“Haven’t been to the gym? Oh c’mon! Don’t lose all hopes and don’t lie down like a loser, you can do it!” The New Year has begun and it’s already been a month now, many of us might have taken a resolution of losing those extra pounds, many of us might have even given up on that dream of having a six pack this year and some of us might be still confused, lost or worried. You might be wondering why I’m giving such a bizarre analogy. Well sales is like running on a treadmill, although you are a part of that same loop, the same “cycle of year to year” and “month to month marathon” but you need to understand when to slow down deliberately, when to conserve your breath and stamina and most importantly you must know when to buck up and hit the running track with a sprint back again! Mere ignorance, lack of preparation and unsystematic plans will definitely bring your morale down and may even make you feel like “skipping gym” this year again! Sales and gyming are kind of similar. Both requires consistency! Now here comes the month of January, a notoriously slow month for many businesses. Rather than shedding tears on this holiday slump, why not seize the chance to regroup, recharge and refine your plans for the year ahead?
Reason of this season?
Why? Out of all these twelve months of the year, why January? Just when entrepreneurs and CEO’s had blessed their employees with gifts, office parties and appraisals in the month of December, why January becomes the month of slower sales? Remember you just got over with Christmas and New Year, the sprint of spending just got over, people are settling in and the love for shopping is no more in their hearts as of for now! The spending remains to be all time low as everyone is busy figuring out their credit card bills, EMI and guilty expenses on things that they ended up buying and now they are of no use, as many of us get too ambitious while shopping, especially during the month of December! Therefore January can be a demotivating month for someone working in the sales team! But do we really need be afraid of the slow slump? Today we all are mostly shopping through these E-commerce websites, so no matter where you are or what is the niche of your market, you can still be able to plan a considerable amount of gain from this month. In fact, on contrary, you can flip the case in your favour. You can convert this moment into a chance! Honestly with the access of the internet we have the convenience to still purchase things and feel “No-guilty” about it. The buyers or the customers of a particular commodity need to draw inspiration to grab deals, offers and discounts which can act as bait, a bait to attract them! The ones who were on a shopping spree can be attracted towards exciting offers and marketing strategies as if they were a honey bee. All you need to find is the right flowers in the right garden. The flowers that will bloom and blossom in your favour! It’s important to stay active and to not let your marketing efforts go dark after the holidays wrap up. You’ve likely brought in many new customers over the holidays, so keep the conversation going.
Time to fight. Spike and hike!
“This sale is for real!”, “Shop now or regret later”, “Heavy discounts”, “discounts like never before”, “flat off”, “get one on one” ”get crazy coupons”. Yes, these are some of the super famous sale quotes of the year you might have seen on banners and advertisements. In case you run a business, you must be aware of these catchy hook phrases and one liners that are an eye attractor. On social media, advertisements like these are a double tap, heart and a thumb stopping post. The viewer will definitely wait, stop and scroll around these ads, why? Well, that's because we love the word “Free”! Yes, as a person from the sales army, you might have fought this battle of “pleasing” the customer a lot of times. A battle where the customer has to lose his/her control over their guilt and tap on to that link of yours to your website, you need to tempt them in a way that it makes the deal irresistible and they don’t even think twice before punching their CVV numbers on their screen to proceed and checkout from the e-cart. Coming back to their payment options, you can consider tags such as “Free Shipping” or “Pay now to get a 2-5% discount”. Always work! Shoppers will buy only and only when you are able to make them realize that they are the ones who are winning this battle! If you continue to provide discounts, then you’ll be able to win your customers back for a second round of bargain basement prices. You may be tired of the sale, but your customers aren’t. You don’t have to provide quite the same level of sale, but a sale alone is powerful enough to get you back on track.
Clearance Sale – Customers love clearance sale. This will not only help you to release your inventory stock from the shoulders of your business, but this will surely add wings to your profit gains. It’s like striking the same arrow across two different aims.
Giveaways are a bliss – Wait for a second? A freebie? How does that help? Freebies not only create the buzz about your brand through word of mouth but since we are living in the age of Instagram business and Facebook marketing, it also spreads the brand identity to a new section of audience on the internet. Freebies are like Santa Claus gifts! People wait for them throughout the year!
Make your First-time buyers your family! – First time buyers or new customers are always crucial. Make them a part of your family. Give them a first time coupon so that they come back to you once again. Add them to your mailing list. Newer audience brings a lot of engagement.
Be a part of their resolution – Motivational marketing! Yes, it’s time to cater better instincts. People won’t buy things that are very expensive to them or something that is unfit for their New Year resolutions. Try products that are oriented towards their goals for the coming year. Health and beauty products, skincare, gym and sports accessories, stationaries that will help them to get organised like table calendars, planners and diaries. Products that help them out with their security, cleanliness and that enhance health are perfect for them to tempt them enough. “New year! New you!” that’s motivational marketing!
Exhibitions, stall and events – Live events and exhibitions helps in increasing brand identity. It helps you to reach a new audience. This increases brand awareness. Choose events like college festivals, local festivals, and corporate collaborations. The face to face interaction with the newer audience helps in building trust in them. You may divert your offline market audience into the online market audience too and vice versa!
You can start the New Year off with “All guns blazing sales” rather than starting things off with a nosedive. Think about the impact that will have on the rest of the year! You need to identify your “On and Off” season. Start with properly identifying your peak seasons and those that bring in less income. Once you know the pattern of your income each month you can create a forecast that will help you budget accurately. One needs to be also prepared for unexpected costs and expenses, have a back-up plan for the same. Social media is defined as the ‘Dawn of the Era” therefore never ever stop yourself from posting and creating more and more content on social media. Remember, your audience has got silent but they are still there, listening you, watching you and tracing your new campaigns! Remember, nothing that is worthwhile is easy. The key is to take action. The only way a problem will go away is when it is defeated by a solution. It’s time to hit the treadmill again but this time not to lose pounds but to gain them with your business!