We say frequently that a career in sales is really about building relationships.  Many people underestimate the importance of this component of the profession.  But the cold, hard fact is that sometimes a potential client will object to a sales pitch not because of any underlying concern with the product, but because of a distaste or distrust for the company or the person doing the selling.  A career in sales is really about being able to make excellent first impressions, and if you have not been able to successfully accomplish this you will likely find that you will be stumbling across many roadblocks in your sales pitches.  Moreover, one of the fastest ways to create a poor first impression is to mishandle objections raised by a potential client or to have conducted yourself in a less than professional manner.

Sometimes, in an effort to show that you have a firm knowledge base, you may find yourself wanting to argue with a client over the benefits of your product or concerns that they have raised.  It may seem so simple to you: “Why would they think this option has too high a price? Just look at the cost analysis!”  However, remember that selling is really about staying positive.  You never want it to appear to your client that you are aggressive and attempting to show them up.  Address concerns, but be sure you don’t pull out stacks and stacks of research to negate them as if they are stupid for even bringing it up.  A potential client should feel as if you are working with them, not against them.

While it is possible to over-answer concerns, in a way, it is also possible to make the opposite mistake.  Some people will hear a concern and simply ignore it, perhaps even with empty promises to come back to the problem at a later date.  This sends the message that you have something to hide (whether that is true or not) and instantly makes the client distrust you, the pitch and the product.  Be careful to really listen to what the customer is saying to you and take the time to respond honestly to what you hear.  Provide answers. If you don’t have an answer readily available, thank them for the question, let them witness you make a note of it, and respond to it as soon as you have the necessary information.  Never ever ignore a concern altogether. You want to cement a positive relationship with the client, which means listening and communicating effectively.

Remember that many times it is how the client reacts to the salesperson that will close a sale.  Your product and company have much to offer, but many times it is ultimately how the seller comes across that will convince a buyer that this is a worthwhile partnership to build on.  When you keep the focus on people, not just the product or the growth charts, you will find that your sales pitches will become much more successful and you will not encounter objections directed at the person, rather than the product.  Give the type of customer service that you would like to receive and don’t find yourself enacting a sketch from Saturday Night Live: “Thank you, Buh Bye now!”

At times it is getting started with a sale that can be the most challenging, especially when the potential client would prefer to delay the discussion or stop it entirely.  There are a number of ways in which they will attempt to do this, some of which come from legitimate concerns and some of which are merely stalling tactics.  Once you determine what the real objection is as it is being raised, then you will be able to better answer it and continue with the sale. 

Perhaps one of the most common ways a customer will attempt to stop the sale is to say: “I really have no use for this product.”  If you have done your homework properly and are following up on solid leads, this is not likely to be the case.  Before you shake your finger at him or her and shout “Liar, liar, pants on fire” (never a good sales technique), stop and think about what is really behind this particular objection.  Is that the customer does not really have a firm grasp on what the benefits of your product are?  Do you need to provide more accurate and through information?  Is it that there are concerns about the costs and this “I don’t need it” will soon transform into “I can’t afford it”?    After all, a lack of money or an objection about price is also some of the most common objections that you are going to come across.  A potential customer may also claim that he or she doesn’t have the authority to make the decision.  You can spend quite some time being shuttled back and forth between various individuals while they argue about whom really is in a position to hear your pitch.   It’s frustrating to say to the least.

When you encounter these types of statements, designed to stop your sale in its tracks, take a moment to consider what the real objection is.  Do they perceive the competitors’ product to be superior? Is there a pricing concern? Is there a concern that you can’t meet their specific needs (just as having six units ready by next Wednesday)?  When someone says: “I don’t really need this,” or “I simply can’t afford it,” or “You would have to talk with Sue about this; I can’t sign off on it,” don’t just wave the white flag and go home.  It may be that a sale will not be possible, but first take a minute to ask a few questions to see if you can address the issue that is really leading to the hesitation.  You will find that many times you can overcome their concerns by providing them with the important information that they were missing.  If you really do need to talk to Sue first, or if it takes them a bit to decide if Sue is the one you should talk to, stay pleasant and don’t miss an opportunity to sell to each person you talk with.  Don’t be waylaid by a stall tactic, like the ones we all used on those poor dinner-time telemarketers not so long ago.  Stay positive and keep your customer informed.  Chances are good that you will be able to close that sale after all!

There are those who are intimidated by the sales profession because they are convinced that it is full of rejection and obstacles.  This is only partly true.  You are going to face objections, but these can be looked at as challenges rather than stumbling blocks.  Once you have become comfortable handling objections, you will find that there is really very little to be intimidated about.

