Explode Your Sales

No matter what kind of product or service you are offering, no business can survive for very long without getting sales.

It’s vital to know how to appeal to your customers – after all, they are the foundation of your business! Make a wrong move and you can risk alienating your customers.

Sales tactics, like fashion trends, can change over time. While it’s important to be adaptable, sticking to the core principles of sales will ensure that your business gets a healthy boost.

This guide will discuss three different aspects of sales. Firstly, there will be some tips on how to price your products effectively, without undervaluing. The second section will discuss how to add value to your existing product. The third and final section will focus on using psychology to increase your sales.

Before you know it, you’ll be getting the sales your products deserve!

Contents:

1)  Pricing Strategies: How to Price Your Product

2)  Adding Value to Your Product

3)  Sales Psychology: Boost Your Sales

While you know how much your product is worth, your prospective customers don’t. Pricing your product or service well is vital to achieving the sales your business ought to have.

Aim too low and customers might assume your product is low quality. If you aim too high, you could alienate your target audience.

Some business owners pick a price without giving it much thought. While the process doesn’t have to be complicated, it should be strategized.

Read on to learn how to find the right price for your product. 

Looking at how your competitors are pricing their products is often the first step a business owner will take.

It makes perfect sense to do this, however your pricing shouldn’t just be a knee-jerk reaction to your competitors’ pricing strategies.

Your price doesn’t have to be the lowest price out there. In fact, sometimes having your price too low can put customers off, as they will assume the price matches the quality.

Chances are, there will always be someone who can price their product lower than you. If you’re aiming to have the lowest prices out there, you’ll be fighting a losing battle.

Use your competitors’ pricing to get the gist of what customers are willing to pay, but don’t assume that those prices are a challenge waiting to be accepted. Find the highest and lowest price on the market currently. As long as your price fits roughly within this range, you’ll know you are on the right track.  

A lot of customers will be suspicious of a price that’s too low. They’ll assume that you must have cut corners. Never price a product so low that people assume it must be too good to be true.

It’s also a good idea to avoid using the word cheap – this has connotations of poor quality. Instead, draw attention to what great value your product is for the price. Words such ‘bargain’ or ‘budget’ are less likely to put your customers off.

As long as your product is good quality, you don’t have to be afraid of charging for that quality.

It may seem backwards but charging a premium price can actually boost your sales – as long as your product reflects that price!

 Ask yourself: what do I genuinely think this product is worth? The chances are that your confidence in your product will rub off on your customers.

Never determine someone’s budget for them. Don’t assume that someone won’t pay a premium price, but likewise don’t assume that everyone will be able to afford it either.

Giving people a couple of options allows for flexibility. If people feel your highest price point is too expensive, being able to offer them an affordable alternative might prevent you from missing out on that sale.

Be wary, however, of offering free trial systems. These can often attract people seeking freebies who weren’t ever serious about purchasing.

If you secure a sale with a customer, reward them! This increases their loyalty and makes it more likely that they will buy from you again.

It’s far harder to repeatedly find new customers than it is to convince existing ones to purchase again. After all, previous customers already trust your services – they are already halfway though the door, so to speak.

Rewards could include exclusive sales and discount codes, free gifts with purchase or a loyalty scheme.

Your price doesn’t have to be set in stone – feel free to experiment. Most people will understand that business prices fluctuate, but if you want to experiment with pricing without frustrating existing customers, promotions are ideal. 

Promotions can also be a useful way of determining where your prospective customers are coming from. Having a discount code that’s visible only on certain social platforms can allow you to monitor the customers that are coming your way via social media.

Deciding on your pricing strategy can be a learning curve, especially if you’re a new business owner. Don’t forget that pricing can be flexible, and it’s better to change something that isn’t working than to stick with it indefinitely.

As long as you stay flexible and don’t attempt to be the cheapest out there, you’ll be on the road to success!

A useful method of increasing your sales is by adding value to the product itself, and there are several ways to do this. If a customer can see that they are getting more for their money, you are more likely to get a sale!

Here are a few tips on how to add value to your product and boost your business in the process.

