This is how you sell 12 cans of Coke

There he was with 12 cans of Albert Heijn cola in a cooler bag. He had stuck his homemade poster on a camping table from Grandma: “Ice cold cola €1” and that was it. The investment: €3.60 and a large sheet of paper. Years ago we had already helped our son on his way with bottles of water, bags of chips and a slick garden plate. But since then he didn't feel much for it anymore. 

Every time with a bit of nice weather we tried it again: “Sit in front of the door if you want to earn some extra”. We live next to the largest parking garage in Scheveningen, on the road to the beach. So the 'P' for place is perfectly fine here. But it wasn't all that necessary.

Why was that motivation there now?

Until this week, when he suddenly lay down until late at night devising his strategy. He knew exactly how to tell. The next morning everything was ready and he cycled to the appie with a fresh shower. What was different this time? The answer was actually quite obvious, he 'needed' something. Money. For a (very special) new Fortnite skin of Dragon ball-Z (which he wouldn't get from us for a million years). And he felt that if he made money with his own investment, he could do whatever he wanted with it. And 12 cans was exactly enough.

Unfortunately, it was just not busy here at Scheveningen that day. It was during the week, the weather forecast a little less tropical and the tourists stayed away. Yet within a few hours, mini was loose and had reached his goal. “Go get more cans from your winnings…”. Nope, the money was just in and it was time to play.

What can we learn from this?

• that his conversion was fine
• ROI went through the roof 
• and it took a 'why' to get active myself

Great conversion

Of all the people who walked by, eight bought something from him. One person gave him €2,- and didn't want a Coke. As mentioned it was really not busy. His gun factor is great, especially with such a homemade poster, bracket, book instead of iPhone and a bowl of water for the dogs. Conversion-increasing factors. You also need these as a webshop and they are often obvious, I can tell you! But that's a whole different story .

ROI through the roof

The return on investment. Investment €3.60 and €14 converted = €10.40 earned. Great score and exactly what was needed for his goal. The goal was exact and it has been achieved. Had he gotten more cans, and had his goal been a higher amount, he might have achieved that too. So the motto: 'a plan without a goal is a wish', also applies here. What you plan , calculate and write down you achieve much sooner than what remains a bit vague.

The why was crystal clear

Adolescents are eh… difficult to activate sometimes - or often. So just sitting in that bloody heat for a few bucks where you can't even use your iPhone because you can't see anything with the sun… Call him spoiled, but I don't think he's the only one. Now he really doesn't get any money from us. Pocket money, but when it's gone, it's gone. So once something comes his way that he really wants, he saves money or, like last week, comes up with a clever plan. Or copied, because I heard that this trick had already been used by a few friends.

Why do you want that?

A big desire for a Fortnite skin. Why do you want such a thing? Because it's special (created and conceived by the money-raking makers of Fortnite *insert rolling eyes*), because 'everyone' has it or because you're an on-set-tend fan (or were, don't forget the sentimental factor too, not even a 12-year-old) from Dragon ball-Z.

And that's how it works for you, me and all our customers too. They need a 'why' to buy something. A feeling of belonging (clothing and accessories), a desire for a harmonious family life (nice, cheerful interior items), the will to keep looking nice and fresh (cosmetics and lifestyle products). And even then you can go layers deeper into the 'why'. Someone wants to belong because there is a great fear of being alone. A harmonious family life is the opposite of just difficult hassles and arguments. And you want to keep looking nice and fresh because you're afraid it doesn't matter anymore or... to grow old or to be.

Tell me, what is your Dragon ball-Z skin?

Ultimately, we all have our own motivations. Also you as an entrepreneur. Ask yourself again why you started your webshop or business. What is your Dragon ball-Z skin? What do you want to achieve with it and what does your fire start again?

I can go on like this for a while. These are topics with which we define a desired audience during a coaching session , for example. Who knows, that might be something for you.