Ask yourself a simple question—what’s holding your potential customers back from buying from you?

You might think cost. Perhaps it’s ease of purchase (online ordering), location, or not knowing about you. But there could be something much easier to fix than cutting your prices, moving, or rebranding/launching a huge marketing campaign. While all these things are important—pricing, location, and top-of-mind recognition—there is something else you could be doing to get more people in your business. You could be setting expectations.

What does that mean?

There is likely a need for what you sell or do. Or you wouldn’t have gone into business, right? Maybe your marketing is really great, and you’ve created a desire for your product or service among your audience. But unless you sell something that is an instant emotional purchase, doubt could set it and kill your sale.

This doubt occurs because the purchaser is unsure of your product or service, worries about the value, or is doing something they wouldn’t normally do/purchase (that includes purchasing from you for the first time).

To avoid this, you need to ensure they have the confidence to purchase from you. Help them imagine what you (your product or service) can bring them.

Do this by creating content. But not just any content.

Content and Sales

Let’s say you run a Facebook ad for a new service you’re offering or a discount to try your business. Hopefully, you’ve used the targeting features well and you get a lot of clicks on them. Potential customers are reading the info, and signing up for whatever webinar, service, discount, or info session you’re offering (gyms, I’m especially looking at you here).

Congrats. That’s great. You’re probably ecstatic with those leads. But then they fail to convert to sales. What happened? The leads seemed interested.

Something made them change their mind. Or did it? 

First, many people treat Facebook ads and events like a try-before-you-buy situation. Just like people tend to post the life they wish they had on “the Book,” they seem interested in events and services when really, they’re just trying out the idea in their head.

Moving Potential Leads from Maybe to Gotta Go There

To help close these leads, you need to send several reminders with the kinds of subject lines that scream “open me.” When they see you in their email inbox often, it will be harder to forget their commitment.

But more importantly…

You need to manage expectations. This person is new to your business. They don’t know what to expect from you. They enjoyed your ad, thought this is for me, but then doubt sets in. They start wondering, what will this be like? Can I do it? Is it really for me? And a hundred other concerns. As in Newton’s Law of Motion—an object in motion stays in motion—a potential customer  stays “at rest” until a force is applied to it. In this case, the force you are applying is addressing their questions and concerns ahead of the potential customer voicing them.

I recently signed up for an exercise class trial. It was a weak moment, a new exciting business in town, and I had a desire to get healthier. This particular exercise looked like fun but I’ve never done it. 

Then doubt set in. Would I be the oldest person in the class? Would everyone else look like Barbie in Lulu? What do I wear? Can I handle it without throwing up?

The more questions popped into my mind, the more I thought about canceling. I dodged the business’ reminder phone calls. I didn’t confirm on their texts. I was 90% ready to hit the “unsubscribe to everything button” and then an email arrived.

It was friendly and upbeat. It answered all my questions and then some. (Minus the Barbie one.) And I’m going to the class. That email got me over my concerns without the embarrassment of having to raise them in the first place.

In your business content you need to do more than tell who you are and what problem you solve. That’s the beginning of the sales process. If you want to move people down that sales funnel, turning them into loyal customers, you need to address things that might be holding them back. You don’t do that by having a perky employee call and say, “let me know if you have any questions.” They won’t tell you. Instead, you need to anticipate those hesitations, address them ahead of time, and serve up the answers to them. If you do, they’ll not only be more likely to buy from you, but they’ll also see you as a business that “gets” them. And that’s the first step to building a loyal clientele.

Christina Metcalf is a writer/ghostwriter who believes in the power of story. She works with small businesses, chambers of commerce, and business professionals who want to make an impression and grow a loyal customer/member base. She loves road trips, hates exclamation points, and is currently flailing around outside of her comfort zone at a gym for twenty-somethings.

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