Matthew Cook is the founder of SalesHub, an inbound marketing agency that helps companies generate leads, boost revenue, and adapt to the new way customers buy.

You’ve spent months developing your product with your business partner. Now that it’s launched, you’re finally ready to close some sales. But you’re not salespeople. You’re both developers, and have been fumbling around for weeks trying to figure out how to generate some leads.

Startups don’t often employ many people at the start–even social media platforms Instagram and Whatsapp were founded by teams of just two. But companies with small teams and limited resources can still generate leads and close sales successfully on their own, even if they aren’t initially experts. So how can entrepreneurs seek out sales leads? And what steps do they need to take to reel them in?

Attend events and network

You don’t have to present at a conference or set out a stall to reap the rewards of networking.

You can get your startup recognized by actively participating from the audience, too. At these events, one option is to live tweet conferences and talks. Another is to blog about what you’ve learnt and share it on social media, making sure to mention the speakers to let them know what you thought. You can also network online at events through social event apps. Bizzaboo, for example, looks at your profile and suggests people to connect with who are also at the event. The app gives you the link to their social media accounts, and lets you message them directly within the app.

Being active online at an event or conference makes people take notice of you. It also will help set you out as a thought-leader in your industry, if you offer quality insights. Once people start to find out about you and your startup, they will begin to refer you within their circles. And considering 50 percent of businesses think they get their best sales leads through referrals, they’re one of the best ways to generate leads.

Some larger events may be expensive–according to some entrepreneurs, Web Summit charges $10,000 USD to meet with angel investors–but there are also smaller events at lower cost. For example, Startup Weekend tickets cost just $150. What’s more, major cities host dozens of free or low cost Meetup Groups for people wanting to discuss and network with each other–and most boast thousands of members. For example, New York Entrepreneurs & Startup Network has almost 17,000.

Use your reach

According to anthropologist and psychologist Robin Dunbar, the average person has about 150 casual friends. Anymore than that, and it’s too complicated for a person to process. So if your startup consists of three people, collectively you would have 450 casual friends. Together, those 450 people reach 67,500 others. Go to a third-degree, and you’ve already reached over 10 million people. Ask your friends to support your business and share it with as many people as possible. The number multiplies quickly. Once again, it’s about generating leads through referrals.

LinkedIn is a great way to reach out to potential clients, collaborators, investors, and new talent too. Keep track of who has viewed your profile, determine if they’re potential clients or recruits, and then reach out to them. Give recommendations to other users or companies, and ask for them in return. These build credibility quickly for your company. You should join groups and share your content within them, but also write your own blogs on LinkedIn. It’s a way to position yourself as an industry expert, while connecting with others and generating leads in the process.

Set up an inbound marketing strategy

Inbound marketing is about promoting your company through online content. Producing videos, blogs, SEO, social media content, white papers and case studies will help draw potential clients to your company’s website and educate them about what your company does.

The average business-to-business customer is 57% of the way through the purchasing decision before even talking to a salesperson. So when they do, half of the salesperson’s work is already done–they just have to close the sale. Inbound marketing brings sales leads directly to your company, educates potential clients, and makes finishing off a sale significantly easier. According to this CMSWire infographic, companies who blog generate 67% more B2B leads, and 88% more B2C leads.

So, how can you best take advantage with limited resources? On top of having a good website, you need an effective social media strategy. A Socialbakers study found that on average, top brands post about once a day. Posting less than twice a week will cause your audience to disengage, and so will posting more than twice a day found the study. You should also start generating your own blog content in house–even one blog a week is fine at the beginning. Once you have a bigger budget, you can start to increase the amount of marketing you do. This will drive more traffic to your website, and help to generate even more leads.

Startup founders with no background in sales may find themselves running in circles. But by getting out into the community, leaning on friends and professional contacts for help, and generating online marketing content that brings potential clients straight to you, you will have an easier time getting the word out about your company. And effectively, close more sales.

Five Triggers to Transform Your Business

Growing a business is simple when you understand the five trigger that impact growth and profitability.

The five triggers are:

• Lead Generation: How many leads are we getting?
• Lead Conversion: The number of leads that convert to customers.
• Number of Transactions: The number of times a customer buys from you.
• Average Dollar Value: This is average sale price.
• Profit Margin: This is the profit I make on each sale.

