Visibility: Growing your base

The other day I was driving home from running a few errands, and I saw this truck parked at the corner of a local gas station. The truck-owner apparently got thirsty and stopped in to buy a pop. So why didn't he park up buy the building? The answer was on the side of his truck. He sold tools and his box-truck was a moving billboard. Parking at the corner made him more visible than anywhere else.

So my question is... are we becoming more visible?

Visibility is a key to selling success. It is one of the ways of shifting the law of averages in your favor. I have even called it "filling the funnel." It goes like this. You have 20 prospects that come in at the top of your funnel. Of those 20, 8 or 9 qualify to buy your product or service. But at the yes or no stage of whether the customer buys, only 3 sign. 

Now increase your visibility rate. You get in the eyes of, say, hundreds of people. You're still doing your prospecting game, but now you're adding an additional stream of prospects into your funnel. You add another 50 or so to your funnel. What is great is that something these prospects perceive about you, that maybe you can help them with a problem, causes them to call on you. This causes a heightened chance of the prospect qualifying. See why visibility matters? More qualified prospects equal a higher chance of a successful sale.

What is great about today is, in our information-rich era, we have at our disposal tools that cost little-to-no money at all, especially with social media. Let's break this down.

Facebook: Everybody seems to be connecting, liking statuses, posting updates, and commenting on crazy photos. You can post photos of new products, status updates of finance options, run polls to get ideas from your fan-base, and more using the pages options. A word of caution: Anybody can like a page, status, photo, etc. Because of Facebook's inclusiveness, you need to really figure out a way to bring the customer into your sphere. Using Facebook to promote events or freebies and bonuses to get people in the door is a good idea

Blogger, WordPress, etc. This is a way of providing credible advice and reviews. Proper use of blogs can give you leverage in the arenas of credibility and trustworthiness. It also gives you an opportunity to delve into the "Why's" and "Why not's" of product choice. This can help save you and your prospects time and energy in the long run.

LinkedIn: This is more of an exclusive, professional network. Business people connecting with business people. Can you think "Endorsements?" This is a great method of building credibility among fellows in the business sphere. This is also a great sharpening tool for you and your own business. Say you connect with Sally Jones at Sally's Hair Shoppe. Your business is cars. Not only that but you've been endorsed in multiple skills. Mary Jane comes in to get her hair done and, wouldn't you know it, she starts talking about how her car gives her nothing but fits and now its time for an upgrade. Sally knows that you are endorsed in areas that can help Mary Jane make an authoritative decision and she passes on your info to Mary Jane.

Twitter: Special Deal on our new... from 11am to 3pm. #ExperienceAwesome. 140 characters to shout out to your followers, plus they have plugins to send the same tweets to Facebook.

YouTube: PEOPLE CONNECT WITH IMAGES. Image is a powerful medium of influence. So imagine that instead of writing about a product, you tell a customer to his or her face at his or her convenience. Imagine that instead of "2 acre, Multi-Level, 4BR 2BA," You, instead, take your customer on a tour of the home. Imagine that instead of a grainy phone-call or an abbreviated statement, your successful customers sitting in front of a camera and telling future customers point-blank what they liked about your services.

You can see that visibility is an essential part of your success. These are a few freebies you can go to and start broadcasting to the public. Remember to always get your name out. Increase your fan-base and you will see success. Be successful and Stay Curious   

Meet, Like, Trust: A Method of Approach

I was participating in this group forum on LinkedIn the other day. Another forum participant opened an interesting discussion that I think everybody should note. The gentleman posting this discussion stated that he had lost a deal to a worthy competitor and, when asking for feedback, the prospect simply stated the cold truth: The competition didn't make the prospect feel like he was being sold.

This forum post ultimately asked (From LinkedIn forum):

how can I best interpret the individual customer at first contact to avoid instant alienation if the wrong approach is taken. Is this a deal breaker?

To this I answered, and will now open my answer to you: MEET, LIKE, TRUST

I first heard it put this way a little over two weeks back in a conversation I was having following a breakfast I had attended. The simplicity of this and using this for sales is brilliant.

MEET: This is the rapport builder; the initial handshake. This opens the door of possibility to an ongoing relationship. I find that you only have a few moments to build this initial relationship.



After this the customers will determine whether or not they LIKE you. Here is a key to raising your likability: Ask them questions about them. Show genuine desire to learn about them (Curiosity). Listen to them. Watch and see what they talk about that makes their eyes sparkle. If you see them grow distant on a certain area (far away gaze. Deadening tone, etc.) that is a subject that needs axed, unless its from a certain need that you can fulfill. Painful subjects should be avoided: Divorce, Deaths of Close family or friends, Enemies, etc. If you see they are proud of their industry, ask them about projects that were successes. If they are proud of their kids, ask about subjects that the kids excel, talents, hobbies. Ask about what they enjoy doing. Using these questions makes YOU interesting. By becoming interested, you become interesting.

On top of that, you will pick up avenues of approach. The customer essentially opens doors for you to enter. These doors are doors of TRUST. You have avoided alienation with customer and the customer will be more open to working with you. At this point the customer is working with a friend, not a salesman. You both are now on the same side of the table working towards the same goal. And also because you have listened, you have working examples on how you can improve the life of the customer and make what is already profitable even more profitable.

As a final note: Strong relationships are easy to build. But they are easier to break. Remember to always build these relationships with integrity. Don't give them any reason to be ashamed to be your friend. If your product or service cannot help them, maintain the friendship. If they expect to see what you have, go ahead and show them how the product or service makes improvements to lives. But only exhibit it's benefits. Don't go into a sales pitch. Instant turnoff because now they are being sold on something THEY DON'T WANT. That's a major deal breaker and you may destroy a way of reference.

Meet. Like. Trust... And Stay Curious.