Wednesday 25 April 2012
Permission Please
Wow blogger changed their user interface (the back end of writing this that you do not see). No warning, no option just change. Not very cool if you are a user and suddenly cannot find anything. But that is the price for using a free platform...or should it be, despite the fact that I am not paying for this service should I be given the option to decide if I want to use a potentially better interface or not? Food for thought.
Thursday 19 April 2012
How to Sell Your Product With Passion
THE people who read newspapers on a regular basis can be divided into two main groups. There is a small group who read everything in the paper from cover to cover, often over a gently cooling cup of tannin infused water. The second, more larger group breeze through the paper looking for headlines that appeal and only read articles that they think are worthy of scrutiny.
This group of individuals makes up the larger percentage of your market.
They will not religiously examine every product on the shelf before making their choice (you are smiling because in your mind you can picture the person you know who does just that), rather they grab the one that has headlines that scream the loudest at them.
This is the same with salespersons or business owners; your voice needs to scream loud and clear if you are to effectively sell your product.
Twitter’s success astounds me. If you told me 10 years ago that allowing people 140 word posts would be a successful communication medium for any length of time I would have laughed at you.
Yet everyday people headline their stories to whoever will listen. Everyone has a story to tell, and amid the billions of stories being told each day yours has better chances of being read if it stands out.
Here are three pointers on making your story the best one possible. They apply to your investor pitches, your staff training, and your consumer interactions.
Firstly, you need to let people know that your product will make a difference to them.
It should be a real difference that they will appreciate. You need to ask yourself why your range of jam is better than the glowing, imported version next to it on the shelf.
What problem will you solve for your consumers? At the end of the day you need to answer the question “Why should people care about what you have to offer?”
You may be selling a steel-reinforced, prefabricated, storage location for vehicles, but what people want to hear is that you are offering car security at a click of a button.
As a customer I do not need to hear you tell me that our well-trained (possibly over trained) staff are on hand to assist you with anything you want at any time of day you want it.
Even though you may have the most amazing staff education programme, what I want to hear is something like “Finally, 24-hour shopping with minimal fuss”, or “Open 24 hours a day — a real convenience store”. Sell a difference people can appreciate.
Second, headline it. Try to tell your story in one sentence. Create a Twitter account and see if it fits in the little “tweet” box that counts down the number of letters you have left to use.
Now remember the first point while you do this, if you can tell me how your product will change my life in one, short sentence I may give you permission to tell me more about it, or, even better, show me how it actually works.
Finally, tell it to me with passion. If you do not believe in your product and the difference it will make then I am not going to believe in it either.
To me this is one of the biggest differentials in business today.
Zimbabweans are just not passionate about what they are selling (perhaps that is because we have been through 10 years of merely trading other country’s goods that we had no hand in creating).
A friend of mine sells hair extensions, he can tell at a glance the type of weave at a hundred yards, whether it is artificial or natural, and if it came from his factory or not.
To see him in action is fascinating, I have sat with him at coffee as he chats to a waitress about the pros and cons of her current style — free advice to make her look better.
He has a passion not just for the hair product, but for the effect it is making in the lives of his clients.
Be excited about what you are selling — not just the product but the revolutionary change it will make to someone.
Many restaurants have daily specials and waiters will regurgitate this information in a rapid monotone as they guide you to your table.
Ask a waiter which cake he or she thinks is the best to have and watch the change in his or her eyes as he or she extols why they enjoy it so much. Passion makes a difference.
The emotion you have for your product needs to be contagious enough to reflect in your staff.
You need to get buy-in from them as to the change you are making in your peculiar pocket of the universe.
If it does not filter down to your salesman then the results will be the same.
How do you sell it to your staff, the same way you sell it to me — sell the difference, keep it short, and tell it like it matters. At the end of the day, the best story wins.
This group of individuals makes up the larger percentage of your market.
They will not religiously examine every product on the shelf before making their choice (you are smiling because in your mind you can picture the person you know who does just that), rather they grab the one that has headlines that scream the loudest at them.
This is the same with salespersons or business owners; your voice needs to scream loud and clear if you are to effectively sell your product.
