10 Things You Need to Know About Selling Services Online
Updated: Jun 18, 2024
Expert Panelists are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within the areas of Business, Mindset, Leadership, Innovation, Technology and Lifestyle. In Brainz Expert Panel, 10 members of The Brainz Magazine community of experts will share their best tips, advice, ideas, hacks within different topics.
1. Know Your Target Market Intimately
There is a big misnomer that selling anything online is easy and will reap you a lot of monetary rewards. In fact, when you are selling anything online being a product or service, you have to realize that there are specific rules to follow to help you become more successful.
The first rule is that you need to know your target market intimately. So many digital marketers try to market to everyone, hoping that will throw up a Facebook Ad or post on their social media account and everyone will buy their product. This will only lead to disappointment.
To truly be relevant in the online space, you must niche down and know your target audience well, and then create compelling content that will draw your target audience towards you, and ultimately create intimacy between you and your target audience. When your target audience knows, likes, and trusts you in the online world, they will make the decision to purchase whatever product or service you are selling. Trevor Folgering, Biohacking Weight Loss Coach
2. Be Yourself
There is only one strategy that can work almost every time and in the long-term regardless of trends. That way, that strategy is simple - be yourself. Now, you may wonder what being yourself has to do with sales. Well, it is a known fact that when you’re selling something, you’ve got to sell yourself as much as you have to sell the product; people buy stuff from people they feel a liking for. That liking, the genuine feeling, comes when they relate to you and that can only happen when you are being authentic. Paula Orezi, Author, Speaker & Coach
3. Establish a Presence Online
It is essential to establish a presence online, especially if you are selling services. Testimonials, for instance, give you the power to tap into reaching people at an emotional level. It is social proof that can be validated for customer/client's needs. And of course, not forgetting search engine optimization (SEO). What would we do without it? Its primary purpose is to increase organic traffic and naturally attract people who have an interest in the product or service you are trying to sell...
4. Story is Everything
When it comes to selling services or products online, story is everything. Stories not only have the potential to engage your audience's minds...but also their hearts. Gone are the days of impersonal ads. Today's buyer is sophisticated and looking to get behind your mission. Be sure you know your WHY and share it! Susan Eckert, Confidence Coach for SoulEmpowered Living
5. Connection Remains Your Biggest Asset
Just because you are selling online doesn't mean you can take the person out of the process. Connection remains your biggest asset. There's always someone else selling what you sell, but prove you care more than the $ and you'll be remembered. Use your marketing to ensure the selling is the transaction, not the convincing,
Sara Wisniewski, Business and Mindset Coach
6. Shift From Convincing to Collaborating
Convincing someone to buy your product or service takes a lot of effort and often doesn’t even work. When you shift from convincing your prospects to collaborating with the prospects, they sell themselves into working with you. When you sell a Plan, not the Product, you’ll stay authentic, and feel caring and connected with the prospect throughout the closing of the sales.
7. Believe in What you are Doing
It is important that whatever product or service that you are offering is what you absolutely want to do and you know the impact of the product and service. This matters first because if you believe in what you are doing, it is easier to communicate and stand behind your offering in front of your potential client. This is what makes sales. Ana Goncalves, Leadership & Business Mentor
8. Focus on Value
Selling is not actually selling, it’s ‘valuing’. Value is all anyone wants when you are a person of service, product or personal brand. When you give value to someone they are already sold.
Shane Mulgrew, Peak Performance Coach for Entrepreneurs
9. Focus on What it DOES
Resist the temptation to tell your audience what your service IS (aka all the bells and whistles) instead of what it DOES. Frankly, people don’t care about what you’re selling. Their only concern is if what you’re selling can solve their problem. All buying decisions are first and foremost, emotional decisions. Describing the benefits and outcome of what you are selling speaks to them on an emotional level.
Anne Ryder, Marketing Consultant & Graphic Designer
10. Be Unapologetically Expressed
Many traditional business strategies teach that you should speak to someone's pain and have a target niche. In my framework, we teach people to be unapologetically expressed so that your communications either attract or repel with total clarity and zero manipulation. I like to say that our full expression is "God's filter" and it will bring our perfect customers without needing to "hook" them. Just be the expert that you are, show up and serve!
Perri Chase, Creator of Magic Led Business Framework
