Author: Pamela Swift

AllBusiness.com: I remember as a young college kid (yeah, I’m old enough to say that now), I worked in a ski and patio furniture store (it was the Midwest so skiing in the winter, patio furniture in the summer). What I learned quickly in selling the goods was that most people had no working knowledge of skiing or patio furniture and it came down to a price game with our competitors.
So I educated them first and foremost about patio furniture. I explained why an aluminum frame was better, how powder coating lasted longer than any other finish, and why the manufacturer felt comfortable offering a five year warranty.
So customers weren’t given the hard sell, but an education. And that invariably turned into customers checking out the competition and then almost always coming back to us to buy (even if another store was selling the same thing). Here are a few ways you can better educate your customers.
Touch each customer while they’re in your store – spend a little time explaining why a certain product or brand is unique or better than everything else that’s out there (or teach about the entire category (biking, skiing, patio furniture, etc.)).
Host a special event – It doesn’t have to be sales-oriented. Create educational events and the sales will follow.
Use your database and email – I’m a big proponent of emails that aren’t about selling something, but about educating someone. What’s relevant to your customer base? Speak to that and include the selling part as a mention at the end. For instance, you may want to educate your customers about sunscreen and the importance of wearing it. And then at the end just add, “here are three products we recommend.”
Educate Your Customers to Increase Sales [AllBusiness.com]

Small Business Buzz: The number one rule for advertising quality in your product or service is to not use the word “quality.” Because this word is overused by the general business public, consumers ignore it. In fact, using the word “quality” can often invoke suspicion, much like when a business uses the phrase “you can trust me.”
Here are some tips for effectively conveying quality to potential customers:
Alternative Descriptions
The word “quality” in general is a limiting term, despite the negative connotations that it’s overuse has produced. It’s hard to do (I just caught myself using the term in my own advertising for my photography services), but instead you should go with alternatives like these:

premium, unparalleled, superior, impeccable, exceptional, unmatched, excellence, distinguished

Also, keep in mind that, the more expensive your product/service, the more sophisticated your “quality” word should be.
Speaking of Price. . .
Accept the fact that, if your product or service is truly of the best quality, then it won’t be the cheapest on the market. It takes money to provide a worthwhile product, which means that you will have to charge your customers a bit more. But, if you do things right, your customers will understand that they are getting what they pay for. So be careful. Saying that your product is “inexpensive” or cheap implies poor quality to the consumer. You cannot use the two concepts together. Instead, try words like “affordable” or “reasonable.”
Advertising Quality in Your Product [Small Business Buzz]