Article Contributed by Dennis Hung

Business owners are used to wearing many hats. This is likely why many of them assume the role of their company’s top salesperson. After all, they are the face of the company and the most likely to approve special deals and below market prices. However, what does it take to become a top salesperson? Better yet, how can a business owner assume this all-important role and what strategies should they employ when negotiating with customers?

1. Handling Roadblocks and Objections

When it comes to sales negotiation training, few approaches work as well as preparing for the worst. Granted, it’s important to remain positive, and this is by no means a declaration that you should expect to lose or think negatively. That isn’t the intention here. However, the best salespeople have a way of immediately reacting to customer objections and roadblocks.

So, why are they so adept at responding to these customer stall tactics? Well, for the most part, they’ve practiced their responses long before they get on the phone with a customer. They can anticipate what the customer will say because they’ve gone through multiple scenarios and develop a series of readymade answers.

Your customers will try and stump you. They will try to throw you off guard. They’ll claim your pricing is too high, your products aren’t good enough and that your competitors are always one-step ahead of you. However, if you know what they’re likely to say before they say it, then you’ll be better positioned to handle these objections and move the discussion forward. Be prepared by doing your homework well in advance.

2. Using “what if”

Part of being prepared for negotiations means to anticipate the kind of concessions your customer is likely to ask for. In this case, you need to employ the “what if” scenario. Think of all the possible requests your customer can come up with and develop a list of requests of your own.

For instance, if your customer requests a lower price, then you might request a higher volume or at least a commitment on their part to purchasing a larger volume over time. A good rule of thumb is to create a list of high-value customer requests and a list of your own high-value requests. As much as possible, try and match what your customer is asking for with an equally-important request of your own. After all, customers expect some push-back when they negotiate with vendors so don’t be a pushover.

3. Remain Silent

Surprisingly, silence does speak volumes when it comes to closing a sale. Unfortunately, far too many salespeople are uncomfortable with silence. They are convinced they have to speak for the customer. The next time you make a final offer, stay quiet and don’t say anything until your customer does. It works.

4. Defending Pricing

If you give your customer a price they’ve never received from their own vendors, or aren’t likely to get anytime soon from anyone else but you, then you’re well within your right to defend that price. Most salespeople falter here. They think it’s the customer’s right to use their pricing against them. It isn’t.

As a business owner, be prepared to defend your pricing. Make it clear that your customer can’t just shop your price. Success in negotiation is about having respect for each party and standing your ground. Your customers will respect you more if you explain to them how much it takes to give them below market pricing.

5. Role Playing

The only way to get better at negotiation is to role play multiple scenarios. In fact, negotiation is ultimately about how two parties reach an agreement, one both sides are satisfied with. This ultimately involves a lot of practice. Ask an employee to play the role of a customer and have them give you an honest assessment of your performance. It will help you understand how you come across, and it will give you invaluable insight into how customers think and react when you’re in the middle of a negotiation.

Business owners are most often their company’s number one salesperson. As such, it’s important to use all of these aforementioned strategies and practice with likeminded individuals and professionals. It will help you better understand your own strengths and weaknesses when negotiating.

About the author:

Dennis Hung is an entrepreneur and product analyst specializing in mobile technology and IoT. He’s spent most of his career consulting for businesses in North America.

Controversial products can stir up attention with little difficulty, but marketing them in the best light for business can be a struggle. Many companies have found it difficult to market controversial products, and some have found that their chosen tactics have backfired and resulted in a failed venture.Follow these steps and discover the tactics you can utilize to sell your potentially controversial product.

Make a Plan

A business plan is important for any marketing strategy, but especially so for those looking to market a controversial product or service. Knowing your company’s ideals, values, and goals is essential to creating a thriving business. Putting in the necessary time and work before beginning your marketing strategy could mean the difference between a botched campaign and a profitable product. You need to set specific objectives, and follow these closely throughout your marketing campaign. Look for companies who may help cross-promote you, or find publishers that are open to honestly reviewing your product so that you have support before the real work begins.

