How to increase sales in the market. Attract customers with cold calls

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From this article you will learn:

  • How to increase the company's sales volume by interacting with customers
  • How to increase product sales with prices and promotions
  • How to increase sales in wholesale trade
  • How to increase sales in an online store

The correct answer to the question: “How to increase sales?” – can lead to success for any company. The main goal of the commercial management of the enterprise is to maximize this criterion. We will look at the most effective methods for increasing the size of sales.

What needs to be done to increase profits: 19 universal ways

  1. Thorough market research.

Commerce does not accept ill-conceived actions.

You need to learn about all the movements of the modern market, the successes or failures of competing companies, and then use the information collected to develop your own enterprise.

Describe your strategy in writing.

  1. Identification of promising directions.

To increase sales, you need to find out which economic areas are the most promising. Data from the analysis of the consumer index and various events in a particular area can help with this.

  1. Increase in the number of customers.

A small number of buyers equally affects new firms that have just entered the market structure and have not yet gained popularity, and already promoted ones, whose customers may go to competitors due to internal problems in the organization itself.

In search of new customers, it is very important not to lose old ones.

Often, directors and top managers decide to radically change the operation of the enterprise, completely update the product range - this can force the previous buyers to leave.

You can only act in this way if you have nothing to lose - for example, you have very few old customers.

Otherwise, innovation should be introduced gradually.

  1. Advertising of services and goods.

If you cannot afford to produce and demonstrate full-scale commercials, new technologies will come to your aid: corporate promotion in social networks, mailing lists by e-mail, phone calls clients, viral advertising. Don't forget the good old newspaper ads and flyers distributed by promoters.

  1. Increasing revenue with the help of the phone.

A regular telephone can help in increasing the retail volume. The method of calling from several numbers, which unscrupulous firms often resort to, is best forgotten: excessive intrusiveness can do your organization a disservice.

Try to offer your products and services to those who are interested in them. You need to have not only a complete set of information about your product, but also information about your potential buyer: who he works for, what his hobbies are, what problems they care about - and how your product can help solve them.

  1. Making changes to the company.

Find out which specific methods of your business are not working.

Perhaps it's all about ignorant salespeople. Or your product range is long outdated, while the cost remains above the market. Or maybe you just need to renovate your premises or rebrand, and the question of how to increase sales will disappear by itself.

  1. Creation of highly specialized solutions.

During the year, enterprises operating in the fashion clothing market update their product catalog several times. They want to control the collection of orders for each region and be able to change it at any stage of the trade chain. Such clients can be offered special software for warehouse management and automated messaging with customers. They also offer their partners the possibility of returning the product from the point of sale to the distribution center. Accordingly, they need to provide air or multimodal delivery, and in the case of transportation fur products transportation must be accompanied by security.

  1. USP or detuning from competitors.

To increase turnover, it is necessary to find all the advantageous differences between the enterprise and its competitors. If your main advantage is cost, you need to make radical reforms. Significant benefits can be:

  • free prompt delivery;
  • high quality service;
  • provision of related services;
  • discounts, bonuses and gifts for customers;
  • a wide range of goods in stock, etc.
  1. Quarterly progress report.

Often, customers do not realize what exactly they receive by concluding a subscription service agreement with a particular organization. That is why it is worth regularly sending detailed reports to partners, including a list of all work performed. This helps to increase the level of loyalty among potential consumers and, accordingly, increase the size of sales in production.

  1. social proof.

Research shows that customers are more likely to purchase goods and services from companies that are trustworthy and have a good reputation.

Confirmation of these characteristics can be, for example, certificates of conformity or other official documents, calculations sociological research, which are the best way to convince consumers (social proof): "2500 customers can't be wrong!".

  1. Improving the quality of services.

This method allows you to answer the question of how to increase sales during a crisis. Once you've interviewed your customers beforehand, you can move on to implementing your preferred strategic plan. It is necessary to improve the quality of services, train staff, purchase new equipment. Buyers can be offered discounts, bonuses and gifts for the holidays.

  1. "Mystery shopper".

This is a specially trained person whom you hire in secret from your employees. He plays the role of an ordinary client and must record all stages of the trading chain using a hidden camera or voice recorder. This allows the businessman to understand how things really are. What the business owner knew and real situation may be diametrically opposed.

For additional control over employees, you can install special software on work computers that monitors the image on the monitor. The room should be equipped with a video surveillance camera. This will help to identify undisciplined and incompetent employees and, in the end, eliminate the factors that hinder the increase in the company's revenue.

  1. Changing the motivation system.

Launching an updated product line, one of the corporations operating in the market wholesale sales and distribution of computer equipment, got into a rather difficult situation. The volume of sales compared to competitors was very small. Managers said buyers were uninterested and rarely approached the firm. It was also not possible to offer a product as an alternative to something, since it was not possible to convey to the consumer information about its competitive advantage Oh. In general, the products were practically unknown in the domestic market and did not have reliable marketing support. The enterprise itself assigned to this line great expectations, but it was impossible to change the principles of payroll for employees. The management decided to pay regular bonuses to motivate specialists. They were paid not only a standard salary, but also $0.5 for each item sold. At first, the amount seemed purely symbolic, but over time, an unexpected move brought a very good result - the level of revenue was increased by 60%. Each manager has significantly expanded their personal client base, increasing their income and organizations.

  1. Selling site development.

Modern business needs a high-quality website - this is an axiom. The Internet portal is one of the main ways to attract customers and a tool to help increase the level of purchases in stores. In order to increase its effectiveness, it is necessary to pay special attention to three main elements: the main page with good SEO text, application forms and feedback. Here are a few tips to help improve your site's performance:

  • simplify the structure: do not load pages with heterogeneous information. Visitors should intuitively understand what and where to look for;
  • prepare two separate menus: a general one for site navigation and a product catalog divided by business segments (for example, Expert. Restaurant chain, Expert.Club, etc.);
  • Post an infographic on the homepage that illustrates the benefits of your services. For example, you can write how much the company will lose if there is no automation production processes and how much they will receive if they are finally debugged in automatic mode;
  • place on the main page a link to a section with reviews of previous customers (positive, of course). They can push a potential consumer to cooperate with you;
  • leave space on the key page for a banner advertising special offers, promotions and bonuses;
  • in each upper left corner it is necessary to place a button for ordering a manager's call.
  1. Improving and automating the processing of applications.