So we are on the same page let me define marketing. Marketing is simply moving the buyer through the buyers’ journey to achieve specific sales and marketing goals. In our five step (triggers) process, when followed, you’re going to achieve your business goals and reduce the stress associated with growing a business. Going forward I am going to talk about the five triggers as a process I call the five-step process.

The five-step process is a way of doing business.

The five-part formula is so effective because it touches on each and every area of your business. It will improve, increase, generate and sharpen and strengthen everything that you and your employees do.

Once you complete a step, you’ll never go back to your old way of doing things again. This is a program for positive change and powerful results. The change is long lasting and the results are far reaching.

Choosing to begin the five-step process will have an impact on every area of your business:

Lead Generation	Conversion Rates	Number of Transactions	Average Dollar Sale	Profit Margins
Any strategy you use to get people to call or walk through the door.	Any strategy you use to get people to BUY from you.	Any strategy you use to get existing customers to buy from you more often, or stay loyal to your business.	Any strategy you use to get customers to spend more money in a single transaction.	Any strategy you use to maximize the percentage of the cost of each product/service that is profit.

Let’s get used to working with the basic formula that the five-step process is based on. You’ll want to post this formula somewhere visible, where you can see it on a regular basis.

# of Leads X % Conversion Rate = # of Customers

# of customers X # of Transactions X Average Dollar Sale = Revenue

Revenue X % Margin = $ Profit

As you can see, each of the shaded lines is a factor that influences the bottom line – your profit. Each of the shaded lines is a step in the five-step process. You will work on each line sequentially, and the impact on your profit will build over time.

A nominal 10% increase in each of the five factors would look like this:

Starting Point		Goals (10% Increase)
Leads	4,500	Leads	4,950
Conversion Rate	30%	Conversion Rate	33%
Customers	1350	Customers	1633.5
Transactions	1.3	Transactions	1.43
Average Dollar Sale	$140	Average Dollar Sale	$154
Revenue	$245,700	Revenue	$359,729.37
Margins	24%	Margins	26.4%
Profit	$58,968	Profit	$94,968.55

If you don’t know, take a guess. The point here is to understand how little increases will have big impacts on your bottom line profits. We’ll show you how to start tracking your results at the beginning of each step in the program.

Starting Point		Goals (10% Increase)
Leads	(#)	Leads
Conversion Rate	(%)	Conversion Rate
Customers	(#)	Customers
Transactions	(#)	Transactions
Average Dollar Sale	($)	Average Dollar Sale
Revenue	($)	Revenue
Margins	(%)	Margins
Profit	($)	Profit

 

Starting Point		Goals (20% Increase)
Leads	(#)	Leads
Conversion Rate	(%)	Conversion Rate
Customers	(#)	Customers
Transactions	(#)	Transactions
Average Dollar Sale	($)	Average Dollar Sale
Revenue	($)	Revenue
Margins	(%)	Margins
Profit	($)	Profit

 

Starting Point		Goals (50% Increase)
Leads	(#)	Leads
Conversion Rate	(%)	Conversion Rate
Customers	(#)	Customers
Transactions	(#)	Transactions
Average Dollar Sale	($)	Average Dollar Sale
Revenue	($)	Revenue
Margins	(%)	Margins
Profit	($)	Profit

Step One / Lead Generation: How can you get more people to walk through your door, pick up the phone, and/or visit your website?

Your leads are your prospects or potential customers. They are people who have taken action in response to your ad or promotion, and have shown interest in your product or service, but have not become a customer because they haven’t purchased yet.

Lead generation is important because you can’t increase the number of customers you have. This is because customers are the by-product of two things:

# LEADS X % CONVERSION RATE = # of Customers

This means that you have to generate more leads and get more of those leads to make purchases in order to increase your customer base. Note; this is a very important step because your ‘cost of client acquisition’ (price you pay to acquire a new client) is the most expensive function of your business. Yours, ours and every business on the planet btw…

So lead generation is about finding ways to reach the people who need or want what you have to offer and getting them to act – to pick up the phone, visit your website or walk into your business. This is what the majority of marketing strategies are trying to do.

Step Two / Conversion Rate: How can you get the people who walk through your door, pick up the phone, and visit your website to BUY something?

