在我看来，这个夏天就是路边的汽水摊。我之所以这么说，是因为我去侄女的汽水摊逗留了一会，惊讶于她的成功创业，而这也是值得所有企业家学习的。
位置，位置，还是位置！
首先，我的侄女把她的汽水摊成功定位于一条非常繁华的街道的拐角处。
这就好比，当你决定开始创业时，你规划的经营地点则是你成败的关键。如果你打算做实体产品的生意，你就得确保你选的实体店位置，能充分展现你的实体产品的特点并吸引合适。千万别觉得只有把产品放在货架上的什么位置才是最难的一步，而店面的位置场所这同样也很重要，你要确保能够吸引顾客走进店中把你的产品从货架上买走。
如果你打算开服务公司，那么最重要的就是要物色好可行的城市并在该市找到合适的商业场所。当年，我之所以选择在在亚特兰大周边地区开调查公司，是因为它位处5大商业中心核心，方便我同顾客相互往来。而且亚特兰大市场潜力巨大，新兴的大型企业都有可能成为合作伙伴。
时机决定商机！
我们都知道汽水在夏天比较好卖，在冬天就少有人问津。
因此在你决定开始创业时，你要做一些调查，熟悉你要经营的市场。你需要了解到哪种产品和哪种服务何时卖得最好。大多数公司都会在不同的季度受到如财政日历、天气因素或是假期等因素的影响。所以你要规划好时间，抓住市场商机，占领市场，也要做好准备应对淡季——做生意总归是有起有伏的。
提供样品
在让她的顾客知道1美元的价格标签之前，我的侄女飞快的拿出一个样品。
你必须制定一个计划，宣传你即将发行的产品或服务的免费样品。肯德坚果能量条(Kind bar)的创始人，丹尼尔鲁比兹基(Daniel Lubetzky)在2008年投入了800美元的样品预算，而到了2009年则提高至80万的预算。他坚信这将使得肯德更为成功，而随后增加到1000万美元的预算会让更多的人尝试并选择肯德坚果能量条。
销售人员至关重要
这世上没有比我的侄女更好的汽水摊销售员了。她总是热情地挥舞她的小旗子让汽车停下，穿过车水马龙将产品交到她的顾客手上。
类似地，你要确保你的销售团队与你一样对产品充满热爱与激情。你需要的是不断宣传你的产品或服务的拉拉队长，而不是只会站在那里等薪水的人。一个好的销售团队不仅对产品十分熟悉，还坚信销售才能创造更高的销售量，占有更多的市场份额，引起更大的需求。因而他们热衷于加入网络营销，通过社会媒体宣传你的产品，而他们的努力最终会带来巨大的成功。
推广套餐增加盈利
我的侄女用巧克力薄片饼干作为促销，推销给每一个买饮料的人。
同样地，你的业务会逐渐扩大，你不能只将业务局限在某种产品或服务上。你或许会发现你的主打产品逐渐脱离市场或是你必须通过打折来吸引顾客。通过促销，反而赚更最多。尤其是餐饮业如汉堡店，他们销售的汉堡的利润很小，但利润主要来源于汉堡套餐中的奶昔和菜单上的油炸食品。
其实销售最难的部分便是吸引你的顾客上门，推销套餐商品，获取更多的利润。除了这些你还能提供别的什么吗？
如果你还是不知道的话，可以来参观我侄女的汽水摊，从最平凡不过的汽水摊上学到一些重要的销售课程。（www.chinainout.com）
Very few things represent summer more than a lemonade stand. I was reminded while visiting my niece's lemonade stand the lessons all business owners can learn from this first step into the entrepreneurial journey。
Location, Location, Location
The first thing my niece did well is she put her lemonade stand on the corner of a very busy street。
When starting your business, location is everything. If selling a physical product, you need to ensure an adequate number of physical locations and your product must be visible and easily accessible. Don't make the mistake of believing the hard part is getting a product on the shelf--it's just as difficult (and important) to get the product off the shelf and into your customer's hands。
If you are planning to sell a service, picking a city and location within that city is equally as important. When I started my research company, I placed it in the Perimeter area of Atlanta because it is central to the 5 primary business centers. This location made it easy to travel to customers and have them travel to my location. Atlanta is a good market because of the number of large companies as potential customers。
Timing is Everything
Lemonade stands are in high demand in the summer, but don't have much success in the winter。
Do some research and know your market. Learn what types of products and services sell best and when. Very few companies I work with are immune to some type of cycle--based on fiscal calendars, seasonal factors or even vacation schedules. You must time entering the market and survive the ebbs and flows that are a natural part of running a business。
Give a Sample
My niece is very quick to offer up a sample before letting her patrons know the $1.00 price tag。
You should plan to give away free samples of your products or services. Daniel Lubetzky, creator of the Kind bar, increased his sampling budget from $800 in 2008 to a massive increase in 2009 of $800,000. He credits this increase to the success that Kind is experiencing and now spends upwards of $10 million on efforts to get people to try Kind bars。
Who is Selling the Product Matters
There is no better salesperson for lemonade than my niece. She is enthusiastic about flagging cars down and hustles to get the product in her customers' hands。
Make sure your sales team is just as excited about the product being sold as you are. You need cheerleaders promoting your product or service - not someone who is just there to collect a paycheck. A sales team that understands the product and is enthusiastic about selling it yields higher sales, takes on larger markets and creates more demand. They are willing to attend networking events, promote your product via social media and their efforts will ultimately lead to the greatest success。
Always Have Something to Upsell
My niece had chocolate chip cookies available for upsell and she pushed them to everyone that bought a drink。
When growing a business, don't limit yourself to just one product or service. You may find that your initial product is the giveaway or must be discounted to gain the customer. It's in the upsell that you make the most money. This is especially true in the restaurant space. A burger joint makes very little on the burger. Their profit is found in the milkshakes and fries added to the order。
The hardest part is getting your customer in the door; increase your profit by adding on to their sale. What else can you offer?
Some of the most important lessons in sales can be learned from the simplicity of a lemonade stand。
