Create Packages Instead of Customizing

March 3rd, 2010

When a potential buyer makes an inquiry, have you found yourself responding with an answer similar to this:

“Well, our process is that first, we find out about your needs. Next, we’ll put together a proposal and then we’ll let you know how much it costs. And then, you can take it from there.”

Why is this a mistake? The problem here is that you’re doing an alot of work – work that you’re not getting paid for – without even ensuring a sale. In addition to not closing the deal, this type of business practice also makes the sales process very labor-intensive for you. You have to take the time to find out the client’s specific needs. You have to write a proposal and you have to work up a cost for them. Then, they’ll decide if they want your product or services.

By customizing your approach for that client’s individual needs, you could conceivably put in a day’s work or more, and have nothing to show for it in the end.

So, the first thing you need to do is stop customizing. Instead, start creating packages of your services and/or products – packages that people can see and buy, right off the shelf.

This is a practice that can work really well for you. By creating a package, you are specifying what your product or service is, setting specific prices, and actually quantifying the benefits of your offer. It forces you to make your intangibles tangible. Customers are more apt to purchase when they can see, touch, taste and smell what they’re getting.

You can also create a variety of packages at a range of levels. Begin with a starter package. You might even consider creating a budget package, to make your services even more accessible.  In addition to your base packages, I encourage you to develop a first class program or product – call it The Rolls Royce program – for those people that want the absolute best.

You don’t have to develop hundreds of packages. Two or three range levels are enough to begin with. By offering a range, you’re creating the illusion of customizing. People can basically ascertain their needs, look at your different packages and say, “Yes, that’s the one that’s right for me.”

When you develop your packages, design them so that your solutions match the client’s ideal end results. You want to highlight the benefits, not the features. Your clients don’t care so much about your process as they do about achieving their desired solution. If you’re a coach, for example, you probably focus on the coaching process, but your clients are interested in what that process will do for them.

Maybe they want to simplify their life. Maybe they want to find the confidence to apply for a promotion or find the support to start a new business. Or, maybe they want to find a new relationship or get through a difficult divorce.

There are many different things and many different end results. The important thing is to keep your client’s desired end result in clear focus when you create and describe your packages. Your packages need to clearly show clients how what you’re offering is so closely aimed at that desired end result.

You can still deliver the same quality results you would by customizing, but by turning your expertise into packaged information, you can spend a lot less time, get a lot more clients, and help a lot more people at the same time.

Create Packages Instead of Customizing

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Posted in Advertising, Business & Money, Business Networking, Business Plans, Business Success, Marketing, Money Making Ideas, Small Business Ideas, Small Business Marketing | No Comments »

Instant Credibility, Contacts & Cash!

March 2nd, 2010

SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT!

It’s my special one-time

“BONUS STEPPING UP! CALL”

Instant Credibility, Contacts & Cash!

Wednesday, 3rd March, 2010,

8:00pm UK Time (3pm EASTERN, 12 noon PACIFIC)

http://bit.ly/9vBVEn

This call is a special BONUS for my new Stepping UP! members.  Members, also get a ton of other benefits including …

• Fast Start Webinar, where I walk you through my planning process for the year ahead (I don’t know anyone else who teaches this)

• Portable digital player which has 20 masterclasses – so you get to immerse yourself in my best marketing strategies (and get the year off to a flying start)

• Ticket to the 3 day live event worth £1500/$2400 – we’ll be doing these events in the USA as well as the UK/Ireland

• Access to the Stepping UP! area of the forum which is exclusively for Stepping UP! members

• Private strategy consultation

Not a member?  Then join the “Stepping UP!” programme today so you can take advantage of this call and all the other member goodies each and every month. http://www.clientmagnets.com/steppingup2010

I look forward to “meeting” you on our call.

Bernadette

Instant Credibility, Contacts & Cash!

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Posted in Business & Money, Business Networking, Business Plans, Business Success, Direct Marketing, Email Marketing, Marketing, Marketing Mastermind, Motivation, Niche Marketing, Online Marketing, Systems, Teleseminars | No Comments »

How to Make Your Pitch To Corporate Clients

March 2nd, 2010

If you could put a figure on the net results your programmes, coaching services or training would have on a company, when implemented,  what would that price be?