An objection is simply anything that a potential customer may say or do that would inhibit the closing of a deal.  It may be concerns about costs, the product, or the partnership.  It might be because they are already comfortable with the status quo and aren’t certain they are interested in change.  It may be that they like what both your company and product have to offer, but they struggle with making decisions and tend to waffle back and forth.  It may be that they simply want to be certain that they have all the information and want to know how deep your own knowledge base is.  Whatever form the objection may take and whatever reason is behind it, the first thing you should be aware of is that an objection does not equal a failure.  Some experts have said that possible clients who end up making purchases have, on average, 58% more objections than those who don’t buy. 

Over the next few weeks we’ll talk about different types of objections and possible strategies for how to handle them.  Since a sale is truly about building relationships, there are no pat answers that will work in every situation.  Much of dealing with these issues will come from individualized responses to individualized circumstances, but there are some general tips that can help you meet these challenges.  The first important thing to remember about sales, however, is that while they will come with obstacles (like those familiar New Year’s Resolutions) it still possible to successfully close those important deals. So keep working towards that big account (and stop hitting “snooze” on your alarm). The year is young and the possibilities are endless.

We would be amiss if we didn’t discuss the concept of keywords in our discussion of SEO and SEM.  After all, there is a large part of search engine marketing that is structured around using keywords.  The use of keywords is an important part of achieving search engine rankings, of assuring your potential clients that your website is the one that they have been hunting for, and for encouraging other sites to link to yours.  But people often make the mistake of assuming that the more general the phrase, the better it is for their business.  SEO experts explain that trying to land a top ranking in search engine results with generic phrases is difficult, costly, and often ineffective.  If we stop and think about it, that really does make perfect sense.  After all, the things that we are looking for in our own online searches are often very specific.  Let’s revisit our puppy example from a couple of weeks ago: Customer A is looking for a Cocker Spaniel puppy from a breeder in Grand Rapids, Michigan.  At the end of the day, that’s really what s/he wants, not a German Sheppard puppy, not a puppy in Alaska.  So, if you are a puppy breeder you may feel the pressure to be the top result in with the keywords “puppies for sale.”  But with keywords that generic, it is still unlikely that Customer A will find you or, just as frustrating, the customer seeking German Sheppard puppies in Alaska will find your site which is selling the Cocker Spaniels.  Neither one does you any good at all.  So, focus your targeted keywords with more specific and descriptive phrases so that customers who really want what you are selling are able to find you.  There does need to be a sort of balance when it comes to keywords, it’s true.  If you get too specific, you’ll find that you have narrowed the market rather than expanding it.  But in all the clutter of the internet, make sure that your keywords are precise so that they are directing the right kind of traffic to your website.

Don’t feel that you have to put all your eggs in one basket either, when it comes to keywords.  Remember, there are no magic properties when it comes to keywords and searches. There are actually multiple searches that would apply to your website and your business.  It is advantageous to work towards healthy rankings in a variety of searches that really focus on quality leads. Be sure to give your website extra weight as well by insuring that your content meets the customer’s expectations.  Keywords are all well and good for search engines, but if you have only superficially sprinkled them in your website or made it difficult for the customer to find the information once they have landed on your page, you are going to lose business. Make your words powerful by giving them meaning within your website as well.  At the end of the day, it is content that will really optimize the internet as a sales and marketing tool for your business.

We have agreed that when you are using the internet as a marketing tool it is important that your website turns up early on in search engine results, simply because of the sheer number of other websites that are going to appear as well (whether they are truly useful or not).  It is fairly obvious that it is far better to be number 27 on a search engine result than 270.  But it is important to note that the numbers game is really only half of the battle.  Remember, it only take a second for someone to click on your website from a search engine page….AND it only takes a second for them to navigate away from it.  Handing out money in search engine marketing is only money out of your pocket, unless you find a way to generate real sales leads that will increase the profitability of your business. 

Envision Sales and Marketing works extensively with Bloofusion, a company that focuses its expertise on the issues of search engine optimization and search engine marketing.  As the experts at Bloofusion point out, using the internet and your website as a means to grow your business is really about generating effective leads and making sales, not about being able to say you have a higher ranking on Google than your local competitor.  The key is that once a potential customer has found your website, they need a reason to stay there.  This means website design and content are of the utmost importance.  Also, you want your website to generate meaningful sales leads for you.  There are a number of ways in which you can accomplish this as well.  Think about putting together a questionnaire, or simply being able to have a name and email address to send a newsletter to, suggests Bloofusion.  Consider the information and keywords that you have on your landing pages that will encourage people to stay on your site and either purchase directly online or provide you with a means of following up on their virtual visit.

