Print Article for : How To Grow Big Buds

Your Online Guide » A Guide to Business » Small Business Business Opportunity

[H1230]How To Grow Big Buds

by ,

Although the article here is slightly off on a tangent it the principle here still applies. When you consider that both at home and in business if you dont pay attention to whats working and not working its very difficult to have successful results.

Notice as you sit in your home or office, how many products you can reduce in size. And as a result making it more portable,more useful, easier to use, easier to store or easier to afford - and more.

For example, observe how computers have gone from room sized to pocket-sized in less than 50 years. Everything is reducing in size from food packages to families.

Items you never thought of a few years ago is reducing, slimming and down-sizing. And as a result tapping into a whole new niche market, a perfect example of less being more!

For example, slimmer watchbands, smaller cameras, shorter cell phones and more. The principle of reduction or thinking smaller could open a whole new market for your product or service.

If you sell a product or service, is there any way to reduce a certain feature to make it more convenient? Can you reduce it and make it more affordable for a larger market?

If you can't reduce the product itself, can you reduce a feature of the product like a slimmer handle, smaller knobs or can you make the product lighter?

You can also think small when it comes to your marketing approach. For example, does your business cater to families, then what about catering to singles? Or single mothers? Or how about single seniors?

If you sell a service, how about having part of it self-service and reducing the price, this could attract a whole new market of people.

The self-service idea has worked well for oil companies, mini-markets, and even fast food establishments. So, maybe it could work for your business too. Do it yourself is the growing trend for today's successful businesses.

You can create a powerful niche for your product or service by using your head and thinking smaller. If a regular size is successful, a min version could attract a whole new niche market.

There's always a segment of the population who could use a pack of catsup instead of a bottle. Some people only want a bite-sized piece of candy instead of a bar. The same is true for other product and services as well.

Can you make a portion of your product or service Bite Sized for your customers.

Can you see how ignoring the habit of thinking smaller could cost you sales? You could be overlooking many people who like what you have, but don't need so much of it.

Reducing a feature on your product or service and the price may open the door to a new niche market for you.

If your competitors haven't thought of thinking smaller you could be a step ahead of them before they can react.

The principle of reduction can help you sell more products and services. Just by taking the time to think smaller can increase your profits.

With the drop in the size of families and people staying single longer, businesses who think smaller will create new customers.

As you think smaller you'll start speaking to the needs of a growing chunk of the population. But remember, you can reduce the product size but never the product quality. In fact, this can help you to improve it.

People are demanding higher quality in the reduced version of products and services. So, you should be taking advantage of this also. Be wary of trying to keep everyone happy when you could possibly have a lot more success by specialising and perhaps even creating a niche for your market. For example instead of selling every type of handbag on the market from the $5 bag to the $100 you could have a sign on the front of your shop guaranteeing to have nothing over $10 and that would be your niche.

Offering the reduced version is also a lower risk way to get prospect to buy the larger version. Your smaller first version can be the start of a larger sized purchase in the future. Everyone loves the small samples or trial version of a popular product, don't you?

Never assume the reduction in size means reduction in quality or it will be to your peril. Because the size is reduced, people tend to focus more on the quality of the product or service.

So, today you can start opening doors to larger markets and bigger profits by simply thinking smaller.

If you sell a product or service, is there an way to reduce a certain feature to make it more convenient? Can you make it more ?

If you have a business where you can try different ways of serving your customers better then making the physical size of things smaller as discussed here is just one thing you can do to test your market to see what works and what doesnt. Just as importantly you need to know how well the original way of doing things was working and then track the results of the changes so you can see the difference.

In this evergrowing-techno-jungle we call the Internet, it's easy for the little guys to get overlooked. If you aren't Coca-Cola, Microsoft, or Amazon, it can be hard to compete. Small
businesses are faced with the challenge of standing out in the face of giants. So how do you differentiate and survive? The key is to be SMALL in a big way by capturing the essence of YOU in your web site!

To illustrate my point I'll paint a picture. Imagine that you have a taste for a strawberry milkshake, so you head down to Joe's Ice Cream Parlor. When you walk in, Joe greets you with a smile and asks, "How you doing Sam? Do you want the usual strawberry shake?" You plop yourself down on the barstool and say, "That'd be great!" Joe asks how the wife and kids are. You ask how Joe's business is doing.

Joe pours the milkshake into a tall curved soda glass, pops a straw in, and puts not one, but two cherries on top.

What's good about this picture? It's small at it's best! It's the good ole' days of Mom and Pop stores relived. You know that when you go to Joe's you'll get more than a great milk shake you love, it's the experience of it. And the value that Joe adds to that milkshake goes a long way toward building and keeping a relationship with that client.

Let's talk about how you capture the "you" and put its power to work in your business?

STOREFRONT
It all starts when you walk into Joe's Ice Cream Shop. The nostalgic look, the music from the jukebox, the real whip cream he tops his milk shakes with. Does your web site have stopping power? If you don't capture the visitor's attention in a few seconds, you've lost their business. Through use of friendly copy, attractive graphics, and color you can add interest and set the tone for your visitors.

MOTTO:
The front door of your web site is the home page. You need to
state right at the top of the page: who you are, what you do, and why customers should care!

What is your unique selling point?
Are you friendly? Are you affordable? Are you available 24/7?
Do you have a specialty? Are you a one-stop shop?

