By Lin Stone

When you develop the power to make sales you can send your career soaring to the top.  Where others may have to change careers four, five, even ten times in the course of their life, with SALES POWER under your belt you can keep right on rising while those around you are scrambling in a mad effort to retrench. The only way to get ahead is to do the things you need to do before you need to.  This is your cue to learn the basics.  Learn them like others shun to do. In this section you will receive the basic training you need to make sales, and make the written word sell for you just as surely as if you were there to voice them yourself.

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Since my forte is WEB BASED, let's start off with PRODUCT DESCRIPTION. Product Descriptions can be Your Greatest Selling Tool! Most online store owners don't realize the tremendous sales power their "Product Description" hold.  Most owners seem to feel that just because they own a "Retail Online Store" they are licensed to just stick up the factory descriptions because their buyers expect the norm.  They are WRONG!  You need to grab your readers’ attention, and the right kind of attention.  You need to realize that a product description is much more than just a "Product Description".  It is your "SUPER SALESPERSON" at work. Yes, good graphic images of your products are very important But it is your words that will convince a buyer to buy your product.  But you need the right words...POWERFUL words, to make the sale!  You need to arouse emotion in your buyer.  You have to show every prospect know how your product is going to benefit them......IMMENSELY! You are always in competition to sell your products, even when you have a unique product your customer has the option that some other solution will fit his needs. If the price is lower, if the hype is higher, you could lose out on this sale, and all the other subsequent sales that would have flowed unto you if only you had made that first sale. Chances are, no matter what you're selling online, there's always going to be someone else selling the same item at a lower price.  And you never want to get suckered into a price war because in the end, someone will be selling the product for nothing. So what do you do?  YOU SELL!  You sell with WORDS!  You become the SUPER salesperson you need to be.  It's not that difficult.  If you have gone at this right you already have this customer on your mailing list.  They've already read several issues of your newsletter.  They're on your email list for specials and promotions.  They've received several FREE downloads from your website that has helped them tremendously.  They know you respond to their concerns in a timely manner.  They know if there's a problem with their purchase they can return it... NO QUESTIONS ASKED.  AND..... Don't Describe Features... Describe Benefits - This is a key in writing and selling effectively.  Buyers want to think they're interested in the features of a product (and naturally they do need to know the basics to be sure it's what they are looking for), but what a buyer is really going to be sold on are the BENEFITS of a product. How will this product make THEIR life easier? What will the look on their Grandchild's face be when they open it? How much time will they save after it arrives on their doorstep? How much more will their spouse appreciate them for buying it? Take, for example, a home stereo system.  Naturally, your customers will need to know the features that the stereo has.  For instance, how many watts?  How many speakers?  The overall size of the unit...  The warranty... The manufacturer....etc., etc., etc,.  But your job as a SUPERB salesperson is to list those features and follow them up with "punch after punch" describing all the benefits of those features.  Create emotion in your readers!  Make them feel like they couldn't live without it!  Here's an example of a "GOOD" description in comparison to a "SUPERB" description::

