The last few articles have hopefully given you a few ideas on how to improve your sales techniques. Now it’s time to step up a level, and consider the Internet.

This is the big one. It may be about the unknown. It’s about making the jump and actually trying some of the stuff we’ve been talking about previously. The core of all this activity is your web site - it ties together all of the things described below. I’ve jotted down a list of some things to consider - I’ve started with the basics, but there’s a lot of good stuff here (if you’ve done all of the things below, put your feet up and congratulate yourself on your success!).

1. Get a Web Site!

   If you don’t have a web site, get one. Make sure that your web site name (known as a domain name) is short enough to appear in paper adverts without people mistyping it. Remember, many of your potential customers(regardless of age) will now go to Google in preference to the yellow pages

2. Own your own domain Name

   Make sure that YOU own your domain name, not your ISP. At some point (usually after 2 years in the UK), your domain name will expire and will become available on the open market. Make sure you have a mechanism in place to automatically renew it (the last thing you want to happen is for your local competitor to acquire your web site name!)

3. Browse your web site

   Would you buy from your site?. If not why not. Does it truly convey what you stand for? If not then fix it - your web site needs to be consistent with your business

4. Google "Conservatories"

   Go to Google, and search for Conservatories followed by your location. Are you top? Are you in the first page? Are you anywhere? Remember that this is the new yellow pages. A significant number of your potential customers might never find you if you don’t appear in that list. Of course, I’m sure you advertise in local papers, but a percentage of the population never opens a local paper (many of them use the internet instead!). And if they see your ad in the paper, there’s a good chance they’ll look you up on the internet BEFORE calling you.

5. Revisit your web site

   Remember that customers want information, not just adverts. It's all about THEM not YOU!

6. Learn about Adwords

   If you’re not already using them, this could transform your lead generation. Even if you decide not to advertise on the Internet, you NEED to understand how it works. Buy “Adwords for Dummies” now (which, despite its name is the best book on the subject I’ve found anywhere).

7. Revisit your website

   Do you have testimonials up there?

8. Get some decent advice

   Sadly there are a lot of cowboys in the internet marketing world. If you internet marketing company says they can't measure how well you're doing, change them. I takes a few days or weeks for changes to show - if they claim it could take up to a year that usually means they don't know what they're doing.

9. Revisit your web site (Again!)

   Are you making it easy for your customers to come back to your site? If not, think about adding a "bookmark this page" option

10. Are your receiving all of your customers emails?

    Are you sure all of your customer’s emails are actually getting to your mailbox? Nowadays there are all sorts of junk mail filters, and whilst good, sometimes valid emails get blocked. One email blocked could mean a lost order.

11. Revisit your website

    Are you giving your customers a reason to leave their contact details?

12. Respond to emails PROMPTLY

    People are used to immediacy on the web. If you leave an email a few days before responding, you might be too late to ever take advantage of it

13. Revisit your website

    Can customers email you in a single click?

14. Beware of SEO Claims

    Be very wary of companies claiming to offer search engine optimisation services. Some unscrupulous companies can leave you being totally blacklisted by search engines for weeks or even months. Generally speaking clever tricks usually backfire later.

This is just the start. There are lots more things you could do, including interactive pages, multimedia downloads, blogs etc, but start simple and build up speed.

The fact that you’ve signed up to this mailing list has already singled you out as someone who is keen to develop their business. As with anything in life, improved results require an investment of time and effort. Implementing all of the suggestions above may take months. However, every little thing you do makes it one degree more likely that you’ll pick up extra leads, attract them to you and eventually convert them into customers.

How do I Act on this?

The section above has given you a series of suggestions (actually an action plan!). Some customers have found it helpful to print the list and address one point at a time

I hope you have found this useful - if so please pass it on.

For more free marketing help go to: http://www.profitablehomeimprovement.com