Twitter’s success astounds me. If you told me 10 years ago that allowing people 140 word posts would be a successful communication medium for any length of time I would have laughed at you.
Yet everyday people headline their stories to whoever will listen. Everyone has a story to tell, and amid the billions of stories being told each day yours has better chances of being read if it stands out.
Here are three pointers on making your story the best one possible. They apply to your investor pitches, your staff training, and your consumer interactions.
Firstly, you need to let people know that your product will make a difference to them.
It should be a real difference that they will appreciate. You need to ask yourself why your range of jam is better than the glowing, imported version next to it on the shelf.
What problem will you solve for your consumers? At the end of the day you need to answer the question “Why should people care about what you have to offer?”
You may be selling a steel-reinforced, prefabricated, storage location for vehicles, but what people want to hear is that you are offering car security at a click of a button.
As a customer I do not need to hear you tell me that our well-trained (possibly over trained) staff are on hand to assist you with anything you want at any time of day you want it.
Even though you may have the most amazing staff education programme, what I want to hear is something like “Finally, 24-hour shopping with minimal fuss”, or “Open 24 hours a day — a real convenience store”. Sell a difference people can appreciate.
Second, headline it. Try to tell your story in one sentence. Create a Twitter account and see if it fits in the little “tweet” box that counts down the number of letters you have left to use.
Now remember the first point while you do this, if you can tell me how your product will change my life in one, short sentence I may give you permission to tell me more about it, or, even better, show me how it actually works.
Finally, tell it to me with passion. If you do not believe in your product and the difference it will make then I am not going to believe in it either.
To me this is one of the biggest differentials in business today.
Zimbabweans are just not passionate about what they are selling (perhaps that is because we have been through 10 years of merely trading other country’s goods that we had no hand in creating).
A friend of mine sells hair extensions, he can tell at a glance the type of weave at a hundred yards, whether it is artificial or natural, and if it came from his factory or not.
To see him in action is fascinating, I have sat with him at coffee as he chats to a waitress about the pros and cons of her current style — free advice to make her look better.
He has a passion not just for the hair product, but for the effect it is making in the lives of his clients.
Be excited about what you are selling — not just the product but the revolutionary change it will make to someone.
Many restaurants have daily specials and waiters will regurgitate this information in a rapid monotone as they guide you to your table.
Ask a waiter which cake he or she thinks is the best to have and watch the change in his or her eyes as he or she extols why they enjoy it so much. Passion makes a difference.
The emotion you have for your product needs to be contagious enough to reflect in your staff.
You need to get buy-in from them as to the change you are making in your peculiar pocket of the universe.
If it does not filter down to your salesman then the results will be the same.
How do you sell it to your staff, the same way you sell it to me — sell the difference, keep it short, and tell it like it matters. At the end of the day, the best story wins.
Monday 16 April 2012
Celebrating Each Other
Has the world forgotten how to celebrate each other? We have to bring our own cakes to work on birthdays. Perhaps Humpty Dumpty had it right-unbirthdays are worth celebrating-celebrating the random, quirky and unusual things that make us, well, us.
Friday 13 April 2012
Thursday 12 April 2012
Interactive Billboard Grows Hair with Facebook Likes
A billboard in Cape Town grows a beard based in the number of 'likes' on Facebook. This is a creative form of advertising that is causing a stir on the web and in the city. More important than the growth is the about of conversation being generated about it...and the company that put it up. The difference stands out...and gets them noticed.
http://www.facebook.com/BronxMensShoes
http://www.iol.co.za/scitech/technology/internet/if-you-like-it-it-will-grow-1.1272549
Tuesday 10 April 2012
Keep Your Business Story Simple
Can you describe your business in a Twitter post? How about in 10 words or less? Be creative, play with the words and come up with a statement that encapsulates the experience you offer in one, simple sentence.
Tuesday 3 April 2012
The Great Book Rip Off
So someone offered me 'The Presentation Secrets of Steve Jobs' for USD75 in a local, Zimbabwean bookstore. I just brought it on Kindle from Amazon for a fifth of that! Seriously, seriously overpriced in the bookstore. Guess where I won't be shopping again...
....can't wait to read it though.
....can't wait to read it though.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)