Marketing Without Sounding “Salesy”

Marketing is vital for nearly every business. Whether it’s cold calling, social media advertising, or giving some type of a business-pitch presentation, you always want to assure that your business is coming off as genuine.

The consumer buying process has changed drastically and sounding “salesy” (even when you aren’t trying to be) can halt progress for any company and prevent you from meeting your marketing objectives.

This blog post is part of "Your Definitive Guide to Lead Nurturing" blog series.

HERE ARE A FEW TIPS FOR GRINDING THE SALESY TONE OUT OF YOUR MARKETING CAMPAIGNS:

1. Identify your audience.

Knowing the needs of potential customers will make it easier for them to connect with your business.

Essentially, this means don’t waste your time; focus on a target audience that will be interested in your product. You’re better off fishing in a lake than a desert oasis, right?

In addition, knowing your audience will allow you to set their interest as a priority. Having their best interest in mind will guarantee a more genuine marketing effort, I assure you.

2. Be honest and establish rapport.

The stereotype of an aggressive and rude salesperson is what pushes people away from them. Customers don’t want to feel like targets.

Personalized messages and outstanding customer service create a connection between you and the customer, therefore putting the customer in a more comfortable position to stay and listen.

Also, it comes without saying that you should never lie about your services or products. Losing credibility can be detrimental to company reputation and customers will be unsatisfied later when they realize they are not getting what they were promised.

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3. List your value to your customers.

Any good business marketing will indicate why a product/service is relevant and valuable to the needs of a consumer. Is it summer on a beach in Mexico? Then of course, an ice-cold Corona with lime is exactly what you need!

After that, all you need to do is listen. Listening allows the customer to know that you genuinely want to help them. Whether your business offers a product or a service, it’s important to point out the value of your product.

In every pitch, consider:

What is the customer looking for?

How is your product/service better than others on the market?

Why should he or she trust you?

4. Pick up on social cues.

If you’re pitching to a potential client or customer, see where the conversation leads you.

Some companies are all about sales. Unfortunately, this approach is not the most comforting for a customer. Don’t be that company. Take note of a lead’s social response to your pitch. If your customer or client is busy/unavailable, don’t insist. Instead, ask if there’s a better time to call back.

Being human is a huge part of making sales connections. Customers are 10x more likely to purchase from a company they trust than someone relentlessly pushing to buy.

5. Know your stuff and be confident.

Keep in mind the ultimate goal is to be knowledgeable, informative, and provide a reason for your customer to pay for a product or service. If the customer believes this product will help solve a problem or improve their lives in some way, they will naturally want to purchase it.

A salesman’s most important rule is to be persuasive without being pushy.

Do you have any tips for not sounding salesy that we may have missed? Let us know in the comments section below. (: 

And to further boost your marketing strategy, down our free guide for 30 more lead generation tips, tricks and ideas.