Sales in your Business

We often wonder as to why many business owners copy the sales and marketing strategies from their more successful competitors. More often than not these operators don’t offer a point of difference and they certainly don’t stand out in a crowd.

Many business owners refuse to classify themselves as salespeople as they feel salespeople are born this way and have years of training to earn this job description. In my opinion this is far from the truth, as most small business owners are constantly wearing the sales hat weather it is negotiating with suppliers, clients, contractors, landlords, franchisors or even service providers.

The reality is we are selling our products, services and ourselves all day every day, and unfortunately too many owners believe they do not need or are not prepared to learn the techniques and skills to capatalise on the numerous opportunities they face daily.

Selling is neither a dirty word nor something to be ashamed of and it certainly doesn’t mean you have to fight to the death every time you are selling. How many front line people in your business have done a sales course or learnt the art of listening skills, qualifying or closing? So many staff members are not encouraged to sell your products or services as they are not offered bonuses or incentives for their achievements?

All business owners should commit and continue to update their sales and marketing skills; there are endless local courses, sales training books and the information available on the net.

Those brave enough to back themselves and introduce a point of difference or do cutting edge marketing to create urgency and desire should quickly notice a difference in staff attitudes and the way that the business performs. This can only increase the businesses value when it’s time to sell.