Amanda Schewaga’s Post

In the world of sales, authenticity isn't just a trendit's essential! Building genuine, transparent relationships with customers is the key to long-term success. By focusing on true customer needs and delivering on promises, you cultivate trust and loyalty. Let your authenticity be the driving force behind your sales strategy for sustainable growth and a thriving business. #sales #authenticity

🎯Relationship selling : Just few weeks ago, I had a chance to help one of my friend struggling with low sales figures. Instead of opting for aggressive sales tactics, we advocated for relationship selling. 📌The aim was to understand, connect, and provide personalized solutions to customers. Lessons learned were invaluable; 📌Relationship selling is not about short-term gains but rather about long-term sustainability. It emphasizes on customer's needs, customized solutions, continuing support and much more, which not just maintains but elevates customer loyalty and satisfaction. 📌The strategy of relationship selling directly played a role in our customer's improved sales figures. By focusing on building rapport, addressing customer concerns and consistently delivering value post-sales, we saw an increased customer retention and improved loyalty. 📝The key takeaway here is that relationship selling can be a powerful strategy. It is about meeting and exceeding customers' needs, not just pushing a product. The result is not only a boost in sales and customer retention, but also a stronger, more customer-focused business approach. Sale is not simply a transaction, instead, it's a relationship, built on trust and sustained by value. #Businessstrategy#Improvementinsales##consistencyiskey #SocialMediaChallenge#50dayschallengewithtife#

In the 90s, I grew a Parle Division's sales by 150% as their Project Manager. Here's the secret sales technique I used to do this: My focus was always on developing a loyal customer community for the brand. The journey to that always begins with the initial interaction. If you can 'WOW' your customers on the first interaction, getting them to climb the ladder quickly is easy. Remember it is building a relationship that matters. The 'Ladder of Loyalty', like in the image below, is a seven-stage journey to create raving fans for your brand, and it covers seven stages: 1) Suspect: Potential clients that fit your target audience but are unaware of your business. These are people who need to be aware of your product/service. 2) Prospect: Individuals who are now aware of your product and might buy a product. For instance - Someone who just entered a shop in South Extension or Linking Road to buy clothes. 3) Shopper: First-time buyers whose loyalty still needs to be secured. 4) Customer: Repeat clients are crucial for sustained business growth. At this stage in the ladder, you must understand that these customers must be treated like special individuals. Better treatment is the step towards creating customer loyalty. 5) Member: That could be through them liking your products or taking a step further by making a gesture. Even a small act, like getting them a cold drink or something to eat whenever they visit you, can do wonders. 6) Advocate: This is when the 'suspect' has become a regular customer and will sell for you by references or testimonials. 7) Raving Fan: An 'advocate' becomes a raving fan when he/she cannot stop selling for you. Anytime a raving fan is out in the community, they are promoting you and telling you how wonderful you are. Massive profits can come from the raving fan level, and during my time at Parle, these were the customers to whom I devoted most of my time. If you want to do the same, the first step is to determine the number of raving fans in your customer base. How did you get them there? How can you get more suspects to become your raving fan? These questions will help you determine a map of your customer journey, which will help you 10x your sales. So - how many raving fans does your business have? #business #customer #loyalty #salestips #growth #leverage Ratish Pandey Devashish Dasgupta Basudev Mukherjee Harit Mohan TiE Chandigarh Shomendra Roy ActionCOACH Global Sandeep Maini Partap Krishan Aggarwal ASSOCHAM (The Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India) #msme

"Championing Customer Delight": A Key Pillar in Sales Success In my journey through sales, I've remained a steadfast advocate for the power of delighting customers. In the program I deliver for Global Partners Training, 'Total Customer Focus,' we explore the Kano Model, emphasizing the significance of 'Delighting' customers by delivering unexpected experiences that leave them feeling truly valued. Recently diving into 'Unreasonable Hospitality' by Will Guidara, I found resonance in his statement, 'HOW you serve your clients is as important as WHAT you serve them.' He beautifully differentiates service as 'black and white', while hospitality adds the 'vibrant colors'. Guidara's insights on hospitality strike a chord, aligning remarkably with the principles vital in Sales. It's often said that customers may forget specifics of your interactions, but they'll never forget how you made them feel. As a seasoned sales professional, my focus has always been on fostering positive emotions. Building enduring relationships through exceptional experiences has been the cornerstone of my approach. For me, a sale isn't the destination but the beginning of a lasting partnership. This ethos is why clients, even after 5 or 10 years, return seeking my collaboration once again. At Wolf Consulting Network, we embrace the 'long view.' Every initial sale is a stepping stone toward a lasting relationship, ensuring multiple future collaborations. This philosophy, I believe, holds true for anyone engaged in complex, B2B selling within today's dynamic landscape. Let's continue to prioritize the 'wow' moments, the unexpected gestures that leave lasting impressions. That's where the true magic of sales resides: in the relationships we build and nurture over time." Let us know if we can help you by sending me an email at Wolf_Consulting@Comcast.net