Another way to help increase retail size is the send function. electronic application. With it, the buyer can track at what stage his application is. Automatic processing of incoming requests serves two purposes at once: increasing the level of customer loyalty and facilitating the work of employees.

  1. Increasing sales through the right choice of promotion channels.

Try to connect to advertising campaigns in Yandex. Direct, place your banners and articles on the main sites in your region. For example, an organization that sells land plots sold eight objects, just announcing its special offer. Until now, television advertising has been an effective way of promotion. In particular, one of construction companies managed to quickly achieve recognition of her own brand thanks to the launch of the reality show “Construction. Your house in three months.

  1. Blue ocean strategy.

This method is based on the search and formation of new markets that have not yet been mastered by competitors. Take a look at the following practical example. The network of lighting salons offered its customers qualified design assistance. To do this, each client had to take a picture of their apartment and send the pictures to the salon. Having studied the photo, the designer offered the most suitable lamps from the range of the salon. As a result of the action, it was possible to increase sales volumes by 37%. Word of mouth has shown particular effectiveness.

  1. Search for a competitor.

Create a virtual rival for yourself - and the unique advantages of your products and services will become more pronounced against its background. Customers will treat you much more loyally if you compete in an interesting game way.

Remember, for example, a funny video about the confrontation between MAC OS and PC computer systems, which helped to increase the number of Apple fans several times. Or a classic example of PR battles between Coca-Cola and Pepsi-Co. The indisputable advantage of the latter is the public composition of the drink - this inspires the confidence of customers (unlike Coca-Cola, which keeps the recipe a secret).

  1. Analysis of the causes of low demand.

Often it is not even necessary to increase the sales volume of an enterprise, but only to remove the barriers that prevent it from reaching maximum heights. For example, consumers may be deterred by ignorant or overly intrusive salespeople, an old premise without renovation, even a poorly designed shop window. By eliminating these causes, you can significantly increase the level of retailing.

Techniques to increase the firm's sales ratio through interaction with customers

  1. Orientation to economical buyers.

There are several techniques at once to encourage consumers of the first type (they are 24% of the total) to make a purchase.

Here are some examples of how these methods work.

The cost of the proposal can be changed without changing anything in essence, but only by breaking it down into amounts that are psychologically perceived easier (for example, $100 per month instead of $1200 per year).

Internet company AOL replaced hourly pay of their services on a monthly basis. This strategy is the opposite of the one described earlier and aims to force users not to keep track of their spending every day.

All inclusive resorts provide a feeling of safety and comfort, as tourists think that all costs are already covered and no additional expenses are required.

Netflix has replaced the pay-per-view system for a single movie with a flat monthly rate for unlimited access to all content.

  1. Complex solutions for consumers.

Make cumulative logistics offers to customers that take into account strengths your enterprise. Test new service on one of the partners, and if successful, extend it to other customers.

  1. "Devil's Advocate".

This ancient Catholic tradition has taught modern marketers a lot. Studies show that if someone's idea is refuted by the "devil's advocate", that person's confidence in their rightness only increases. Your firm can take advantage of this experience and act as a "devil's advocate" on its own. So you can increase the confidence of customers (they are the main consumers of your products). Let the "devil's advocate" express their doubts, and you will debunk it with the help of scientific and practical experience.

  1. Attracting like-minded people.

Tell your potential buyers about the high goal that you are pursuing (this could be a fundraiser for charity or any other social project). This will provide an opportunity to attract like-minded people as consignors. 64% of citizens surveyed by sociologists said that this factor prompted them to make a purchase decision.

Good example - Charity Event to increase sales of TOMS Shoes. Its essence is simple: when you buy a pair of shoes for yourself, you give a second pair to needy children. The action helped sell millions of pairs of shoes - and millions of children received new shoes for free. Thus, good and kind deeds can increase sales!

  1. Overcoming the barrier to entry.

Often there are situations when the consumer is almost ready to make a purchase, but he needs an additional incentive. They may be able to try out a future acquisition absolutely free. During a certain period of time, while testing is being carried out, the client will have time to get used to the product or service. This will increase the likelihood that after this period, he will buy the product, simply not wanting to give it up.

A correctly formulated proposal plays a decisive role in this situation. Many resort to the standard phrase: "Try the 30-day demo for free." However, you will agree that the slogan “The first month is free” sounds nicer and more convincing. The goal is one, but the means are different, therefore, the result may be different.

  1. sales scripts.

The technology involves interviewing the seller and the buyer with the following types of questions: situational, problematic, extracting and guiding. Answering them, a person shows more interest in the products offered. Keep in mind that it is impossible to create universal templates for all types of buyers. The head of the department must independently develop a question sheet with expected answers for each item. In order not to lose the skill acquired during SPIN sales trainings, it is necessary to consolidate it every day for a month. Employees should think through the options for questions for such an interview two or three times a day. Please note that regular customers who are used to a certain type of negotiation with your managers may initially be hostile to the new model. Therefore, to begin with, it must be tested on new purchasers, only then transfer the skill to regular customers.

  1. Explaining to consumers their next steps.

Dr. Howard Leventhal in his research cites the thesis that a person will not perceive relevant information if it does not contain clear instructions. Buyers believe that the described difficulties do not apply to them, and prefer not to worry. But when the description of the problems is followed by instructions for their elimination, the result exceeds all expectations.

Thus, the number of people who received a flu shot increased by a quarter after clear advice on how to avoid the disease was published. This is one of the most common ways to attract new customers to insurance companies.

  1. up-sell method.

Teach your managers to work with visitors, taking into account their emotional state. They must know what to tell customers additionally about the quality of products, to consider all its possibilities and advantages. And do it in an accessible form so that the consumer fully appreciates the profitability of the offer.

