“In the near term, you will be required to invest more, think more, create more, do more, and work more to get less than you’ve been accustomed to. It will take more of everything just to get mediocre – instead of horrific – results.”
~ Dan Kennedy
Let’s Lead with the Good News…
The Cover-19 panic will end eventually and the world will return to a new normal. We’re already seeing countries open up and businesses move from ‘shelter-in-place’ to ‘what do I do now’.
Some businesses won’t survive.
Some will have to transform their model painfully and radically.
Others are… And will continue to… Thrive.
It’s probably not your fault, it’s more a question of your industry and the reality that since the GFC we’ve been living in a comfortable economy where it was pretty easy to win, and now things are different…
BUT… There are stories of hope and profitability even in industries that have been effectively shut down like hospitality, personal training, allied health services, and even travel. Some of my friends in each of these industries have had their best months ever.
Unless you had the business of your dreams that provided the perfect balance of time, energy, and income, this is a chance to re-invent yourself so that you come out of this crisis stronger and more satisfied than before.
Strategic Marketing is Rocket Fuel for Sales
I number amongst my friends and clients some incredible sales people who are also entrepreneurs and business owners.
Recently, I was working with one of these sales maestros whose goal was to 3X her closing rate and increase her profitability by getting more leads (she was already closing over 90% of her leads, so she needed more people to talk to and a more profitable offer). Put her on the phone or in a room with a qualified prospect and the result was pretty much a done deal especially when they saw the results she delivered but finding prospects and getting them ready to talk was taking more time and effort than she wanted.
We had a chat, then we went to work on her marketing strategy, because that’s the best way to generate qualified leads to whom you can sell.
The results so far: she’s closing five-times as many sales, and her revenue forecast for the next twelve months is double that of last year.
The 5-Step Sales Multiplier
It wasn’t that she didn’t already have marketing collateral, it was just that she didn’t quite have the best materials for the job.
Here’s a summary of what we did:
- We wrote a new ebook that addresses all the stakeholders concerns: technical, financial, administrative, business case. This made it easier for the person who wanted to engage her to pre-sell other decision-makers.
- We developed a more elegant and informative process for handling enquiries that pre-frames the buyer for acceptance and primes the sales team with information about the prospect. It also creates the effect of expertise and insight even at the reception desk which makes a great impression.
- We developed a physical/electronic Shock and Awe package (for qualified prospects) that reinforces her status and the value of her time. It provides important information and demonstrates her intimate knowledge of their problems. Enquirers have the opportunity to request the electronic version or to pay a shipping fee for the physical version (if they qualify). The conversion rate on those who receive the carefully designed physical package is very close to 100%.
- We refined the sales call process and follow up so that calls were shorter (demonstrating respect for the buyer’s time) and the follow up was tailored to their reaction.
- The New Client Welcome Shock and Awe package reinforces their decision, reminds them of their responsibilities, and makes it easy for them to talk about their choice and refer her business to friends.
The best thing about this process is the fact that streamlining her sales enables her to spend more time delivering her amazing products and services.
Never Under-Rate the Power of Marketing to Increase Your Equity
An entrepreneur whom I respect recently said that if was better to hold Equity than to control Marketing because if you occupy the marketing slot you can only ever be #2. Often, he’s right. However, if you have equity in a business that ignores the importance of marketing then your equity will decline in value, so it’s a chicken/egg situation.
Effective marketing can multiply your sales and profitability problem, but it requires 2 things from the management:
- Commitment to investing in strategic marketing;
- Understanding of the role that marketing has in the success of the business.
If the owner/manager doesn’t have these two elements, then your marketing expertise will be wasted. If they do, then you can have a fruitful partnership. It’s like a client of mine several years ago who decided that he wanted to pay me royalties on a campaign rather than an upfront fee because he thought it would be cheaper. After six months he had paid me substantially more in royalties than my original upfront fee would have cost him… But he was Ok with that because his return every time he mailed that campaign was enormous.
I guess, you could say that I have some equity there – indirectly. I can’t control when he mails my pieces, but I did ensure that they’re so successful that he still uses them – and pays me royalties when he does.
Marketing is ALWAYS Important – Especially When Times are Tough!
Don’t forget to ask yourself every day… What marketing action can I take that will generate more qualified lead flow and multiply my closing rate as well as my profitability?
My book Dynamic Direct Response Copywriting provides an insight into why consistent marketing is so important as well as how to research and write powerful advertising copy that irresistibly attracts your ideal prospect and pre-disposes them to work with you.
Purchase your copy today at https://hiltoncopywriting.mykajabi.com/opt-in