As a business owner, you can only do so much to increase your response rates with your newsletter printing pieces for example. With so many factors to consider when you try to sell to your customers and clients, knowing what they want instead of what you want can go a long way in ensuring that you get their vote when you try to sell your product and service.



Nevertheless, you probably think that you're attuned to the needs, wants and desires of your target market that you know what to offer them. But guess what? So does every Tom, Dick and Harry in your chosen field. The real question now is whether all of you know what your clients really, really want.

The Spice Girls have it right: tell me what you want; what you really, really want. This should be the premise of every selling principle. It is crucial for every sales person such as yourself, to listen to your clients and customers. Not only that. You need to learn to ask questions to find out how you can best serve their interest. When you are able to listen very well to what your clients are saying, then and only then can you say that you have good communication with your customers and target audience.

1 – Benefits more than features.

Your customers don't give a heck to what you can say about the features of your products. They don't even want to know how your product was made…at first. What they would be interested in, seriously, are the benefits that you can give them. Save yourself the trouble of explaining it like a dissertation in your newsletters or even dedicating a space in your postcard marketing collateral. You're better off explaining what it is you can do to make life better for your clients. But if you're really set on writing down your product features, then do it in the next pages other than your front page.

Just list the benefits if you want to sell.

2 – Repeat marketing.

It takes at least 6 times of getting your products and services in your client's vision before a prospective client can get interested in what you have to offer. Six times! Before you can even catch a glimpse of awareness or even curiosity.

Why do you think postcard marketing is such a very effective strategy?

Precisely because postcards are very cost effective tools when you want to apply repetitive marketing to get the attention of your clients.

Six times! That's how long you should wait to see any response from your clients. You see, patience is really a virtue.

3 – Encourage questions.

If you want to get answers you have to ask. It's as simple as that.

Finally, in order to effectively increase your sales, don't make it hard for your clients to buy from you. Don't let your clients become frustrated when all they want is to purchase your product. In frustration, they might just call it off and then go to your competitor to get what you could've easily sold him or her in the first place.