I’m always on the look out for any little gems I can pass your way. I was doing a little purusing around and came across this FREE GIFT for jewelry makers. If you’re anything like me you jump on all the free stuff you can get. There just isn’t anything quite like free.
No doubt finding ways to cut costs is always high on your priority list. Shipping is one of those things that you certainly want to be reliable but always adds to the cost of your product. So what are some ways that you can cut your costs and still have it be dependable?
I came across an article written by Entrepreneur magazine that gave some great ideas for shipping. They took the time to interview Skip McGrath who is an Ebay Powerseller.
As you might expect, McGrath says much of what you decide to do will depend on volume. If you’re not doing a lot of shipping, then just doing your own labels and postage is not a big problem. However, McGrath goes on to say that when you get to ten or more items a day you’re going to need to consider expanding your operation.
You’ll need to start thinking about things like a label printer, a scale and setting up an account with a shipper. Setting up an account with a shipper is suggested by McGrath when you hit the 30 packages a month mark.
Don’t panic though, you can find some of this equipment around used. McGrath gives the suggestion of looking on Ebay.
McGrath also makes the point as to what kinds of products you’re shipping. If they’re delicate and expensive, or speed is important, then who you pick for a shipper will really make a difference.
The last tid bit I thought was really helpful was McGrath’s suggestion on how to save some on shipping supplies. First he notes that if you are shipping with USPS using Priority Mail, their supplies such as boxes, tape, envelopes and labels are free. A real bargain to be sure. The second thing he suggests I thought was really helpful is to drop by your local retailer.
Many cities require retailers to recycle their shipping supplies, so you can arrange to pick up items from them. He suggests trying kitchen stores, hardware stores and gift shops. Just give them a call and see if you can arrange something. It’s a real win win.
The other day my wife and I went to Portland’s Biggest Garage Sale. It was in the Portland Expo Center. My wife is a real bargain hunter (I really love that about her) and just can’t resist trying to find clothes for the kids, shoes or anything else we might need.
Unfortunately for us, we didn’t find much there. I got a few tools I needed, but that was about it. What I did notice is that there were more than just your average people there with booths. There were crafters there as well.
I stopped and spoke with a couple of gals to find out how things were going. Neither of them reported anything great. One of them was selling yard decorations and another was selling her paintings.
The question I would ask is, “Was this really the place for them to be”? After all, were people really expecting to come and find items that were a bit higher priced at an event like this?
The yard decoration gal said she thought things would pick up. She thought that all the early people had come through just looking for bargains. My thought was, “Well, this was advertised as a garage sale”. Cheap is exactly what a lot of the people there would be looking for.
The gal with the paintings hadn’t had much interest at all. Her paintings looked really nice. She is obviously very talented. But for all that, no interest.
To me it just underscored once again the need to pick the right event for your products. Go where people are going to expect to be finding your items. Then you will see the kind of interest you are hoping for.
In contrast, a friend of mine was there selling Legos. He buys, sells and trades them. They were well priced along with a bunch of other odds and ends he had. After just a few hours he had sold $500 worth. The booth cost him $40. Needless to say he was already happy. I would expect by days end he did pretty well.
Just make sure that you aren’t out of context. Take the time to find out what the show is really going to be about, what other vendors are going to be there, and how the event will be advertised. It will make all the difference.
There are many of you that have expressed concerns about the governments new rules about product testing. You’ve expressed concerns that it may put you out of business. Here’s an article from the HSLDA that I think you’ll find encouraging.
I’m sure we probably all agree that competition is a good thing. But sometimes it can be really frustrating. You may have a really great product, but you see another booth that has something similar and is selling it for dirt cheap.
You know the quality isn’t near what yours is. You know the items won’t last. Yet, you find yourself struggling to compete with them. There’s no way you could sell your items for that price. You’d take a serious loss. What do you do? Just figure you have to tough it out and figure that it’s a loss?
To that I would say "No Way!". Sometimes it can be hard to see past the frustration. However, the challenge of competing with cheaper products has been around ever since there has been commerce. There are a lot of companies being very successful at beating the cheaper product. I’d like to start a discussion here as to how you can successfully beat the cheap booth. One of my readers referred to it as the KMart booth. That’s how this post got it’s name.
