Quit dreading marketing and sales; it's the most significant role of a business owner.
We have the power to inform and inspire people about the positive outcomes our business brings to clients.
Passion is Contagious!
Learn to enjoy creating content, talking about our business, and sharing our client results.
Here are a few mindset shifts around marketing and sales I've found helpful:
Transform Your Marketing and Sales with A No-More-Excuses Mindset Shift
When you're about to say how you're not good at marketing and sales, STOP!!!!
We all express our feelings of inadequacy when we're newbies, but it's killing our businesses.
Reality check: People aren't going to come knocking down our business doors just because we have a great offer that we believe will change their lives. We have to tell them about it repeatedly.
Nike isn't slowing down in the ads. Doesn't everyone know about Nike by now? The marketplace has certain principles of doing business. Positioning & Promoting are the 'annual membership fees' so to speak.
A nugget from the book, Unreasonable Hospitality by Will Guidara. "Even when you're small, you can think big." Observe the standards and principles being upheld by the titans of industry.
Detach From The Outcome and Thrive
It's easy to personalize every aspect of our business and this takes us on a roller coaster of emotions. We end up really frustrated and down when sales are low or non-existent. Instead of keeping a level head and focusing on speaking to more people, we shut down.
Naturally, as founders the business is our baby, but if we take a step back and recognize that we are merely vessels doing work that was prepared in advance for us to do, that changes everything.
As faith-driven entrepreneurs, this allows us to move with ease, lightening the burden of this entrepreneurial journey. The greatest artists that ever lived understood this well—while they physically moved the paint brushes, God had already created the artwork. 'Don't stop painting.' God is the CEO. The source of creativity is our boss. There is no limit. Seek His guidance. We can do things differently in the marketplace keeping things interesting for us and for our prospective clients.
Focus on the Client's Experience
We control the way we show up, how much we prepare, and how we conduct ourselves. However, we have no control over how other people will receive our marketing or sales pitch. Listen to the problem the prospective client is experiencing. Explain to them what you believe are the best options in trying to solve their problem.
Focus on a good communication experience, i.e., building rapport, putting them at ease, showing that you are listening by reiterating what you have understood from what they say, and educating them on possible solutions. Be transparent and straightforward about the process and associated fees.
Manage Our Energy
A great energy check can be: If this person were someone you were introduced to by your dearest friend or a close family member, how would you tell them about what you do? This small shift in perspective does the following: There's an implied understanding from the person who gave you this contact that you should take care of them.
Never Over-sell
Part of sales is making promises and managing expectations. You should never promise to do something that you know you can't accomplish. The goal of every interaction with the target client is to delight them. Set the expectation low i.e. be conservative in your estimation of the results, and then work to exceed that measure by far.
Our intention is to build a network of referrals. "Bad news travels at the speed of light; Good news travels like molasses." ~ Tracy Morgan
Identify The Correct Prospective Client
This is the most essential part of sales and the most talked about and least implemented. We have all probably learnt about building an avatar, etc. I would simplify this further with the words of Noah Kagan:
Where is the starving crowd?
Is your product/service a painkiller or a vitamin?
Is there great demand, and is it essential to the starving crowd?
__________________________________________________________________________________
About the Author: Priscilla Shumba, MBA, is a business communications strategist, author, and podcaster. Check out her free training: Elevate & Leverage Small Business Media
Learn more and connect with her on LinkedIn.
Comments