Controversial Product, Not Controversial Marketing

For some controversial products or services, an equally eye-catching and, in some circles, “offensive” marketing campaign can pay off. However, not all controversial products are created the same. Maybe your product can be easily made fun of and seen as the perfect gag gift, meaning humor should be a large part of your strategy. Adversely, perhaps your product needs to be advertised with a “responsible usage” claim, meaning a serious tone would be more applicable.

Understand the tone needed, and go with it, as it could make or break your campaign. One controversial Hyundai ad was pulled after it made light of suicide, showing the campaign went too far to be acceptable for the general public. Making a joke of something people deem dangerous or inappropriate may not help your case, and remaining too serious with a product that should inspire laughs could end your business. It’s a delicate balance, and it’s essential that you master it.

Know Your Competitor

It’s likely your product has some competitors. Know them, understand their business, their target audience, and what you can offer that they don’t. Learn from marketing mistakes they may have already made, and produce a product that does what they do better. At the same time, look at the marketing strategies that worked for them, and borrow the most useful tactics.

Endorsement

Celebrity endorsement can be a helpful tool to market your controversial item. You may even need to delve into an industry to find the perfect spokesperson. One exampleis found in the marketing techniques of electronic cigarette company NJOY. They catered to their dedicated audience by creating an Artist’s Collection of NJOY e cig juice with five leading vape industry artists. This expanded their brand awareness within the already active vaping community, and created a product unique to the company.

Target Audience

Do research on your target market, and know your customers before you begin the marketing process. You don’t want to risk alienating a group who might have been your biggest buyer. Another majorcomponent of targeting your audience: know how you’re going to reach them. Depending on the product and type of market you’re striving to reach, there may be channels you simply can’t advertise your item on. Understanding the rules regarding your product, including those put in place by television, print, social media, or even stores can help you avoid wasting lucrative time and money. Disregarded regulations can result in high fines, which is something no starting business wants or needs.

Expert Knowledge, Expert Rebuttals

If you’re selling a controversial item, you’re going to run into those who hate it. Expect it and accept it. You’ll no doubt run into naysayers that try to use every argument in the book against your product for whatever reason, but you can prepare yourself to refute any false claims. Know your product, know its uses, and be prepared to defend it to those who seek to thwart your sales. You should have all information available to consumers. This complete transparency may help your product find its niche and avoid any potential legal issues.

Understanding your product and audience will help you form a marketing campaign that will most effectively sell your controversial item. Be prepared for adversaries, but arm yourself with the knowledge that your item serves a purpose and can find a dedicated audience.

Article Contributed by Rajib Patel

Business videos come with a wide variety of options. Some are the explanatory videos, some about us, some marketing and the last but not the least some are videos that are meant to educate, with some others that are meant to entertain and some designed for both. And while there is no way to guarantee you with a fact that your next business video would immediately gain 10 thousand views and likes on YouTube, below given are some of the major tips you could use to increase the likelihood of being viewed, liked and shared.

Know who your target audience is: Before you write the script or go ahead with the camera rolling, it is very important that you first know who your marketing audience is, what are their needs and requirements, and how your video would help them in their business. Remember your business objectives would help you target who your marketing audience is. For instance if your goal is to drive awareness for your products and services then your marketing audience would be quite different and larger when compared to folks already on your site and need some nudging to drip the products on their carts.

Having a solid concept and script: When it come to the process of creating an influential video for your business, then having a solid script and concept is considered to be the foundation your business. So start by determining the format of the video say for example is it a video regarding the demo of a product or a talking head style video that requires a carefully worded script. Once you are done settling down the format then have an outline created, filling in the required details making sure to story board it.

Hiring a professional to film it or using professional grade and sound recording system: Some of the most viral video on YouTube were filmed by amateurs recording something funny along with mediocre sound and video quality. Having a quality recorded video equipment or a controlled environment is critical when recording a business video for your organization. So in case the sound quality of your video is poor or has too much of external noise then viewers would not respond in the way you want them too.

