The Seven Secrets of Business Success
Each person is the president of his or her Personal Services Corporation. Everyone is self-employed, from the time you take your first job until the time you retire. The biggest mistake you could make is to think that you work for anyone else but yourself.
As the president of your company, you have a staff of one - yourself. You have one product in a competitive market - your ability to get the results for which people pay you. Your job is to continually upgrade the quality and quantity of your services, so you earn more and more as your career progresses.
You are also responsible for the functions of your business. These include marketing, sales, finances, quality control, training and development, and organization. As the president, you’re the one to say, “The buck stops here.”
As you market your services to increase sales and profitability, you need to consider seven elements.
The Product is what you sell. You must define your product or service in terms of how it improves the life or work of your customer. Customers are inherently selfish. They want the very best for themselves. They want products and services that are faster, better, and cheaper than anything else available. Sometimes, one improvement can improve your sales immediately.
The Price is the second consideration. You must give considerable thought to how your product or service is priced in a competitive market. Sometimes you have some control over the price; other times you do not. In every case, the customer is not necessarily seeking the lowest price, but the best price. He or she will pay what is fair and reasonable. Your job is to convince the customer that he or she is better off paying more for your product than buying cheaper somewhere else.
The Place is where you sell your product or service. This refers to the location of your business or where your selling activities take place. This can be the Internet, the telephone, or face-to-face in the customer’s home or place of business.
Recently, Dell Computers dramatically changed its place. They moved from telephone and online sales to placement in Wal-Mart stores worldwide. This single change immediately transformed their business and increased their sales by billions of dollars. How could you offer your product or service in a different place, or through different market channels?
The Promotion of your product or service embraces both marketing and sales. Marketing is the process of attracting people who are interested in your product or service. Sales converts those leads into customers for your business. Don’t mix them up.
Marketing and sales are constantly changing; the method you use today will soon be obsolete. You must dedicate yourself to lifelong learning of the sales process. Read about sales everyday. Listen to sales audio programs in your car. Attend sales seminars. Resolve to be in the top 10% of salespeople in your field, no matter how long it takes. This decision will change your life.
The Positioning of your product or service is how your product, service, and company are viewed by your customer. How do people describe you to others? What is your “Unique Selling Proposition”? What makes your product or service different and better than any other product or service in the market? The answer to these questions should be at the core of your sales and marketing efforts.
Eighty-five percent of sales success comes from “Word-of-Mouth”. Your reputation is the most valuable asset you have. What is yours? How could you improve it in the minds of your customer and non-customers?
Your Packaging encompasses every visual aspect of your company. Your product packaging-including letterhead, business cards, brochures, and the look of your products or services-is vital to your success. It must always look first class, equal to or better than your competitor’s. Small changes in your packaging can lead to dramatic changes in the perception that your customers have of you.
Your packaging also includes the image presented by each employee who interacts with customers. Many companies have transformed their reputation in the marketplace by insisting that salespeople wear a uniform and/or “dress for success.”
The People in your business are the final consideration. In the final analysis, customers “buy” people rather than products or services. Customers decide emotionally and then justify logically-and the emotional part of your company are the people who interact with your customer. From the receptionist to the delivery person, every person in your company has an impact on your reputation.
There is always room for improvement in these seven key areas. Every day, you should look for ways to improve in one or more of these areas. If you don’t, your competitor will - and they will be the company to get the business.