Mark Jewell's Blog: Selling Energy, page 106

Weekly Recap, May 16, 2021

Here are our favorite sales-enhancing tips from this week's Selling Energy Blogs...

Using Two Magic Words

When writing or communicating with our prospects, our choice of words is front and center. We describe what we’ve been offering successfully to others. We note that their situation is very similar to that of the customers we’ve already helped. We leave the door open for a phone call or a sales meeting. These are the building blocks of a three-sentence solicitation, for example. Similarly, there are multiple nuances to crafting an elevator pitch or writing a successful one-page proposal.

Take the Long View

It’s a lot easier to make additional sales to existing clients than it is to get new customers. I'm often amazed when I talk to entrepreneurs – they can tell you all about their lead generation and customer capture processes; however, as soon as I ask them about account development, they freeze. Account development is one of the most overlooked (and vital) aspects of running a successful business, and your revenues will skyrocket if you develop and follow a strategic plan to improve what is called the “lifetime value of the customer.”

Digits-To-Widgets™ for Homeowners

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Imagine you're going to sell an energy efficiency upgrade to a homeowner, and you're going to save them a meaningful portion of their monthly utility bill. How do you make that compelling and emotional?  As true sales professionals know, the promise of saving money rarely spurs a prospect to take action.

Selling During a Crisis

When it comes to being a sales professional, experiencing hard times is inevitable. Over the last forty years, I have sold through four previous recessions – this is my fifth – and before I started selling, countless others weathered their share of economic storms.

Urgency vs. Importance

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You may be convinced an energy-related solution that you are proposing could drive important benefits for your prospect. However, your prospect may ignore or reject it in favor of something “urgent” because urgency usually trumps importance when people evaluate how to invest their time and money. 

Don’t Fear the Future

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In the wake of 2020, many of us are still facing an uncertain future. What are new workplaces going to look like? When will the economy fully recover from the recession? What are the best ways to accept these changes while staying on top of everything else?

Weekly Recap, May 9, 2021

Here are our favorite sales-enhancing tips from this week's Selling Energy Blogs...

Sharpen Your Writing Skills

I’m often asked about how to write the perfect e-mail or one-page proposal because—as many of us already know—communication can make or break or sale. Some of us are better able to express ourselves when we’re in person, but once we’re behind a keyboard we freeze up!

How to Be a Great Consultant

I was asked if I had any advice for someone who was trying to build a consulting practice, particularly given that social distancing is limiting outreach activities to remote selling. Your local bookstore and the internet are both great places for helpful insights into business development in general. Fortunately, much of the advice is very applicable for growing a service business like consulting. And while social distancing makes it challenging to do in-person networking, take prospects to lunch, etc., there are so many other ways to reach out – think concise and compelling emails, LinkedIn connection requests and InMails, webinars that give you an opportunity to share your expertise for all to see, etc. One hardly has the excuse to hide in a bunker until COVID-19 and recession disappear.