That’s right. I said it. I think it’s time we fire our sales team. But before we send our sales force to pack up their desks, let me explain.👇 The days of driving our sales with hook lines and catchy tag phrases are long over. With technology and information at our fingertips, people can compare products and services with the touch of a button. So, in a fast-paced world where everyone is competing for attention, we must ask ourselves how to stand out amongst a sea of samesies 🤔 If we can focus on serving > selling, creating a customer delight team where our whole focus is to delight, deliver, and do it again. If we help our current community, team, and clients do more while we give more then our clients, community, and team will help us grow repeat and referral business….hence less of a need for a sales team. #BuildRelationships #RelationshipMarketing #RelationshipROI #JessikaPhillips #LoveMoreGiveMoreBeMore

Now, we ALL know that I love to celebrate good sales and customer experiences right? Well... this week, there was a slight change in proceedings. I had a terrible sales experience that I think everyone can learn from. I was recommended a service recently from someone who I'd recently made a connection with. They seemed super happy with the service and set me up to have a chat with the sales rep from the company. Brilliant - I LOVE a good recommendation (and I was actively thinking about looking for a service like this in September!) Annoyingly, I got Covid and had to reschedule the call - but managed to have the call with the rep this week. - They were late to the call - They then acknowledged that their previous call had 'run over so I haven't had time to look at your form' - Their Wi-Fi dropped (this can't be helped - so I waited around!) - Then they told me that they were now using 'a very expensive hot-spot' to talk to me. This was ALL before they asked me any questions about my business. This was also after they told me on two occasions that it was 'difficult talking to a sales leader'. Now, as someone in sales - I LOVE transparent conversations (and buying useful solutions!) so I'm an EASY sell. I spent a few minutes, explaining what my company does and what we'd already done/ explored in the area that they were working in. 12 minutes into the call... the salesperson explained that they had 'world-class onboarding' and that they 'would require a 12 month commitment for $18,000' to get started. Don't get me wrong... they DID ask: - Why I would want to build my audience in this way. - Some practicalities; how much time I had each month. And when I expressed two reservations; 1. Would the reputation of my brand be maintained by their organisation 2. Whether there was an option to start with a shorter commitment because I'd never used their services before... I was told that: - Their leadership team was made up of ex-large publication employees - That I could cancel earlier than a year but would need to pay additional fees - That they would train the worker to their process. In other words, they didn't listen to the objections I had - or adequately reassure me. So - 15 minutes into the call, I said; 'I think that given the challenges at the start of the call and the fact that you haven't had time to take a look at my business/ what I do and how this service would be useful means that I'm not feeling the world-class service at the moment. But I AM interested in the product. So would you mind doing me a favour and sending me an email once you've had a chance to look at my company and what we've already done, then let me know how you feel your services could help expand?' The screenshot below is the email I received last night. You can't win every sale. But you CAN avoid scuppering relationships entirely + damaging brand reputation. How do YOU think they could have saved this opportunity? And what would you do with this email?

When you feel a bit stuck in a sales conversation, and feel like your brain has forgotten all the words then just take a deep breath. Pausing for 3-5 seconds gives it chance to re-engage itself. Then I want you to ask a question. This gets all of your thinking off you and onto your customer. We are so fearful of looking a certain way or coming across salesy or pushy or that we are being too intrusive that we just leave so much opportunity on the table when. Opportunity to help people, to get paid to do the thing you want to do more of. Your questions don't have to be clever or deep and meaningful. Whatever pops into your head just ask it - no restrictions or holding back and see what happens. I have a hunch you will take conversations further, gain more honest intel about your customer and what they are thinking and be able to convert more conversations into paid invoices. Here are some of my go to questions: 💥Tell me more about that? 💥What else is happening for you? 💥That could mean a few different things, tell me, what does it mean for you? 💥What are your thoughts on this? 💥What is coming up for you when you think about ........ 💥What would you like to know more about? They are open, inviting and will elicit more from your customer, it will help you to know how to help them in the best way possible. Try this and let me know how you get on. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- If you want to work on your sales then we should talk. I have helped 100's of service based business owners increase their sales and feel so much better about selling. If this is you then book in your free consultation call and we can evaluate your current results and discuss how I can help you get the ones you really want. #sales #salesmadesimple