  1. Recognition of shortcomings.

How to increase sales in a crisis on the experience of your own mistakes? Here you can describe many cases of real industrial disasters that have occurred in recent years (for example, oil spills). Most often, the reason for these situations was the unwillingness of firms to notice their mistakes and correct them. This continued exactly until the moment of crisis came, when it was too late to change anything. For example, the energy company TEPCO (Japan) only a year and a half later admitted the mistake that led to the "nuclear crisis" on the Japanese coast.

When working with online applications, you must have come across situations where developers sent out emails apologizing for technical failures and problems. Such mailings make it clear that the organization is working on the mistakes, does not leave them unattended and will continue to do everything possible so as not to repeat them.

  1. Service services for the goods (packaging, delivery, lifting to the floor, warranty and post-warranty service).

Functionality and comfort in use can be half the cost of the goods. For some categories of customers, these factors are fundamental and most influence the purchase decision. We are talking mainly about the elderly, mothers of young children and people who do not own their own car. In this case, you should think not only about the growth of the average check, but also about the sale as a whole.

  1. Keeping customers on track.

Keep consumers on their toes. Classic study Norberg Schwartz shows that in order to change the views of a person, it is enough just to find a dime. Use people's positive reaction to surprises for marketing purposes, give them small gifts. Such an action will help to significantly increase the volume of sales, while it does not have to be very expensive - it is not the price that matters, but human attention.

  1. Newsletter for potential buyers.

This is the formation of bases of people who have expressed interest in your project, even if the contract has not been concluded. Then, in case of any promotions, discounts or changes in the assortment, they can be promptly notified about these events.

  1. Surprises for clients.

Indulge your customers with surprises - and you will be able to win their trust and loyalty, receiving a huge amount of grateful reviews. The online shoe store Zappos traditionally uses just such tactics of influence.

Expecting to receive the order within five days, as promised on the site, you suddenly receive it in a day. Or get the opportunity to return shoes throughout the year. Such surprises helped to accumulate a huge number of reviews on the site, which became a powerful marketing tool for influencing potential buyers.

  1. Using the power of shortcuts.

Use appraisal statements. When studying the factors influencing the voting results, a special behavioral test was carried out. According to its results, scientists found that people who were accidentally called “politically active citizens” voted 15% more willingly. Despite the fact that people received this assessment by chance, this characteristic had a serious impact on them. Take advantage of this method: show customers that you think they are advanced, innovative and active. Then they will act according to this label.

How to Increase Sales with Prices and Promotions

  1. Increasing the cost of goods, selling a more expensive analogue of the product.

Even if the buyer says that he wants to save money, this is not a reason to sell him the most budget product. The manager can structure the conversation as follows: “Of course, I can offer you a car for three hundred thousand rubles. But you probably want it to have climate control, power steering and heated seats.” If the buyer answers in the affirmative, it is worth noting: “Why would you spend money on a car that doesn’t suit you?”.

You can sell a more expensive product only if it has additional benefits. Take, for example, two almost identical refrigerators of different brands and with different prices. Most managers will say that there is no difference between them. But is it? Of course not! The task of the department head is to explain to employees how different models differ in terms of technology, manufacturing standards, warranties, etc.

  1. The growth of the average check.

This is the most accessible method. It seems to follow from the method described above, but with some difference. The check can be increased by simply raising prices, increasing the number of service functions, changing payment terms. By the way, a 1% increase in cost increases profit by 3-10%. It is important that the price increase is not too significant and brings with it new opportunities.

  1. Adding shares.

The vast majority of buyers love them very much.

The leader of Ukraine among supermarkets in terms of originality of shares is "Silpo".

Even serious reasonable people react to their promotions: “Price of the week”, “Hot offer”, “Theme days”, “Coupons for increasing points”, etc.

  1. Visibility of commercial offers.

A trade initiative should be of real interest to a potential consumer of goods or services. It must include detailed description product features and benefits. When conducting one-time promotions or providing short-term discounts, the market instruction must be supplemented with information about them. An excellent feature article - 10 tricky tricks for compiling a commercial offer.

  1. Various recommendations for clients (at least three).

When new customers contact the firm, it can be very difficult to predict what price range of goods and services will interest them. Thus, if you offer them products in only one price range, you may miss the mark and not guess their preferences. It is more correct to offer several alternative options at once - for example, “standard”, “business” and “premium” kits.

In this case, the psychology of sales will work well. The buyer will understand that he was offered products with a wide price range, and he has very few reasons for not buying. At the same time, it is necessary to correctly compose sets of products of different prices and clearly explain to the customer the differences between them. Start with the most expensive sets - then he will perceive the cheaper goods positively.

  1. Providing burning discounts.

For example, offer customers a bonus card with a unique code. If the buyer spends a certain amount in the store during the month, the next one he will receive a discount on all products. The size of the concession depends on the number of orders in the previous month. At the same time, the discount burns out if a person has not bought anything for a whole month. The approximate range of discounts can be as follows: from 5% for a purchase of 100 rubles to 30% for spending 20 thousand rubles.

  1. Cost differentiation.

Manufacturers set a single price for certain categories of products. Often this is not entirely justified. If the visitor directly asks about the price, the manager does not have time to identify his needs - he needs to clearly state the amount. If a single cost is not set, the manager can ask a lot of clarifying questions, establish a dialogue and get information that will help influence the buyer. In addition, this way you can slightly increase the number of customers.

  1. Favorable price image.

From a psychological point of view, it is better to write “100 rubles a month” on the price tag than “1200 rubles a year”. Properly setting a price that is not intimidating, you can significantly increase the size of sales.

Tools to increase sales in a retail store

  1. Patency.

How to understand even before the start of the store, how busy is the place where it will operate? Easy! Stand at the door of the future company and for a certain time count all the people who passed by and cast a glance in your direction. So you think total potential clients. To make a more accurate description, you will have to take into account the gender and age of people passing by. Compare the received data with the theoretical portrait of the buyer and understand the approximate attendance of the retail store by ordinary passers-by.

  1. Signboard.

So, you figured out the number of possible buyers-passers-by. Now they need to be "hooked". First of all, a signboard can help with this. She must be:

  • bright and eye-catching;
  • understandable and giving an idea of ​​what products are sold outside the door;
  • encouraging to buy in this store (with the help of a wide range, affordable prices, High Quality etc.).