How much money can what you are offering save or make your client? This is what larger companies and corporations want to know.

When you are pitching your product or services in a corporate environment, always emphasize and focus on what the net benefit to the company will be. Will your offering increase their overall sales? Reduce expenses and costs? Will it make their staff more efficient and productive, thus saving the company valuable time – and money?

It’s relatively easy to calculate straightway the cost that lost sales have on a company. However, there are other factors by which companies need to measure net results.

Maybe your business specializes in softer skills, such as leadership, management and employee development. To quantify that, you need to zero in on the tangible results the company will receive from your skills. Show corporations how they will be able to conduct more effective meetings because of your trainings; how they will receive more productive feedback because your workshops will teach staff to communicate more clearly.

Highlight the long-term implications that services similar to the ones you offer have on other companies. Gather statistics and give examples of how retention rates in companies improve because of the type of workshops you present and the skills you teach.

Statistics for all sorts of elements come into play here. Lost sales, sick leave, lack of focus, clique problems. You can gather research on many different challenges and problems that big companies face, then use that as a starting point and connect the dots to the cost savings for the company.

You can start gathering your statistics online.  Search relevant phrases and you’re sure to find that someone, somewhere did a survey and quantified the results that can be achieved.  Obviously, you should quote your source.

Here’s an example to demonstrate …

“This survey from _____showed that 45% of employees who leave an organization reported poor management as the main reason for leaving. When asked to clarify “poor management” it turns out that one of the things identified was poor feedback.”

After you state the facts, you then share the conclusion that poor feedback is costing their organization X amount of dollars.

Though you may deliver your product or service to a different end user than the head management of a company, in the end, your corporate clients will make the decision to go with you based on the impact your services will have on their bottom line.

That’s why when pitching your service or product in a corporate environment you need to spell out the net results that will be achieved.  Back it up with the data and statistics that support your offering. Show your prospect how they will benefit – bottom line -  and watch the sales flow in!

Bernadette Doyle is a small business marketing expert. Get more tips and advice at http://www.clientmagnets.com

How to Make Your Pitch To Corporate Clients

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Posted in Advertising, Business & Money, Direct Marketing, Guerilla Marketing, Marketing, Money Making Ideas, Sales Motivation | 2 Comments »

The Key To Setting and Getting The Right Price

February 20th, 2010

If you want to have a successful business that serves clients, sooner or later money has to change hands. And that means sooner or later you’re going to have to say, “This is what I’m offering you and this is the price.”

If you have a problem with that, you’re not alone. I see a lot of people missing this step when they map out their business plan. You shouldn’t misstep here though, because it is an obvious and necessary detail. Without it, you are not going to be putting any money in your bank account.

The only thing that will put money into your bank account is you showing up and saying to that customer, “Here it is. Here is what it costs. Here is how to pay.”

This can be a difficult thing for people to do sometimes. But, really, there is no reason that you should be afraid to ask for the money. Maybe you’re frightened of the possible rejection. Maybe you’re frightened of negotiation and the possibility that you’ll have to say no. Maybe you’re afraid to actually set the price in stone.

If you set up your price before you even begin taking on clients, there isn’t anything to be concerned about.

Approach this detail from its end point. Design your total client-getting system so that it takes you all the way through to collecting the money. In fact, what I really want you to do is start with collecting the money and then work backward – detailing all of the steps that need to happen in order to get to that point.

You simply cannot deliver outstanding results for your clients if you’re worried about money.

So, it’s important that you begin with the end in mind. Be focused on your end point.  What type of clients do you ultimately want to attract? From there you can begin to develop lead generation systems that will attract the right type of people. People who will be raising their hands, wanting in on your offerings. They won’t be haggling with you about price because you’ve done your research. You know that your services are valuable to them.

This pricing determination has to start before you generate a single lead. By the time you begin your lead generating, you should know how you are going to convert clients and how much you are going to charge them.

