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Yes, Not Maybe

Nothing contributes more to the demise of salespeople and prospectors that the word “maybe.” Everyone understands yes, it’s time to go. Everyone understands no, it’s time to quit, but the worst is when prospects string you along with the word maybe. It’s somewhat like fishing, when the fish keep nibbing all day long, but you don’t catch anything. At the end of the day you are left with no fish, no bait, and no daylight left. You’ve spent your entire day waiting around for a maybe to become a no, which is just a waste of your time. Maybe is not an acceptable answer.

Customers will often string you along, there is a huge benefit in getting them to say either yes or say no. Don’t be afraid to take a knockout punch to find out whether it’s worth investing your time and energy.

Make Buying Easy

In recent years Americans have started paying more bills with credit and debit cards, then they do cash or checks. it’s a turning point that signals to businesses everywhere that they should be flexible with their accepted methods of payment.
There is a sign in Vegas that say’s “How would you like to pay? We accept gold dust, gold bars, Mastercard, Visa, American Express, Carte Blanche, Discover, Diner’s. We will take a company check, a personal check, or your traveler’s check…. Heck, we even take bad checks. Everybody has a good laugh when they see this sign but they remember one thing. This casino makes it easy to do business. How are you making it easy to conduct transactions, request service, or order inventory? Will you accept gold dust and gold bars? Do you take all the major credit cards? If you make it easy for the customer to buy from you, you’ll convert prospects into customers faster then ever before.

Free Works… Really.

Of the most powerful words you can use in selling your marketing message, the word free is still at the top of the list. In fact, one marketing magazine noted in a recent article that free food and drink still bring out more people then a great guest of speaker on high-impact seminar topics. We ALL love getting something for nothing. If you have a high-value potential customer that you’ve not been able to win over, consider offering them a free-gourmet meal and see what happens. There are some key words to communicate within your invitation that can be a big help in getting them to take advantage of your free offer. First, make sure theyunderstand that they are under no obligation to join you for that free meal. Second, they will be your guest and you are going to pay. There, there will be no high pressure sales pitch while they are dining. Keeping them safe will encourage them to say yes to your free offer.

Although many claim that there’s no such thing as a free lunch, you can prove them wrong. Offer a low-pressure event with lots of free gifts or food, and watch the customers come out of the woodwork!