The great thing about the internet is also one of the drawbacks: there are simply so many options and so many potential customers.  Online marketing can open up countless opportunities for growth, but unless you are able to generate the right types of leads you will simply be playing a numbers game with search engine rankings. And it’s true what they say: “Life is more than numbers.”  Remember, the growth of your business is where your focus should be, so spend some time investing in a quality website that works towards that end.  For more helpful tips you can also visit www.bloofusion.com.

To begin with: SEO (or search engine optimization) is not exactly the same thing as SEM ( or search engine marketing).  Some people do use the phrases interchangeably, but they are actually used to designate different things.  Think of SEM as a broad category that defines a number of different tactics that businesses can use to promote websites and web-based companies.  In short, SEM refers to SEO, but also to other marketing approaches, like the pay-per-click ads (PPC), traditional ads, and paid inclusions.  SEO is primarily focused with the means to achieving a better ranking for your website amongst search engines, thus optimizing them as a tool for your business.  SEO is focused purely on your website’s design and content, while SEM can also refer to how much money you are willing to invest in search engines as a marketing tool. 

Is SEM really as simple as throwing a little money around?  Well, sort of.  After all, it is possible to pay a fee to ensure that your website is appearing at optimal ranking spots in search engine results.  You can do this by paid inclusion: in other words, paying to be ranked immediately rather than allowing the search engine to simply find your website.  You can also create the aforementioned pay-per-click ads, which allow you to select certain keywords which will bring your ad up.  If a person clicks on your ad and visits your website, you pay for search engine’s use of your ad.  If the ad is ignored, you aren’t charged.  Of course, there are also traditional advertisements that appear on the sides of search engine result pages as well and these can also be bought for a price.  If you have the budget and view the internet as an important marketing tool, SEM is a technique that is certainly worth investigating.

But what if you don’t have extra funds at the moment, or aren’t convinced that you should put money into PPC ads? Don’t assume that the whole search engine marketing “thing” is not for you.  Search engine optimization is focused is the type of search engine marketing that is focused specifically on your website.  It is the practice of looking for ways to clean up your content and create a site that search engines pick up on their own and the consumers are able to navigate and utilize effectively.  When it comes to search engine optimization, it is about building a better product that can, in a way, sell itself.  It is not a quick fix and requires a detailed analysis of your existing site, your industry and current market trends, and the strengths and weaknesses of your competitors.  Still, it is a highly effective method of making the internet work for your business.

So whether you are focused on the immediacy of SEM or the process of SEO, or perhaps a healthy mixture of the two, these little acronyms can mean big things for growing your company!

Let’s say that you have decided to get your family a puppy for the holidays this year.  You have to find a breeder for cocker spaniel puppies, so you dutifully turn to Google (or Bing, or Yahoo, or whatever search engine you prefer).  You type: “Cocker Spaniel Puppies for Sale” into the search bar.  Google will promptly (in 0.24 seconds) return about 2,700,000 results.  That’s a lot of webpages that might possibly be related to your quest for a new puppy.  And even if you are clearly dedicated to this task, chances are good that you are going to stop scrolling through sites somewhere around page 37 of results.  Your wrist will be hurting, if nothing else.  From this simple exercise it becomes painfully clear that those who land their results on the first page of search engine results are far less likely to get lost in the midst of a 2,699,999 other results.  The question then becomes: where does your website turn up in the search engine rankings?

Hopefully it is also clear why this one question can have such a huge impact on businesses, particularly in the online setting.  Ensuring that your businesses’ website is ranked more highly by search engines is referred to, specifically, as “Search Engine Optimization” or “SEO.”   This is not the same thing as a pay-per-click ad (PPC).  SEO is about tailoring your website to not only receive better rankings from search engines, but also attract and maintain customers.  It is important to remember that countless variations of keyword searches could have brought someone to your site with a simple click of a mouse; unless that person is able to uncover the information being sought easily, a simple click of the mouse will also take them away just as speedily.  SEO is really about making your website a complete product, so that your potential customer will not find it necessary to continue to click through pages of extra search results. SEO that is accomplished well is extremely helpful for your business and for those last-minute hunts for holiday gifts.

1. 1.      Product development never fully ends. It is true that individual projects will have clear cut beginnings and endings, however real product development is really an ongoing process.  You will want to continually revisit your products to look for ways to make improvements. This will ensure that your product will stay fresh in the minds of your customers and relevant to their lives.

1. 2.      Product development really just means innovation. Building off of our first point, remember that every product can and should be revisited from time to time to ensure that it is still effectively meeting the needs of consumers.  Remember the tips from the Apple Company: building off a successful existing product, or making updates to keep your current product in the forefront of people’s minds will go a long way towards making your business successful.  You don’t have to come up with a  completely new product every few months or years, but be willing to explore innovation as an important component of product development.

