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A Purpose for Every Season
Adrianne Machina | November 20th, 2008 - 05:14 AM
(44) found this useful. Do you? 
If you sell an expensive product or service, it can seem like a daunting task to get buyers to commit to you right now. People are “tightening their belt” and “watching their cash flow.” But you as the seller need to walk into every opportunity with confidence! Buyers feed off of your energy. If you walk in defeated, you’ll be walking out without a sale. You need to remind yourself — and your customers — that there’s no “perfect time” to make a major purchase.
Whether you sell to consumers or businesses, the key question to ask your prospective buyer is: “What has fundamentally changed that it would be unwise to make an investment now, during the slow season?” 
Much of my extended family comes from a farming background. In North Dakota, farmers are forced to deal with the cyclical nature of the seasons and their own personal economic conditions. They work from sun-up to sun-down during the planting and harvest season. During the winter, farmers have plenty of time to relax, but they also make absolutely sure they’ve prepared for the coming Spring, when life gets busy again.
They research new opportunities, order seed, install new fencing, and repair equipment. How short-sighted would it be for them to say, “You know, we talked about buying that new tractor we need, but it’s sure snowy and cold now - maybe Spring won’t come this year. Let’s save our money.” I’m sure it’s not news to you that Spring comes every year! The farmers who have prepared and have planned reap the greatest rewards.
Part of the problem for us city-dwellers is that we’ve become very disconnected from the seasons, and the cycles of life. We sit in our air-conditioned (and alternatively heated) offices and think we can control our destiny. We’re Type-A personalities and we can make things happen!
Is it realistic to think you can plan a business that will have no rainy days, no snowy season? Year-after-year exponential growth is what shareholders want to hear, but is it realistic? What gets companies (and people) in trouble is when they don’t save for a rainy day. You, as a seller, also need a plan to sell during the slow season.
Want some “rainy day” marketing strategies? Here are five ideas to get you started:
- Offer several price points. Let people try your product or service for free or for a low fee, and once they see the value, encourage them to upgrade their package. (But don’t bait-and-switch. Each level should be clearly explained to show the benefits and limitations.)
- Offer fixed price packages. Put together a package that combines everything the customer needs for one fixed price. It’s simple. It’s easy. And customers know they won’t have to reach into their pocketbook to spend more.
- Offer a money-back guarantee. Appeal to customers who want to make sure they’re getting what they paid for.
- Offer financing or monthly payments. Cash flow is a real concern for businesses and consumers alike. By letting people pay over time with either a credit card, financing or monthly payments, you can get more people to say “YES” to your offers.
- Make sure your prospective customers see the value. Will your solution provide a return on investment? Don’t assume your customer will immediately understand all the ways they’ll benefit from your solution. Show how other customers have saved money and improved efficiency. Use real numbers - hard dollars or percentages.
Spring is coming. Walk into your sales opportunities knowing that smart businesses (and smart consumers) will prepare for the rebound of the economy by building better processes, taking advantage of great sales, and getting a competitive edge. There’s a purpose for every season.
Nick Schoeneberger | November 20th, 2008 at 10:12 pm
Excellent article! As a salesperson, I have always dreaded the “well, considering the market - we’re taking a wait and see approach” response. These ideas should help keep those statements from putting opportunities into permanent limbo. I’ve posted some free materials about business development for consulting firms in the current economy that others might also find helpful here: http://www.incortech.com/site/software/deltek/bizdev-secrets/
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Matthew Scott | November 20th, 2008 at 10:16 pm
What a fantastic article.
I sure hope to see more articles from Adrianne.
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fiona | November 20th, 2008 at 10:33 pm
Great post. I’m always amazed by the fighting spirit of entrepreneurs. The successful ones don’t slack off when the going is good either. The farmer analogy is great.
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Wayne Philippe | November 20th, 2008 at 10:34 pm
Insightful article! Thanks for the reminder that a positive attitude is like rain in the desert.
It brings the flowers.
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Joe Dager | November 20th, 2008 at 10:52 pm
Great question and article. What is the fundamental change that would stop me? Do I need to influence fewer or more people today?
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Morgan | November 20th, 2008 at 10:56 pm
Nicely written. We can all use a little looking on the bright side these days. Thanks for the encouragement to observe our business climate, good or not-so-good, and to make the most of it.
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Diane Gasal | November 21st, 2008 at 12:06 am
Thanks for the shift in perspective and helping us look more at the big picture.