Remember those catchy phrases you can't get out of your head:
Bounty, the quicker picker upper... Burger King - we make it your way... Hertz, we try harder.... These are perfect examples of slogans that tell customers immediately WHO you are and WHY you are better than the rest.

WHAT ARE THE SPECIALS?
Joe lists his "soda for the day" right on his menu for all to see.

Similarly, you need to tell visitors about the exciting features your site has to offer. Write home page that reads like a "special of the day" menu telling customers about the free reports, the resources, the products, and other features your site has to offer them.

If you offer a free initial trial or full money back guarantee make it VISIBLE on your home page!

WORDS:
Just as Joe's conversation gave you a warm friendly shopping experience, you can put personality in your web copy to create a friendly visitor experience. Steer clear of web copy that makes you sound like a high-pressure car salesman or a fancy high profile VP of sales. Instead, write honestly with a personal approach.

Your web site copy (writing) should NOT be a laundry list pulled from your resume or simply listing your services. Instead, tell people in your own words what you have to offer them, how it will help them, how much they will save, how much easier it will make things for them, how convenient your are. Think like a customer and ask, "Why should I buy from this company versus the one down the street?" The answers to THAT will form writing for your web site.

USE OTHERS WORDS:
When your friend George said, "You've GOT to try the Milk Shakes at Joe's. You won't believe how good they are" you were SOLD! There's nothing like a heartfelt testimonial to build trust and credibility. If you don't have a big brand name and the reputation that goes with it, you'd need to give the customer a reason to believe that you or your product does what you promise.

Testimonials do this. And honest words from a happy customer will get you more customers than any high paid advertisement ever will.

A PICTURE IS WORTH A THOUSAND WORDS:
Joe always had a way of making you feel right at home in his shop. Similarly, by adding a picture of yourself on the web site, your customers will feel like they know you. The more customers feel they know you, the more likely they will want to do business with you.

If you don't have a good picture of yourself here's some ideas for you. Go to Sears, Glamour Shots, or JC Penny studio and get one taken. If you take "horrible" formal pictures, consider taking one of you "in action" doing what you do. If you teach, consider showing a picture of you working with students. You can even "cut" yourself out of a good casual shot, remove the background, add a shadow, and make a GREAT head shot! See my picture on about us page http://www.kcustom.com/aboutus.htm. I take TERRIBLE formal picture because I hate getting my picture taken. This one is of me in KeyWest on my honeymoon. No wonder I
look so happy!

If you sell widgets, show a picture of your product on your web site. When people shop in a store they like to feel, touch, and hold the product. Recreate this experience with pictures and visual imagery with words. Don't tell customers that it's "solid leather construction", instead tell them "the seat is made with leather so soft you'll sink right into it"!

MAINTAIN FRIENDLY, RESPONSIVE COMMUNICATION WITH CUSTOMERS
Have you ever gone to a store counter and waited, and WAITED? You could see the store clerk standing up there chatting with her fellow sales clerk. You clear your throat, and try to make eye contact with her, and then FINALLY she comes over and asks, "Can I help you?" This is how your customers feel when they send your business an email and you don't respond right away.

Responses to emails should be timely. If you don't have time to answer someone's question right away, send them a note to tell them you got their inquiry and when they CAN expect an answer.

Go back in your head to the "waiting at the counter" scenario .. . when the clerk says, "I'll be right with you" it sure makes you feel better doesn't it? It tells the customer "You are important to me, I noticed you, and I will help you soon as I can"

OFFER IMPECCABLE SERVICE:
The key to Joe's success at the Ice Cream Shop wasn't just his incredible milk shakes; it was the value he added by adding the extra cherry on top. Promise 8 and deliver 9. What do you do to add value to your business? Give freely of yourself by adding those little extras.

IT'S ALL IN THE PACKAGING:
Somehow milkshakes never taste as good in a paper cup with a plastic lid. And even though the milkshake may cost $1 extra at Joe's, you don't mind because you know your are getting your money's worth. Think of ways to package your services that are attractive and convenient for your clients. Don't nickel and dime your customers to death. Sometimes $150 per hour fees can sound pretty scary to clients. Think perhaps about creating a package with a set number of offerings at a set price. You could offer a basic, a deluxe, and the GOLD package. When clients know exactly what to expect, it takes the "fear" out of their purchase.

ANSWERING THE PHONE:
I don't know about you, but there is nothing that impresses me more when I call a customer help number and actually get HUMAN live help! I want a person who listens and understands my problems. I don't want to choose options 1, 2, or 3 and push a button on the phone.

When Joe answers the phone he says "Welcome to Joe's Ice Cream Shop, this is Joe!" What a nice first impression that makes! Smile when you answer, people will hear the difference in your voice.

BE SMALL - BE YOU - You won't believe the difference it makes!
I can tell you from experience that being "myself" is what has built my business. And everyday as I build web sites for small business owners I help them put a piece of themselves into it. The importance of branding yourself cannot be overstated. Take a look at your own business. Try to look with a different set of eyes.

How do you present yourself? Does my site "feel" like a warm comfortable place to do business OR does your web site look like screaming over-hyped ad or business brochure? Remember the secret to competing with the BIG guys, lies in adding the human touch to your service, your communication, and your web site! Act small for BIG profits!

Article Source : Small Dining Room Tables

Kristie Tamsevicius has sinced written about articles on various topics from Business Marketing, Time Management Skills and Children. . Kristie Tamsevicius's top article generates over 5400 views. to your Favourites.