Most often, it is possible to find out how effective this or that sign is only by experience.

  1. Cross selling.

By selling a certain product, you can offer related services. For example, a person who has bought an aquarium can order its proper installation, connection and maintenance - all without leaving the cash register. To do this, the retail store needs to negotiate with the relevant firms, and then attract customers and receive their percentage.

  1. Determination of the purchase threshold.

There is no specific model here - it all depends on the imagination of the store owner. The essence of the method is as follows:

  • making a purchase, the price of which exceeds a certain limit, the client receives a coupon for free shipping, discount or gift;
  • If you buy two items, you can get the third one for free.

The list can be continued endlessly. Each store is trying to come up with its own promotions to increase sales in stores.

  1. Payment of change of goods.

This method is not very common, but very interesting. When paying for products, the purchaser receives change not in money, but in goods - for example, matches or candies.

  1. Yellow and red price tags.

This method is widely known. Many supermarkets sell products that are past their expiration date at discounted prices. This is what the multi-colored price tags report.

  1. The ability to return the product if you do not like it.

Moreover, there is a law that obliges sellers to accept products back within two weeks after the sale.

  1. Price hints.

On the labels, you can put information that some others usually purchase along with this product. The buyer is likely to take the advice and buy something in addition to the main product.

  1. "Armchair" for the companion of the buyer.

People rarely go shopping alone, and more often than not, your direct customer's companion is someone who is completely uninterested in your services. To prevent him from trying to get your customer out of the store as soon as possible, offer him an activity that will help pass the time: watching TV for men, playing games for children, reading fashion magazines for women.

  1. Unique selling proposition.

Not every store owner has the opportunity to rent a room on a busy street and hang a chic sign. However, anyone can create a unique product or service for which people want to go out of their way. This is the main method of increasing sales.

  1. Upselling.

This is an offer to make an additional purchase to the main one. For example, when buying a smartphone, a SIM card and insurance are offered, and the purchased bouquet of flowers is advised to pack for an additional fee. The main rule is the price additional service should not exceed the price of the main product. This method allows you to increase the level of implementation of the company by 30%.

  1. Working with margin.

Perhaps the most affordable method to increase profits. They say that the low cost of goods is not always perceived by the buyer as the most attractive. Often, a product sold at a high cost is considered by buyers to be of better quality. Ask yourself the question: does it matter if a sausage costs 300 rubles or 310? Most often, this difference seems negligible to buyers. Now calculate the total profit.

Consider the example described in Robert Cialdini's The Psychology of Influence. The owner of the jewelry store could not sell a few pieces of turquoise jewelry. Leaving on vacation, she left her subordinates a written order "* 1/2 the price of all turquoise." Imagine her surprise when, upon arrival, she found out that all the jewelry was sold ... twice as much. The seller simply did not understand her order and increased, not reduced the cost.

  1. Price tags.

Take a critical look at your price stickers. As a rule, they are impersonal and do not catch the eye. A potential buyer has only a few seconds to make a purchase decision in the store he visited. Try to surprise him enough so that he lingers for at least a few minutes and starts asking questions. This can be helped by price tags printed on colored paper and cut out in the form of intricate shapes, with tempting and sometimes shocking offers. For example, on the eve of the New Year holidays, you can print them in the form of snowflakes, Christmas trees, snowmen and other holiday paraphernalia. Or you can place in a conspicuous place a product that is sold at an exorbitant price. Probably no one will buy it, but many will want to look and maybe buy something else. It doesn’t matter what they say about you - as long as the address is correctly indicated.

  1. Smile.

Stores where salespeople smile at their customers increase sales by 20-30% compared to stores with surly staff. Teach your employees to smile regardless of their mood.

  1. « Free cheese" without a mousetrap.

The famous home improvement brand offered free cookies to shoppers. Thus, he attracted parents with children to the number of buyers and won over consumers.

  1. Non-standard warranties.

Provide additional guarantees and you will get new customers. "If we don't deliver the pizza in half an hour, you get it for free." “If the seller is rude to you, you will receive a discount.” “If you find a product cheaper than ours, we will refund 110% of the difference!”. Experience shows that it is very rare to implement these guarantees, but the opportunity itself certainly attracts customers.

  1. Other services.

Let's say you own a beauty products store in a small town. How do you get the whole city to know about it? It's easy: Hire a top-notch stylist and distribute flyers stating that your store will have a master working for a month who will help you choose cosmetics and teach you how to apply makeup correctly for free. In a month, women will only talk about your company - even those who do not need a stylist, and they learned about the promotion from their girlfriends.

Do you sell plastic windows? Announce a promotion under which each customer will receive a device for free that measures the thermal conductivity of windows and calculates heat loss. Anyone who needs to replace the windows in the apartment will first of all think about you. You can offer the installation of mosquito nets for three hundred rubles. Perhaps at first it will bring you losses, but then you will see how many customers for whom you installed them will come to you to order windows. Moreover, your masters can subtly hint that it is time to change the windows.

How to increase wholesale sales

  1. Establishment of a marketing department.

To increase sales, you need to properly organize the work of the marketing department. Specialists must constantly explore the market, look for new options, optimize production and logistics processes. Hire competent workers and your company will prosper.

  1. Range expansion.

Always think about the possibility of increasing the range of products offered. You can more diversify the models, their size range, the number of related products. By multiplying your offer, you save the client from having to look for other suppliers.

  1. Demand study.

Determine the capabilities of your buyers and set tasks for managers, based not on the experience of past years, but on the share of your deliveries to the customer. For example, your manager sells goods for 100 thousand rubles. The partner's turnover is growing. However, it turns out that the potential of this organization is 10 million rubles, and your company is simply used as a reserve supplier. It's bad if the manager doesn't know about it. It's even worse if the manager doesn't even know.

  1. Competent work with federal and regional networks.

Majority wholesale suppliers try to cooperate with large corporations. To conclude such an agreement, as a rule, is quite simple and almost always profitable.