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Terry Silberstein | November 21st, 2008 at 12:18 am
I enjoyed the article and love the analogy comparing businesses and sales cycles to farmers and the seasons. What is it Warren Buffet was recently quoted saying? Always do the opposite of the masses - if people are running scared, buy, if people are buying…you know the rest. So, comparitively, when is the time to spend your marketing dollars and implement new marketing strategies? You guessed it, when other people aren’t! Adrienne, I love your down to earth, no nonsense, style. I know what we will be doing when others are saving their marketing dollars and efforts for when time are good….
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Rachel Perlmutter | November 21st, 2008 at 1:34 am
I can’t tell you how often I hear people saying that based on the economy, they have frozen all spending and planning until they “see what the economy is going to do”. I think this article does a great job at pointing out that if you wait until Spring comes to be ready for Spring, you’re in trouble! Good analogy and good message!
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Alan Baumbach | November 21st, 2008 at 4:22 am
I have had the pleasure of knowing and working with Adrianne for about two years now. Her insight and wisdom has been invaluable! This post just validates my own experience with Adrianne.
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Pauline | November 21st, 2008 at 8:34 am
This was a nice reminder that business will go on, and we need to figure out how to keep ours going! Great article.
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Karmen Rumachik | November 21st, 2008 at 9:46 am
Loved it! This is the time to be looking at “spring”. It’s coming and our businesses need to be positioned for it.
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Morgan Harris | November 21st, 2008 at 10:42 am
Very insightfull. I am going to use this analogy in the next sales conversation I have.
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Alex Merino | November 21st, 2008 at 11:26 am
Very informative. Excellent marketing advice.
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Bill Pollie | November 21st, 2008 at 12:05 pm
There is great selling power in optomism and positive thinking. Discussing value is never more important than it is right now. We are all pausing to make sure our own houses are in order and now is a good time to invest in new tools that will better position us to take advantage of future upturns. Nice work Adrianne! Will I pass this along? You betcha….
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Ken Partain | November 21st, 2008 at 1:24 pm
Great analogy Adrianne. The tendency is for people to pull back when sales slow down, but if they will continue to market to their target audience effectively, when the harvest comes it will be a very nice one. And the competition will be wondering what happened.
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Richard Daugherty | November 21st, 2008 at 2:01 pm
Loved the farming analogy. Very well stated. Will use this in future. Good job!
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John Buchanan | November 21st, 2008 at 3:46 pm
Nice work Adrianne, we need to look at this difficult time in our economy as an opportunity to reflect on ways to do things more creatively and efficiently. Keep these ideas coming!! John
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Jeff Oh | November 21st, 2008 at 6:34 pm
You are right, even though the DJI is below 8000 I am pretty sure the sun will come out tomorrow. I better get busy on my pipeline
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Sandra Lee | November 23rd, 2008 at 7:12 pm
Adrianne’s points - “On Purpose” - are spot on! People forget that what we focus upon over time, with emotion, we create. Planning is one of those focus points many have lost and some have never learned.
Postive thoughts do little if the underlying foundation of beliefs is more constantly negative. We are ultimately “right” about what we believe because we literally “make it so.” Like the analogies in Andrianne’s post.
If you doubt it, just look around at your life. It is all just a mirror reflection of everything you do believe in. What we resonate with.
Abundance? Lack? Doubt? Certainty? Whether it’s abundance at all odds, or otherwise, it is present in our day to day living because we do believe in it more than all the rest.
A hard idea for some folks to accept! Outcomes always tell!!!
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Giuseppe Ianni | November 24th, 2008 at 10:37 am
I like this outlook on the sales cycle. I find certain times of the year in the software industry to be busy and have learned to roll with the ups and downs. It’s nice to be reminded that us A’s don’t always have the best way of doing things!
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Cheryl Strege | November 24th, 2008 at 1:06 pm
Great article, Adrianne. I especially liked your point about the money back guarantee. We all “abide” by that - we want happy customers and if they’re not, we either make them happy or allow them to find someone who will. So promoting a money-back guarantee isn’t all that scary - and it could reassure our buyers when they’re on the fence.
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Tom Anton | November 26th, 2008 at 9:16 pm
very insightful. a good reminder to remember the bigger picture.
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Joan Buchanan | December 12th, 2008 at 9:00 pm
Really focused well on the “down time” strategies. Nice reality check on the practical actions too.
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MarketingTwins-Randy | December 16th, 2008 at 10:55 pm
1. - this one is hard because you give it away - but there is reward
2. simplicity makes this one . . . SIMPLE!
3. just the offer says something . . . how many people cash in? Probably not many. So what’s the risk - do it.
4. Cash is king right now so this makes sense.
5. this is hard for marketing types like me - the hard numbers is a hard one to get it because I feel like the client will assume I’m talking about guaranteed results and they’ll expect the moon!
Hey, @amachina, loved the post! Keep ‘em coming!
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