The Cake Shop.
That was it!
We suddenly saw it.
We rushed to our telephone directories;
and started looking for all the cake shops around London,
furiously calling them.
They were going to be our next source of gold.
Finding a new lead source is amazing.
Sales is about figuring out who needs your product.
We suddenly realized that cake shops and bakeries would be a perfect fit.
It was 1990, and we sold electronic display signs.
Shops put the display sign in their window,
and put special offers on it, so the people walking past would come in.
We had sold to butchers, “fresh lamb today”, it would flash across the screen.
Video stores, “3 videos for 99pence” (Video stores were Netflix before Netflix)
While it now seems obvious that cake shops would have cakes at the end of the day, "after 5:00 p.m. half-price cakes".
It didn't strike us until we realized.
And our pitch was clear:
Hello, Cakeshop, “Would you like to sell all your cakes every day? Would you like to make sure that you maximize your profits?”
Benefit selling, not feature selling.
And it sold like hotcakes. (See what I did there?)
Our product didn’t get any better or different.
We just figured out how it would benefit a particular person or industry.
Stop looking at your product as a product;
think about how it can help a business or a person.
Which bakery wants to be left with cakes?
And which human doesn't like half-priced cakes?
We sold a lot.
So when you're thinking about how to get new leads,
Really think about how your product helps.
Think about what other type of industry would need it,
and frame how it helps, and you'll sell a lot.
Then you can even go and buy some full-price cakes
Get out there.
Content of the week:
I just had to.
Everyone needs a Victoria sponge cake.
It's my favourite cake.
Get baking.
