Mcdonald's vs. Lamborghini

What does "sales" mean to you? If you perceive sales as something a person who's a taker does, you will avoid doing sales in your business. If you see sales as something that offers you a new approach or a fresh lease on life, you will not hesitate to sell and share what you have. Sales is considered as a bad word because people see it as someone trying to convince you of buying something you don't want or need and spending money you don't want to. But understand, your company needs sales, without them, your company cannot grow or move forward.

Branding- the process involved in creating a unique name and image. We all know what the McDonald's, Starbucks, and Coca-Cola brands are just by hearing their name or seeing their logo. 

Sales- getting someone to buy your product and getting permission to make their life better. Part of your vision for being an owner is being willing to sell your product, to use the process of enrollment to get people excited about the possibility of their lives improving. Sales, perceived as adding value, and regardless of the industry, from plumbing to daycare to dog walking, is you enrolling people into the possibility that their life can be made better by the product or service you offer.

McDonald's 

Both of these brands have a sales funnel. They both start with a wide range of people being exposed to your product, that's the large wide mouth top of the funnel. As you go down the funnel you lose people so while you may advertise to 1,000 people, there may only be two at the end who buy. In the McDonald's version, they focus on advertising to as many eyes as they can with a clear brand that shows people what they offer. They move people through their funnel by reminding people they exist, using bright colors, memorable branding, and these days, social media. Social media finds brands new people and reminds people who already know of you, that you exist. After social media in the McDonald's sales funnel things like coupons and specials on their website (or landing page) entice people to come to the store and buy. It takes about 21 exposures for a person to see what you're selling and then buy what you're offering. McDonald's spends a lot of money making sure you see their name on billboards, in magazine, social media ads, their website design, on the back of little league shirts, etc. It's a well-defined sales process.

Lamborghini

In the Lamborghini process, they set branding via print ads and they develop and cultivate community amongst people interested in the brand and owners of one of their vehicles on social media. They don't run commercials on television because their target audience attention isn't there. Lamborghini spends more money in fewer places to introduce their brand to people. You use advertising to develop brand and social media to develop community. 

Establish yourself as an expert in the field. No one needs a Lamborghini (or McDonald's) but no one makes a Lambo like Lamborghini. When Lamborghini brings you in to look at one of their cars they have a sales process that includes making you feel comfortable, offering you snacks and drinks, they have comfortable waiting areas, and they plan to spend at minimum, an hour with you. People go in to check out a Lamborghini 3-5 times before buying so their strategy session is about 5 hours long. No one visits McDonald's numerous times nor takes an hour to decide what they want, so their strategy and business model is designed around speed and high turnover.

Think about whether your business is McDonald's or Lamborghini. Where are you driving your customers? What's the sales funnel in your business? Where's your social media engagement driving them and is it effective?