Make it easy for people to pay for your services


We all want to purchase things - sometimes we cannot, because we simply do not have the money. People don't necessarily wish to put things on credit cards, and in any situation, for a high-value item a credit card may be wholly inadequate.

Hire buy, leasing, bank loans, and the like might or might not fit the bill either - this is why component exchange was first developed, by Common Motors, as a way of stimulating the secondhand car marketplace and thus (by extension) stimulating the market for new cars.

For some businesses, finding inventive ways for someone to pay for things is really a marketing problem. There's an old joke about two shoe salespeople sent towards the South Seas: following a week, one of them sends a message home saying, "Nobody wears shoes here. Coming house." The other one sends a cable saying, "Nobody wears shoes here. Send two containerloads instantly."

A marketer would cable back saying, "Nobody wears shoes here, but they do grow fantastic mangoes. I have arranged a cope with a cannery on the subsequent island to purchase the mangoes, and using the earnings from this the islanders will probably be able to purchase shoes. I have measured a sample of their feet, and we will need mainly size 8s, wide fitting, but we ought to have around 10 percent of the shipment in 9s and 10 percent in 7s. Women's shoes should be mainly flat-heeled due to the rocky terrain here." This marketer is thinking concerning the customer's needs, not just the company's needs: it is pretty apparent who will do probably the most business.

Not one idea, but numerous, all from Barratt the housebuilding business. Barratt's was founded by Laurie Barratt, who's not a builder in any way but an accountant. Laurie Barratt's contribution to the housebuilding scene in Britain was not so much in the building of the houses, but in inventive methods of paying for them.

Barratt introduced trade-in to the housing marketplace, buying people's existing homes so that they could purchase a Barratt home in one easy transaction. Barratt introduced the concept of selling starter homes already furnished, so that first-time buyers wouldn't have to find the money for a deposit and for furnishing the house all at once.

He introduced a system of lending people the deposits to buy their homes - using a deferred loan that wouldn't be repaid until the homeowner's income permitted. This was a major selling point during the 2008/2009 credit squeeze, when first-time buyers were unable to get mortgages unless they had a substantial deposit.

In 2008 he also introduced a cost guarantee - anyone buying a Barratt house would have the cost guaranteed if they sold within the next three years. Making it simple to pay meant that Barratt went from a standing begin in 1958 to being one of Britain's greatest housebuilders.

Be creative. People can already borrow from their banks - you need to go a step additional. Don't overstretch yourself - offering a top-up loan or deposit is fine, but ideally it shouldn't exceed your profit on the deal.

Make it simple for individuals. If they can get the goods by signing a couple of forms, that's a lot easier than having to go to their bank to borrow money. Consider what individuals are able and willing to pay, and develop your package about that.

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Note: This article was sent to us by: Phoebe Helgin at 01202011

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