CONCLUSION ON BUSINESS SALES AND MANAGEMENT

The only real difference between selling a service vs. a product over the web is your focus: When you sell a physical product, every aspect of your site design and sales copy focuses on how the product is going to solve visitors' needs and benefit them. When you sell a service over the web, the focus is on how you're going to solve visitors' needs and benefit them.

Once you've wrapped your head around this concept, everything else should fall into place. Sales copy strategies...traffic-generation techniques...website design strategies...all the techniques and strategies I've mentioned above can be used to dramatically increase the leads you attract, the deals you close and your overall online income. Check out our products here

STRATEGY 6

Best of all, it's free and easy to register with these services. And if you don't yet have a website, Yahoo! is even offering businesses a free five-page website that you can customize with your own logo, text, and links to other sites.

Strategy #6: Network and get listed with professional services websites. While almost all the traffic techniques used to drive visitors to product-based sites can be applied to service-based sites, I'd like to mention a couple that those of you who need local traffic will find useful.

CHALLENGE 4 AND 5 FOR A SUCCESSFUL BUSINES

Challenge #3: You must prove your ability to deliver measurable results, while emphasizing flexibility. People will want to see proof that you've delivered great results for other clients, but they'll also want to know that you're flexible enough to meet their own unique needs. So you must walk a fine line, making sure that you keep confidential client information confidential, while (1) proving that you've satisfied the needs of other clients like them with great results and (2) demonstrating your ability to customize your service to meet their personal, unique needs.

Challenge #4: You're using a global medium to attract local business. Service-based businesses frequently rely on local clients. Sure, the owner of a bed & breakfast in Seattle may be thrilled to be attracting clients from Australia's Gold Coast. But is the landscaper in Seattle going to be equally receptive to securing a weekly hedge trimming and lawn-mowing client from Australia? Probably not. So service-based sites that rely on local customers need to actively pursue sources of local traffic.

Sales Strategy 1

In order to overcome these challenges, there are several strategies you can employ.

Strategy #1: Establish your credibility. When you sell a service, you're typically selling a relationship with yourself. And this requires spending more time and effort establishing your credibility and developing a rapport with your visitors than is typically required on a site selling a physical product.

For example, a site that sells a product like gift baskets might include some brief "About Us" information that gives details about who the website owners are, why they started their business and how long they've been online. However, the majority of the site would focus on establishing the value of the actual product--the gift baskets--and providing detailed information about guarantees, delivery procedures, etc. Including reams of misplaced information about the website owners could actually hurt sales more than help because, in this case, visitors' chief focus should be directed to the value of the product.

When you're selling a service, however, you are the product. So establishing your credibility--essentially establishing your value--is critical to closing the sale. You need to not only establish the benefits of the service you're offering but also establish the value of you providing this service.

There are a few different ways you can accomplish this. First, you should include a good, professional picture of yourself. And no, the picture of you in your Hawaiian-print shorts and "Kiss the Chef" hat from last year's summer barbecue won't do. Giving your visitors a professional image to associate you with will go a long way toward establishing your credibility.

Next, you need to include a list of your credentials. However, don't just give point after point of accomplishments; be sure to state exactly how each of your credentials is going to translate into a benefit for your clients. Don't make the critical mistake of assuming that visitors to your site can make this leap on their own. Clearly spell out the benefits you offer in your sales copy. For example, if you're a real estate agent with certification in housing inspection, you shouldn't just tell your visitors "I'm a certified housing inspector." Instead you should say, "Not only can I find the best home in the best location for you and your family, but as a certified housing inspector, I can give you an accurate assessment of the home's structural soundness and let you know about any potential problems to make sure you avoid getting stuck with costly repairs in the years to come!" Doesn't that sound better than "I'm a certified housing

Makerting Strategies, 2nd Series

Strategy #2: Be specific about exactly what you're offering. We've already talked a bit about this, but this is such a common mistake I see website owners making--whether they're selling a service or a product--that I think it warrants further explanation.

You can never assume that providing information about what you've done for other clients will enable visitors to your site to make that leap and picture what you'll be able to do for their businesses. You need to be very, very specific about what you're offering. To help you do that, look at other similar service providers and ask yourself these questions:

• Do you offer the same services? More? Less?
• What makes you different from your competitors?
• Do you specialize in anything?
• What kind of guarantee do you offer?
• How will your services be delivered?

Too often, website owners fail to provide their visitors with enough information. Sales copy with a detailed breakdown of the services you provide, with the benefits you offer clearly explained, will be one of the most critical aspects of your site.

General Thoughts on Business

Final Thoughts

I get a lot of e-mail from people who think that selling a service over the web must require an entirely different approach than selling a product. They think they'll need to use an entirely different set of tools and techniques, that their site design will be dramatically different and that to drive visitors to their sites, they'll need to use some strange, newfangled strategies. This simply isn't the case.

The only real difference between selling a service vs. a product over the web is your focus: When you sell a physical product, every aspect of your site design and sales copy focuses on how the product is going to solve visitors' needs and benefit them. When you sell a service over the web, the focus is on how you're going to solve visitors' needs and benefit them.

Importance of Networking in Business

 Network with other local businesses. If you want local traffic, start making personal connections with other local business owners--preferably those with sites of their own. Look for ways to position your service and your site as a resource to their customers, and then request a link on their site or get permission to leave your business cards (printed with your URL, of course) in their lobby or next to their cash register. Even consider rewarding local business owners for sending traffic and leads your way by offering them a special gift, a discount off your service or even a portion of the profits.