When you force your employees to say something or try and sell something to customers at the point of sale, it will come across as unnatural. On my last trip to Fry's electronics, as I was paying for my purchase, the cashier asked if I wanted to apply for a Fry's credit card. You've probably … [Read more...]

You've got your best chance to make a little extra money from customers when they are in the process of buying from you. They've got their money out and already trust you enough to buy. Should you try and upsell them a higher priced product? Or cross-sell them an additional … [Read more...]

Customer perception of your product or service is all relative. You need to identify the customer's point of reference to be effective in your marketing and selling efforts. Many customers will shop based on price or feature comparing your product to your competitor’s offering. Other times … [Read more...]

If you sell a product that can be purchased almost anywhere from multiple vendors, you're selling a commodity. This creates some problems in that you must convince customers to buy from you and not someone else. Since your product itself is ubiquitous, you may be tempted to compete on price. … [Read more...]

Perception is reality. How many times have you heard that? Well, guess what? You can change perceptions. How? Set proper expectations. The last time we had a DiGiorno pizza with the family, I noticed this line in the instructions: Let stand 5 minutes before enjoying Notice how … [Read more...]

Just because your customers need your product or will be forced to buy it later doesn't mean they will buy from you or buy today. You have to convince them. Here in the United States, we're getting rid of our analog television broadcasts in favor of a pure digital signal. Every time we've watched … [Read more...]

Coupons are everywhere. Is your business using them effectively to pull in customers and build repeat business? Include Coupons with Your Product Papa Murphy's pizza always includes a coupon with their product for a couple of dollars off the next order. They don't have to pay for mailings or … [Read more...]

Elections are just around the corner here in the United States. This year we'll be electing a new president and a whole bunch of other local and state officials. I can tell election day is getting near because I see more and more "vote for me" signs stuck all over town. These signs congregate … [Read more...]

Robert Stephens, founder of Geek Squad, answered a question about creating buzz in Inc magazine's October 2008 issue with some profound insight: Advertising is the tax you pay for being unremarkable. Robert had to bootstrap his business and didn't have the money to advertise. His business … [Read more...]

Your company, product, and service should be so good that you don't need to advertise. Is that even possible? Yes, it is. As you read the other day, we dropped our old pest control service Terminix and needed to find a new provider. At this stage of customer acquisition, your company's marketing … [Read more...]