Many business owners are in business and they make sales daily or weekly but they have never really sat down to write out the exact problem their product/service solves.
Read this Article, to understand some of the marketing tips
1). Know where your target audience congregates
People congregate based on common interests.
People who have common interests tend to move together.
The kind of people who will eventually buy your product or patronize your service always share common interests.
This common interest is based on the problem your product/service intends to solve.
If you would like to reach your target audience at the most inexpensive costs, the ideal way to do that is to take your offer straight to where your ideal customers congregate.
For some, their ideal customers (target market) congregate on Facebook, IG, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube, churches, newspapers, mosques, exhibition centers, or even at the airport.
The place they congregate is a function of the kind of product you are selling and who you are selling it to.
The level of sophistication of your target audience determines where they congregate.
Take Lamborghini for example… Lamborghini manufacturer doesn’t run TV ads for their products yet they sold 10,112 cars globally in 2023. We are talking about billions of dollars without using popular commercial advertising channels.
Why don’t they use TV ads? According to the manufacturer, their target audience doesn’t sit around watching TV.
Did you get there? Think about it for a moment.
Can you in a split second say the exact kind of platforms where your ideal customer (target audience) congregates?
Lamborghini organizes car exhibitions, sends invitations to their target audience, asks for recommendations from existing Lamborghini owners, and asks their ideal customers to come around and test drive their cars.
If you can afford it, you will be glued to it.
How can you implement this in your business?
Think about it.
I desire that you will experience exponential growth within this period.
2). Do not put the cart before the horse
Many business owners are frustrated with their sales and marketing today because they have been putting the cart before the horse.
Putting the cart before the horse slows down the movement of the horse.
Now the big question is, “How are businesses putting the cart before the horse?”
I will give you two examples and I expect you to figure out the rest by yourself:
1 – When you create a product before looking for customers
2 – When you make a financial investment in a business you’ve not taken the time to study
Let’s start with the first one…
There’s no reward or award for creating a product nobody needs.
When you create a product without first testing the market demand or building a ready-to-buy audience base for the product, you risk the chance of selling off your goods at the auction rate.
Don’t assume people will buy the product until you’ve tested it. Beyond that, build an audience and create anticipation.
The market is the ultimate decider. You wouldn’t want to face a rude shock.
To get the best out of your business, make it a policy to study the business before throwing money into it.
3). Start using demonstration marketing in your business
In my many years of studying and practicing sales and marketing, especially as it regards offline activities, the most persuasive and magical means of getting customers for business owners to part with their money is to introduce demonstration marketing.
Demonstration marketing has to do with helping the customer get immersed with and in the product as though they already own it.
Get them to test the product as though they already own it and they wouldn’t want the memory to be temporary.
As a result, they will do anything to own it. The only thing that can hinder them will be if they can’t afford it. To save your time, only use demonstration marketing on qualified leads (people who need what you are selling and have the capacity to pay for it).
Here are a few examples of how to utilize demonstration marketing:
— Test the shoes and look at yourself in the mirror.
— Wear the shirt first and look at yourself in the mirror
— Test drive the car first before you can decide if you would like to buy it or not
By getting the would-be buyer immersed in the experience of already owning it, the desire to own it increases the more.
If you are a realtor trying to sell a 3-bedroom duplex to a qualified lead, (by qualified lead it means he or she can pay) the best way to use demonstration marketing is to invite the person for a house inspection.
When they come, walk them around the entire building. Show them various catchy sections of the building, with emphasis on the one that will captivate their attention the most.
Demonstration marketing makes your prospect relish the experience of owning the product long before they eventually pay for it.
4). Build instant rapport with your prospects to increase your sales volume
Business owners need to understand this, when a prospect walks into your business door, be it online or offline, you have only a few seconds to make the first impression.
This first impression will determine if they will buy from you now, buy from you later, or walk away completely and never look back.
To build instant rapport, here are a couple of things you should do (online and offline businesses combined):
— Use your real face on social media
— Use your real name on social media
— Give massive value to your audience in your chosen niche. Let them know you as THE Expert in your industry.