Conversions are the second factor in the customer equation. A conversion rate is simply our leads divided by our number of transactions in a specific time period.

# TRANSACTIONS / # LEADS = % Conversion Rate

This is a key focus of your business and your staff’s time. After all, why spend time and money attracting tons of qualified leads if you can’t make them buy when they’re in the store? We call this “confusing being busy… with being successful!” Don’t let it happen to you.

Several aspects of your organization impact your conversion rate:

• Your business image and the first impression customers have of you/your business
• The strength and effectiveness of your sales team
• Your sales process and staff training and development programs
• The strength of your sales scripts (Do you want fries with that?)
• The level of purchase risk involved in your product or service

Step Three / Transactions: How can you get your customers to buy from you MORE than ONCE?

The process of attracting and converting a customer is one that costs you money. Customers cost you money. They’re an investment that you need to make the most of to stretch your lead generation dollars.

You can reduce the cost of your customer by increasing the number of times that they purchase from you. This increases the total number of transactions in your business and the amount of money that flows in.

So instead of continuously chasing down leads and converting them to customers, increasing transactions is about keeping our existing customers loyal and coming back to spend money.

Step Four / Average Sale: How can you get your customers to buy MORE from you each time they buy?

Your total revenue is the product of how many customers you have, how many times they purchase from you, and how much they spend.

# CUSTOMERS X # TRANSACTIONS X $ AVERAGE SALE = $ Revenue

Increasing the average amount of money customers spend with you is the final way you can increase the amount of money that comes into your business. It’s amazing how small increases in this value can have big impacts on your revenue. If I were to come into your business tomorrow and you IMMEDIATELY needed to increase profits – this is the first place I would look and the easiest area to make a large improvement in your profits.

You’ll have to show your customer that they needed or want more than what they purchased. The amount that you are able to increase will depend on the type of business you are in – it’s easier to sell gel pens than an additional dishwasher – but generally every business can find opportunities to increase this figure. There are many ways to accomplish this.

Step Five / Margins: How can you make more profit off each product and service you sell?

The last opportunity you have to influence your profit is your profit margin. Your total revenue times your margin as a percentage equals your total profit.

$ REVENUE X % PROFIT MARGIN = $ Profit

Essentially, your goal here is to make your profit margin as high as possible. As the final factor in the profit calculation, increasing your margin is a vital step towards maximizing your profits.

If your margins are too low, you’ll never make any money – regardless of how many customers you have, how often they buy from you, or how much they spend. Your revenue will perpetually go back into your business and be spent on costs.

There are three ways to maximize your margins:

1. Increase prices
2. Cut operating and product/service costs (operating costs include rent, leases, salaries, commissions, and office supplies)
3. Increase gross profit margins (gross profit is revenues minus labor, materials and overhead related to the product/service)

Alarmingly, many business owners do not genuinely know their weekly/monthly/annual profit – you need to go into the business of generating a profit (this will be a paradigm shift for many – it is not about greed, it is about looking after those you care about. The more money you make, the more you can provide for your family, charity, your church etc…) and work towards increasing that profit each and every day, week, month and year.

Now that you have a good grasp on how the five-step formula works, and an idea of the marketing strategies you’ll learn to work with, take a few moments and set yourself up for success.

If this is of interest you can go to www.akris.net and learn more. We have a complete system to walk you through this process at your own pace. Optional coaching is available if you want help and accountability.

The best way to get started is to start paying attention to your current numbers and tracking systems.

Now that you have an idea of what factors and figures you’ll be working to increase, start paying attention to what those numbers look like now. If you have tracking systems in place, run some reports and get an understanding of your current situation. Think about these questions:

• where do your customers come from?
• what marketing campaigns work the best?
• what lead generation strategies work the best?
• how many of your customers buy from you?
• how often do they buy from you?
• how much do they buy from you?
• what do your existing profit margins look like?
• what percentage of your items are high margin, and which are low?

Now that you have an idea of where your business is going, let’s start mapping out how you’re going to get there.

Did you ever ask yourself, “Why don’t people buy from me?”

The Biggest Marketing Challenge WE All Face

The biggest challenge we’re dealing with today is change. Things are changing so fast. As a result of this rapid pace of change people do not know who to trust!

There are six questions your prospects want answered before they will buy from you. These questions are designed to allow you to think like your buyer and speak with them so they know you are the right and safe choice.

