Why can't small businesses sell?

Why is it that when you put a business owner behind a stall to sell their wares to Joe Public, that they just can’t sell?

I had a fun family day out today, dodging the downpours and gutsy winds.  It was the Haslemere Christmas Fair and the place was packed.  Well organised and with a great atmosphere, there were dozens of stalls selling everything from fresh meat to homemade Xmas decorations and gorgeous jewellery to the obligatory olive stalls.

But what amazed me, was the amount of business many of the stall holders just didn’t get. 

Without fail, each stall holder stood behind their stall, waiting for potential customers to engage with them.  What a wasted opportunity!  I was picking up jewellery, admiring handbags and not once, did I get a “Hi, so the … has caught your eye.  It is a well made item, isn’t it?” or something to that effect.

Engaging passer-byers in conversation is essential to convert the “lurkers” to “paying customers”.  And observing these stall holders today, made me think of us, as home business owners.  When was the last time you engaged with the people who are passing your stall? 

And if we bring it right down to critical business basics – what is your website doing?  How are you engaging with visitors online?

So, maybe my original question of “Why can’t small businesses sell?” should be re-framed.  Perhaps it should be “How can small businesses engage more effectively with their passing trade?”

What do think?  Add your thoughts and answers to this question in the comment box below.  Don’t be shy!  What a great way to get people to engage with your weblinks

Comments

[Elizabeth]

I'm building my business site, WahmBytes: Website Success for Work at Home Mums, with my friend and colleague Claire who lives in Bulgaria (while I sit here in Norwich - isn't the Internet great!). We've added bits of our own 'chat' to the site, to try and show visitors that we're human, and are busy juggling our lives just like they do. We hope it makes people smile.. Here's an example... http://www.wahmbytes.co.uk/about-us.html

[Lisa Corcoran]

It would be great to engage with visitors online but in order to do this you have to first get them to your website which is a monumental task in itself. You can have the best website in the world but without the traffic you might as well be invisible. I think what I want to know is "How do you get visitors to your website in order to sell to them when you are on a tiny budget?"

Lisa (http://www.timecapsulegifts.co.uk)

[Kirsten Gronning]

How can small businesses engage more effectively with their passing trade? A mega question! Is it often a matter of we small business owners reminding ourselves on a daily basis ‘Mine is a brilliant product ’ or ‘I offer a cost-effective and valuable solution to their pain’ - and then making sure that this message is effectively passed onto our ‘passing trade’ by way of effective selling which really does show how we can relieve pain or provide pleasure and then asking for the business. It sounds so simple ;)