Have a clear, simple message minimizing the co-operate jargon: A successful video is simple to understand. Customers are generally looking out for things that would help them understand what your business could lead them with. Say for example if your video is a detailed and a complicated one then the viewers would just click away and search for something that is simple and easy to understand. So do make sure that your video is compelling, brief, and is focused on a specific message.

Keeping your video short: Research studies have shown that 53% of your clients and customers who are watching your videos would leave in a minute if they find it to be long. So try and being concise as this would help you keep your audience engaged driving them towards whatever your call to action is.

Feature real employees or customers: Many potential customers would be drawn through the authenticity of real people in the business video of your organization. Through this the customers would know who the real people are in your business and would not turn out to be a skip corporate video.

So have you made any business video that your customers would love to watch then what are the tips and tricks you have learned all the way. Do leave your comments below.

About the Author

Rajib Patel is an expert in the IT industry with over 12 years of experience. He has collaborated with various companies to work on improving enterprise video streaming solutions.

Congratulations on opening a new location of your retail store! Whether this is your first store opening or your 15th, you are no doubt always on the lookout for new ideas to make your grand opening party extra special. When it comes to throwing a great grand opening event, the most important thing is that you find a unique way to give your target market a memorable experience, and that you make sure that all of your guests leave with a good first impression. Here are some tips to help you get started on making your grand opening especially memorable.

Think Big!

If you really want your grand opening to be memorable, start out by brainstorming as many unique ideas as you possibly can. Don’t be afraid to think up things that are too big or too expensive. At this stage, the sky’s the limit, so just make sure you get your creativity flowing. Some questions to consider while you brainstorm:

• What is unique about your business? What distinguishes it from its competitors in the area?
• When people have complimented you on your business in the past, what good things do they most often mention? Considering these things will help you discover new ways to advertise and play up your business appeal.
• What do people associate with your business? This could give you fun ideas for theme parties. For example, if you are opening an ice cream parlor for the summer season, you could have a beach themed party. Go all out and get some beach decorations and toys to set the scene of the beach party atmosphere.
• Be sure to leave room in your budget for the “wow factor.” Your party should include something that really sets it apart from the rest. This might include free gifts, a celebrity appearance, or an open bar or food truck.
• Don’t limit yourself to in-house events. Think about other things you can do around town to promote your business during the week of your grand opening. For example, if your business is going to open around the Christmas season, have a photo booth at your local supermarket with Christmas props and maybe even hire someone to play Santa, especially if children will be attending.

Set Your Expectations

Once you have some creative ideas to get you thinking, you should start to realistically consider what kind of event you can host and who you will like to have attend. Some questions to keep in mind:

• What will the focus of your event be? A BBQ? A concert? An outdoor movie?
• Who is your target audience? Who generally buys your product? How many people like this live in your area? What type of event would appeal to them?
• How many guests can you reasonably expect? You don’t want to throw a huge party and have no one show up, but you also don’t want to organize an event without enough capacity for your guest list. Make sure you will have enough food and drinks, enough parking, enough merchandise, etc.
• What will your budget be? Some recommend a budget of 20% of your first year advertising budget, or at least $6,000, but this really depends on the size of your business and your plans for your event. Don’t spend too much on an event you can’t really afford and leave yourself nothing for advertising during the remainder of the year!

Get the Word Out

Start advertising for your upcoming event around town with local advertising efforts. Distribute flyers, hire sign twirlers, order and arrange some eSigns.com vinyl signs around town. Put ads in local papers and on local TV networks. This should all factor into your total event budget, so plan carefully how you will use your money. Would it be worth more to produce a high quality video you can put online than to go out for that radio spot? Plan according to your demographic.

You should also consider inviting some high profile guests like local celebrities or politicians. See if you can get someone to speak or perform at your event. This can become some advertising in and of itself.

Give Yourself Plenty of Time

In most cases, you will want to wait at least two weeks past your actual opening date to have your grand opening event. This will give you plenty of time to iron out the kinks in your regular operations and to get a better sense of your space and its potential. Throwing a really great and memorable event takes time and patience, but don’t be afraid to take risks! The most memorable events will be the ones that offer something especially fun, goofy, or enlightening to its target market.

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