Search Results for: blog direct sales are you really in business for yourself and by yourself

Fresh, Fun Cosmetics Sales Opportunities are Available Through mark.

Today, I came a cross a home-based business opportunity that could be a lot of fun for the right person. Let me preface this by saying that I am definitely not the right person for this business opportunity, but you might be. I know that it is not a good fit for me because it involves selling cosmetics. Direct selling is certainly not my strong suit. Even though I can be quite persuasive, I prefer to direct my persuasive energies towards arguing on behalf of my clients in court or creating proposals that will win me the writing jobs that … Continue reading →

Know Who Has the Buying Power

Have you ever found yourself making a long, elaborate sales pitch to one person—only to find out after the fact that you have been paying attention to someone who does not control the purse strings? Whether it is the spouse who actually has the buying power or the boss or someone in a completely different department—you have just wasted all that time and energy making a good pitch to the wrong person. Of course, you can chalk it up to experience and practice but it is a good idea to know who has the buying power so that you can … Continue reading →

Be Direct in Your Business Dealings

There is this misconception that good sales means being manipulative and sneaky and “pulling the wool” over someone’s ideas. We think that we need to trick them into making a purchase or gloss things over in order to get someone to come on board as a client. In reality, being direct and honest can get us more clients and customers and can help us build a stronger business reputation. Being direct does not mean that we have to be crass or rude. In fact, we can be gentle and considerate all the while we are being direct. Say it like … Continue reading →

Make Sure You’re Talking to the Decision-maker

When considering communication and how to build your home business through the relationships we have with prospects, customers and clients, it is important to remember that we need to make the most efficient use of our time and energy. This means making sure that we are making our sales pitches and presentations to the individuals who actually have the power to say “yes” or “no” to doing business with us. Have you ever been in a situation where you have made your full presentation and pitch—pulled out all the stops and done your best job at trying to convince someone … Continue reading →

Be Honest with Yourself Too

Many of us feel pretty comfortable with the suggestion that we operate in an honest and direct manner with our customers and clients. In fact, cultivating a reputation for honesty and integrity can be one of your greatest marketing tools as a home business owner. I would like to propose, however, that it is just as important that we be honest with ourselves as we set about building our businesses. Denial can be a great survival tool; as can simply refusing to face the truth or accept what is really going on. But, eventually it is in our best interest … Continue reading →

When You Really Hate to Sell Yourself

Sales and marketing go hand-in-hand with business ownership but that does not mean that all of us are thrilled at the prospect of having to constantly go out there and sell ourselves and our products or services. In fact, I think many people quit their businesses for this very reason; they just get tired or hate to do the selling. How can a person stay focused on building a business when he or she is just not in to having to be a salesperson? Many years ago, when I started my first consulting business, one of the most aggravating and … Continue reading →

How Many Contacts Does it Take for a Sale?

I have heard all sorts of theories about how many conversations and contacts or “touches” a business owner can anticipate before a sale is made or a customer brought on board—everything from five to ten to twenty different “touches” in order to finally reel someone in. Instead of focusing on the numbers, however, I do think we can concentrate on interacting with our prospects in different ways and making sure we “layer” our approach in order to reach them. Here is a personal example from my own life: nearly two years ago, I signed up to receive an e-mail newsletter … Continue reading →

Do Extroverts or Introverts Do Better in a Small Business?

Making a go of a small home business can seem so precarious and so unpredictable, that many of us look for all sorts of ideas about what it will take to be successful. One of the latest I heard two people debating is whether or not introverts or extraverts make better small business owner/operators. What do you think? I would probably define myself as an extrovert. But, as a writer, I am not really in an extroverted business. I have read biographies and articles and it seems that most successful writers prefer their own company and need to be alone … Continue reading →

Coping With Shyness

Not all of us home business owners are outgoing extroverts. Shyness and social insecurities can be a bit of an albatross when it comes to networking and marketing. BUT, there are plenty of successful business people who don’t necessarily consider themselves social butterflies or even strong leaders. There are ways to accommodate and cope and still stay focused on marketing and promotions—even if you consider yourself to be quite shy. In this day and age, a great deal of marketing and promotions can be done without ever having to meet with people face to face. You can create a strong … Continue reading →

Making and Using Business Projections

If you don’t have a plan, how will you know where you’re going? Surely you’ve heard similar statements when it comes to running your life and running your business. And, while there are plenty of things that go down that our outside of our realm of control, having some business “projections” for our home-based business can not only guide us, but give us the tools to evaluate whether we are on target or not. I think of projects as being a bit different from goals. Projections are really more a measurable outcome–a way of setting tangible targets that we can … Continue reading →