  1. Transparent pricing policy.

Keep it clear and understandable pricing policy or put your managers' salaries in direct proportion to profits. Either you work according to a strict price list, in which all categories of clients are registered, or you empower the manager to provide any discounts and bonuses, but at the same time make it dependent on revenue. There is no third.

  1. Conclusion of contractual obligations with regular consumers.

Contracts with regular customers are mutually beneficial cooperation in terms of not only cost and profit, but also price and quality. Buy a good product at a good price. This will allow you to provide optimal matching of prices and corresponding product features for your customers, which will become your indisputable advantage. Buyers simply will not be able to refuse such an advantageous offer. Treasure the reputation of a conscientious supplier - it will work better than any advertising.

  1. Penetration into the client's business.

The better you understand entrepreneurial activity your customer, the lower the risk of losing him, the closer you are to end consumers, the better your consignor's sales are going.

  1. Thorough analysis of customer failures.

Let's say a small customer left you. You do not get upset and think that you will have more time to interact with large firms. In fact, this situation is fraught with serious consequences. The reasons that caused small companies to stop doing business with you can also affect large ones. The modern market is arranged in such a way that small organizations are more sensitive to new trends and trends - this helps them survive. Therefore, the factors affecting them will later be reflected in large enterprises. You have to carefully analyze the departure of each buyer and draw the right conclusions.

  1. The focus is on the customer, not your business.

This is the basic principle of operation, and not a way to make a profit. Once you've started wholesale, focus on your customers' trade. Think about how to increase the sales volume of the partner company, what product is in the greatest demand, how to increase the profitability of the enterprise. While the partner is afloat, you are on the crest of the wave.

  1. Compliance with the rules of work with distributors.

It is very important to properly build interaction with dealers - so that it does not interfere with work with ordinary buyers. Decide what is your priority: retail or hospitality. Often it is worth closing your own retail and stop giving discounts to intermediaries. In other cases, you should focus on your own implementation - if resources allow.

  1. Creation of interesting proposals.

The pricing policy of the company and its bonus system should work for long-term cooperation, and not for one-time deals.

  1. Monitoring.

Constantly analyze the offers of competitors. Clients who have previously used their services will help you with this.

  1. Working with transport.

Create your own logistics department. This will give you a huge advantage over your competitors - you will be able to ensure uninterrupted delivery of goods. Of course, at the first stage you will have to incur significant losses, but after a short time they will pay off handsomely, helping to increase the level of sales of the enterprise.

  1. Constant search for new clients.

The main goal of a piece-selling store is to make a profit. Most often, such companies are open to offers that promise additional income. Of course, there is a risk that you may lose your permanent customer, who was lured away by competitors. On the other hand, it is likely that you will be able to offer more profitable terms. Therefore, do not stop looking for new consumers, even if the enterprise is already operating at full capacity.

  1. Staff training.

The volume of trade largely depends on the person selling the product or service. It is necessary to focus on the selection of competent staff and their training. However, participation in many master classes, seminars and trainings is by no means an option. You need to understand which of the activities is most effective, and choose it. Teach employees to show the product face, emphasizing its merits and not dwelling on the inevitable shortcomings. The professionalism of the staff is the best way to increase the level of sales.

Increasing sales volume is, of course, a burning topic. True, I'm not sure that all 22 methods proposed in this article actually work. But it's worth a try.

Sales volume is main indicator the success of every company. And the task of the commercial department is to make this indicator as high as possible.

In this article, we have collected 22 effective ways increase sales for the most common areas of activity. Let's take a look at them.

Volume of sales, or rather its increase, sooner or later begins to disturb every leader. It is important to understand that increasing sales is a complex and multifaceted task that needs to be integrated approach for solutions.

In addition, there are no universal solutions in the world of commerce; for each case, you need to try different approaches. As practice shows, some solutions will be effective, while others will not bring the desired result. This is fine.

But you need to work hard to increase sales volume. Let's focus on proven ways to increase sales.

Method number 1. Offer your customers at least three different offers

Often, when new customers contact a company, it is quite difficult to predict their price range. Therefore, offering products from only one price range, it is possible not to guess the preferences and expectations of the buyer. It would be more rational to offer several options - in particular, standard, business and premium kits.

Here, the so-called sales psychology will operate - the buyer understands that he is offered goods for any price range. Therefore, the probability of ordering increases significantly. But it is important to carefully consider the proposed kits from different price niches, explaining to the client the differences between them.

Method number 2. USP or differentiation from competitors

You should analyze your possible differences in comparison with other market participants. If you differ from other companies only in the offered price, cardinal changes are required.

Possible competitive advantages include: free and/or fast delivery, service, provision of related services, bonuses and gifts for customers, constant availability of products in the warehouse, etc.

Method number 2. Visual commercial offers

The commercial offer should be made in such a way as to really interest the client. Namely, with a detailed description of the characteristic advantages of the service provided. For short-term promotions, this commercial proposal should be supplemented with information about promotions and discounts of the company.

Method number 3. Progress report every quarter

Clients often do not understand what exactly and in what quantity they receive when concluding a subscription service agreement. Therefore, we decided to regularly send detailed reports, indicating information about the work carried out - in order to improve loyalty from our target audience.

Method number 4. Promotion of services using the Internet

Thanks to the site, we managed to significantly improve our results - we indicated all the data on special offers there, posted videos with information about the features of subscriber service, and explained the advantages of working with us.

In addition, we have thoroughly approached the issues of search engine promotion, updating the structure, design, and navigation of the site to increase resource traffic.

Method number 5. Improving Application Processing

Improvement CRM systems includes the function of submitting an electronic application of the client, with the help of which the client can easily find out about the current status of the application. Applications marked "urgent" are processed first of all, without waiting for the general queue.

Automation of the processing of incoming applications has allowed us to significantly increase the overall loyalty of the user audience, simplifying the tasks of the company's engineers.

Method number 6. Increasing sales by mailing to databases of potential customers

Formation of bases of people who expressed interest in our project, even if the contract was never concluded. We always make sure to keep the version of our databases of potential customers up to date by regularly adding and updating data.