So, in essence, you are making decisions from your destination, not from your starting point. This is something that I’ve learned in my own business. When I’m evaluating anything now, I make my decision based on where I want to be 12 months from now.

Something might look like a huge investment to me today. But I know that I’m growing and stepping into something bigger and that I’m going to be in a completely different place 12 months from now.

I know this because I’ve doubled or tripled my income every year for the past three years. When I view something from that destination, something that might look like a huge investment now is actually quite miniscule.

So, make decisions from your destination. Know how much you will charge for your services. Know how you will bill your clients. Get good at asking for money. It is in your best interest and theirs. You can’t treat your clients as well if you’re constantly worried about money.

Start with the details of collecting the money and you will no longer wonder, “How can I ask for this much money from a client?”

The Key To Setting and Getting The Right Price

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Posted in Business & Money, Business Plans, Business Success, Cash Flow, Marketing, Money Making Ideas, Success Secrets | 2 Comments »

How To Win Big Business

February 19th, 2010

You can compete with the big name players in your market. You can attract corporate clients to buy your services, whether they involve negotiation skills, presentation skills, sales skills, or dealing with difficult clients and colleagues.

Sometimes, the idea that you’re at a disadvantage to the big companies is more in your own head than it is in your potential buyer’s eyes.

Here’s a simple formula to follow when competing for big business:

Be confident in your ability to deliver your product or service  +
Distinguish yourself from the competition =
Clients will jump on your offering rather than you having to compete for their business.

Don’t be intimidated by the larger businesses who offer services similar to yours. Don’t let the heavy hitters in your area give you an inferiority complex.

Your business actually has a massive advantage over these bigger players…

•    Many of these larger structures tend to offer fixed programs and fixed courses. There’s usually not a lot a room for customized, pick-and-choose type training. You’re not restricted in a way that a larger company would be. That actually means you can have a lot more flexibility for your client. You’re much more able to be responsive to their needs.

•    Big companies tend to send in a very charming and persuasive sales person to close the sale. They go in with all the glitz, pretty brochures, maybe they even take the client out to lunch. Then they outsource to the most inexpensive person they can find to deliver the service, still charging the client a premium rate. Clients soon discover that the person who is actually put in front of them to deliver the training, do the consulting, or whatever the service is, doesn’t have that experience, that credibility or that authority.

Make it obvious, in your marketing material and also in your sales meetings, that the person the client meets going in, is going to be the same person that their end users meet. Without actually saying anything negative about the bigger company vying for their business, you’re planting a seed of doubt. You’re not badmouthing the competition, but you are giving the client something to think about that they may not have before. Where possible, you always want to sell yourself on your strengths as opposed to just going in and knocking the competition.

•    When your business card is basically your name, you can sometimes feel, “I haven’t got the weight. I haven’t got this huge impressive organization behind me.” But, you have to start seeing that as a real advantage. Don’t underestimate a client’s ability to appreciate the fact that your business success hinges on your delivering the very best. You’re not just following some automated process. You’re really engaging with them and really getting to understand their business, so you can make recommendations based on your expertise and what you’ve uncovered as their real need. You’re literally staking your reputation on your service.

So, just because you’re not as big or as famous as some of the others, doesn’t mean you’re at a disadvantage. You’ve got to start to think about, “What do I have that these guys don’t have?”

Bernadette Doyle is a small business marketing expert. Get more tips and advice at http://www.clientmagnets.com

How To Win Big Business

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Posted in Advertising, Business & Money, Business Plans, Business Success, Cash Flow, Marketing, Money Making Ideas, Presenting, Sales Leads, Sales Motivation | No Comments »

SYSTEM Stands for Save Yourself Time Energy And Money

February 18th, 2010

“System Secrets” – How to run a million dollar business while working just 3 days per week

If there aren’t enough hours in the day to do all you want to do, you NEED systems that make things happen automatically. Over the past 12 months, we’ve been SERIOUSLY investing in systems and I want to introduce you to my ’systems’ guru – Beth Schneider. Beth has played a key part in enabling me to run a million dollar plus business while working just 3 days a week.