Why the Six Questions are Important

When I started my business back in 2001, I lacked trust. What I really mean is that I did not know who could help me get clear on my ideal client. Every time I ask someone they said things I did not understand. I was confused and a confused mind does not take action. This is what we’re dealing with.

Stick with me as I talk about things you may not have thought about before. Keep an open mind because, to grow your business, you need to find someone you can trust.

Remember we stated earlier that “trust” is the biggest marketing issue we need to address. This is what marketing is about – helping our prospects to trust us so we can start the sales process.

Let’s jump right in.

The Six Questions

Question 1: What Do You Do?

What do you do? What would you tell me?

If you answered, “I am a financial planner,” or “I am an accountant,” or “I fix computers,” then you got it wrong. This is not what you do; it is how you do it.

People want to know what you do before they want to know how you do it.

For example, if you are a financial planner, here is what I would hope to hear: “I help people make the right choices about their money,” or “I help them make wise money decisions,” or “I build, protect and transfer wealth (my favorite).”

People want to know what you do before they want to know how you do it.

Question 2: Why should I care about what you do? Or, “What’s in it for me?”

If I asked a financial planner how he is different, what would he say? This is really important because there are thousands of financial planners that want my business. Why would I hire one over the other?

If you’re a business owner and looking for customers, you have prospects who are asking, “What’s in it for me?” Your job is to marry your skills and the outcome you provide to the prospects that have that need. Don’t make your prospect figure it out, tell them. That’s all your prospects want know. Don’t make your prospect guess.

Question 3: Why are YOU the Right and Safe Choice?

They’re going to want to know the answer to this question: “How do I know you are the right and safe choice for me, right now?”

The question of why you are the right and safe choice addresses a very powerful question for your prospects: “Can I trust you to do what you say you will do?”

They want to know how you will make them more effective and productive, how you make them right and how would you make them look good?

Business owners have a strong need to be more effective and more productive. Here is what you need to know. Simply ask them what they want to achieve and tell them how you will help them achieve that goal. When they understand how you’re going help them achieve their goal and how you can make them more effective and more productive, they are on board.

Question 4: What do you do better than anyone Else in the World?

You are unique. There is no one like you. The uniqueness you bring to the business is a great example of how to answer this question. It is not the only answer but it is a great place to start. Let’s look at a specific example.

How many people have heard the Southwest Airlines commercial where they discuss “bags fly free”?

What does Southwest Air do better than anybody else in the whole world?

Fun?

Yes, Southwest is fun to fly, but what do they do that no other airline does? “Bags fly free.”  That’s really all it is. They are the only airline that does not charge for bags. This isn’t rocket science.

Question 5: Why is that Important to my Prospects?

Why is what you do better than anyone else in the world important to me?

When you answer this question, you’re moving into allowing the customer to buy from you. This is actually the beginning of the buying process.

Will you:

• Make them more money?
• Give them more free time?
• Create more value?
• Reduce risk?
• Save them money?

This is the beginning of the business case of why you are the right person or your company is the right company.

It’s just that simple.

Question 6: Why Buy From Me? Or Prove It.

So here’s the last one question. Why buy from me? This is really the fundamental question; this is where the proof exists. Do you have the credentials? Can you say that you’ve done this for another company and can do the same for me? Do you have endorsements from others who will vouch for you?

If what you are doing is not working as well as you would like. Try this process. It works. The answers you create can be used to craft a killer 30 second commercial, create actionable contents for your web site and make it easier for prospects to understand why they should be from you.  There are 16 modules on answering the six questions. To make it easy you can purchase or rent this course at https://gumroad.com/l/6-questions

Increasing sales can tedious work as your business will have to look into various things which will enable better influx of customers. On the other hand, promotion and marketing might be in a need for improvement, which could cost you a pretty penny. Finding new leads for your business might be easier than it looks, but, only if you manage to find a balance between engaging with customers and making sure they find what they need. Your online presence and brand should be interesting and creative as it will be one of the first things everyone will look at, and it will be the key point in securing sales.

Learn to Use SEO and the Secret of Words

Not only is it important to have a running a website with blogs and useful content, but, you should also have posters who know how to use SEO. Without SEO integration, you cannot hope to grab the attention of many users, as they will simply skim the content and move on. Then again, with the right keywords and attention to how links are placed, it will be possible to post content that is engaging and fun. Though, be sure to find out what is currently trendy, to ensure customers are not bored and will not click away quickly. Though, do not go overboard with keywords used.

