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Words that Sell
37 essential communications pieces for your sales arsenal
Kris Mills
I often get asked what sorts of sales pieces does a business need to maximise their sales
conversions and repeat sales. Well - every business IS different, but here is a good
starting point.
GENERATING LEADS
1. A Yellow Pages ad that sells (if you're in a classification where there are a large
number of large ads featured).
2. A variety of appointment generating letters with unique gimmicks - designed to be
followed up with a phone call to gain an appointment. Continually test new approaches to
see which one delivers the best result for your efforts.
3. Appointment rain check letter - for people who don't agree to the appointment (refer
above letter). This is designed to say thanks for their time and to give them some
additional information about the company with the view of gaining an appointment down the
track.
4. A series of "sell off the page" campaigns to past prospects and qualified
lists. Some businesses are reluctant to try this approach because they feel that a sale
needs face to face contact. In some situations it does, but in others, it really doesn't.
By thinking outside the square you may find that you can, in fact, sell your product or
service off the page. Having said that, there will always be some industries where it
doesn't work. If you're wondering if this approach might work for your business, just send
me an email at kris@wordsthatsell.com.au
5. A series of press ads, cold sales letters and letters to clients, that promote
"timely" events eg. end of financial year, Easter, Christmas etc.
6. Endorsed mailer - where one of your client writes a letter to your prospects endorsing
your services. This can work fantastically well because they're hearing how good your
business is from someone who counts . another customer.
7. A "host beneficiary" campaign - where a strategically aligned business writes
to their clients recommending your business and offering them a special "deal"
on your behalf. This is a fantastic win-win. Naturally, it's important to reciprocate the
offer by then writing to your clients recommending the other business's products or
services.
8. Two or three good lead generation ads in a targeted publication promoting a FREE
report, a consultation or FREE seminar. Almost every industry can use this approach with
great results. What can you offer?
9. A series of small classified ads promoting your website and or your business Depending
on the industry, you'd be surprised at how well this can actually work. Even if you're in
a b2b field, there are numerous newspaper classifications where you could place your ad.
10. Post box fliers - depending on your product or service, you could find that this is a
highly cost effective ways to generate extra leads.
11. Website postcards - if you have some really valuable information on your website, use
a postcard to drive traffic to the site.
12. A Website that sells - it doesn't matter what type of business you're in, a website is
a must.
13. One press release every month - FREE publicity is like gold. Tap into it for all its
worth.
MAXIMISING YOUR SALES CONVERSIONS .
14. Appointment confirmation letter that reminds them of the appointment date and gives
them preliminary information that excites them about meeting with you.
15. Benefit-oriented corporate brochure.
16. Product and services fact sheets that go inside a presentation folder.
17. A series of how-to reports and/or white papers which pitch you as an expert in your
field.
18. A "Questions and Answers" document which handles any buyer objections up
front and gives them all the information they need to make an informed decision.
19. A "case studies and client success stories" document giving specific details
of wins experienced by clients.
20. A comprehensive, benefit-oriented proposal template.
21. A powerful enquiry letter and information package with a limited offer and a clear,
powerful call-to-action.
22. E-Profile - an electronic brochure that you can email to prospective clients
instantly.
23. Cross-selling checklist which lists all options a customer might consider. This helps
maximise the average value of each sale.
24. A series of powerful, staged email auto-responder messages that follow up email
requests for information and keep encouraging your prospect to buy.
25. Drip-feed prospect nurturing campaign where you follow up unconverted leads with a
series of letters designed to subtly sell them on your services in a staged manner.
26. "Sorry we couldn't help you" letter that gets sent out after receiving a
rejection. This helps endear your company to the prospect even though you didn't make the
sale AND it may even steer them back to you down the track.
AFTER THE SALE .
27. A "thank you for investing" letter.
28. A "welcome to xyz company" package with thank you letter, "how to get
the best use out of our widgets" report and some other helpful tools that nurture the
relationship and offer post-purchase reassurance. This is a very powerful tool in
increasing referrals and minimising refunds.
29. A 2 week review letter with feedback form and response maximising device.
30. A 6 month review letter asking their feedback and mentioning that you will call to
review their situation.
31. A well-thought out nurturing program with a total of 2 nurturing pieces per year (in
addition to at least 4 newsletters per year) and 2 to 3 letters asking for a repeat sale
(depending on your industry.
32. A referral campaign designed to generate high numbers of direct referrals in return
for an incentive.
33. A "thanks for your referral" letter.
34. Introductory letter to people who have been referred.
35. Invitation to a "closed door event" - if you're in the retail industry.
36. Newsletter - an absolute must. If most of your clients have emails, an email
newsletter will suffice.
37. "Special offer" sales letters - One of the reasons some businesses don't
generate much repeat business is that they simply don't ask customers to buy from then
again.
As I mentioned earlier, these are the basics. Naturally, there are more you can add to
this list, however this is a good starting point to expand on. Good luck!
Copyright 2000 Kris Mills - Words that Sell Pty Ltd. Kris Mills is an
experienced direct response copywriter, direct marketer, author and
publisher who has written dozens of articles on copywriting and direct
marketing. You can view them on her site at
http://www.wordsthatsell.com.au/index.html. While you're there, subscribe to
her e-zine. Or you can email her direct at kris@wordsthatsell.com.au
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