Welcome to the Sales issue of the Women in Business eNewsletter.

With the economy changing the game of business for many small businesses, a focus on sales and viability is more important than ever before.

So, what can you do to maintain sales?

We asked some of the members in our LinkedIn community for their thoughts. The results are these great tips that you can use in your business.

Got a few tips to add? Add your sales success tips here at the herBusiness Blog.

Ready for some sales-boosting articles? Take a look at the Sales Strategies to Boost Your Bottom Line newsletter.

I am finding that people are still willing to buy services but are shopping differently. For instance our Search Engine Marketing is not performing as well as it has in the past. People are needing to develop a higher level of trust before picking up the phone, therefore any way you can provide more information on your services and the benefits is valuable. Some examples are:

• Using social media to showcase expertise (linking to blog posts, giving short opinions, distributing articles)
• Presenting - Getting in front of your audience at conferences, seminars and workshops
• Referral relationships - Developing key referral relationships

Michelle Gamble
Marketing Angels
www.marketingangels.com.au

We have found that December and January sales fell: a combination of Christmas, summer school holidays and major hype around the increasing recession. We are taking a "glass half full" approach and are seeing this as an opportunity to build our brand, our sales, where our competitors may be too big, unwieldy and expensive. We have made sure that our Sales Kit is ready and available to send off to any prospects, our website is up to date, and have employed a Telemarketer/Lead Generator to target key companies we would like to work with and to take that "cold call agony" off our hands, when we really should be doing more valuable things. And it's working! We're also networking as much as we can, and being confident about who we are and the value that we can add in this climate. There's always an opportunity - you just have to keep looking and believing.

Jeanette Harris (neé Wiffin)
Strategic Minds Communications
www.strategicminds.com.au

From a small business perspective, I've looked at the issue from 3 angles - revenue/customers, networking and costs/efficiency.

I've personally focused on my core strength - storytelling, communicating and connecting. I've increased the frequency with which I communicate with my current client base and made sure I stay on message with my storytelling. I'm also looking for opportunities to communicate my message to a wider audience, both online and in print (coming from a publishing background - print will always be important to me.)

As a small business owner, for a long period I thought I was too busy wearing the various hats in my business to attend networking sessions, as I had done when I first started out. I now realise that was a mistake and with so much online networking at my finger tips - there's no no longer any excuse.

The other area where we've sharpened things up is costs and efficiency - my business is now sustainable (and profitable) even with a drop in revenue. Takes the pressure off a bit - financial stress is not great for creativity! I would like to make the point though, cost-cutting came from increasing the efficiency of how we do things and how we want to do things in the future - not just making indiscriminate cuts.

Lesley-Ann Trow
Gorgeous Things
www.gorgeousthings.com.au

Our organisation has been spending time asking clients what they need and want right now and then finding ways to deliver that to them.

Our current clients, past clients and extended community are important to us and so taking the time to redesign what we do has been an exciting opportunity to expand our organisation, our offer and our value.

It is much easier to ask our community to assist us (referrals) than attempt to get 'cold' leads to convert, so we have focused heavily on our existing network. This continues to pay off really well for all involved.

Hope that gives people something to think about and is useful.

Janine Barr
Genratec.com
www.genratec.com

I maintain prices in this tough economy by customising prices to meet the consumers needs and offering the best customer service in the industry. That's what it takes, you have to stand out in the crowd.

Gail Oleaga, That Girl in Real Estate
West USA Realty
www.thatgirlinrealestate.com

My key focus has been to keep marketing my key products, but to also develop some smaller/lower cost versions if the originals prove too expensive or it's too hard to get the sale.

These versions won't make as much profit for us, but they do take less time to make a decision, less dollars and lower commitment for someone to hand over their dollars - whether that's an individual or a company. It's all about creating least resistance to close the sale, and thinking like the people who are probably a bit scared to spend money. Also anything you can do that's more personal, so they feel like you genuinely care about them will always help. Low-cost postcards are a great way to keep in touch too.

Leona Watson
Cheeky Food Group
www.cheekyfoodgroup.com.au

Increase your visibility, particularly through media such as Facebook and Twitter. Make it easy to connect with you. Many sites I find do not have links to Facebook and Twitter and a chance already lost to connect with people.

I think people are more reluctant to sign up for ezines as there is too much info in their inbox - that is why succint messages like short blog posts and Twitter work well.

Increasing your current offering can be a way of capturing consumers interest. Those that rise to the game and don't listen to the economic gloom can stay positive and motivated to capture those who are still looking to purchase.

Jane Johnson
Contribute Your Wealth Club
www.contributeyourwealth.com

In the current climate the 'Do Nothing' option will see you lose ground. Even if you have clients on retainer and they look locked and loyal recognise that your competitors are hungry and will look to give incentives, get innovative and go the extra mile to induce your customers away from you. It's a jungle and the rules of the game have changed.

So one strategy is to lead the innovation trail and pre-empt your would-be competitors. I'm not a huge fan of Sun Tzu but perhaps attack is the best form of defence. Far better to act proactively re-engage with your clients as it reinforces that you care and are thinking about them. The climate has changed and perhaps so to does your relationship need to change.

Dennis Roberts
The Coaching Professionals

We don't maintain sales... we increase them. February 2009 was our best sales month ever... March seems to be going over February... lets see :-)

Instead of focusing on cold contact sales we just focus on our current clients.

I'll give you a good example. We have one client who is an accountant. As you probably are aware, accountants usually have hundreds of firms and small businesses as customers and usually deal with owners or decision-makers.

Our target audience are business owners and start-ups.

So basically by making a cross-sale to all those clients we have a better chance of creating sales (due to direct referral) than any other way. Plus the advertising costs are nil since we don't pay our client for it, he's glad to help.

