You’ll never believe where I picked up the following sales tips. They were learned in an unconventional way from unconventional teachers. The following wisdom was gleaned from 7 year old girls! Two of them were Girl Scouts. The other 7 year old business mentor? It was my entrepreneurial spirited daughter.
1. Ask For The Sale
Several years back, I was walking into the grocery store on my weekly run when I noticed two adorable girls sitting at a table outside with boxes of cookies everywhere. The girls’ moms were sitting over to the side, looking tired and probably hoping these girls could make some quick sales so they could go home for the day. As I was walking by, one of the girls confidently made eye contact with me and said “Would you like to buy some cookies?”
Sold. Although I’d had no plans of leaving Hy-Vee with Girl Scout cookies that day, when that young lady asked me to buy, I instantly said yes. Trading a few bucks for some boxes of thin mints was a great deal, but watching the eyes of a budding entrepreneur light up when she made a legitimate sale that she had asked for? That was priceless.
In business, asking for the sale is half the battle. So many entrepreneurs are simply afraid to ask someone to make a purchase. In the case of the Girl Scout cookies, the little gal believed in her product and she believed I would receive value back for the money I gave her. So she asked me to buy. And I said yes. Sales Tip #1: Ask For The Sale.
2. Say “Thank You”
After the girls had bagged up my boxes of cookies (notice I bought multiple boxes, because I had been asked to buy) the second little gal handed me a little, white piece of paper. It had been hand trimmed out of a larger piece of paper. The jagged little edges along the sides told me that she had intentionally cut it to the perfect size. Written on the note was “Thack You!!” in all of it’s 7 year old (adorable) misspelled glory. Underneath the words was a hand drawn 5 point star. It was obvious the note had been carefully handcrafted to make buyers feel special.
That little note made me feel so good about my cookie purchase. Years later, it still hangs in my office today, reminding me how important it is to say “Thank You” after a sale. The girls not only brought value with their product, but they also made me feel valued by saying thank you in a special way! It made me want to seek them out in years ahead, so I could buy from them again and again. Sales Tip #2: Say “Thank You.”
3. The Fortune is in the Followup
When my daughter was 7, she and her two younger brothers set up a lemonade stand at the local farmers market. It was a legit (built by their daddy and painted white, red-checkered table cloth, matching logo shirts, fresh squeezed lemonade and mom’s home made cookies) little lemonade stand. “Hedrick Made Lemonade” their adorable hand-painted signed proclaimed.
When opening time hit, you better believe there was a line of folks waiting to buy lemonade from three adorable, tiny entrepreneurs. The kids worked their tails off to serve customers quickly.
When the farmers market was about to close down for the day, a gentleman walked up and ordered a lemonade. The kids filled his order and he handed my daughter, Chloe a $10 bill. I’m not sure how she came up with the following line, but she smiled at the man, thanked him and then sweetly said “Would you like your change back?” instead of “HERE’S your change back.”
I was watching the entire exchange from just steps away. The man turned to me, laughed and said “You’ve got a smart little entrepreneur on your hands!”
The man turned to Chloe. “Yes, I would like change back please.” She smiled and counted out his change. Then he promptly placed several of the dollars back in Chloe’s hand, a hefty tip for his small purchase! Needless to say, he was impressed with Chloe’s entrepreneurial spirit and follow up after the sale was made. Sales Tip #3: The Fortune is in the Followup.
Being an entrepreneur myself, these three business tips have served me well. The fact that I learned them from 7 years olds? Well, it’s wild but true! Asking for the sale, saying “Thank You” and following up are solid steps to help guarantee the success of any business! If you’re an entrepreneur, I challenge you to learn from three 7 year old business girls and put into practice their solid sales tips.
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