*MARKETING* MASTERMIND Call…
Tuesday, 23rd February, 2010,
8:00pm UK Time (3pm EASTERN, 12 noon PACIFIC)

If you want to discover one or two simple processes that put much of your repetitive work on auto-pilot and have your business running like a well oiled machine tune into this call.

This call is FREE for my hundreds of Marketing Mastermind and Stepping UP! members. They also get the CD and transcript of this call at no extra charge, plus a ton of other member benefits – such as access to our online members forum.

Not a member?  Then join the Marketing Mastermind Group today, so you can take advantage of this call and all the other member goodies each and every month.

I look forward to “meeting” you on our call.

——

Bernadette’s Marketing Mastermind is a special members’ group set up to provide ongoing information, support and motivation to people who want to attract more clients and build a successful business. Already over 450 members strong – and growing – we want YOU to join us and have more success, money and fun in your business. You can read about the Mastermind group here: http://clientmagnets.com/marketingmastermind

SYSTEM Stands for Save Yourself Time Energy And Money

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Posted in Business & Money, Business Networking, Business Plans, Business Success, Closing The Sale, Customer Loyalty, Customer Retention, Direct Marketing, Email Marketing, Forum, Marketing, Marketing Mastermind, Systems, Teleseminars | 1 Comment »

Building A Sustainable Business

February 17th, 2010

Have you ever watched the television series, The Apprentice? In one episode, each team was asked to create a business from scratch.

The interesting thing is that neither of the businesses created were really sustainable. Why? Because each team set themselves up in a business that revolved around them selling time.

One team did face painting; the other set up a gardening business. After each team had done the task for a couple of days, they counted how much money they had made. The actual figures aren’t important, because the money didn’t really count for anything. Both teams had to use the bulk of their income to pay employees for the time they spent performing tasks. So, neither of those businesses turned out to be profitable.

When Sir Alan Sugar, the host of the show, didn’t haul them over the coals more for it, I realized how strong this whole concept of selling time is in society.

As a business owner, you don’t want to follow this type of thinking. Doing this will not help you to build a profitable, sustainable business.

The solution is to build an information empire. The whole point of an information empire is that you don’t want to be selling your time. You do want to repackage your know-how and your expertise into products and programs that don’t require all of your attention all of the time. You may have to spend some time delivering programs, but not the bulk of your time.

This is the way to build a sustainable business. Because the paradox of selling your time is that the more successful you are, the less time you have. And, while you can always find more clients, you cannot create more time, no matter how hard you try.

But, with an information empire, time is no longer an issue. It will become possible for you to create more money, regardless of how much time you have. You simply need to stop linking the money you make to the time and effort you put in to your business. Once you truly understand this, creating more money will become easier to do.

It can be difficult to accept this concept. You might be thinking, “I don’t know that you can always get money. Making money has not been that easy for me.”

But the truth is, there is always money flowing. Even in this current economy, with the credit crunch and the recession, money is still flowing. It’s just flowing in different places from where it was flowing previously. It is up to you to find the source of that stream and collect it.

The key is to carefully examine your business to find ways of serving many clients at one time, rather than serving each client individually. Once you develop the products and services that allow you to do this, your business will be fully sustainable, without you having to wish for more hours in the day.

Bernadette Doyle is a small business marketing expert. Get more tips and advice at http://www.clientmagnets.com

Building A Sustainable Business

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Posted in Business & Money, Business Plans, Business Success, Cash Flow, Direct Marketing, Email Marketing, Marketing, Motivation, Small Business Ideas, Success Secrets, Systems | 1 Comment »

Leverage Yourself to Keep Clients Satisfied

February 14th, 2010

Take a look at your calendar of appointments right now. If you’ve been applying the Client Magnets approach, you shouldn’t have much available space in that diary. Hopefully, you have a pipeline of prospective business that keeps your book filled.

So, getting clients isn’t a problem for you. That’s a nice situation to be in, isn’t it?

From the outside, it looks fine to be that busy. You may even be getting a decent daily rate for your time. The problem is, though, that while your client list continues to grow, the amount of time that you have to serve those clients does not.

