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9 Ways to Grow Your Sales: Part III The economy is showing consistent signs that steady growth is underway. Given this, your current and past customers (and prospects) are going to have increased sign and graphics needs. Are you positioned to benefit from these? Are you on the top of their mind? Will they think of you when they need that next graphic or sign for their building, promotion, or other project?
This month we look at Part C of 9 Ways to Grow Your Sales
Part A. Finding New Customers (See the November 2003 Newsletter)
Part B. Close More Estimates and Increase Your Average Sale (See the December 2003 Newsletter)
Make Sure that You Get Your Customer Everything They Need the First Time, And that You Get Paid For It Part C. Increasing sales from existing customers. (In This Issue)
Part C. Increasing sales from existing customers
1. Stay on the Top of Your Customer's Mind When a customer that has bought from you previously goes to purchase the next sign or graphic, are they likely to think of your shop? Will your shop be on the “top of their mind?” If you think so, why? And are you sure? Remember that they’re likely to be as busy and chaotic as you are, possibly more.
Some shop owners are excellent about staying in contact with customers, and making face to face visits to prospects. Chances are that competitors are calling on your customers, just asking for a chance.
If you’re not sure whether you’ll be top of mind, or just want some insurance, here are some suggestions for getting started: a. Figure out which customers are on your 80/20 list. More specifically, figure out the 20% of the customers that contribute 80% of your revenues. Your numbers may vary, but the concept is the same. Who are your key customers? And don’t just go by your gut. Take a few minutes to look at your order records to make sure that you aren’t missing some. Focus on these customers first. b. Make sure you know how well you have performed for these customers. Were the jobs done right the first time? Were they done on time? Did the customers have any feedback once they received the product? Do you have someone in your shop that is assigned the task of calling customers after they have received the product to ask if it met their needs? Obviously, if there are any unresolved issues, personally contact these folks. c. Do your customers know what sets your shop apart from other shops? Do you? Does you staff know? Having a clear strategy on how you want to compete is critical. Do you want to compete on price? Or on rapid turn around, or quality, or creativity, and having the newest technology? Make sure your team knows your shop’s strategy, and then communicate that to your customer. d. Send a newsletter to your customers weekly, monthly, or on a cycle that makes sense for your business. Just think about what would be of value for your customers and prospects. Perhaps mention how the kinds of things that your business specializes in can help them solve problems. Perhaps include a case study of a job you recently did, describing how something special that you did made a difference for the customer. If you have new equipment, mention what it can do for your customers. If you’ve hired new employees, mention their expertise and how that can be of value to the customer.
2. Give Your Customer New and Creative Ideas on How to Solve His/Her Problems In addition to giving creative ideas in the newsletter or mailer, you may want to work with your sales folks and estimators to ensure that they are proactively questioning the customer to fully understand what the customer is trying to do with the sign or graphic. (Our software has built-in suggestions making it easy to train new employees to estimate, and increasing the consistency of estimates. And the owner can edit these suggestions or options, and adjust the prices).
It is critical to make sure the customer gets it right the first time. They’re not the expert in signs or graphics. By asking a few extra questions about how the customer is going to use the sign or graphic, you and your team can suggest alternative solutions that will work better for the customer. This makes sure that the customer is successful in what they are trying to accomplish, and makes you a trusted resource. And these suggestions, also called options or modifiers, can carry an extra price. Whether it’s a more appropriate type of mounting, lamination, or something like grommets or pole pockets, there is an opportunity for these to increase the total sale. Incidentally, our software keeps all these options in front of the estimator or salesperson. And since the owner can control the pricing, there will be more consistency in the pricing.
3. Deepen Your Relationships with Your Key Customers Deepening your relationship with your key customers helps to protect their business and position you to win more of their business. With that list of your key customers (the 80/20 exercise from above), think about their objectives and interests. The prior paragraphs mentioned ways to help these customers achieve their business objectives. This section touches on other ways to grow the relationships.
Taking customers to lunch is a good way to continue to grow the bonds, but always be on the lookout for the opportunity to do something special for them that they’ll remember forever. For example, if you and your customer are located in Florida, and he/she is a huge golf fan, yet has never been to the Bay Hill Classic, take them to the tournament. Simply put, find out what each key customer’s passion is and look for an opportunity to have some fun with them along those lines. With larger customers, look for ways to establish multiple relationships. Have the employees in your company that talk customers systematically work on building the relationship. Systematize the process. What are the 20 pieces of information that you should know about each of your contacts at each of your key customers? Figure out a systematic way to collect that information. Whether it’s on index cards or in our software, create a standard template to collect the information. And eventually, you should grow this system so that all of your employees that interact directly with these customers have access to this information. This is all part of servicing these customers better. 4. Sell for the Season that is Coming Can you pull a list at any time of the customers that purchased from you in the few years during the upcoming season so you know who to market to? For example, since we are in January, it might make sense to pull a list of the customers that purchased from you in the last 3 years during February, March, and April. Prepare a marketing brochure, or a creative piece that will give these customers some interesting and valuable ideas, and email or mail it out. Or perhaps, it this case you may prefer to have an employee call them to see what needs the customers will have for the upcoming season. This is just one suggestion for targeting your marketing. Regardless of whether this example applies to your niche, the question is do you have a systematic way to segment and target your customers 5. Customer Referrals Have you or your sales folks asked your customers for referrals?