5️⃣ Ways NOT to SUCK at SALES. ✅ 1️⃣ Connect with people and build real relationships You don’t need to feel sleazy when you genuinely like people, sell a quality product or service, and you want to meet the customer’s specific needs or wants. When you’re ‘customer focused’, they’re more likely to become raving fans and give you their repeat business. Today’s selling is less transactional and more relational. 2️⃣ Listen to your customer – hear what they need and want In conversation, there’s nothing more frustrating than when the other person just doesn’t get what you’re saying. So ‘actively listen’ to your customers or prospects to understand their needs or wants. 3️⃣ Build trust by being honest and a person of your word Sadly, this doesn’t go without saying! Be transparent; answer the customer’s questions or concerns honestly. I want to do business with people I trust. For long-term success, you want to provide excellent customer service, that leads to a purchase, customer satisfaction and customer loyalty. That’s far more important than a quick, one-off sale. 4️⃣ Customise your approach for each customer – sales is not a ‘one-size fits all’ Have you noticed we’re all different? A couple might shop for a toaster because they both urgently need one for breakfast, but there are different decision-making factors in play. By understanding their preferences and purchasing motivation you can customise your approach. 5️⃣ Problem-Solve – show how the benefits of your offering solves their problems or helps them reach their goals. If you consider the points above you’ll know what your customer is looking for and why. You may uncover a deeper pain-point which your product/service can solve. Be the trusted sales consultant that customers count on to give them honest, expert advice to solve their problem or achieve their goal. You’ll gain their loyalty and their referrals! . . . . . #janinejonesmedia #salesstrategy #customersatisfaction #customerexperience #customerexperience #salesandmarketing #smallbusinesstips #salesperson #salesfunnels #smallbusinessowner

Sales strategies are crucial for any business aiming to improve its deal-closing effectiveness. With the sales landscape constantly evolving, understanding the dynamics of customer engagement, trust-building, and persuasive communication becomes paramount in crafting a sales plan that not only meets but exceeds targets. For a deeper understanding of these strategies and how to implement them effectively, read the full article. #SalesStrategy #SalesProductivity #SalesManagement

Customer Centric Selling As I reflect on the recent holiday season, I think about all the Christmas movies I watched. Encompassing the classics and Hallmark, including “Die Hard” but one stood out to me this year. The movie, “A Miracle on 34th Street” is a classic Christmas movie, but I was surprised to see it’s reference to a sales approach that I coach. I am sure you are shaking your head about this but remember the scene where a Macy’s customer asks about a particular toy he wants to buy. The salesclerk informs him that Macy’s did not have it. Before the customer could leave disheartened, Edmund Gwenn, playing Sants informs the customer that a rival store, Gimbels, has the toy he wants. The clerk was dumbfounded that Santa would send a potential customer away. So what sales approach is this, you ask, sending a customer to a competitor. I coach a sales approach that I call “customer centric selling.” Simply put, you use great discovery and active listening to understand what the customer or prospect really wants or needs. Shocking surprise, it may not be your product or service. Regardless, your goal is to provide the solution your prospect is looking for. Of course, we want to make the sale, but consider for a minute the powerful customer experience you provide when you are solely focused on the customers’ needs. Hopefully, you have the solution in your business portfolio but if not here is how it can add value to you and your relationship with that customer. The key to this successful strategy relies on having a robust network of business partners that offer complementary products or services to your offerings. Imagine if you will, the look on your customers’ face when you offer a solution that is not yours. Even more so, imagine your business partner’s reaction when you call them and give them a warm referral. This small selfless act will build deep trust from your prospect who will surely come back to you when they have a need. And your business partner will try to reciprocate with a warm referral. I would call that a win- win situation. So, start focusing your sales approach “customer centrically” and see what happens. I promise you it will be another “Miracle on 34th Street” for you. And if you want to learn more about this approach, reach out, I would love to chat with you. #customercentricselling #servethecustomerfirst