Avoid a Summer Sales Slump

Did you ever see the movie "Terminator 3" by Arnold Schwarzenegger?Remember when the machines took over the controls and began toterminate society as we know it?

This is exactly how it feels every Summer for many business owners.

As if your computer somehow sneaks in during the middleof the night and takes over by putting a "Closed for the Summer"sign on your business.

You wake up on July 1 wondering where all the customers are.

My business is no different.

I've just learned to expect it every year and I do somethingabout it before I can be sabotaged.

So, when the beginning of June comes around, I start ramping upfor the Summer months to keep business steady and even on theincrease.

And, here's what I do:

1) Find something in your industry that's timely and write anarticle about it. I'm doing just that with this article as anexample. The fact that sales slump for more small businessowners in the Summer than any other 2-month time of the yearis timely since July is right around the corner.

The article doesn't need to be extensive, maybe 600-800 words,and write as if you're just talking to a friend sitting nextto you.

2) Create a signature line at the end of your article thatinvites readers to visit your web site. Use mine below asan example to write your own.

3) Send your article to your clients or customers by e-mailor even regular USPS. They will appreciate hearing from youand they will be thankful for the timely courtesy.

Plus, any time you can get your name in front of an existingcustomer, you stand a chance of getting additional businessjust by simply reminding them you're still around.

4) Get your article posted on other peoples' web sites andin their on-line newsletters. This might sound like "old hat"if you've been doing business on-line for a while, but the factis that people still turn to the Internet to find information.

5) Submit your article to other peoples' BLOGs. BLOGs areeasy to find because web site owners are always adding themto the front page of their sites so that you can't miss them.

The challenge of owning a BLOG is contributing to it everyday. It's easy to do for the first couple of weeks but thenthat dedication slips.

So, approach a BLOGger with your article and suggest theyinclude it to their BLOG if they ever get in a bind andcan't make a posting of their own one day. Chances are,you'll see your article posted within the week!

6) Submit your article to RSS feeds. RSS stands for "RealSimple Syndication," which essentially means you add yourarticle to the list once and it will appear on potentiallyhundreds of other peoples' web sites. Search Google for"rss articles submission" to get you started.

7) Have something ready on your web site to inspire anynew visitors to get more involved with your business. I'mnot saying put the hard sell on them. Just offer someway for them to discover more about how you can help them.

Provide more articles for them to read. Maybe add a sound fileor two. Have a newsletter subscription area. Offer a freetele-seminar or webinar. Be creative but captivating. Havea definite answer to the question, "How can my new website visitors benefit from being on my web site for anothercouple of minutes?"

Follow these seven steps and there's a good chance you willnot only increase your web site visitors with targeted traffic,but that visitation could happen more quickly than you mightexpect.

So, don't allow your potential sales for this year's Summer months to be "terminated" before they even have a chance to happen.

Take action this week and July and August could turn out to betwo of your best sales months yet.

Marty Dickinson started the company HereNextYear in1996 and has helped hundreds of small business owners to use the Internet to increase sales through web site designand on-line promotion. He is also a national speaker andauthor of the book, "Winning the Internet Dogfight." VisitHereNextYear.com,for more timely tips by Marty.