— Be friendly
— Engage with your audience in the comments section
— Genuinely care about people such that nobody will leave you without getting value from you
— When you are talking with someone for the first, look at them face to face and pay attention. Listen more than you talk. Allow them to talk about their business and make suggestions (ideas, phone numbers, or websites) that can help them grow
— Call people by their favorite name or give them a unique name (only you will call them the name) that massages their ego
— Kickstart your conversation with them based on their common interest. If he or she is interested in football, talk about football.
— Do not sell ice to an Eskimo, instead, show them where they can get a truckload of it behind their window.
5). Start Selling with Stories
Facts are logical should be part of all business owners. Stories are emotional. If you must deliver your sales message most compellingly then you must learn and master how to embed stories with your facts.
Stories can help you attract and sustain the attention of your audience. Facts will help them see all the benefits.
What are the various types of stories one can use to sell their business?
1 — Personal stories
2 — Customers’ stories
3 — Behind-the-scene stories
4 — Industry historical events
In whatever you are selling, craft a story out of it.
The story will come as a support to your fact (benefit).
The attention span of people is very low. To sustain and retain their attention, you must learn how to sell with stories.
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6). Start gathering your social proofs and use them
I love influencing buyers’ decisions in my favor by educating them.
I believe that the best way to show that you know something is by the way you can explain it.
For instance, if you don’t have a practical knowledge of SEO writing, the way you will explain it will be entirely different.
There are areas in business you can’t explain with mere theories. You must be well-grounded in it to be able to explain it. Being grounded in it means that you are also getting results from it.
While it’s possible to attract a good number of buyers with this approach, I also know that there’s a fraction of the audience that will never buy from you until they hear what others are saying about you.
They want to know if others used your product or service and if it worked for them.
If you can show them this (social proof) and that (educate them) I guarantee you can always generate income on demand. When I mean income, I’m talking about millions of Naira.
In your business, do you have social proof? What’s the evidence that what you are selling works?
Don’t keep them to yourself. That’s not humility.
You’ve got to use them in your sales and marketing messages strategically.
Social proofs can help you to eliminate objection barriers.
If you don’t have social proofs yet, start gathering them and use them in your marketing.
How To Deliver Exceptional Customer Experience At All Times For Small Business Owners
Delivering an exceptional customer experience is important when it comes to building loyalty, driving retention, and encouraging positive word-of-mouth.
When it comes to boosting customer experience, here are some key aspects to focus on:
1. Personalization:
Tailor your interactions to individual customers’ needs, preferences, and behaviors. Use data and analytics to segment your audience and create targeted offers, recommendations, and communications.
2. Omnichannel consistency:
Ensure a seamless experience across all platforms via which your brand can be reached, including websites, social media, email, phone, and in-person interactions. Maintain consistent branding, messaging, and service levels.
3. User-friendly interfaces:
Design intuitive and accessible interfaces for your website, app, or physical locations. Make it easy for customers to find what they need, navigate through the buying process, and access support.
4. Timely and effective support:
All business owners must provide responsive and knowledgeable customer support through various channels (email, phone, chat, etc.). Train your team to be empathetic, patient, and solution-focused.
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5. Proactive engagement:
Anticipate customers’ needs and proactively offer assistance, recommendations, or solutions. Use data and analytics to identify potential issues and opportunities for upselling or cross-selling.
6. Transparency and communication:
Communicate your products’ or services’ features, benefits, and limitations. Set realistic expectations and keep customers informed about order status, delivery times, and any issues that may arise.
7. Empathy and emotional connection:
Train your team to understand and acknowledge customers’ emotions, concerns, and frustrations. Show empathy and build rapport to create a positive, memorable experience.
8. Continuous feedback and improvement:
Regularly collect customer feedback through surveys, reviews, and other channels. Analyze the insights and implement changes to improve the customer experience, products, and services.
9. Loyalty and retention strategies:
Implement programs and initiatives that reward loyal customers, encourage repeat business, and foster long-term relationships.
10. Employee training and empowerment:
Invest in employee development and empowerment to ensure they have the skills, knowledge, and autonomy to deliver exceptional customer experiences.
By focusing on these aspects, you can create a customer experience that sets your brand apart, drives loyalty, and fuels growth through positive word-of-mouth and repeat business.