To start let me encourage you to post your thoughts. Take a minute and add a comment or frustration to the list. It really helps others to know they’re not the only ones struggling with a given issue. If you have some ideas and some success stories please feel free to share those too.
So what can you do to sell your products when you’re competing against cheaper products? The first key I’d like to highlight is that you shouldn’t be competing on price. At first that might not make sense to you. You might be used to thinking that the only thing that matters to a customer is price. But, that just isn’t the case.
Consider these three items from the article Value-pricing strategy: "We’re not the cheapest but…".
The idea is that you should be competing not on the price of your product, but on the value of your product. People aren’t just buying the other product because they see it as cheaper. They buy it because they think they are getting the value they want.
They might even know that the product in that other booth isn’t as good as yours. They have it in their mind that for what they are paying the cheaper product is good enough. It is better than paying the higher price even for a better product.
So what you are competing against isn’t price. It’s value. You’re competing against the mindset that they are getting something good enough for what they paid. This is often times called perceived value. What you need to do is change that perception. You need to change what they perceive the value of your product to be. You need them to compare what they get from purchasing your product with what they get from purchasing a cheaper product and see yours as giving them more of what they want.
So just how do you do that? How do you change that perception? This is exactly what we are going to talk about. So stay tuned, and jump in with your comments at any time.
Search Terms:
Value Based Selling
Value Added Sales
Some people seem to be so natural at starting conversations it’s almost hard to believe. For others of us, it can be really difficult to get the ball rolling. It doesn’t mean we’re less intelligent, just that we need to develop the skills of striking up a conversation.
For someone selling their products at a craft show or some other venue, this is a critical skill. You need to feel comfortable with meeting people and getting a conversation going. But how do you do that? How can you get a conversation going from stone cold, to something resembling a warm crackling fire?
Mostly it is a matter of preparation. You need to just get some ideas for subjects to start with, and then practice them. Go over them in your mind and then give them a whirl with some potential customers. Most of these suggestions are common sense ideas that you’ll find floating around the web.
These are just a few suggestions to consider. Maybe others have some ideas they’d like to add, something that has really worked well for them.
One thing to keep in mind during all of your conversation starting. Whatever you do, be genuine. If you’re just trying to start a conversation with people so you can get them to buy something, it will show. And you will find no quicker way to loose a customer.
On the flip side, if you are genuine, people will note that as well. You’ll end up showing them that you’re just a regular person like they are and not some booth mugger (I just made that up. Is that funny or just dumb? Sounded funny at the time.). And if they feel that you are like them, they will be much more receptive to hearing about your products, and more likely to buy.
We all probably agree that body language is important. Even in our day to day experience with friends and family, we read body language to get indications of what people think or mean. But how much do you pay attention to this with your customers? Are you conscious of your body language and what you’re communicating to them?
Here are a couple of links to some articles that talk about your body language and what your customers might be thinking. Share with us some of your experiences with customers that illustrate or disregard the point. Maybe you have a funny story of how you made a sale despite your body language, or your customers.
http://www.salesmba.com/articles1/ssrl01.htm
http://www.salesmba.com/articles1/ssrl02.htm
Continuing on with the idea of my struggle with thinking I’m in sales (and having to admit it), a second thought that has really helped me is having the mindset of a problem solver. That is, I’m in business to help people solve problems.
Now, I don’t mean that I can or am going to try to solve every problem a customer has. This is important to know since some people really get side tracked with trying to be all things to all people. Rather, I know that my products can help them solve a specific problem. My activities involve talking with people and helping to understand the right solution for them. Even if that solution doesn’t involve my products.
As I take that approach again I find that the idea of being in sales not so bad after all. I’m actually helping people here. And, I get paid for it besides. Doesn’t that take the sting out of the old perceptions of being in sales? It does for me. I like the idea of helping people coming up with a solution for their problem.