The suggestions discussed previously will better position you to win referral business. Any of the following will increase the likelihood of getting referrals from your customers: · Having the customer know and value your strategy; · Being known as a valuable creative resource (for design, problem solving, or in other ways); and, · Having a solid relationships with the key contacts.
Most of the time customers would gladly refer you if you have performed and are trusted. This shortens the sales cycle, and reduces your selling costs, and enables you to leverage your fixed costs better. In other words, this will increase sales and profits.
Tips for getting started: · Contact the customers that you have performed well for, and ask them who they know that would value your service. · When your employee calls them to ask how their latest job was, have your employee ask for the referral. Get started now. You can improve as you go.
- This Month's Humor Mill entry comes to us via the Internet from Anonymous. Top 10 Funny Store Signs 1.Outside a muffler shop: "No appointment necessary, we hear you coming." 2.Outside a hotel: "Help! We need inn-experienced people." 3.On a desk in a reception room: "We shoot every 3rd salesman , and the 2nd one just left." 4.In a veterinarians waiting room: "Be back in 5 minutes, Sit ! Stay!" 5.At the electric company: "We would be de-lighted if you send in your bill. However, if you don't you will be." 6.On the door of a computer store: "Out for a quick byte." 7.In a restaurant window: "Don't stand there and be hungry, come on in and get fed up." 8.Inside a bowling alley: "Please be quiet, we need to hear a pin drop." 9.In the front yard of a funeral home: "Drive carefully, we'll wait." 10.In a counselors office: "Growing old is mandatory, growing wise is optional " Think you have the next "Joke of the Month"? If your joke is selected, you win $50 off your next purchase. All you have to do is click the link and e-mail us your name, e-mail address, and name of your business to enter.
It has become more apparent that the U.S. is in a significant productivity boom. How long this rapid pace of productivity growth will last is unclear. Economic fundamentals are improving and 2004 GDP growth should be strong. Concerns about the dollar and the budget deficit may intensify in the near term. Fed policy will remain unusually accommodative for most of the year. The Fed will raise rates on signs of steady, healthy job growth. Long-term interest rates should move higher, probably not terribly, but there is some chance of a sharper short-term move up. For some time, the economy has exhibited signs that it has been working through significant structural change. Much like in the 1990-91 recession and its recovery, job losses have tended to be more permanent in nature (as opposed to temporary, or cyclical, layoffs). We now appear to be in a longer period of rapid productivity growth. Productivity growth held up very well during the 2001 recession and gains over the last few quarters have been phenomenal. The U.S. has experienced a number of these booms in its history, often lasting a decade or more. These booms, are generated by the happy confluence of technological advances, financial innovations, organizational change, and gains in human capital. Periods of rapid productivity growth are associated with low inflation, sharp increases in the standard of living, and unpleasant labor dislocations. Ultimately, productivity booms end, leading to lengthy periods of more moderate growth. Boom periods may generate financial imbalances (sowing the seeds of their own demise), exhaust their productivity boosted potential, or succumb to shocks. Some of last year’s stronger productivity growth seems due to stepped-up cost-cutting efforts, which may be hard to duplicate in 2004. Productivity growth should slow over the course of the year, but will likely remain strong. Hence, overall economic growth may be quite robust, with only modest improvement in jobs. What’s missing is job creation. Firms are becoming more willing to hire new workers, but are still relatively cautious.
Controlling Costs To Control Profits Every sign business has a best customer. In fact, studies have shown that 80 percent of the income of most businesses usually comes from 20 percent of its customers. But how can any sign professional tell whether that best customer is generating its fair share of bottom-line profits? Is your best customer costing you money?
Water Works for Weight Loss Nothing quells the appetite
like water, lots and lots of water. Start out with two quart bottles
in the morning and carry one with you to work or wherever you go. If
you like, divvy up the 64 ounces of water into eight (8-ounce) bottles
or four pint (16-ounce) bottles to carry around with you all day. Freeze
half of them the night before and they will last all day, even in a
hot car. Keep some unfrozen so they will be ready to drink immediately. Weight
Training Tip
Serious Problems / Cyrious Solutions Each month, we will raise one common problem in the sign and graphics industry, and demonstrate how Cyrious Software directly solves this problem:
Q: Is it time consuming to check where an order is and when it will be ready? Are orders sometimes late? Do orders get lost?
A:
With Cyrious Software, you and your employees can check the WIP report
anytime to see where orders are and what needs to be worked on next.
Also, our database makes sure orders won't be accidentally deleted or
lost. Imagine, no more running around the shop to find an order when
a customer calls. It's all on the WIP Report, sorted by due date.
"Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not one bit simpler."
Cyrious Software is now holding FREE Live Online Learning Webinars. These Live Webinars will provide attendees with a professional demonstration on various important topics aimed to help business's increase profits and manage more effectively. Below are specific dates and topics: (all times noted are Central Standard Time)
1. "Pricing for Increased Profits"
February 13th, 2004 @ 4:00pm (CST)February 25th, 2004 @ 4:00pm (CST)
2."How to Avoid Wasted Time in Your Orders"
February 10th, 2004 @ 4:00pm(CST)February 24th, 2004 @ 4:00pm.(CST)
3."Effective Management Tools" February 17th, 2004 @ 4:00pm(CST)
4. "Growing Your Business" February 18th, 2004 @ 9:00am(CST)
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