Tips & Talk 109 – The BEST Thing You Can Do to Increase Your Sales

Hi there,

it's Sue and thanks for joining me for Tips and Talk

Day. These are bite-sized topics that I pull from community questions

and things that I'm observing in the world of handmade small

business. If you'd like to submit a topic,

DM e over on Instagram at Gift Biz Unwrapped.

Before we get started,

I'm gonna share a secret with you.

One of my superpowers is the ability to get an enormous

number of tasks and projects done each and every week.

I easily meet deadlines,

rarely forget to do something,

and know at the start of each day what needs priority,

attention and action type A personality.

Yes, and a follow through on the Kobe assessment,

which should have given me the clue,

but it wasn't until people started commenting to me that I

realized not everyone naturally knows how to do this.

It's the biggest single contributor to the growth I always see

in my businesses without spending hours and hours working either.

It's about focus and doing the right things efficiently.

Prompted by all the questions on how I do this,

I went about finding a way to help you perform at

a higher level too.

I analyzed my methods and formalized my process,

which is one many of my coaching clients.

Now also follow.

You can use it too.

It's all part of a tool called the Inspired Daily Planner

made specifically for gifters,

bakers, crafters,

and makers.

Make no mistake,

this is not your ordinary planner.

First off,

it comes with a video explaining my productivity strategy and the

physical planner isn't dated,

so you can start using it the second it arrives at

your doorstep,

and that's not all included for each day is a motivational

or business building tip and plenty of space to capture and

book in time for to-dos scheduled appointments and all those ideas

that are now getting lost.

You can watch the video for free and then get your

inspired daily planner@giftbizunwrapped.com

slash inspired.

It's the all time without fail.

Number one question I get.

It comes in various forms and word combinations,

and it's from beginners and well established business owners alike.

It's the never ending question that won't go away for any

of us.

How do I make more sales?

Because we always want more.

There are lots of ways to increase your sales,

of course,

but today I'm gonna tell you what I believe to be

the best way.

The number one thing you should be doing to see your

orders increase,

and I've come to this from experience with my other business,

a product based business and a sponsor of the podcast,

the Ribbon Print Company.

What I have to say is going to be controversial because

it goes against natural inclinations.

It will feel like you're wasting time on something small that

will barely move the needle,

except you'll think differently when you see the results.

Just like I have,

I'm talking about focusing on individual customers versus going for the

big play,

establishing a real connection and building a relationship with first time

customers to convert them into repeat purchasers and true fans of

your brand.

Note the true question here.

How do I get more sales?

In most cases,

the mine goes to revising and answering a different question,

how do I get more customers?

Here's why.

Getting more sales seems so hard.

We focus the most on getting new customers,

not new orders.

As you know,

emotion drives every sales decision.

Having your individual customers feel seen and appreciated creates that emotional

connection, and existing customers are easier and less expensive to move

into another sale too.

So why do we always focus on the new getting more

followers on social who may buy when the truth is only

a very small percentage ever will casting a wide net in

all kinds of ways to gather in huge numbers without knowing

if they're a true match for what we sell.

It's time to switch this up,

particularly in light of the tougher sales environment we find ourselves

in. Customers are tighter and more deliberate with their dollars now

more than ever.

By getting more business from those who have purchased before,

you can continually build on past business and actually grow.

Otherwise, you spin your wheels constantly having to find new customers

with nearly a hundred percent churn.

It's a hard way to make progress.

A quick Google search shows an average of 15% of customers

return. Again,

I know you can make that number higher by paying attention

to them,

and if that's not enough to convince you,

there's this returning customers spend on average 67% more than first

time customers these times call for nurturing those who have already

pressed your buy button.

You can do this in the following ways.

Sending emails to existing customers,

treating them as an exclusive group with special offers,

creating a loyalty program that's a no-brainer for their participation in

use because it offers them exactly what they need based on

your product.

Add in subscription boxes or auto restock programs,

and my favorite because of its strong emotional impact,

reach out personally one-on-one to a set number of customers each

week with a personal message.

Use their name and maybe even reference the last product they

purchased so they know it's real and not a scripted message

to the masses.

I love using voice messaging for this.

It's fast and impressive.

When someone hears you talking directly to them.

What do you say?

Lots of options here.

Simply thank them for their business.

Invite them to visit you at a local event.

You'll be at this upcoming weekend.

Tell them about a special that's only available for existing customers

and why you thought of them specifically for this offer.

Ask for input on new flavors or sense you're considering or

thank them for leaving a product review.

This will leave an impression and set you apart from pretty

much everybody else.

Yes, of course you'll want to continually find new customers too,

but that's probably 95% of where you focus your efforts today.

Why not adjust this percentage and focus at least 40% on

your current customer base?

Pay more attention to those who have already shown that they'll

support you personally.

Connecting with them is where it's at to increase your sales.

That's how you grow.

It's like rolling a snowball.

It gets bigger and bigger over time.

That's a wrap.

I'm a get to the point kind of girl,

and this is what you can expect from these quick midweek

sessions. Now it's your turn.

Go out and fulfill that dream of yours.

Share your handmade products with us.

We want them and they bring us both.