This is a widely used method for a reason. If a lower price is only guaranteed for a short while, most people jump at the chance to get a deal while it’s still there. 

This method offers higher value for the product (by selling it at a lower price) but only for a certain time. This is a good method for hooking in customers who have considered purchasing but haven’t yet done so.

Be careful, however, not to overuse this technique. Most customers will get fed up if they notice that new sales constantly reappear as they may feel duped.

Making customers feel special can be a great way of getting them to repurchase. 

Examples of exclusive deals for VIP customers could include:

·      Early access sales

·      Exclusive discount codes

·      Pre-sale promotions

·      Free digital downloads or resources

·      Loyalty schemes

·      Exclusive offers for related products

When it comes to customer testimonials and reviews, you’re adding trustworthiness and credibility to your product.

People purchase products or services because they have a problem that you can solve – having testimonials helps people visualize how your product could help them.

You can be creative with testimonials – if you find a customer who is willing, you could create video or audio testimonials for social media. That way, the testimonial is from someone your customer can relate to. The extra effort will pay off in terms of future sales.

The point of bonuses is to add something that makes your premium price more justifiable.

Some examples of bonuses could include:

·      An accessory to use with your product

·      Second item at a reduced price

·      Free gift with purchase

·      Free electronic resource

·      Reduced payment if you sign up for a longer service subscription

The best bonuses are things that fit the tone of your original product and make sense alongside it.

If you were going to buy this product or service, what would you like to have with it?

Adding to the value of your product is a great way to justify a slightly higher price. Even simple added bonuses can increase your sales. Adding value to your product can be just enough to win round an undecided customer – allowing your business to continue to grow!

Sales psychology is a field all on its own. But you don’t need to be an expert to understand how it can (positively and negatively) affect your sales. 

We aren’t talking about any complicated mind games here – sales psychology isn’t about hypnotizing customers into making a purchase!

Many business owners unknowingly put off prospective customers before they’ve even considered purchasing. Sales psychology is about ensuring your customers have the best interaction with your company as possible.

Below you’ll find several tips on how to make sure customers have a positive impression of your business – and increase your sales at the same time!

Generally, most people can spot a hard sell from a mile off. Sales tactics that rely on aggression and pushiness will repel just as many (if not more) customers than they reel in.

Even if your sale is eventually successful, it’s unlikely to win you over any repeat customers. People love to discover a great new product or service, but no one likes being bullied into buying something.

It all boils down to the fact that you can’t force anyone to do anything. You’ve got to know when to walk away.

Where possible, take some photos of your product in action. If your product is clothing, it needs to be shown on a person. If your product is a kitchen appliance, it needs to be shown in a kitchen.

Prospective customers need to be shown how your product or service will look in the context of their own lives. At least some of your photos should show everyday people using your product.

People also love to experience textures, scents and appealing colours. Make sure that comes across in photos.

People buy emotionally – they need to understand how your product or service will make them feel.

If your product will help them save time, highlight how relaxed they will feel in their newly found downtime. If your product helps them spend more time with family, highlight how fun that quality time would be.

Have you ever felt paralyzed at the supermarket when faced with twelve different varieties of seemingly identical loaves of bread?

We can all get overwhelmed when faced with too many options. Having some choice is good, but don’t confront your potential customer with so many options that they then feel its easier to walk away entirely rather than choose.

A good way to limit options from the offset is to find out your customer’s needs before you start pitching – this way you can narrow down the choices before you’ve even presented them.

As much as your customer needs to believe in the product, they need to believe in the person selling it. You probably wouldn’t buy a pair of shoes from someone who knows nothing about shoes – the same principle applies across the board.

The customer isn’t just asking ‘why should I buy this product?’ They are also asking ‘why should I buy this product from you?’

Make sure that you know what you’re talking about. People do purchase emotionally, but they also need to have a few key facts to rationalize their decision.

Sales psychology may seem confusing at first, but it doesn’t have to be. It can be as simple as creating a friendly atmosphere in your shop or website and making customers feel welcome. As long as you treat your customers how you would like to be treated in their position, your sales will get a boost.