Once you’ve gotten new clients to sign on, you’ve got to deliver results for them. And as your calendar fills up, it’s not uncommon to feel as if there isn’t enough of you to go around. You may find yourself thinking that there aren’t enough hours in the day to meet all of your clients’ needs. You may think the only solution is to do more work, to spend more time at it.

When you get to this point, you’re so busy trying to keep the wheels turning that the idea of having one more thing to do is unbearable. To prevent your business from reaching this unmanageable stage, act now to start building your information empire.

As more people approach you about your services and want to know more about what you can offer, the more important it becomes to figure out how to duplicate and leverage yourself in order to meet their needs.

I’ve heard too many people say, “I just want to focus on getting the clients in. When I’ve got enough clients, then I’ll start focusing on the products, or on automating the sales, or on setting up the ecommerce site.” But you don’t want to let your business get to that point. You want to act now.

You need to design a workable, customized roadmap, one that will get you from that situation to an information empire that will have you earning money in your sleep. A business in which you produce revenue without having to physically get up and see clients every day.

Think very carefully about your business offerings. Look closely at your products or services, and determine which ones can be repackaged to reach more clients simultaneously. Perhaps you’re planning a live event that can be recorded and sold as a CD on your website. Hire a virtual assistant to handle admin tasks so you can concentrate on the creative aspects of your work. Find the thing that you do best, and focus on that.

You have complete control over this. Your awareness, your decisions, and your creativity are the resources that will help you to deliver results that are not dependent on your time and how much you work.

Your willingness and ability to look at the situation differently will allow you to meet the needs and expectations of all of the clients who are anxiously awaiting your help.

Bernadette Doyle is a small business marketing expert. Get more tips and advice at http://www.clientmagnets.com

Leverage Yourself to Keep Clients Satisfied

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Posted in Business & Money, Business Plans, Business Success, Cash Flow, Customer Retention, Marketing, Personal Productivity, Sales Motivation, Success Secrets, outsourcing | No Comments »

The Value of Your Inventory

February 12th, 2010

You know the saying “one man’s trash is another man’s treasure?” You see this philosophy proven time and again, especially at flea markets, garage sales or “scratch and dent” sales.

The items are hardly “trash;” they are just no longer esteemed by the seller.
They are, however, of great value to the buyer.

In unloading unwanted, outdated or overstocked items, the seller creates space and generates some extra income. In finding something that fits their needs and their budget, the buyer feels like he got a great deal. Everybody wins.

Whether you are in a product-oriented or service-oriented business, you can create this same winning combination.

If, for example, your business is introducing a new product, your existing inventory may end up including too many choices. When there are too many products to choose from, customers can become confused and overwhelmed by the number of options. There’s a saying in marketing: “A confused mind never buys.”

You simply don’t want to confuse people when it comes to them purchasing a product from you. To avoid that happening, streamline the products you offer.

Here’s something I did that you can easily emulate. A couple of years ago, while I was restructuring my web site, there were products I no longer wanted to sell. They weren’t actually inventory because they were digital products. But I didn’t want them cluttering my website anymore. I implemented a “last chance” sale and offered the products at a 50% discount for one week only.

Amazingly, over the course of seven days, that sale generated £11,000 worth of business. Can you imagine discovering £11,000 worth of hidden money in your business? That money was there all along but I didn’t tap into it until I got creative and put it together as an offer. I gave people a reason to buy.

You can do this. You see it done all the time with clearance sales. If your business ends up with a whole lot of excess stock – stock that has been returned or stock that you’ve taken to events and didn’t sell out of – your inventory just builds up. Instead of storing it indefinitely, where it just costs you and doesn’t benefit you at all, offer it at a special discount. Chances are you’ll make some extra money and create some space in the office.

If you’re in a service-oriented business, your “stock” can be your time or your expertise. You don’t really have it laying around, taking up excess space. It’s difficult to have a clearance sale on your time. The variation is to offer a pre-sell of a program.

