When I travel, the first thing I do when I reach my destination is scope out the coffee situation. I'm an early morning gal and I enjoy a hot cup of strong black coffee when I wake up to greet the day. When we arrived in Park City for our family vacation, I noticed the coffee pot in the kitchen was ancient but my thought was “at least I'll have coffee tomorrow morning.” I stopped by the local Starbucks, picked up my favorite brew, “Komodo Dragon” and marked it off my to-do list.
When I woke the next morning and for several mornings after, I found myself drinking warm (I'm being generous here), terrible tasting coffee. I started making trips to the lone Starbucks in town to satisfy my desire for hot, steamy, coffee.
On the third morning, Brooke (a Starbucks employee who sold me the ground coffee beans when I arrived in town) asked me, “Hey Joy, how's the Komodo Dragon working for you at home?” I couldn't believe she remembered. This is the only Starbucks in town and lines are always out the door. My reply? “Actually Brooke, it's not working.” I then proceeded to tell her about my dilemma with the coffee maker from the 1950's. Brooke asked me a series of questions about the kind of coffee I liked and then recommended a French Press which they just happened to have on the shelf behind me. She told me to grab it off the shelf, she'd teach me how to use it and if I didn't like it, I could return it – no strings attached.
I think you know what happened next. : -) I'm now the proud owner of a top of the line French Press – and loving it.
This is a classic example of how easy it can be to make a sale when you have the three essential ingredients listed below:
1. Create Relationships – Brooke made the effort to learn my first name and start a relationship with me and this is not easy to do in this particular Starbucks. Park City is a resort town with most people visiting from other places for a few days. Brooke made the sale because she had established the like & trust factor. Make sure you're getting out of the office and meeting people who may become clients and for online sales, create relationships by becoming active on social media, publishing an e-newsletter and blogging.
2. Be Visible – I was craving a solution to my problem. Brooke was there at the moment when I was ready and willing to buy. It's critical for you to be visible to your target audience all the time. You never know when they are ready to buy. That's why you want to send newsletters, be present on social media, go to conferences and events. Find out where your ideal client is and make sure you and your marketing materials reach them.
3. Make it Irresistible – I never even asked the price of the French Press. I was so hungry for a solution to my problem that I didn't care about price. If you offer a solution to a hungry audience who craves getting a desired result, most times, price is never an issue. Brooke made the sale irresistible by offering me a money-back guarantee if I didn't enjoy the French press.
If you consistently put these three ingredients in your sales recipe, you'll attract more of your ideal client and increase your cash flow which will create a sustainable, profitable business that continues to grow and flourish.
Anything is possible. Everything is waiting for you.
*****
© 2014 Joy Chudacoff
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