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Your EnterQuest Bulletin - Issue 314
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| Thought for the week: "The trouble with having an open mind, of course, is that people will insist on coming along and trying to put things in it." Terry Pratchett |
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In this week's issue:
Do you have an invisible guarantee?
Usually any customers must overcome a number of risks before buying a product or service. One strategy to eliminate these risks for the customer is to offer a solid guarantee that will make their purchase risk-free, or at least decrease the risk as much as possible.
If you think you don't have a guarantee then you're wrong. Around 99% of all small businesses already have a guarantee - they just don't know or publicise it.
If a customer called to complain that the work you did was unsatisfactory, what would you do to fix the problem? Would you tell them, 'Sorry, we can't fix that for you'. Or, 'Sorry, haven't you heard of buyer beware?' Of course you wouldn't. You would probably offer to repeat the work or replace the product. You would do what it takes to keep the customer happy.
You probably already have a strong guarantee but you don't publicise it because you think that too many of your customers would come back and take you up on it.
If you're already honouring an invisible guarantee then you need to start publicising it. It's a powerful hidden asset in your business that you're not exploiting.
A strong guarantee makes it less threatening for people to consider your offer. You lower the barriers that prevent people from doing business with you. You give them a compelling reason to buy today without fear of looking bad tomorrow. By removing the risk to buyers through guarantees, your business will stand out.
Delivering any product or service is not risk-free, but by shouting about your guarantee you decrease the risk in your prospects' minds and increase their trust and willingness to buy from you.
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The UK Small Business Marketing Bible contains hundreds more tips and tactics for boosting your sales using proven marketing strategies that work no matter what product or service you sell. |
EnterQuest readers can also get their hands on a free copy of our sister publication, BETTER business magazine. Simply send us your name and address to enterquest@cobwebinfo.com, putting 'EQ magazine offer' in the subject box.
Each week we provide you with summaries of some popular or emerging business ideas in the UK and elsewhere around the world.
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Customisable magazines. A readership initiative from publishers Time and American Express enables readers to pick and choose content from eight publications (Time, Sports Illustrated, Food & Wine, Real Simple, Money, InStyle, Golf and Travel + Leisure magazines) to create their own tailored magazine.
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Meal-making and cookery skills from Jamie Oliver. Jamie Oliver's bid to teach the nation how to cook shows no signs of abating. He has now opened two high street buy-and-cook stores called Recipease where customers buy prepared ingredients and assemble a meal in-store, then take it home to cook. Ready-to-go meals are also available.
Regularly improving your vocabulary is not just about learning a new word and its meaning. It will improve your general knowledge and make you feel and act smarter in all sorts of personal and business situations.
Do you know the meaning of the word 'bumptious'?
a) too serious and disapproving
b) easily upset
c) extremely careful
d) unpleasantly confident
Answer at the end of the Bulletin.
The following topical business issues have been recently reported in the media. Did your radar pick them up?
1) Producers in the drinks industry have started canning, rather than bottling, which of the following alcoholic drinks in a bid to attract younger drinkers?
a) real ale
b) wine
c) ready-mixed cocktails
d) vintage cider
2) A Which? survey has revealed that supermarkets are making daft substitutions for out-of-stock products (such as vanilla air-freshener for vanilla ice-cream) when customers shop online. Which of the following supermarkets is the most likely to swap products?
a) ASDA
b) Ocado
c) Sainsbury's
d) Tesco
3) A survey commissioned by software and applications firm Citrix online has revealed that one in five employees would be willing to take a pay cut if it means they can benefit from which of the following?
a) flexible working
b) access to a company car
c) health insurance
d) a guaranteed annual bonus
Answers at the end of the Bulletin.
Tips on after-sales etiquette
This article provides hints and tips on building relationships with customers or clients after you've successfully pitched to them. The article emphasises the need to maintain an interest in the customer and demonstrate your enthusiasm for your product or service, even after a deal has been agreed.
Guide to business resilience
This guide contains hints and tips on how to plan for getting a business back on track after a significant event such as a fire or flood. It highlights areas for consideration and provides guidance on assessing risks and the management and testing of plans.
Tool to help businesses monitor business blog comments
Blogpulse is a handy tool that enables businesses to monitor what has been said about them, their industry or sector, by whom and when. It can also help track what has been said about competitors too.
Keep track of time spent on projects
Timeloc is a handy widget ideal for freelancers and small businesses struggling to keep track of time spent on a job or project. It records the time spent, enabling users to bill clients more accurately.
Win a web-based shopping cart worth £300
EnterQuest has teamed up with Actinic to offer a 12-month hosting package worth over £300 including VAT.
Actinic Express is an easy-to-use, web-based shopping cart that includes everything you need to set up your own online e-commerce shop and manage it via a web browser.
And because it is web-based, you can run the store from a Mac or PC. No programming or design skills are necessary.
Whether you're a new start up or a business looking to expand, Actinic Express will get you trading on the Internet, fast. Key features include:
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A choice of page templates, which can be customised with your logos, fonts, and colour schemes so that each site has its own identity and reflects the look and feel of your business.
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Manage your orders from receipt to shipment and invoicing with the order processing module, and keep customers informed with automatic confirmation e-mails.
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A full range of payment processing options, including PayPal, Google and Actinic's own payment service.
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Google Analytics integration, giving comprehensive monitoring of your site performance.
To win this great prize, just answer the following question:
Q: Following the introduction of the extension to flexible working requests, the Government claimed that how many parents would benefit from the changes?
a) 2.5 million
b) 4.5 million
E-mail your answer, together with your name, address and daytime phone number, using 'Actinic competition' as the subject line, to enterquest@cobwebinfo.com.
All entries must be received by 31 May. Full competition rules are available on request.
This book tells the reader about the business basics of becoming self-employed. It features advice on business planning, researching your market, targeting customers, promotion and how to keep the taxman happy. Check out:
Just one word answer
The answer is d).
Bumptious means unpleasantly confident.
The store owner stood up to the bumptious customer who was intent on getting his money back when he wasn't entitled to do so. |
How's your business radar? The answers
1) The answer is b) - Wine is being canned rather than bottled as the industry tries to attract a younger crowd. According to research, younger people want single-serve cans as they are portable and can be taken on picnics, festivals and trips.
2) The answer is c) - Sainsbury's supermarket is the one most likely to make a substitution, topping the Which? findings with 57%. Other bizarre swaps have included a tin of broad beans for chocolate flakes.
3) The answer is a) - Workers will take a pay cut if it means they can work flexibly, according to the poll. The Government announced in April this year that an extra 4.5 million parents would benefit from changes to flexible working legislation. Some 81% of small businesses say they think flexible working is key to their business success. |
Visit www.enterprisequest.com to access all back issues of the EnterQuest bulletin. If you have any feedback or suggestions for us to make this service more relevant please e-mail your comments to enterquest@cobwebinfo.com.
If you wish to discontinue your subscription to EnterQuest please click on the 'SafeUnsubscribe' link at the bottom of the bulletin.
Remember that we guarantee never to sell or give your e-mail address to anyone else.
Good luck
The EnterQuest Team
This information is meant as a starting point only. Whilst all reasonable efforts have been made, the publisher makes no warranties that the information is accurate and up-to-date and will not be responsible for any errors or omissions in the information nor any consequences of any errors or omissions. Professional advice should be sought where appropriate. |