Method number 7. Selling site development

For modern business, the relevance of the site is difficult to overestimate, it becomes the main means and channel for attracting customers, increasing significant sales. In order to increase the return on the site, three main elements are important - the main page with high-quality selling text, the application form, and the form for collecting contacts of potential customers.

Tips to help make your site more efficient

  1. Simplify the structure: refuse to pile up different types of information on one page. It is very important for clients to understand where and what to look for.
  2. We are preparing 2 separate menus - a general menu (for site navigation) and a catalog of available solutions, which are divided by business segments (in particular, Expert. Restaurant chain, Expert.Club, etc.).
  3. You should publish in a conspicuous place on the main page information (better infographics) about the benefits of your offers. In particular, it is possible to reflect a visual comparison of losses in the absence of proper automation and a possible improvement in performance, which its presence will contribute to.
  4. You can place a link to customer reviews on the main page. The visitor who clicked on them goes to the reviews section.
  5. It is also necessary to provide on the main page a place for a banner that advertises the current special offers of the company, etc.
  6. A callback button should be placed on each page in the upper left corner.

Method number 8. Increasing sales through the right choice of promotion channels

We always recommend using advertising campaigns in Yandex.Direct, an advertising banner, articles about plots for sale on the main portals of your region. So, for example, a company selling land plots first briefly announced a special offer, after which eight plots were sold.

In addition, to this day, television advertising is quite effective. In particular, thanks to the launch of the reality show Construction. Your house in 3 months” the company was able to achieve recognition of its brand in a short time.

Method number 9. Organization of work of sales managers

In order to increase sales, we decided to general scheme sales. Now the manager had to demonstrate the plot to a potential buyer before bringing him to the office. And the head of the sales department had to successfully complete the transaction.

This principle is beneficial for each party - the manager had additional time to attract clients, while the boss achieved a larger volume of transactions, since he was not forced to spend time inspecting the sites.

We also approved a standard sales scheme:

  • Call or request to inspect the object;
  • Manager calls to clarify site inspection plans;
  • The buyer visits the site for sale;
  • Meeting of the buyer and the head of the sales department in our office;
  • Registration of the contract.

In the period March-December, we managed to sell a total of more than 100 plots of the first stage. Managed to increase sales five times compared to the same period last year. The company was able to improve its reputation, with better promotion of the following projects, related areas.

Method number 10. Improving the quality of your services

The company initially conducted a survey of its customers. This principle allowed us to determine the preferred course of action. First of all, we started improving the quality of services, training employees, and buying new equipment. Clients are provided with a number of bonus services and additional gifts for the holidays.

Method number 11. Free coupons for the first lesson

In addition to fitness services, we launched two new business areas - health tourism and SPA programs.

Results: We achieved a 30% revenue growth, winning awards from prestigious competitions, attracting many corporate clients, sports teams. The media published the news of our competitions - for additional advertising of their center.

How to increase sales in the Store? Basic techniques and methods

Every entrepreneur strives to make a profit. To do this, the business must develop. One of the most important indicators of development is an increase in sales. This question worries both experienced and novice entrepreneurs. In today's competitive and volatile marketplace, increasing sales is not just a way to earn more, but a necessary measure to survive.

How can you make your business more profitable? What is needed for this? Are there any tried and true methods? How much can you realistically increase sales? All these questions worry many entrepreneurs today, worried a hundred years ago, and will continue to worry, because these are the main mechanisms of trade.

If we analyze the situation in modern market, it is possible to determine the so-called "leader" of a certain segment in each area of ​​trade. Now we are not talking about any particular city.

If you think about it, with almost any type of product, each person has an association with the brand of the manufacturer or the store that he prefers when buying this product. These are successful businesses that increase their revenues almost every day. For what? Due continuous work aimed at increasing sales. Everything is spent necessary resources- tangible and intangible, tactics and strategy are being developed.

After all, today just selling a quality product is not enough. People go shopping not only to places where they were sold something good (again, an abundance and variety of goods), but also to places where they were pleased to buy - a cozy store, friendly sellers, promotions and "just liked it." Is it possible for an entrepreneur to make his store such a place? Certainly yes. Only this requires a lot of effort, which, first of all, will be aimed at attracting buyers.

Some people think that increase in sales directly depends on the specifics of the store. For example, there will always be customers in a grocery market, but an auto parts store will not be able to increase sales in any way if there is no demand for goods among the population. This can be answered in the words of the world famous business consultant Ted Levitt: "The difference between selling and marketing is that selling is getting rid of what you have, while marketing is having what people want." Each market segment has its own customers who have their own needs. By knowing and giving people what they want, you can increase sales in any store, regardless of the group of products presented in it.

First of all, the entrepreneur should understand how much he wants increase sales and, accordingly, the profit of your store and what resources he is willing to use. The level of income is influenced by several factors - the buyers themselves, external and internal conditions. The extent to which these criteria are implemented in the work of the store is the level of profit received by the owner. Therefore, work in these areas will determine the size of the increase in sales. Considering the criterion of buyers, first of all, you need to pay attention to the portrait of a potential buyer (expectations and opportunities), attendance, the presence of regular customers and the "image" of the store itself (people's opinion).

External factors are the location, the external attractiveness of the store, transport interchange, and the closest competitors. Internal criteria include the quality of service, the interior, the atmosphere inside, the rationality of use retail space. All these are the conditions that an entrepreneur has to work on in order to increase the level of sales.

Depending on what efforts will be made to improve all these points, sales can be increased by 5-50%. Here it is also necessary to take into account the specifics of the business itself and the conditions that cannot be changed temporarily. For example, the location of the store is not very favorable, but there is no possibility to move it to another place yet. Or the product itself is in low demand. In this case, efforts will need to be directed to expanding the trade group presented in the windows. However, sales in any store, regardless of location and specifics, can actually be increased by 5-15%. If you correctly approach the issue, this figure will reach 50%.

Based on the conditions affecting profitability, it is possible to determine the main ways to increase it. One of the main tools is the seller himself. The quality and professionalism of customer service has a significant impact on attendance and the presence of regular customers. Education, training and motivation of the seller - a pledge successful sales. Effective system of bonuses and % of revenue. Thus, a person will realize that he is also working for himself and will always strive to make additional sales.

