Marketing, advertising, public relations. These are tools that we use to make sure that consumers are aware of our product and service. We can spend thousands of dollars (and most companies spend more) just to make sure that consumers know about us, but here’s the catch: it takes more than brand awareness to influence a customer’s decision. The ultimate objective of any campaign or marketing effort is to affect behavior because if we don’t, people won’t be driven to purchase what we have to offer.
Start by giving meaning to your product. Say for instance, you were a small sales training company looking to use the Internet to promote your service (we’re really thinking out of the box here). How would integrate meaning? If you create a website, make sure to include informational pieces that will somehow benefit potential customers. Whitepapers and blogs are a great way to do this. When you put free information out there for everyone to read, you are immediately building credibility. The more people view your company as a credible source, the more likely they are to invest their time and money into your service.
Another great way to gain credibility and influence people’s behavior is to build a relationship. You can begin with your current client base and then build outwards to warm leads. There is no end to the possible business opportunities if you really take the time to cultivate and maintain relationships. They are an enduring link, and oftentimes, they lead to repeat purchasing and loyalty. In order to build trust, you need to create an experience that will make a positive and lasting impression. So, send out thank you cards whenever a customer makes a purchase. Follow up with them to make sure that the product is working. Send out items of interest to show that you remember more than just the fact that they purchased from you. These are just some proven sales techniques that will encourage some sort of response- either the customer will purchase from you again and/or they will tell their friends and family about how great your company was; therefore, eliciting a response from people who may have never even thought about buying from you before.
Consumers not only have to be made aware of a product or service, but they also have to be moved to purchase it, otherwise all marketing has been a waste. So, if you’ve been asking, “How can I increase my sales?” The answer is to create a marketing campaign or to train your sales people to affect consumer behavior. It’s one of the best ways to see your sales progress.