Focus more on what you have than on what you don't have and you'll be fine :-)

My clients and I haven't yet seen any of the so-called crisis, we're prospering and having our best sales months instead.

We actually agree that the crisis (or tough economy as you call it) is nothing more than world dynamics. Companies and individuals who did not adapt to changing times suffered the consequences.

Certain industries are destined to end in the richer countries and will be replaced by imports from less prosperous countries. Outsourcing boomed some years ago, so why are people surprised that unemployment has increased? People kept enrolling in university courses which had no professional exits, then five years later found out the hard way that their choice was less than optimal.

All those factors created the situation but as any management book says... a good manager should be able to see what is right in front of them and be ready for anything at anytime. The question is... were you ready for it?

Any company which does not evolve will eventually become extinct.

Bruno Domingues

Try this :
http://saleschannel.blogspot.com/2008/10/selling-in-economic-downturn.html

Grant Johnstone

We are in the assessment business and our primary focus is dealing with educational institutions. Hence we are not really hit by recession. The segment is attracting attention by many software companies that are affected by the recessionary climate.

And the threat increases as everyone is now eyeing education and health care as they are recession proof. We address this by providing higher value to the clients, as we know which value-adds address our customer's pain points. Also, unlike our competition, we are publicity shy and do not talk jargon - and many clients like that as our work speaks for us. Hence, I presume, we are on the right track.

Ramesh
The Human Search Engine

Ramesh Kumar

'Ensure that you are utilising all available sales channels'.

A new one that your readers might not be aware of is www.expertmagnet.com.

This is a B2B marketplace for consulting and professional services.

Vendors can register their business free of charge, and whenever work is posted that matches their expertise, they can log on, review the work request, and decide if they'd like to respond to it.

By maximising all the available sales channels, they'll be able to hear about, and pitch for, all available work.

Mark Bubner
Expert Magnet
www.expertmagnet.com

1. Stay in touch with all current and past clients, it is amazing how often they realise they need you just because you have made contact. How you do this will be different for all businesses but I suggest using the 80/20 rule. 20% of your clients/customers will give you 80% of your return. Try to do something personal with this group, phone call, coffee, hand written letter. Ask them how they're going in this environment and see if you can offer a solution to any of their problems.
2. Undertake a quick email survey of customers and find out their current concerns. Tailor an offering to meet these - they may not be what you think.
3. I have used Barter Card as a brilliant way to fill up capacity in the business. It helps cash flow for both you and the client and it can bring new clients and new channels to market. You must understand how it works and use it to the max, but it also provided ways of having holidays and buying this without spending cash.
4. E-market. If you aren't you should be - read the book The Long Tail. Review your marketing segmentation and make sure that you have included all of the relevant segments and that the offering you have for each still meets that group's needs in the current climate. How? Ask them! Send out an email survey or just visit them and ask a series of structured questions.
5. Understand and use branding!
6. Think about teaming up with someone else and offering a package; e.g. dog washer and massage package - you both get pampered at home. Have an ideas session and think outside the normal stuff, dream outrageous ideas and then work them back to reality. eg every client gets a trip to Paris.. team up an offer with a DVD of Moulin Rouge and a bottle of Champagne for an imaginary trip to Paris.
7. DON'T drop your prices to the lowest possible level, because if you do, you will create a new benchmark. As a result, you will not be able to return your prices to their oriiginal level and your clients will feel that they were ripped off in the past. Only 3% of people are truly driven by price, the other 97% need to have sufficient reason to buy from you. Make sure you can tell them what you offer that others don't, what do you do to add value to your client. DON'T use cliches like 'quality' , 'service' etc unless you have some unique angle on them. Everyone says these things.
8. Finally stay positive; you believe in your product, don't act as if you are desperate.

Jennifer Weller
SED Consulting
www.sedconsulting.com.au

Instead of casting out a wide net and cold calling hundreds of companies, I figured out who my ideal customer is and I target those businesses. I also use LinkedIn and other professional networks to see if I can turn a cold call into a warm one.

Gina Firle
TKK Electro

Gina Firle!

What a fantastic answer!!!

As counterintuitive as it may sound, when times are tough, it's time to focus in on the exact kind of prospect you do business with. "Casting a wider net" will serve only to distract and bog down sales efforts.

If you've ever wondered why some salepeople consistently outperform their colleagues in tough times, it's for the exact reason that Gina Firle points out: They know the ideal market in which they do best, focus laser-like on it and do not push outside that markeplace for any reason. Tough times are when great salespeople unhook their competitors' business.

There are many, many distracted salespeople right now. It's my guess Gina is not one of them.

Dave Mantel

1. Service the heck out of your current customers. At least retain what you have.
2. Ask your customers for referrals, both within and outside their companies.
3. Use the social media platforms for turning "cold" calls into "warm" calls...it's free.
4. Repeat.

Josh Chernin
Web Industries
www.webindustries.com

So, sales is our focus for you this month

Over the coming weeks members will get lots of tips and strategies to help you improve their sales results.

As far as events, the Australian Businesswomen's Network runs structured networking events (both online and LIVE) throughout the year. These events are free for members and details can be found on our website.

Not a member? Members get a one-stop-shop for business. You can:

• expand your network of valuable contacts - network without the hype and falseness you find at most events
• improve your business skills and access business experts who have answers to your questions
• surround yourself with inspiring, forward-moving people who want to help you achieve your goals
• promote your business and raise your profile
• feel more confident in yourself and raise your self-esteem

Learn more about membership to the Australian Businesswomen's Network today.

Warm wishes,
Suzi Dafnis
Community Director
Australian Businesswomen's Network