The appearance and location of the store affect traffic and attractiveness to customers. Here you can use techniques to attract attention with bright signs, messages about ongoing promotions, change the name. Also a very good move - to place in the area where the store is located outdoor advertising, pointers. At the same time, it is necessary to create coziness and comfort inside. Required condition - good quality merchandise and great selection. This is the only way to stay on the market, because in the face of fierce competition, the main goal is regular customers and attracting new ones. The display of goods is of great importance. Here you can hire a competent merchandiser or learn the basics of this business yourself.

In addition, it is necessary to ensure store related products, since they can make up a third of all sales. For example, a shoe store should have shoe care products, a clothing store should have accessories. This way you can generate additional sales.

To create coziness in the room, you can turn on soft neutral music y, which contributes to a longer stay of the buyer in the store. And, of course, be sure to think about ways to stimulate buyers. It can be various promotions, discounts, gifts, discount cards, tastings (for grocery stores), lotteries, refreshments (coffee, tea). By investing in image and promotion, you can achieve the desired level of profit.

In order to increase the level of sales in your store, you should follow a path consisting of several stages.

First of all, you need to analyze the situation that exists today. To do this, it is enough to determine the amount of the average check and the number of customers per month. In general, to achieve results, everything must be calculated and planned. Therefore, you should draw up a sales plan, and this will be the amount that is calculated by the formula - the desired average check multiplied by the desired number of buyers. With these indicators, it will be possible to control the sales process throughout the month.

Having analyzed all the criteria for influencing profits (external, internal, staff qualifications), you can get a picture of the business as a whole. Here, strong and weaknesses. The movement will be in the direction of working on the weak and maintaining the level of the strong.

Having identified all the shortcomings, you need to evaluate your own opportunities for improving them. Based on the result, you should start improving the store.

1. Train the seller(s) in customer service standards. Excellent system - "7 steps". It looks like this:

1. Greeting.
2. "I'm listening to you" - willingness to serve.
3. Determining the needs of the buyer - what he wants, what preferences. Here the client should speak more, the seller asks leading questions.
4. Offer options to choose from.
5. Making a sale directly.
6. Upsell - "Anything else?" Here it is advisable for the seller to offer some kind of product himself (fresh, new arrival, etc.).
7. Completion. Wish have a good day, good luck - "Thank you for your purchase, come visit us again."

Such a system helps not only to attract buyers, the seller always knows what to say and thus, without getting lost, ensures the manifestation of a good attitude towards buyers. If possible, it is possible to organize training for staff on “Working with objections” (How to avoid a conflict situation, what to say if the buyer is dissatisfied, etc.).

2. The next step is to ensure quality and assortment. If all this is already there - fine, if not - you need to make every effort. After that, you need to take care of the competent layout of the goods. You can hire a merchandiser or take care of this issue yourself. There are many layout principles that really affect the size of sales.

3. Provide the store with related products.

4. Assess the situation inside the store and try to get closer to the most comfortable (nothing superfluous, the ability to move freely, light music, if necessary, a recreation area).

5. Start promoting products with promotions and great deals, about which appropriate posters, signs, as well as sellers themselves should inform buyers. Think over a system of discounts, if possible, introduce discount cards. It is very beneficial to get customer contacts with the help of cards, and then inform about new promotions, discounts, etc. via SMS.

We should not forget that all the time it is necessary to control the level of sales. So it will be possible to evaluate the effectiveness of the actions taken and determine what exactly has the most impact. You can't stop when you get a certain result.

Striving for excellence always translates into profit in a positive way. By fulfilling even some of the recommendations described, sales of any store can be increased by at least 5%, while investing energy, funds and creativity in this, it is possible to get a result exceeding 50%.

For the last six years I have been selling myself and teaching others how to sell.

At one time, I was lucky to develop a sales department at IPS (Isaac Pintosevich Systems), close space checks in the Amazon Chamber of Commerce, and now I build sales in the LABA educational platform.

We sell our products in Ukraine, Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Germany and the Baltic countries. This is a rather complex process that requires the coordinated work of the entire team.

What happened in those six years?


In the first week of work as a sales manager, I signed 3 contracts for a total of $23,000


Year held the first place in sales among thirty people


Personal record - 372% of the plan


For a year of work, he went from trainee to acting. head of the IPS sales department with thirty sales managers subordinate


Signed contracts with thirty unfamiliar clients in one day of the conference


Doubled the turnover of the LABA educational platform in the first month of operation


I am constantly learning, I have been trained by the best specialists: Belfort, Adizes, Cialdini, Ferrazi, Gandapas etc


Another personal record - sales of a budget product price category for $62,000 per month

I sold a lot, experimented with different schemes and made enough mistakes until I came up with the formula for the perfect sale. This formula can be used to increase the turnover of the ENTIRE sales department, not an individual manager.

Myths that are often found in novice sales managers.

A salesperson needs to be born


This is how most people think, especially those who are just starting their journey in this direction. In fact, selling is an accessible formula that anyone can master.

If you're juggling or driving a car for the first time, chances are you'll make mistakes at first.

But if you have good teachers, over time, you will learn to do it easily and with minimal mistakes. Sales are no exception!

Selling is vaping


You can hardly tell 97% of salespeople apart. These inept managers from the very beginning of the conversation are trying to tell as quickly as possible that they are the best, they have the best company, the best delivery, conditions, etc.

They do not know and do not try to find out what the client needs at all. With this approach, it is really vparivanie. What benefit does such a salesperson bring to the client and what is the probability that the client will buy your product and be satisfied?

Selling is bad

Every day we all sell something. Going to the cinema, what dish to eat for dinner, an idea for clients or management, services, etc.

When selling a quality service or product that can help the client, this cannot be bad. If you help a person, what's wrong with that?

In fact, selling high-quality, sought-after goods is prestigious, and most importantly, they pay very well for it.

Myths of Sales Executives or Business Owners

A good sales manager is easy to find

Now I'll probably upset you. Good sales managers don't look for work - work finds them. There are practically no good sales managers on the market. It's not enough to just post a job and sales geniuses will come to you.

