Whether you're running an online business or not use these 7 steps of selling to increase sales and conversion rates.

1. Build rapport.

People won't spend money with you if they don't like you (unless of course you're the government). Find something in common with your prospects to make them feel like you have something in common. The more comfortable a prospect feels with you the more likely they are to give you their trust and their business.

2. Find a need.

The biggest reason people don't buy things is because they don't think they need them. Ask your clients questions to figure out what their needs are. A good way to start this conversation is to ask "What's your biggest problem?". What's you know what your prospect needs it will be easier to sell to them.

3. Build value.

Build value by comparing the cost of alternative solutions to solving your prospects problem or meeting their need. If you're able to do it faster, better, cheaper you'll win their business. It's up to you to "toot your own horn" and tell them what makes you the right choice.

4. Create desire.

The best way to sell things is to lead your prospect to a logical conclusion. If it makes sense to do business with you --- you've won their business. To do this you need to create a solid core story. A core story is all about a series of problems and solutions. In the end if your company provides the solutions to the problems your prospect is facing you won't even need to ask for their business.

5. Overcome objections.

If you made it through the first four steps of selling overcoming objections will be fairly easy. One of the most common objections you're going to get at this point is price. Overcoming a price objection is as easy as asking someone if it's the only reason they're not doing business with you. If your prospect truly can't afford what you're selling lower the price or make a payment plan for them.

6. Closing the deal.

There are several popular ways to close deals. I like assumptive closes. Assumptive closes assume you've done all the above step and the person is not going to say no to buying your product. An example of an assumptive close is asking someone how many of an item they'd like to purchase or asking them something like "Would you like the red one or the blue one?".

7. Follow up.

Customer acquisition is the most expensive part of doing business. Many businesses only become profitable if there customers routinely come back to buy from them a second time. It's much easier to sell someone a second time than it is the first time so don't forget about your customers after they've purchased from you. Follow up with them regularly and continue to build on the relationship.