection
One of the hardest parts about working in the world of sales is learning how to deal with rejection. Unfortunately, it’s part of the job. Learning to deal with rejection is one of the most important sales tips for staying motivating and retaining your mental and emotional health.
However, you can minimize how much rejection you face by learning how to anticipate and overcome consumer objection. This means predetermining why a potential client or customer will turn you down and convincing them why they shouldn’t. This takes time, experience, and attention to detail.
This also means learning how to negotiate. Sales negotiation involves building a relationship with a customer, learning their “pains,” and implanting why you can absolve their issues with your products or services.
3. Don’t Discount Cold Calling
While there’s hardly a salesman/woman in the world who enjoys cold calling, this sales strategy isn’t obsolete. Truthfully, it can be one of the best ways to approach new leads to your product or services.
The key is knowing your audience (targeting the right demographic) and having a clear, concise, and compelling sales pitch. Let them know how you can save them time, money, or headaches and why you’re their best solution.
You should have a basic script you follow, including ways to overcome potential objections, as mentioned previously. However, always be prepared to go off-script – don’t act like an automated machine.
4. Sales Automation Can Save You Time and Money
While you shouldn’t come off as an automated machine, using sales automation is one of the most practical sales tips. Start by setting up your website of eCommerce account to allow for online sales and customer convenience.
Society, in general, loves the advancement of technology, including hassle-free online shopping and one-click purchases. Additionally, if your website is making sales, that’s a form of passive income in which you need to direct zero time and energy (after the initial setup, of course).
5. Incorporate a Follow-Up System
For those customers who walk away, you need to implement a follow-up system. Typically, this can be an automated email (assuming you have that information) or a personal follow up call from you or one of your sales staff.
Basically, you need to remind them that you’re there, you haven’t given up on them, and why they should reconsider purchasing your products or services. Remember this, very few consumers ever buy something the first time they see it or hear about it. Consistency is key.
6. Never Stop Learning
As a business owner, one of the most important sales tips we can offer you is to continuously pursue knowledge. Earlier, we talked about paying attention to the market (what your competitors are doing and marketing trends).
However, you should also stay apprised of consumer habits. When are they online? What drives them to make purchases and how can that apply to your business?
Keep updated on new types of marketing as well as any advances in your industry. Figure out how to be different from your competitors in a way that benefits your consumers.
7. Pay Attention to Analytics
Data analytics has been changing the way people do business for the last few decades. As technology has advanced, so has our ability to read, interpret, and capitalize on analytic data.
For example, when you use social media paid advertising on Facebook, you can track every aspect of each ad to monitor how they perform. Facebook’s Ad Center will show you how many people saw your ad as well as its engagement (likes, shares, comments, link clicks). It also breaks down the demographics of your viewers.
This information can be incredibly pivotal in determining how to spend your marketing budget. You can target specific audiences based on location, gender, age, etc.
8. Consider Hiring a Sales Manager
Finally, perhaps one of the most vital sales tips is accepting when you need to ask for help. As a small business owner, you already have a lot on your plate. If you’re struggling to make sales or train your team, consider hiring a sales manager.
While this will definitely cut into your bottom line, it may ultimately make the difference between owning a thriving business or one that’s barely getting by.
Looking for More Sales Tips?
If you’re looking for more sales tips or just need help to manage your business’s marketing strategy, we can help. We will give you an assessment of your current digital marketing strategy as well as ways to improve it for free.
Contact us today or click here to request a demo.
