My First Rule of Business: Make it Easy for People to Give You Money

My first rule of business is: Make it easy for people to give you money. I know that sounds trite but there are plenty of businesses that make it too hard to give them money. I’ve had it happen many times and I’m sure you have too.

It may be cultural, it may be the inability to put oneself in the shoes of the customer, it may be technology, it may be cost. But removing barriers to allow people to give you money, easily, is, to me, fundamental to business.

Below I discuss some specific things I have in mind in this area.

Here are ten sub-topics to the main topic of making it easy for people to give you money. See how they apply to your business. Then make it easier for people to give you money.

1. Is it clear what you are selling? You may think so, but is it clear to your potential customers?
2. Do you offer too many options? A few options are good. Too many and customers tend to just shut down.
3. Is your value proposition compelling? It needs to be or why would people buy from you?
4. The confused mind says no. This is a truism pointed out to me years ago by a good salesman. When people are confused, they will not buy.
5. Do people know, like and trust you? People will only buy from people or companies they know, like and trust. These are foundational to making a sale.
6. Is your website easy to navigate? If not, people tend to give up very quickly. Again, the confused mind says no.
7. Is your e-commerce function easy to use? If you’re doing web sales, your e-commerce function needs to work easily every time. How many times have you given up trying to buy something online? I know I have many times and I’ve just gone elsewhere. Somebody lost a sale.
8. Are you responsive? Customers are used to not waiting. Try sending an email to an American company and a German or French competitor. The European companies will typically be slower to respond or, often, not respond at all. It might be language but I don’t think so. It seems to me it is more cultural.
9. If you’re in a service business, are you available to your clients? If they are paying for you, they want access to you.
10. Finally, do you tailor your means of payment to accommodate your customers? I’ve seen restaurants who don’t accept credit cards; the main means of payment for food service. Do customers want you to accept PayPal? Should you have a Square account? Whatever payment method customers want, give it to them.

Make it easy for people to give you money. Then smile and put your hand out. Remember to say thank you.