Columnists


  Damon Segal
Damon Segal has been a major force in the design ...


  Bernice Hurst
Bernice Hurst is the author/editor of more than 60...


  Charles Orton-Jones
Charles is the former editor of EuroBusiness magaz...


  Steve Van Dulken
Steve Van Dulken is a world-renowned expert on inv...


  Dan Matthews
Dan is a business owner and journalist with around...


  Brian Chernett
Brian Chernett is founder and Executive Chairman o...


  Carmen Snipes
She’s lurking at your AGM, earwigging on the...


  Twinkle
Throughout the ages, man has consulted the heavens...

Business sales tips


Selling is the lifeblood of any business. It’s essential to the growth of an enterprise, and yet selling is often viewed as an inherent talent rather than something that can be learned, developed and measured.

Russell Ward, chief executive, Silent Edge, gives his top 10 tips on how you can become a better salesman, or how you can make your team sell better.

• Turn up on time, be presentable and look interested. It’s incredible how many people get this wrong.

• Plan, plan, plan! Know your product, your pitch and your company as well as you know your best friend.

• Sell more to your existing clients.

• Understand what the prospect wants and what they need – really the counterpoint to point number two. If the client is a small business, their needs will be very different from a multinational.

• Know your unique selling proposition (USP)! What’s unique or special about you, your offer, or your service?

• Deliver what’s been asked for. Find out what the customer wants, then give it to them!

• Be a chameleon. Look, sound, smell and feel like the client or their company. Make them comfortable in your presence.

• Manage the client. Know in advance why you’re there, what you’re there to sell and what needs to be covered to get the deal.

• Close ‘em down. You’re there to sell – presumably they’re there to buy – so get on and sell and get out of there!

• Make sure your back-up team deliver. If the client wants it by Monday, make sure he or she gets it by Monday!

Rating

By Russell Ward  on   Jul 10,2008

Add a comment  |  Add a rating
 |  Email to a friend

Keywords

selling    customers    pitching    sales   

Comments


     
Latest News

Web analytics - what you need to know

Website analytics are ignored by too many companies, yet analytics packages hold the key to optimising the money you earn through your website. It's simple: learn the ropes or lose customers..
By Dan Matthews Dec 17,2009 - Comments (0) - Rating (2 votes)

Christmas party rules

Sue Evans, a partner at Lester Aldridge, offers her advice to employers about the do's and don'ts of the infamous office Christmas party..
By LaunchLab.co.uk Dec 17,2009 - Comments (0) - Rating (2 votes)

Why football hates the pre-Budget report

Former Hull City FC chairman Paul Duffen tells LaunchLab why he won't be voting Labour at the next election and why the pre-Budget report was awful news for British football clubs..
By LaunchLab.co.uk Dec 17,2009 - Comments (0) - Rating (3 votes)
Blog

Late payment pain hints at recovery

Late payment has returned to the top of the pop-pickers’ list of business gripes, according to a new survey. That sounds like bad news, but could it be a sign that the ....
By Dan Matthews Sep 18,2009 - Comments (3) - Rating (2 votes)

The Ashes’ impact on the economy

When the football World Cup trundles around every four years, business journalists like me are inundated with press releases from accountants and economists estimating the likely impact of the event on the national ....
By Dan Matthews Aug 07,2009 - Comments (2) - Rating (4 votes)

When in doubt, invest in takeaways

Recessions change consumers’ buying patterns; but we still gotta eat, right? Venture capital group Index Partners thinks so too, which is why it’s invested more than £10m in an online fast-food search engine..
By Dan Matthews Jul 28,2009 - Comments (5) - Rating (3 votes)
Product Reviews

Dell 2130CN printer



The Dell 2130 CN may look like a Soviet era block, with its monolithic no-frills ....

Against the Grain



From a plan to import polo sticks from India to the king of Cobra beer, the ....

Nokia 5800 XpressMusic



The Nokia 5800 Xpress Music is Nokia’s answer to the iPhone. Its touch screen.

Mr Site Pro review



Mr Site Take away Website Pro, to give it its full name, helps you to ....

Ubuntu OS review



You use a standard OS. So why does your techie use Ubuntu?.

Time Recording Kit



If you thought the old time clock was a thing of the past, think again.  The ....

MacBook Air Review



The MacBook Air was one of the biggest launches of 2008, not just of a ....

Sony Ericsson w302



Sony Ericsson's w302 is billed as a cheap Walkman phone and that is what it is. ....

Spanish Islands



Many small firms say the secret to success is their team of skilled staff. If ....

Share

Can you start a small business with free software?

Jan 23,2009
08:00 am

Business software packages typically cost £300-£999 each, factor in the need for multiple packages on each ...

By James Cleverly

Small business survival tips

Jan 07,2009
07:00 am

Businesses need to cut costs and negotiate hard to survive in 2009. Andrew Shaw, partner at ...

By LaunchLab.co.uk

Choose a business payment system part I

Jul 13,2008
07:00 am

With European e-commerce predicted to reach €263 billion by 2011, it’s no wonder high street retailers ...

By Dan Starr

Can you start a small business with free software?

Jan 23,2009
08:00 am

Business software packages typically cost £300-£999 each, factor in the need for multiple packages on each ...

By James Cleverly

Identify business cash-flow problems

Jul 10,2008
07:00 am

Cash is king, and cash-flow is a good measure of a successful business. Keeping the cash ...

By Steve Jennings

Asset finance, leasing and cash flow

Jul 13,2008
02:00 pm

A lease is a financial tool whereby a financier takes ownership of an asset and the business ...

By Christopher Hardwick


Small business and start-up advice from LaunchLab.co.uk Starting a small business? Need help or advice from business men and women who have succeeded as entrepreneurs? LaunchLab.co.uk is the small business website for you. We’re the best new website for start-ups and small businesses who want to grow in 2009. We feature entrepreneur columnists and award-winning business writers, small business profiles, features about start-up businesses and forums where you can start a discussion about your business. Whether you want to start a lifestyle business, work from your bedroom in a home-based business or grow to be the next Tesco, LaunchLab.co.uk is a great place to start. Our extensive archive of small business how-to guides give you information on how to start-up, how to market your business, how to maintain business cash-flow, how to succeed with an online business and many more topics to help you run your start-up. We even cover recruitment, firing, business technology, office space, insurance, reviews of business-related products and services, and videos of successful entrepreneurs explaining how they succeeded. If all that’s not enough, you can join our small business forums and chat to our friendly community of entrepreneurs who are happy to give advice and information on your business concerns. We are passionate about start-ups, small businesses and entrepreneurs, and we believe that you deserve all the advice you can get to help make your business dreams come true. Good luck with your venture and we look forward to seeing your business get off to a great start!