Promo Marketing

You will be automatically redirected to promomarketing in 20 seconds.
Skip this advertisement.

Advertisement
Advertisement
 
 
CAS

Big Picture Promo

By Matt Kaspari, CAS

About Matt

Kaspo CEO, Matt Kaspari CAS, will elaborate on the big picture of branding and the role of promotional products in creating empowered brands.
 

Not So Technically Speaking

Dale Denham
The High Cost of a Low Training Budget
May 16, 2013

If you train your staff, there's a risk they'll leave; if you don't, there's a risk they'll stay.
...



Jeff's Rant

Jeff Solomon, MAS
Why...?
May 16, 2013

Why... be connected? I've often talked about my love of trade shows and the value of business relationships, which are...



Promotional Fashionista

Colleen McKenna
How to Celebrate National Bike Month
May 15, 2013

May is National Bike Month. Here are five bike-friendly products and apparel to purvey for the next two weeks....



Be Dazzled

Elise Hacking Carr
The Amazing Fashion: 3 Gatsby-inspired Looks
May 14, 2013

The Great Gatsby finally opened over the weekend. Does the unbridled glamour of 1920s-inspired fashion translate to the promotional products...



Selling Smarter

Rosalie Marcus
Help! My Customers Know the Codes
May 14, 2013

A promotional products distributor recently wrote me and asked how to handle clients that have figured out the industry's pricing...



Mike's Blog

Michael Cornnell
Entertainment Meets Marketing: Amazing Gatsby, Pop Art and Rock Music Promos
May 13, 2013

Entertainment and promotional marketing: A pairing that normally reminds us of being forced to eat Hulk-colored Taco Bell at gunpoint...



Beyond Words

Rebecca Kollmann, MAS+
A Blog of a Different Color
May 13, 2013

When we communicate with others—through a presentation, through graphics or through text in an article—the use of color can truly...



Embellished

Kyle Richardson
Call For Sources: Michigan Suppliers and Distributors
May 10, 2013

Do you work in Michigan, or do you sell into the restaurant industry? I want to hear from you....



Kiwi's Coaching Corner

Paul  Kiewiet
Think Like Your Client
May 9, 2013

Getting out of the commodity game requires hard work, thoughtful work and requires learning new skills and work habits. You...



Be Bold, Be Different, Be Memorable

Rick Greene, MAS
The Fearsome Green Profit Margin
May 7, 2013

Or "Detective Fiction, Sales and the Art of Listening."...



The Hot Button

Mary Ellen Nichols, MAS
Have You Cleaned Out Your Teenager's Gym Bag Lately?
May 1, 2013

Performance clothing has changed over the past 10 years: silkier, stretchier, more mesh, even less stinky in some cases. So...



Friday Sales-thought of the Week!

Dale Limes, MAS
Reverse Engineer Your Sales Success
Mar 18, 2013

Steven Covey reminds us that when setting goals ... "Start with the end in mind." That is to visualize the...



Editor's Notes

Nichole Stella
The Perfect Match
Mar 5, 2013

The Super Bowl has also become the Ad Bowl, where brands duke it out to see who has the funniest,...



Compliance Chat

D E Fenton
When a Picture Says a Thousand Words: Bangladesh
Nov 30, 2012

It takes a single negative image to undo even the most successful campaigns in the eyes of your customers—and many...



My Two Cents

Rick Brenner
CPSC General Counsel Clarifies Distributor Responsibilities for Children's Apparel
Oct 8, 2012

There aren't many distributors who would describe themselves as manufacturers. But under CPSIA, the majority of promotional products distributors—at least...



The Sales Challenge

Bill Farquharson
Think and Succeed
May 29, 2012

What would happen if you woke up in the morning and your first thought was, "I am never going to...



Creating More Purposeful Sales Conversations

Lisa Leitch, CSP, MAS
Under 100 Days to Achieve 2011 Goals
Oct 20, 2011

It's hard to believe, but there are fewer than 100 days left to achieve 2011 goals! Are you on track...



Industry Voices

Guest Contributor
In a Recession, Dress Up To Cheer Up
Jan 20, 2010

A few weeks ago, I had dinner with Executive Apparel's president and its director of product development in Orlando, Florida....



Marketing and the Selling Function

 
For the past four weeks we have taken an in-depth look at the promotional industry from a marketing perspective. Today I am going to shift gears a bit and make all of this marketing mammer-jammer applicable to the selling function. The fact of the matter is that by understanding marketing, you open the door to solutions-based selling rather than options-based selling and therefore become an investment for your clients rather than a cost.

Options-based Selling
Options-based selling is the result of showing up to an initial client meeting with multiple catalogues, samples, and price points. The majority of the conversation in options-based selling is the different products, different suppliers and different prices available. Clients leave this kind of meeting with a plethora of options, notes and price points. Clients then go back to their bosses and departments, present these options, and all is well until someone says, "Hey I know a guy who can get us the same exact thing for 50 cents less." The sale is gone. Sound familiar?

The problem with options-based selling is that you have positioned yourself as a cost. Your clients will be loyal only until someone or some source comes along with a lower price.

Solutions-based Selling
Solutions-based selling is the result of showing up to an initial client meeting with a pen and a blank piece of paper. The conversation is directed by specific and systematic questions with a majority of the talking done by the client. The client leaves the meeting feeling that you understand their brand, corporate culture and the needs of their customers. You then go back to the drawing board and define solutions that will meet the expectations of your clients. After compiling strategic and specific solutions you then present to the potential client, specifically highlighting how your solutions accomplish their objectives.

In solutions-based selling, you present yourself as an investment rather than a cost. Clients are so pleased that you heard them and addressed their needs that price becomes an afterthought. Your clients epitomize loyalty because they are not easily won over by someone who can cut the price and are willing to refer you to their friends because they know you will take care of them.

In these tough economic times, as we are all trying to become more efficient and cost effective, it is important to position yourself as an investment rather than a cost. With marketing insight you can better understand how your clients are thinking and therefore better address their needs with solutions rather than options.

For a more in depth look at a solutions-based sales cycle, sign up for our talk, "Empowering Brand Loyalty," at the 2013 PPAI Expo.

Companies Mentioned:

COMMENTS

Click here to leave a comment...
Comment *
Most Recent Comments: