Educate Your Clientele

Take some time to educate your clientele about your products or services. If you are mainly a service-focused company, you should already be educating your clients about what you do on a regular basis. If you’re not, get busy. If you do something technical, avoid jargon and keep it simple. Don’t worry about giving your professional secrets away. Just leak a few. Once people have a better understanding of your knowledge base on a subject, they will come to trust you more, and be more inclined to hire you or purchase your products.

Qualified Leads

Remember, those leads that contact you after reading expert articles written by you are qualified. They already know your capabilities and have some inkling as to why they need to hire you or purchase your products. These leads are educated prior to contacting you. So, in your articles, use opportunity to cross-sell your other products and services but try a subtle approach in material. Nobody wants to feel like they’re being ‘marketed’ – they’d rather be informed or educated.

Publishing and compiling information and expert advice on your profession or subject area will not only keep your web site in higher ranks of search engines, it will help frame you as an excellent resource in your profession. Writing well for a public audience is important and so is regularity and consistency. . Hiring a professional writer can give you these qualities in your work and many writers are willing to “ghost” write under a client’s name. Remember, articulate your subject clearly, and your audience will love you, and hopefully, want more.

3. How much aggravation they had to endure Aggravations are of two types--those that shouldn't have happened (glitches). Or those that happen to everyone, like long waits, multiple visits, shortage of parts, etc. A buyer is willing to endure a little inconvenience, but not for long, not every time. Your job is to minimize inconveniences so they don't arise--not treat them like business as usual.

Here's where helpful, informed employees will make or break business. First in building customer rapport, anticipating their concerns, and avoiding problems in first place.

4. How many mind games are played on them Sorry to say, word "sales" gets misused too often. Selling isn't an opportunity to manipulate potential buyer to do what seller wants, rather than providing buyer what they want.

No one wants to feel like a sucker or to be mislead about prices, delivery dates, or terms of sale. Even a hint of such treatment kills trust, kills their willingness to hear you out. And if a person feels tricked into buying, they won't buy again. Or they might cancel sale afterward from buyer's remorse.

5. How well business has its act together Starting with first impression, did everything about business live up to its promise or reputation? If every part of operation works smoothly as an integrated whole, consider customer well served. When parts are mismatched or full of snags, it screams "small potatoes." That scares business away. Even if issues are minor, they pull plug on trust. Fortunately, a focus on your HOW yields big benefits from quick and inexpensive solutions. For tangible ways to wipe out small potatoes signals, visit my website where I discuss this. http://www.giantpotatoes.com

Get your HOWs in order, and you'll drive competition crazy Customers notice when they're treated well. Let your uniqueness shine in HOW of customer-pleasing practices. It pays off in your bottom line. (c)2004, Lynella Grant This is Part I of a two-part series. Part II, about Internet buyers, can be read at: http://www.giantpotatoes.com/article202.htm