Limited by Time, Money or Expertise? Bring Your ‘A’ Game!
Small businesses are often started by people with great vision and ideas, but few sales skills. That means from the launch of their business, they sometimes lack the critical skills they need to grow. Owners run into challenges for growth because they lack the time, money and/or expertise to hire and grow a sales team and implement sales/marketing automation tools.
Overhead, salaries, incentives, training costs, fringe benefits and expenses add up when you’re hiring your own sales representatives. Costs alone limit the ability for a small supplier to build and grow their sales efforts, so rather than ignoring the efforts, get creative. Look for ways to improve your efforts and bring your ‘A’ game to the table.
ASK
Personal and business referrals are the best way to find talent, opportunities and feedback to refine and grow your business. Don’t hesitate to ask for help, which could simply mean making an introduction, asking for a testimonial or passing along your profile to a new network. Your network is your most valuable resource. There is no reason to be afraid to use it!
AUTOMATE
Use today’s free and/or inexpensive tech platforms to automate your sales and marketing. Create drip campaigns, create monthly newsletters, and use online databases to source, monitor and score new leads. See below for a post that covers these tactics in more detail.
ACCELERATE
Your sales will be accelerated if you can cut out the unnecessary back and forth. Within your target organizations, know who the decision makers are and build relationships with partners who can provide feedback, share market intelligence and exchange best practices. Look for ways to work smarter, receive more qualified leads and find more potential sales opportunities.
ACTIVATE
LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Medium and many other social networks can help you establish your brand and build trust. Activate those networks, and keep your company profiles updated. Identify and refer sales opportunities to other organizations in your network and receive referrals for opportunities you may be interested in. If the idea of keeping a half-dozen social media profiles intimidates you, refer back to the AUTOMATE section. There are several free and highly useful social media automation tools that can make updating your multiple profiles a snap.
SalesCocktail: Discover today’s techniques and technologies to eliminate the digital divide for minority and woman-owned enterprises. Use technology to accelerate your sales, replicate daily tasks and manage your time!