For example, lets suppose you sell items for home decor. Someone comes to you trying to decide how to decorate a living room. They want a certain look but can’t quite put their finger on what it should look like. You take the time to help them figure it out. You get the opportunity to help them along until the come to some sort of a solution. Then, you can decide of some of your products will fit their needs. If they do, and they like them, then poof, you’ve got a match and a sale is made. In fact, by that point, they will probably be asking to buy from you. Isn’t that better than having to persuade people or talking them into buying things from you?
It’s so much more enjoyable when you have that sense that you are helping people. When you know that you have just helped them figure out something that has been perplexing them, and they go away happy, then you know you can go away satisfied too. And that’s a far cry from feeling like you’ve left someone feeling like they just got mugged by a salesman.
Has anyone else besides me had a hard time admitting they’re in sales? For the longest time I’ve had a hard time coming to grips with it. I have struggled with the idea that people will see me like the proverbial car salesman. The one that, as my Dad used to say, you like to see have both hands on the table. I just can’t stand the idea that someone would think me to be some sort of shyster just out to get their money.
After struggling with this for a long time, I’ve finally admitted that I’m in sales. In fact, I have to admit to what I heard Brian Tracy say recently and that is, everyone is in sales. It’s just a matter of some people getting paid for it.
That being said, I still don’t want to be thought of as a pick pocket. So I started doing a little searching around with regard to ethical selling. I was pleased to come across some individuals to whom this is of great concern. In fact, some people I’ve found even make it their business to weed out the riffraff.
There have been some very helpful things that I’ve gleaned from some of these men that I thought I’d share in the event that you’ve felt the same way.
The first thing I think you will appreciate is the idea of creating relationships. As someone who wishes to be ethical in their business, and doesn’t want to be thought ill of, you need to remind yourself that you’re in the business of is creating relationships.
It was really helpful for me to think of it this way because it’s exactly what I want. I don’t just want to be coming in contact with people for a short length of time. I want to get to know them. I want to find out who they are and what they’re about. That’s part of the fun of this business. You get to meet new and interesting people. Some very much like yourself, and some very different.
If you know anything about business, you know it’s these long term relationships that are the most productive. It’s the people that you establish good relationships with that will buy from you over and over again. They get to know you and your products, and want to know when your next creation comes out. They like to follow your business and see how you’re doing.
Pursuing long-term relationships and really getting to know people causes the idea of being in sales to take on a whole new light. You know you aren’t out there to rip people off. What you’re trying to do is add value to the lives of others. As you get to know your customers better and better, they will realize that more and more about you.
As that happens, you will find that you have reached one of your goals. Not to come across as a money-grabber, but to have the opportunity to share and enjoy your creations with others.
How can you be unique in your business when everyone else is selling the same thing?
As you look around at other vendors at craft shows, maybe you feel like your products aren’t that much different than what everyone else is selling.
Maybe you’ve heard of having a USP (Unique Selling Proposition) so that you differentiate yourself and your products from everyone else. But, you’re struggling with how to do that.
For sure you want to strive to have a USP as much as you can. It will set you apart from your competitors. However, if you’re still in the process of putting together your USP, or are in a business where there isn’t much difference in products, there is something to keep in mind.
While doing some sanctioned eaves dropping on a talk between Ari Galper and Brian Tracy, the following statement was emphasized that really struck me, “Sometimes your uniqueness in the product you sell is you”.
It was like someone hit me with one of those big soft slugger bats you see kids with. It didn’t hurt, but it definitely woke me up.
My mind started churning this idea. How it is that you can really be what sets apart your business from everyone else. The way you treat people and interact with them. How responsive you are to their questions and concerns. How you respond when they have a complaint.
Which one of us hasn’t had some sort of experience that underscores this. No doubt you’ve gone into a store at some point needing help. You start looking around to find someone, and start wondering if all those movies about aliens grabbing people might be true. There’s nobody around. How is it that some places seem to have almost no one working there?
When you do find someone, you feel like you’re bothering them. They almost act as if they wish you hadn’t come in. You feel like asking them if they’re really trying to sell their stuff, or if they’re just doing all this for fun.
Now, put yourself on the other side of the counter. You know how you feel as a customer, use that as the owner of your business to provide fantastic service that will bring customers back again and again.
Even if you do have a killer USP with respect to your product, you are still part of what makes your business unique and special.