Target Your Customers From Various Angles

In order to make sure that you have customers who will stay longer on your website, and that you can present your business in the best of light, be sure to incorporate cross-promotion. With its help, you can show great value offers which could keep the public interested and might help your business make another sale. Nevertheless, for successful lead generation you will have to use smart cross-promotion, otherwise, it could achieve counter-results. Be sure to find out what your general audience likes and how you can include it into your content and overall marketing, to be able to attract more customers.

Promote Your Business in Many Ways for Better Results

Using only one channel to promote your business will only lead it astray and it will not give you an opportunity to gain more customers. You will have to use different ideas and approaches if you want to help your business grow. Nevertheless, do not ignore methods which include written forms of marketing. E-books are a great way to improve your marketing strategy and to gain more leads. Nonetheless, be sure to produce good quality reading material, or your customers will have to avoid your business altogether and look for business elsewhere, making your lose sales and money as well.

Without an attention to detail and making sure that your business is being promoted in every aspect possible, it will be hard to expect good results. Work on creating content that will be engaging for your customers, to be able to gather feedback and to ensure that customers talk about your business and spread the word. Finding new leads will take time, and you should not rush the process or you might end up without customers at all. Keep your business in the game by ensuring that loyal customers are rewarded as well, and not just newcomers who will have some time in front of them.

About the Author

Dan Radak is a web hosting security professional with ten years of experience. He is a coauthor on several websites and regular contributor to BizzMark Blog. Currently, he is working with a number of companies in the field of online security, closely collaborating with a couple of e-commerce companies.

Marketing and money – it’s a mix that can get messy quickly if you don’t come up with a sound strategy and execute it correctly, pivoting when needed. While every entrepreneur dreams of becoming the next overnight startup success story, most will never make it a reality. But there are ways to ensure your new business endeavor doesn’t fail before it ever has a chance to succeed, and it involves solidifying a proper marketing plan prior to securing seed money from interested investors. These three steps should be a part of it.

Determine Your Budget and Define Your Success 

Once you’ve chosen a market for your business, you must determine a realistic budget that you’re willing to invest into your initial marketing efforts. Think about what goals you’d like to achieve in order to feel like your marketing initiative was a success. Without securing a hefty amount of seed money, this might mean getting creative in how you invest the monies you do have and the types of marketing strategies you implement.

Before you start spending, write your goals down and how every dollar you invest will help you achieve each one. Ultimately, it’s about growth and how you measure it. 

Take Advantage of What Internet Marketing Offers 

Speaking of growth and measurable results, many new businesses are taking advantage of what Internet marketing offers – and at a relatively low cost. A much cheaper alternative to old marketing tactics like advertising in the Yellow Pages, the digital world provides entrepreneurs with a whole new set of tools that allows them to reach targeted consumers faster, receive deeper insights about them and optimize their campaigns so that they can maximize their return on investment. Here are the key benefits of Internet marketing.

• Cost effective. The number-one benefit of Internet marketing is that it costs less than a traditional marketing campaign with the same results – or even better!
• Measurable results. Website visits, domain authority, cost per lead, click-through rate, traffic sources, conversions – these are all ways you can actively measure your Internet marketing campaign to check if it’s performing well. These are also barometers you can use when adjusting your campaign for better results.
• Target the consumers who matter. If you offer a local service, there’s no point in advertising nationwide. Internet marketing allows you to target a local audience so that every consumer you reach has the potential to become a conversion. 

Implement a Way to Receive Feedback from Your Customers 

Receiving feedback about your product or service, especially during its infancy stage, is an important part of refining and improving your business model. In today’s world of social media, where customers can leave comments about their experience with your business instantaneously, whether good or bad, it’s important to engage them. Use incentives and communicate with your consumers, letting them know that you’re listening to what they have to say and using their feedback to better your offering. Study their habits and monitor their movements to determine bumps within the sales funnel. Create a customer feedback loop to initiate change and produce happier customers.

Take these steps before you start shopping around for venture capital or other investments. Your business will be on the right track to hit the ground running when you actually do get the funds you need.