Though you’re not selling an actual product, you can pre-sell a program. Put together a coaching program or a teleseminar series where clients pay up front for the program you’re offering. It might be a six-week series, but you’re getting the cash flow up front.

Obviously, then, the onus is on you to deliver. But you don’t have to actually have that program created before you sell it.  Offering the program as a pre-sell will force you to stay on track while simultaneously putting money in your pocket.

So, take a look at your inventory. Out with the old, in with the new, as they say. Do some spring cleaning or fall clearance of your old products.  Have a pre-sale of your newest program or offering.  Your clients will appreciate the value of the savings and your business will benefit from the value of the earnings. Everybody wins.

——

Bernadette Doyle is a marketing specialist who helps entrepreneurs become client magnets and attract a steady stream of their ideal clients. She publishes a free, weekly newsletter for trainers, speakers, coaches, consultants, complementary therapists and solo professionals. If you’d like to receive invaluable tips and advice on how to attract clients with ease, register at http://www.clientmagnets.com

The Value of Your Inventory

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Posted in Advertising, Business & Money, Business Plans, Business Success, Cash Flow, Marketing, Money Making Ideas, Sales Motivation, Small Business Ideas, Small Business Marketing, Success Secrets | 1 Comment »

9 Resources You May Already Have to Start Your Online Business

February 10th, 2010

Is something stopping you from starting your online business and moving forward to achieve success in your life? Successful online entrepreneurs didn’t let their circumstances prevent them from getting started. No matter where you are starting from, you already have many of the assets and resources you need.

If your reaction is, “I don’t really have any,” I am going to prove to you how wrong you are. You’ll be surprised at how much you bring to the table.

You don’t need to have a huge marketing budget. You don’t need the technical know-how. You don’t need to have a website or a facility for taking payments online yet.

What you do need is an awareness of the resources that you can tap into.

•   Life experiences. Your experiences in life count for a lot. Make a list of all the jobs you’ve ever held, and all the work you’ve done for those jobs. All of this adds value to who you are right now.

•   Existing prospects. Do you have a list of people that you’ve been in contact with who have expressed an interest in your services? If you don’t, or if it’s a small list, you need to begin to build that up.

•   Existing customers. Your list might not have hundreds of customers, and it doesn’t need to. If you have a customer list, of any length, that’s an existing resource that you can use to get you started.

•   A  network. You have a group of people that know you, that like you, that value you. While they may not be direct customers for your business, there’s a good chance that they will participate and help you.

•   Email. Just send an email out to your prospects, past and present customers, old colleagues and other network lists saying something like, “This is a new project that I’m starting. I would really appreciate if you could hook me up with other people that might be interested.”

•   Your willingness to ask for help. Yes, this is an asset. Don’t take the path of least assistance. If you’re going to build a successful online business, it’s essential for you to get comfortable with asking for help. You’ve got to be okay with that. It’s not a sign of weakness. It’s actually a sign of strength.

•   Existing products or programs. You might already have something that you don’t even recognize the value of. I turned copies of sales proposals I had used years ago to win training contracts, into valuable materials that I could share and sell. That was material that I had been undervaluing.

•   Your know-how and experience. Maybe you’re very good at what you’re doing and getting tremendous results, but can’t explain what you do. That’s okay. That can be pulled out of you and turned into training or a product that can give people similar results, without you having to work with them in person. Or you could map out what you know into a process that you can sell to other coaches. There are lots of opportunities to utilize your know-how.

•   Support and help. Do you have someone who assists you with admin? Or someone who helps with the technical work? If you don’t, it’s easy enough to get hooked up with that.

These are the some of the resources you likely have ready have access to.  You can build a successful online business if you have these.  Take inventory and see where the gaps are. The more resources you have to start with, the less time it’s going to take for you to profit. If you’ve got fewer resources, you have less of a margin for error, so deploy them wisely.

9 Resources You May Already Have to Start Your Online Business

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Posted in Business & Money, Business Networking, Business Plans, Business Success, Internet Business, Marketing, Online Marketing, Personal Productivity, Small Business Ideas | 3 Comments »

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