Do people want what you have to offer?

The reason most entrepreneurial ventures fail? They overestimate the number of people that will buy what they are selling. So, if increasing sales is an immediate concern of yours, then consider which of the following issues you may have:

• Potential buyers don't want what you have. Period.
• You haven't clearly defined the benefits of what you are selling to potential buyers.

The facts are readily available indicating whether anyone is visiting your website, how many are actively inquiring about your services, who is responding to your advertising, referring others to you, attending your events, and ultimately if people are buying. However, it may also be assumed that there are potential buyers out there wanting what you have, but they just don't know you have it. How can you determine which it is?

Ask yourself the following four key questions.

1. What is your compelling offer?
2. What is your benefit statement?
3. Do people really know what you do?
4. Does it resonate?

If you are sure that you have a valuable offering, then quantify it. Use Google Analytics to measure activity and track traffic to your website. Measure direct mail, advertising and marketing responses by asking everyone who responds how they heard about you and match this to your sales conversions. Track the number of referrals you are receiving. Conduct a survey using SurveyMonkey.com (free) as well as formally ask clients a series of questions about your offering and messaging. Draw conclusions from your trending sales data.

If people aren't buying, consider changing your messaging. If your offering isn't compelling enough, then change it. After you analyze and quantify the value of your services and the compelling nature of your messaging, you will have direction and the hard data to back it up.