Information is power

You ARE going to have to sell and market - everyone does. McDonald's and Starbucks did, Rolls-Royce did. You ARE going to have to do it. Think about that for a second, because only about 10% of us can do it. If you can sell, why aren't you doing it already? If you cannot do it, then your business will go nowhere.
Of course, this doesn't mean face-to-face. it can mean e-mail, or other distance selling and marketing. It can mean using an online persona to market 'on your behalf', but behind everything you do will reflect on you, so prepare yourself now that it will have to be done. It doesn't have to be painful, though. If you are starting out look at Sales as a game with other targets to meet other than selling. This will make the process not only easier, but even enjoyable for all of you shy entreprenuers out there.

You have to know first of all that even if you don't think that you can b 'sold to', you can and you are every second of the day. Get used to that fact and look at every possible moment that you hand over money to someone else - you have been sold.

Last weekend, my wife and I went shopping. It's a weekly chore that millions of people do every week. It's your own free will to do it, and you go where you want to, not where you are told to, right? wrong!

You go to that Mall, because it is close to you, and that is a sales job that has been done to everyone, not just you. Everyone in your neighborhood goes there because they have been sold on it.

My wife went to look at the 'posh frock' shop, because she saw a sale sign and wanted to see if a dress she had previously tried on was now a lower price. The dress, the sale, the timing and the poster are all sales techniques. I went for a Starbucks, becuase I hate the 'guy' chair in those places. So completely sold, it is untrue! I went to Starbucks because I wanted a coffee? No,because I haveSbeen conditioned to go to a coffee store, and to that chain in particular.
Then it was on to Safeway, because it's only next door and is huge, meaning we can make as few a stop as possible: Because they almost seemed to know what we wanted. We were not only sold to go there, we are sold on what to buy!

Sales is simply the gathering of information to ensure that you can offer the best product or service in the shortest possible times. if you knew where a line of people were right now that wanted a red widget - you would buy them,m go there,m and sell to them, right? So make it happen.

When you talk to someone, make it a game. The winner is the one that asks the most questions, the one that comes away with the most information about the other. The questions you need answering are about your service or product, what they want to know is what it will do, why they should have it and how much it costs. This puts you in control, because you know what they are going to ask at some point. This is your assignment. How many times a day do you hand over money? What information is being collected from you, and how does it answer your questions?

Be sure on one point, though: Behind of all these questions is a real person. You have to stand behind your product, and be happy to be doing what you are doing. If you are not, you will not make a sale, because people will not trust you. This is true of either face-to-face, or distance sales. Sooner or later, it comes down to you. Before you start, take a real hard look at your business plan, and be sure that you are ready to not only stand behind it, but to stand for it.
Create your question list, and learn when and how to use them. Then you can sell anyone, anytime on anything. Get their personal information to create a freindship as part of the 'game'.
It takes about 7 touches before a sale is confirmed so be ready to create and strengthen a freindship between introduction and sale. You will learn to talk a lot, say the right things at the right time, and enjoy your sales experience. oh...you will make MONEY TOO.