1. 3.      Give yourself deadlines, but make certain they aren’t arbitrary.  We all need to make sure that we are staying on track and on schedule when it comes to meeting our goals.  The key when it comes to product development is to make certain that the deadlines you are setting are appropriate and meaningful.  Consider why you are setting the goal and what it means for your business ultimately.  Creative output needs to be reviewed, edited and revisited, so allow yourself plenty of time to accomplish those tasks.

1. 4.      Utilize your production team.  Remember that not everyone has the same skill sets or talents.  Surround yourself with talented professionals who can fill the gaps you may have.  Also, keep in mind that it is often helpful to have outside input and thoughts as you work towards successful product development.  Having a strong team that can contribute and provide you with useful feedback will go a long way towards ensuring that your efforts will be well rewarded by creating a popular product.

1. 5.      Keep the needs of your customers in mind. Always remember that you are designing products for consumers to use and appreciate.  Consider your target market and how it can be expanded.  Think about how your product is used or might be used to make tasks more effective or more efficient.  If your customers are driving your product development, you are much more likely to make a direct and positive impact on your sales growth.

Now you are ready for your big test: tackle that product development and you will have a stellar report card by earning impressive numbers as you chart your sales growth.

While we’re talking about adages, “There is nothing new under the sun,” is another one that comes to mind.  Of course there are exciting new innovations, fresh new packaging, bright colors that allow for a flair of individuality, etc.  So while it may be that there is nothing exactly like your product (and we certainly hope this is the case), that doesn’t mean that your product doesn’t have competition or that you can’t learn from the mistakes of others.  We have already talked about how important it is to keep track of who your competition is and what they do well.  You also want to take note of the weaknesses that they have.  As you contemplate your newest product or alternation of your product, it may be that they have attempted similar changes. Take a look at the success rate.  For example, some of you may remember when “New Coke” was unveiled a few years ago.  That which was meant to be the “next best thing” didn’t stay on the shelves very long.  However, Mountain Dew has been able to offer several variations in recent years while still offering their classic taste.  What doomed “New Coke”? Why can Mountain Dew have variations? Perhaps some of the cause is the target market; perhaps some of it is a better formula.  The bottom line is that as you work towards developing a highly successful product, you want to be sure that you have completed the necessary research and are aware of the successes and failures of others in your industry.  This will save you from having to repeat costly mistakes and save you plenty of time as well.

When you are on a creative roll, it is easy to work at a furious pace and expect to have projects completed overnight.  The fact of the matter is that trying to cram a project into an artificial deadline can harm your project in the long run.  When you are excited about your product, when things are humming along, you are anxious to get your product out on the market.  But make sure that you are leaving enough time to really test your product and revise your work.  Be aware that you might have bumps along the way that may slow you down, so be wary of giving deadlines that don’t allow for adequate planning time.  Also, give yourself plenty of time to bounce ideas off of your creative team. It is always helpful to get outside input and a fresh set of eyes when working on a project. So rather than rushing through and working alone, go back over your work and ask for the opinions of people on your team that you respect and trust.

Once you have avoided the common pitfalls of product development you can get back to the creative part and enjoy that process!  And as the old saying, goes: “Perform without fail what you resolve.” – Ben Franklin

            Most of us are aware that great products (and even not-so-great products) begin as an idea because the inventor has noticed a need.  As the development process begins, great products are those that don’t lose sight of that need along the way.   Does the product address the needs of many people or simply a small, select group?  Naturally you are going to want to keep your product specific.  That means that your product is not going to appeal to everyone all of the time and you shouldn’t try to create something that does.  For product marketing to really succeed, you are going to want to have a niche target market that your product was really designed for.  The key is to not make the market too small.  As you continue to develop your product, try to think of other situations and uses that your design would be applicable for.  Can you make minor modifications so that the target market expands?  For example, the dog dander brush means nothing to me as I don’t own any dogs.  If it could apply to pets across the board: cats, guinea pigs, horses, whatever, then you have increased the number of people who will find your product useful.  The target market is still the same: pet owners.  But now there are many more people who can fit into that market.  It is extremely important as you embark on the process of product development that you keep the needs of the customer and the size of your target market in mind.  Don’t compromise your product by reaching for too broad a market, but don’t narrow yourself so drastically that your product never really makes it to shelves either.

            It is also important to remember that product development is not a checklist that you simply work down and then mark off as complete. As we have mentioned earlier this month, you should really think of this as an ongoing process.  Look for ways that you can tweak your product so that it can widen its appeal, or more successfully meet the needs of the consumers that will be purchasing it.  If you continue to look for ways to improve your product, make it more efficient and more impactful, you will likely not find your product stuck in the dreaded infomercial at 4am.  So when you find yourself awake on one those sleepless nights, use the time to be creative and continue to improve your idea instead of simply channel surfing.  You will be glad you did.