ABC – Always be closing (rather don’t)

We see it all day, every day, online. Companies and brands, small businesses and individual entrepreneurs – they’re always selling. Promoting a product or service, offering the best deals or trying to call us to action with the “limited time offers” or “while stocks last” tactics.

As consumers, buyers and decision-makers, we don’t like being sold to. In real life, in stores and showrooms, we hate the sleazy, pushy salesperson. It’s the same online. That begs a question:

What do we want?

1. Information. We have problems and challenges and we look for solutions online – inn search engines like Google and and on social networking sites and forums.
2. Content. Valuable and helpful articles, video, audio and images. We consume content that we find interesting and content that helps us make decisions and do our jobs. We search for solutions to our problems – maybe what we’re looking for is the nicest hotel in that seaside destination we’re planning to visit, maybe it’s the best cloud information security solution for our company. Maybe it’s the latest fashion trend or review on the best tyres for your SUV.
3. Referrals. Some of the most frequented groups on Facebook are the ones where you can ask for recommendations for goods and services. Don’t believe me? Search on Facebook for “I know a guy“….there are over 95 000 members in this one group alone. This is the modern-day word-of-mouth, and is the most powerful element driving decision making that we know of.

The smallest part of the customer journey is the actual purchase. Only when we’re pretty sure of what we want or need to buy, do we click “buy” or email the travel agent, or visit the showroom, or call the salesman.

Why do businesses spend most of their time and energy focusing on the tiniest part of this process, the sale?

A profound truth is this: we do business with people and brands that we like and trust. So how then, do you as a business, brand or individual entrepreneur build trust and get people to like you? You give them value. You help them. A lot. For free. Over a long time. Online.

Only once you have provided considerable value in the form of content, white papers, videos, blogs etc, have you earned the right to ask for something in return, a sale. Follow this recipe and you’ll grow a quality audience, who in turn will support you and buy from you, when the time is right for them.