Sales on Sonia Cuff

Making the sale before you�ve met the client � why your social presence matters.

Tue, 25 Jul 2017 04:23:18 +0000

I�ve been daydreaming about replacing my home theatre speakers, since our ageing amplifier died. The sleek, silver Sony box was impressive in its day but that was over 18 years ago. Now we�ve got all the wireless and internet connected things, I�m spoilt for choice. I�ve done some online research but I�m not a detailed, melancholic personality type. An instore demonstration of the Bose and Sonos systems has me convinced that Sonos is the way to go. But I�m still unsure about handing over that amount of money right now for some nicer sounds. Ultimately, my purchasing transaction is likely to be handled by someone in a retail store � hopefully someone who treats us better than the last guy we dealt with.

Tracking sales opportunities

Thu, 03 Apr 2008 09:25:47 +0000

If you�ve ever heard the term �CRM� thrown around, be warned ��Customer Relationship Management�is about a whole lot more than just installing some software.

On a small business scale where you are both �cook and bottle washer�, or you may have one staff member who is focussed on sales, Microsoft�s Business Contact Manager may be an easy way to get started.

Integrated into Outlook, it let�s you load contacts and opportunities, assign which stage of the sales process they are at, and link any email communication to their BCM record.� Then you can see some nice little graphs re how many opportunites (and what dollar value) you�have in your sales funnel at each stage.

What are we selling?

Wed, 19 Mar 2008 09:31:11 +0000

I�ve picked up a great book called �Stop bitching, start pitching� by Marty Kellard & Ian Elliot.� It�s forced me to really stop and think about how we pitch our managed service product, B.E.S.T.� They claim it�s not enough to have the best solution and the best sales message for it.� Instead you really have to do your homework and analyse the wants & needs (written and unwritten) of your customer and the key decision makers and influencers, then ensure that you are addressing those.� Especially for new business, a customer needs to be able to picture you working with them to solve their business problems, and taking it much further than just replacing the current IT guy that they are unhappy with.