
If current economic circumstances mean you need a quick injection of cash into your business, here are my thoughts on how to increase your sales fast.
1) Don’t send people to your website.
Whhaat? I hear you say. Think for a minute though. There is so much info on your website that people can easily get confused and not know what to buy. Think about your behavior when you visit someone’s website. What do you do? You have a look at the various pages, read a few of their blogs, and click through to look at their other social media profiles. You probably don’t immediately buy anything.
So, while your website is fantastic as a brochure and a great place to help people get to know you, you won’t necessarily get a fast sale from it. I suggest not spending a vast amount of energy on improving the look and feel of your website if your priority right now is fast sales.
What can you do instead?
Create a sales page that gives clear info about the thing you’re selling, including the price, and quickly get people to the ‘Buy Now’ button. Share the link to your sales page on your social media posts instead of linking to your website.
2) SEO and writing blogs are great but they are a long-term strategy
Writing blogs and improving your website’s SEO is a long-term strategy and likely won’t deliver fast sales unless you include a direct buy link.
3) Discounts rarely work
I see loads of people offering deals like 10% off for September or one-off 30% discounts here and there.
In my case, this rarely encourages me to buy. I just don’t see the urgency or the value. What about you?
Of course, 30% off a new TV or a holiday would be great. They’re tangible products, and people believe they’re getting a bargain if they get a discount.
As service providers, we need to focus on the value we provide and show that value at every opportunity.
4) Don’t worry about increasing your social media audience if sales is your immediate priority
Connecting with and following new people will not lead to fast sales. People rarely buy straight away from social media. Instead, they want to take their time and get to know you first. Social media is another longer-term strategy. Make offers to your warm audiences who already know, like, and trust you.
5) Don’t waste your money on ads
Ads are slow and generally very expensive. People will rarely buy from you straightaway through ads because, as before, they want to get to know you. I mostly use ads as part of my longer-term strategy to grow my email list.
6) Don’t agonise over what to write in your newsletter
It’s more important that you are regular with your emails than producing a perfect specimen that only goes out every few months. Send regular emails with offers. Keep asking & offering and your warm audience will buy when its right for them.
7) Recommendations are great but hardly a fast way to get a sale!
People want to get to know you and are unlikely to buy as soon as they hear their friends raving about you. They will follow you on social and possibly sign up to your email list to check you out and get a feel for you first.
So, what CAN we do to get fast sales, Aileen, I hear you ask?
I believe that the quickest way to get a sale is to make an incredible offer that people can’t refuse and put a time limit on its availability, so it becomes urgent that people buy so they don’t miss out. It’s something I often practice in my business.
What do you think about this?
At this point, I should emphasise that my seven top tips above only relate to FAST sales. They are all things you should do in your business but are more long-term strategies to winning clients and earning more money.
If your priority right now is to get more money into your business, then making an incredible time-limited offer is, in my experience, the fastest way to do that.
Once we make that sale, our confidence soars, and the floodgates open. We start to get more clients; our self-esteem continues to increase, and our belief in what we offer is valuable strengthens, so we’re more likely to make even more sales. Who doesn’t want that?
Will you be making any time-limited offers?