Archive for 'Advertising'
Client Negotiation and Closing for PSF
Posted on 19. Apr, 2012 by admin.
In order to reach this stage of the selling process the professional has to have convinced the prospective client that:
1 A problem situation/client need exists.
2 It is in the client’s interest to solve the problem/satisfy the need.
3 The problem/need has been correctly identified and diagnosed.
4 The solution/service offered by the professional is appropriate.
5 The professional/firm is capable of providing the proposed solution/service.
These points need to be established and re-established by the professional(s) in the prospective client’s mind. The basis of additional information, once these points have been established, is the accept-ability to the client of the timing of the proposed solution/service offering, the professional staff who will deliver the solution/service and manage the client/service interface, and the proposed fee level and fee schedule.
Two important elements in any negotiation between professional and prospective client at this stage of the selling process are objections and trial closing.
In most negotiations professionals will encounter some implicit or explicit objections to the proposal, staff, fee or timing. It is important that professionals are trained, or at least made aware of potential objections and techniques for overcoming them. Listman suggests that professionals can handle client objections during the negotiation phase of the selling process in at least seven different ways.
1 Explain (agree to the objection then qualify the agreement).
2 Reverse (turn the objection into another selling point).
3 Admit (agree that the objection is valid and modify the proposal).
4 Delay (delay answering the objection).
5 Ignore (in some situations clients may say things they don’t believe).
6 Deny (show the objection to be invalid).
7 Qualify (ask for a further explanation of the objection).
Professionals cannot be allowed to view objections as personal insults, unwanted confrontations or obstacles to be avoided.
For a successful conclusion to the personal selling process it is important that professionals realize that potential clients’ objections are best dealt with by making them explicit and dealing with them, rather than trying to avoid them and move as quickly as possible to ‘closing’ the sale.
Most professionals view the ‘closing’ part of the negotiation process as similarly difficult and even something they find difficult to confront. Almost every professional will fear the prospective client saying ‘no’ at this stage as this may result in feelings of failure, personal rejection and damage to any further relationship with the prospective client. Again, most professionals can gain a great deal from training in negotiation and closing.
Any training in this area needs to get professionals to understand and practise ‘trial closing’. Trial closing is the building up of a series of acceptances, degrees of agreement and determination of a client’s readiness to ‘close’ the negotiation. A series of ‘trial closes’ should be used before the professional ultimately closes by asking explicitly for the engagement, appointment, contract, etc. Trial closing does often involve techniques such as gaining prospective client agreement with component parts of the proposal such as the problem definition and the proposed solution, summarizing the key selling points, moving past the close with discussions concerning what might happen after the close ‘assuming we take on this assignment we would then . . etc. Such trial closing techniques used throughout the negotiation will help the professional to feel more confident about closing the sale at the appropriate moment. Sarah loves reading sportsbook and writing for sports and business sites.
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Purchase Decision Making
Posted on 27. Mar, 2012 by admin.
Purchase evaluation
After purchase and during and after using a professional service the consumer will formulate an opinion as to the wisdom of the choice of professional service provider and gain some awareness of the firm and its staff which will reshape their initial perceptions and lead to a feeling of satisfaction or dissatisfaction with the firm and its service provision. Most consumers will have a heavy emotional rather than rational component in their purchase decision making and will thus look for clues and evidence that their purchase decision was the ‘correct’ one. This demonstrates the need for marketers to reinforce the original beliefs of the client as much as possible. Marketers will also need to determine the actual criteria and relative importance of the factors used by consumers in evaluating the quality of the professional service offering and in reaching a decision concerning their satisfaction with their original purchase decision.
Market analysis is the cornerstone of successful marketing. It is obviously the first stage in the marketing process and the development of a marketing orientation within a professional service firm. Unfortunately, market analysis is not a quick, easy or glamorous task. The market analysis phase of any strategic or marketing planning process is typically the hardest, most time consuming and costly stage. It is also the most fundamental and is vital to the success of the professional service firm. Planning marketing programmes, strategies and communications campaigns without rigorous, systematic market analysis will diminish the effectiveness of the firm’s marketing effort and the use of its marketing resources by orders of magnitude. Sarah loves writing about sports and baseball mostly, but she also writes on business websites.
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Advertising Ideas for Small Business Owners
Posted on 08. Sep, 2011 by admin.
If you are a new business, you know that word-of-mouth advertising takes time. To speed up the process, you have to advertise to get your business known so you can increase your customer base. Here are some ideas that have been tried and found effective in attracting new customers.
Your local paper is the most obvious place to advertise and if there is a special interest newspaper in your area, that is another good option. Then there is direct mail and advertising in magazines. Handing out your business card is also a form of getting your name and service out to others. Anyone who lives in the UK and is considering advertising their new business can contact advertising agency Bristol and make use of their twenty-five years of experience.
Your vehicle can also be come a moving advertisement. Check into custom graphics or if that sounds like too much, how about magnetic signs that you can apply and remove whenever you like. Cable TV is something that is in just about every home these days so think about that avenue when you are ready to advertise. Next time you send an invoice, try a promo with that invoice, be creative or look for more ideas online.