Deciding to start a business can be exhilarating and horrifying all at the same time. The list of to-dos’ can be daunting like coming up with a business plan, receiving new clients, keeping up with bookkeeping, and on it goes. All the while there are new things popping up that you need and never expected initially. What is a basic sales tool every business needs? Or maybe a few? We’ve encountered various business owners that all wished for a magical checklist to grow their company and boost their sales. The bad news is that no magical checklist exists.
The good news is that we can provide a list containing basic sales tools every business needs.
#1 – Sales Pamphlet
Whether you want to mail them to prospective customers or hand them out to promote a new product or service, an exceptional sales pamphlet goes a long way as one basic sales tool every business needs. You want to leave the right impression with everything and anything printed, so we have a few tips on how to do that. No matter what, always have your sales pamphlet printed well. A majority of people, if not all, judge a book by its cover. A sales pamphlet is no different.
Words:
- Understand your customer and plan your pamphlet to gain attention, interest, desire, and action (AIDA).
- Using bullet points to only focus on the key features of service or product
- Focus on readability while using benefits-oriented headlines
- Always have a clear call to action
Images:
- Use images that are important to your customer (i.e. an image of results they’ll receive or feel after using your product or service).
- Never put a photo of your building on your pamphlet.
#2 – Pricing Guide
It’s been said that one of the secrets to business success is pricing your products properly. This is one aspect that you want to make sure you get right. Be clear and real with yourself about making money. There are a lot of mistakes you can make in business, but one of the biggest is believing that price alone drives sales. That is not true! Do your research within your industry to see what your competitors’ prices are. It is crucial to also know your customers, know your costs, and know your revenue target. You’ll need this pricing guide as a reference in the future when you start hiring more people and your demand rises. It’s one of your foundational, basic sales tool every business needs.
#3 – Basic Contract
This is an essential part of your business to exist in the future. You need to protect yourself legally with basic contracts. Even though it may not be necessary to create basic contracts within your business, it is always a good idea to have written agreements for clients, sales agreements, and other business transactions. Finding a lawyer to look over or create your contracts with you will help tremendously. You can find plenty of templates for different basic contracts online. Here are a few aspects to think through on this basic sales tool every business needs:
- Naming all parties
- Defining the scope of the work provided
- State the length of time for the contract before discussing a renewal
- Specify time (projected time for completion or be delivered) and payment amounts (hourly rate or project payment)
- Always have signage and date of contract
#4 – Sample Book
Have fun with your branding and format a sample book of your company. It acts as a bigger sales pamphlet, but it’s promoting every aspect of your business. Don’t skip over this basic sales tool every business needs. If you sell products, this would be a perfect way to showcase each item with beautiful imagery and a more detailed text about each product. If you sell services, you have the opportunity to go in depth about the benefits of those services. Invest in photos that you own to showcase your products or services. Be proud of your work and show it off in a sample book.