A good sales manager has long since sold his competencies and of course has highly paid commissions. Not in your company.

Practice has shown that it is necessary to look for potential employees who are ready to learn and grow real “sales wolves” out of them. It is difficult, requires certain knowledge and effort. But it definitely works.

Sales managers will actively sell themselves, as they want to earn more

Alas, no matter how well-thought-out system of material motivation you have, it is not enough to keep the fuse of your employee at the highest level.

A sales manager is a person with his own inner beliefs, fears, interests and priorities. Only thanks to the right approach to the management of each employee, you will be able to keep your sales department at a high motivational level.

The most terrible myth that can destroy your sales team


Once everything is set up, everything works fine and it will always be so.

I think each of you at least once thought or hopes that this is possible.

The sales department is the link that should bring most of the finances to the company. And it should be constantly worked on and improved.

Once every three months, it is necessary to improve and revise the strategy in the sales department.

Set new bonuses for certain indicators, change teams or projects on which they worked, set plans for a month, three and six months.

Sales managers are storm troopers by nature and the usual routine affects them negatively - motivation is lost, indicators begin to fall, there are fewer satisfied customers.

Therefore, you must constantly keep your finger on the pulse of your sales team and, if it begins to weaken, take prompt action.


7 tips to increase the turnover of your sales force


RIGHT PEOPLE

The right people are the backbone of any sales force.

How often do you conduct interviews? How often do you manage to find a good sales manager?

Most companies conduct face-to-face interviews. This approach works in the selection of top management, but not for the sales department.

Competitive interviews are required. So you can save your time and, no less important, emphasize the value of the vacancy in the eyes of the applicant.

If your new employee has not just passed the interview, but openly fought for his position with competitors, he will appreciate it much more.

One of the most important skills of a "salesperson" is purposefulness. Make the competition so that it can show this quality. The selection process should take place in several stages.

It is important that each stage is much more difficult - so you can understand how goal-oriented a potential employee is.

ADAPTATION SYSTEM

In many companies, in the first days of work, an employee in the sales department encounters such problems:

  • they do not know what and how to do, so they walk, drink coffee and interfere with other employees;
  • they try to sell before they have all the tools and just burn leads or, even worse, ruin your reputation.

You must have a clear system of adaptation. It is necessary to equip the employee with all the knowledge about the product and scripts for working with the client. This will allow you to get rid of the turnover and quickly introduce the manager to the position.

NEW TECHNOLOGIES

Surprisingly, most companies do not use the most important tools for the work of the sales department, even though they are quite easy to master - CRM, IP-telephony, voice recording system, etc.

Implementing a CRM (Customer Relationship Management System) will help you see the picture of your relationship with each client. Here you can enter the client's phone number, his full name, position, city and many other data into the database.

With the help of such a system, it is convenient to keep track of invoices, prepayments and completed transactions - this will allow you to quickly respond to any changes in sales.

The introduction of such a system usually increases turnover by at least 15%. And cloud solutions do not require large budgets.

In the LABA educational platform, we write our own software product that meets all our sales analytics needs. We will definitely devote a separate article to this product, it is worth it).

SALES TOOLS

Many people know what scripts are (algorithms for talking with a client), but few people use them. Managers understand that such a toolkit increases sales in the company, but for some reason they give their managers the opportunity to improvise in a conversation with a client.

Improvisation is the worst case scenario in a conversation when a manager needs to understand the needs of the client and correctly explain all the benefits of the product.

The script needs to be developed, and this, believe me, is not the easiest task you have encountered. It constantly needs to be tightened up and tested in conversations - this is a permanent process.

However, the game is worth the candle - the introduction of such a tool can increase the manager's sales by 30% after the first month.

Don't forget the food book. This is your company's product catalog, which every manager should know by heart. Every detail and detail, every feature of your product. A seller who knows his product perfectly, customers consider a professional - this is an axiom.

AUTOMATION

At this point, it is important to note that your sales department should work automatically. How Swiss Watches- without interruption.

To do this, you need a technical specialist - administrator. This employee will monitor overdue tasks from managers, unloading potential customers. It is also his task to ensure that telephony accounts do not run out of money.

It is very important to constantly work with the customer base. The administrator of the sales department will be able to control clients that take a lot of time. At the same time, the result from such clients is zero.

Create a black pool where you will bring in customers who have not bought anything for a long time or a lot of contact with them.

In trade, the question of increasing sales is absolutely commonplace. No matter how much you sell now, the plan will always be a little higher. Otherwise it's just not the right plan. And most importantly, the answer to the question of how to increase sales has long been found. You just need to be not too lazy to use the best practices and achievements of successful companies.

Sales success formula

On the difficult path to increasing sales, it is important to know the formula for sales success. This formula works for everyone, this formula captures the very essence of sales. If you learn how to use it, then you will get what you want. Here is the formula for sales success:

The Sales Success Formula tells you a few important things:

  1. If you want to increase sales, influence such as: traffic, conversion and average check;
  2. You must constantly monitor the above indicators. If you do not know your current values ​​of these indicators, this is an alarming signal - you are not in control of the situation;
  3. No matter who you are a business owner or a simple seller, these indicators do not depend on the scale, they can simply be called differently;
  4. While working on one indicator, monitor and control the others. It often happens that the conversion was increased, but the average check fell and, as a result, did not change.
  5. In an established system, these indicators are in balance and it is not so easy to influence them.

The last point is especially important on the way to increase sales. For example, you have a store that sells groceries in a residential area of ​​a microdistrict. The audience of the store is constant, the average check and conversion will not change much. In such a system, without changing the assortment and without attracting new customers, sales cannot be greatly increased, there is a ceiling consumer market. And your task is to decide whether you have reached the ceiling of this market. If yes, then all the standard methods to increase sales will not help you much, you are unlikely to recoup the costs.

What affects the main KPI indicators

So, analyzing the issue of increasing sales, we have already learned 3 main indicators through which you can increase sales. Let's see what affects these indicators.

How to increase traffic

Traffic is the number of visitors to your store i.e. potential buyers. Generally speaking, there are two main ways to influence traffic.