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****** GOOD DESCRIPTION ****** RCA Home Theatre System With Surround Sound Save big on this RCA home theatre system today! Made of solid oak, this system is guaranteed for 5 year. Comes complete with all wiring and installation video. Features Include: -- 100 watts of power -- DVD/CD Player plays all DVD/CD/CD-R/CD-RW/MP3 -- AM/FM Digital tuning receiver with 40 random preset stations -- Separate controls for front, center, surround speakers, and subwoofer -- On-screen menus and information display -- Parental control function -- Fluorescent display -- Headphone Jack - 6.25mm Phone Jack x 1 -- Left/right/center speaker dimensions (3" driver): 3.5"W x 5.8"H x 4.25"D -- Surrounds speakers dimensions (3" driver): 3.5"W x 5.8"H x 4.25"D -- UL Listed and Approved ------------------------------------------ Not bad.... That tells the customer everything they need to know, right?  This description gives the buyer everything they need to know to make an informed purchase.   PLUS.. it has a pretty impressive list of features.  If you're looking for a nice home theatre system, this is a really great deal!  But let's see if a SALESPERSON could do better by using the same features and selling the BENEFITS of the product too.... *********** SUPERB DESCRIPTION *********** You'll Really Enjoy This Uniquely Designed And Extremely Sophisticated RCA Home Theatre System With Surround Sound!  Best Of All - You Can have It Delivered Right To Your Home In As Little As 3 Days! You and your family will enjoy huge savings on this RCA home theatre system today! This extremely popular system is made of solid oak and backed by a 5 year warranty direct from the manufacturer.   You'll enjoy peace of mind in knowing that your purchase is backed for a FULL 5 YEARS from one of the largest names in the electronics industry! The Solid Oak Construction makes this unit extremely stylish, plus you'll be thrilled to know that a little furniture polish will keep this beautiful system looking brand new for years to come!  With it's exquisite design and rich texture, you'll feel proud when displaying this system in your home.  Similar systems of this quality sell for $100's more with a lot less features. The Premium Features Of This RCA Home Theater System Include: 100 watts of sheer power guarantee you'll never crave more volume when your favorite song comes on the radio.  You'll be dancing and singing to your favorite songs in no time... and feel like you're in the middle of a concert hall! The built in DVD/CD components play all types of media including CD-R, CD-RW, And MP3.  You'll be able to burn your favorite music to any CD and enjoy it at your leisure.  Plus think of all the money you'll be able to save by burning your favorite music.  If you're a Napster or online music club member, you'll be able to download your favorite music to disk and play it with incredible sound and clarity!  And don't forget the MP3 feature!  Digital playback with your favorite music, all in stereo surround sound! This unit also features an AM/FM digital tuning receiver ( that's digital - not what most are used to in a receiver) and also comes with 40 random preset stations.  While many systems on the market feature 10 or 20 preset stations, you'll have a system with 40 presets to enjoy!  You could let the whole family preset some of their favorite stations and still have a few left over! You'll also have the added luxury of not only FRONT controls, but you be able to control the front, center, surround, and subwoofer individually.  You'll never have to worry about where to place all those speakers to get "True" Surround Sound Quality!  With so many available controls to take advantage of, you be able to finely tune this system with ease, and feel like you're in the middle of a concert.  It's that efficient! And here's a real treat!  Not only will you have a remote control and touch button capabilities, you'll also have the added luxury of "ON SCREEN" menus and information display.  Now that's a real nice feature that you just don't find on most systems these days.  No more going blind trying to see the small controls on the unit itself, instead you'll read each and every command easily directly on your television... Now that's a feature you just can't be without! Are you worried about your children's programming?  Well fear no more!  This RCA unit has built in Parental Controls as an added feature!  Mom or Dad can set it... and forget it!  Choose which channels you'd like to block, and you'll never have to worry about the little ones viewing a program they shouldn't.  That's peace of mind that no parent should be without! How many times have you been caught up in a movie or your favorite program and wanted to know the time?  So, you need to get up, turn on a light, and check the clock on the wall.  Or, maybe you're lucky enough to have a VCR in the room and it has the time displayed (but is it the correct time)?  Well, RCA has taken some of that aggravation away by including a florescent display on both the remote control and Sound System itself!  With the SUPER high quality sound this system provides, chances are there's going to be times when you'd like to BLAST your favorite music, but unfortunately someone close by is trying to concentrate on something else!  Now, that's OK too because this Ultra Modern System comes with a Headphone Jack (6.25mm Phone Jack x 1 ) so you can plug in your favorite headphones.  Sit back, put your feet up and relax to your favorite tunes without disturbing a soul! And you'll love this feature as well!  Left/right/center speaker dimensions (3" driver): 3.5"W x 5.8"H x 4.25"D and Surrounds speakers dimensions (3" driver): 3.5"W x 5.8"H x 4.25"D mean that you're getting a system that's not only compact and discrete, but also big enough to handle the power! Because the system is also UL Listed and Approved means no worrying about a wire short circuiting or causing a fire from overheating.  Everything's been thoroughly tested to the strictest of standards and is 100% safe for your use.... Even if you turn it up REALLY LOUD! And last but not least, The best part of the whole package is it comes complete with each and every wire and connector you're going to need to get setup in lightning fast speed!  And if you're worried about getting your system setup and playing, forget about it!  RCA really goes out of their way to provide quality products and they want to make sure that you get your system setup and playing as soon as you open the box.  So, they've even included a Video to watch that will show you how to setup your system correctly, with ease, without any worries.  Yes it's true... most systems with this many features can be quite expensive, but through this special offer we've drastically reduced the price to our first time buyers. ---------------------- Do you see the difference in a GOOD description and a SUPERB description.  Granted, I just wrote that description in about 3 minutes and left out the close, but I deliberately used the same features for both.  Do you see the PUNCHING POWER in the second set of words.  Do you see the POWER that will be yours when you begin selling "BENEFITS"?  Remember this, if you set out to sell features, it's features your buyer will read in every word you write.  But, if you set the tone to sell BENEFITS, your buyers will read with their minds recognizing the emotional satisfaction you are describing more than all the logic in the features, and that my friends is what makes the sale -- on the web, and off.

the end

Bio:  Lin Stone is the author of thirty three books
and has published numerous articles in magazines
and on the web. His home base is established in
Noble, Oklahoma but he travels extensively to
fulfill his writing obligations. StoneSoup provides
a long list of those articles and books of his that
you can pick up for free.

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