Picking From The Money Tree — Image by © Images.com/CorbisNeed to quickly generate extra cash flow? Here are some promotional ideas you could immediately implement to get prospects off the fence, spending money with you.
Before I go into them, two psychological triggers that get people to immediately take action are getting a bargain or a good deal and the fear of missing out. You must hit both to get a rush of sales.
Here are examples from our clients.
Client imports machinery. Being hit by the falling Australian Dollar which would push up prices, we created a promotion to move old stock and rapidly generate cash-flow.
“Save up to 34% on <items> But only if you order before current stock runs out!
Due to the drop in the Australian Dollar exchange rate, our buy price for <items> has increased.
We’ve held our prices till now, but commercial reality rears its ugly head and we have to pass these costs on.
Prices of <items> are set to immediately rise by up to 34% for new stock coming into the country!
So now’s your chance to buy your <items> from our current stock and save big!”
They then went on to list the old and new prices for each item.
A property investment client raised his price for finding a suitable investment property from $5,500 to $6,695 but allowed prospects to “lock in” the old price by paying a $550 deposit per property.
Here’s the letter we created for them in 2010. I’m including it here so you could model it. I’ve annotated it with my comments.
Dear <Name>
I have good news and bad news.
As you’d know we’ve saved clients like you tens of thousands of dollars or more when it comes to sensible property investment. [ED: Remind them of ROI]
Using our extensive network, knowledge and negotiating experience we’ve hunted down under capitalised and undervalued properties and secured them before they’ve been made available to the general public.
With our service clients have… [ED: Explain their value using descriptive language]
- Benefited from our rigorous evaluation process before we recommend a property. It’s the properties we reject that make us the best.
- Saved thousands on the purchase price as we’ve negotiated great deals for you. (In a recent case we saved our client $44,000 on the purchase price and the property increased in value by $90,000 in a single year). [ED: Proof of ROI]
- Helped you save thousands on renovations (both in material and labour costs), as well as guiding you through the process.
- Bought properties effectively at wholesale prices and secured rents at a retail level (So you immediately get a return on your investment).
- And by buying well, some of our properties have Increased in market value significantly – in some cases upwards of $90,000 in a year.
But most of all, we’ve helped you create customised and detailed strategies allowing you to invest safely, while maximising your returns.
Okay, so what’s the bad news?
Our prices for this valuable service are going up. If fact, we’re already charging the new price of $6996 inc GST to new clients.
So why the price rise? [ED: Give people reasons why something is happening]
As you well know, it’s getting harder and harder to secure undervalued properties. We’re spending more and more time scouring the suburbs and even country towns looking for good buys.
Our main locator, <Name> is now on board full time, and all this costs money. We’ve been absorbing these cost increases for quite a while, but can no longer do so.
But I do have some good news.
As a valued client, we’re going to hold the existing price ($5,500) till the 31st March 2010. [ED: Here’s the valuable deal and scarcity – limited by timeframe]
So I urge you to take advantage of us and beat the price rise. [ED: Call to immediate action – a critical component]
To secure your price, you’ll need to send in signed paperwork with your $550 deposit. Naturally, there is no limit to how many properties you may wish to sign up for – but please bear in mind you must use all the sign ups within a 12 month period.
BTW, after learning and applying our marketing, sales and seminar strategies, the organisation now charges upwards of $9,900 for the same service and people are happy to pay as they get a great ROI.
A couple of points to note.
You may be tempted into going down the discounting route to generate cash. While this can bring in business quickly, there are three caveats.
One: You’re training your prospects and customers to expect lower prices.
Two: It can kill your profitability. A 10% discount on an item where you make a 30% margin means you’d have to sell 50% more to keep the same profit levels. At 25% off you’d need to sell 5 times the amount.
So know your numbers.
Three: Always give a reason why you’re running this promotion. It could be anything from end of financial year, being overstocked, old model run-out to needing money to pay the tax man.
You can read why doing so is so effective in Robert Cialdini’s book, Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion.
Finally, it’s coming up to 30th June, the end of the financial year. Which is a great time to do a promotion. If you’d like help coming up with one and putting it together, call Rashid on 0414-913334 or drop us a note.
