A Course in Small Business Miracles
How to use Science and Psychology to
Skyrocket your profits
Psychology and Science are formidable and
innovative forces taking the business
world by storm. And you can benefit enormously from these
forgotten secrets, once the preserve of a powerful elite.
The psychology of negotiation Potential clients are crying out for the one thing so many
businesses fail to provide: They want to be understood!
When you approach prospects, ask them: "Do you have any
situations in your company that our combined expertise can
solve?".
Psychologically, by substituting the word "situations" for
problems, you are more likely to get a positive response. Also,
by using the term "combined or mutual expertise" you are telling
them you respect their valuable knowledge.
Remember Stephen Covey's advice from his groundbreaking book:
"The 7 Habits of Highly Successful People" - Seek first to
understand, then to be understood.
So tell your clients you want to really understand their needs
above everything else, and you'll be so far ahead of your
competition, they'll be left scrambling in the dust.
A long forgotten response secret Philippa Davies, psychologist and expert in communication
skills to heads of state and business leaders, says: "People
respond more to what they are going to lose than to what
they are going to gain."
She adds: "It's very powerful when you explain to prospects they
will probably lose market share to their main competitors if they
don't adopt your ideas." Ask yourself: What will my customers stand
to lose if they do not buy my service or product?
Powerful scientific discovery
Science discovered the human brain finds lists of features
boring - we switch off. So be creative and turn your service or
product into a picture! This secret technique is used in memory
retention strategies.
For example, do you sell hotel rooms at $100 a night?, or do you
sell Romantic Vacations with 4-Poster Beds and Champagne on Ice!
Never sell a generic product or service. Create your own
appealing picture, sit back, and watch your sales soar.
Pretty picture
Did you know you'll increase your sales by using appealing
photographs of typical users on your packaging?
Why is this? Well, it humanizes your product or service and
prospects perceive you to be more professional and
trustworthy.
You can also take advantage of this powerful tip for your
promotional brochures and website. For one-person home-based businesses, always include your photo on
your letterhead and other sales literature.
Priceless pricing secrets
Let's take a closer look at pricing for success. Psychologists
tell us that prices ending in "7" sell more than prices ending in
"9", for example, $1.97 will probably be more powerful than
$1.99. Do you use this technique? Test it and see.
Do be aware that if you sell a prestigious product or
service,
this will "cheapen" its image, so avoid this strategy for
expensive products.
You can also lower your price if customers buy larger
quantities. For instance, $40 for one or $97 for 3.
Yet another powerful psychological pricing strategy
is using a technique that appears to lower the value
of your product.
For example, if you charge $500 per year for your service,
you can offer this for "less than $10 per week". It's the
same
price eventually; however, can you see why this is more
appealing? $10 will attract more immediate attention than a
whopping $500.
21st century impostors
Evolutionary Psychology tells us our hunter-gatherer instincts
make us take risks only when we encounter danger. Interestingly,
the maximum size of these hunger-gatherer groups was a maximum of
150 people. Therefore, larger businesses need to break down their
workforce into smaller groups of people.
To quote Richard Koch, we are 21st century impostors driven by
Neolithic genes. Business units of less than 50 people have
proved to be very effective.
People are also charmed by status and responsibility. So create
special positions for your staff, for example, Leader of Team A,
and acknowledge special achievements with regular awards.
And don't forget to address that risk aversion factor in us all.
Make sure you have the best guarantees of satisfaction around.
When you take away the risk of buying your product or service,
you'll encourage more people to become your customers.
Be Creative
Wallace D. Wattles, in his 1910 classic text, "The Science of
Getting Rich" also emphasises the point of becoming rich by being
creative and not competitive. This is supported by business guru,
Richard Koch, who quotes Soviet Scientist, G F Gause and his
interesting experiments on small organisms. The results show the
business world that it cannot expect to prosper if it competes in
the same market place as a competitor.
If your competitor can invade you, and you can't reciprocate,
then you are in deep trouble. Therefore, don't start a business
where you can't enter some of your competitor's markets but it
can enter all of yours.
The big secret for any small business is to specialize in an
area where you are substantially different from your rivals and
put all your energy and resources into those areas.
The greatest secret finally revealed
Wallace D. Wattles, in his 1910 classic text, "The Science of Getting Rich",
and Robert Collier, in his amazing book, "Secret of the Ages", give away
the following secrets:
(1) Form a precise image in your mind of what you want to
achieve.
(2) Then comes the big secret: Believe, really believe, that
you'll reap the rewards you are asking for.
(3) Practice gratitude daily for all the great new ideas and
successes that are coming your way.
(4) Finally, set about putting into place the vehicle to achieve
what you are thinking about. If this is your business, then do
all you can each day, effectively, so you are putting yourself in
a position to receive what you are asking.
And that's it! You really do become what you think about!
A future of growth When you start to apply these groundbreaking principles in
your business, you'll experience unprecedented levels of
growth.
About the Author: Brian Li is head of the UK's Business Growth Centre.
Discover how to get virtually every job you apply for and
a host of incredible secrets to skyrocket your sales:
http://www.businessgrowthcentre.com
Copyright (c) 2003 Brian Li
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