So, you’re sitting there trying to decide how to finish your tax return without all the information you’re missing or not sure of, right?

Well, take a breath - and get an extension.

Your tax software service can probably do it online. If not - use Form 4868.

If you have a partnership or LLC filing as a partnership, or an estate (Form 1041) or trust (Form 1041), use IRS Form 7004.

The extensions are automatically accepted - no approval needed. Good for 6 months.

BUT, if you owe money, you need to pay. Drop by TaxWatch article at MarketWatch.com (it’s written by me) for tips on how to pay - especially if you don’t have money right now. In fact, read it BEFORE you finalize your tax return. You’re going to find one last way to cut last year’s taxes. But only if you put your tax return on extension.

Oh, let me dispell a rumor I just heard about extensions and the Stimulus Rebates. Some fool is spreading the rumor that you won’t get your rebate if you put your return on extension. That’s utter nonsense. You’ll get it. Perhaps a bit later. But it will come.

Happy Tax Day!

So there I was in McDonalds (shhhh, don’t tell) and I’m waiting in line and, honestly, I’m starting to get a tad cranky because well, if it’s called “fast food” shouldn’t it be FAST!

Well, on this particular occasion it wasn’t all that fast and my hunger pangs, magnified by the seductive smell of the fries, got me into a hyper critical state and I’m thinking all sorts of negative thoughts until I start to observe what’s going on around me.

Heck, from what I saw, those counter folks were doing things right. You might have some issues with the food itself, but the service and the sales techniques…those were right on target.

Here’s what we should learn from McD’s:

Do You Want Fries With That?

When you order a burger and the counter person asks “Would you like fries with that,” you’ve experienced a marketing tactic called cross-selling. This strategy encourages customers to purchase additional products and services that are related to the item they are already buying. Cross-selling doesn’t just work with fast food; it’s also a highly effective technique for any type of sales. Here are a few ideas to help you achieve cross-selling success in your business:

Service with a Smile

The success of cross-selling depends not only on the quality and value of the product, but also the customer service provided. Customer service begins with the very first encounter, either in person, through email, or on the phone. It’s true that you only get one chance to make a first impression. Every customer should always be greeted with enthusiasm and respect.

Listen to the Customer

Many sales opportunities arise by just listening to the customer. The simple skill of listening demonstrates that you are helpful and approachable. A good salesperson should be able to take information from the customer and inform them of all the products and services that would be benefit their needs. Customers appreciate being informed of additional products and services that could provide an added benefit to the item they already intend on purchasing.

How Well Do You Know Your Product?

Product knowledge is the key to successful sales. Successful salespeople know every detail of their products from how they work to when to use them. It’s essential that this knowledge be relayed to the customer to help them understand why they can benefit from your product. The product you are cross-selling should either be related or complementary to the original item the customer purchased. It’s unlikely to sell an add-on product or service that offers no additional value to the original product.

Don’t Forget to Ask

Many customers walk out the door without ever being asked whether they could benefit from related products. It should go without saying, but it is necessary to ask the customer whether they are interested. Even the best products and services won’t sell themselves. Sales must be initiated.

Follow-up

Numerous cross-selling opportunities are lost because the salesperson didn’t take the initiative to contact the customer regarding their original purchase. A quick follow-up call shows the customer that you truly care about their needs and not just the initial sale. This is a perfect time to find out whether they could benefit from related products or services. This simple act will open the door to a long-term sales relationship.

Everyone knows usability is important, but not everyone knows exactly how to go about determining if their software/web/hardware product is indeed usable. As a professional usability consultant, I would (ahem) advise that you seek the aid of an experienced usability consultant to help.

This isn’t always a practical option for lots of reasons though, so what I’d like to offer are some pointers and practical things to keep in mind when you’re developing a website or any other interactive product.

Know thy user

Above all else, always try to keep this mantra in mind when designing or developing — you are not your user. What’s obvious and simple to you may not be for the people who will be actually using your product.

By the way, you do know who you’re designing for, right? Do you know something about their skill level, geographical location, wants and needs as they relate to your product? If the answer is no, I’d suggest doing some research and asking some questions to find out.

Use established interaction standards to your benefit

If you have a choice between inventing a new, cooler way to sort tables and using the more well-known method of clicking on the column header, use the latter. Chances are that people will be familiar with this paradigm and less likely to become confused.

Now for a caveat — don’t let adherence to standards stifle your creativity and innovation. It might be the safer road, but it’s not always the best choice, so think of it like any other rule of law — sometimes it’s best to break the rules, just do so wisely!

Subscribe to usability-related RSS feeds

This is a great way to keep on top of what’s being discussed in the usability, interaction design and user experience realms. It’s also an easy way to learn and internalize what’s working and not working for others.

Some of my favorites:

• Smashing Magazine (website/RSS)
• Boxes and Arrows (website/RSS)
• UXmatters (website/RSS)
• And for fun: OK/Cancel

Sanity-checking your design is not usability testing

Don’t get me wrong, grabbing someone next to you and asking “does this make sense to you?” is often a good idea. But just don’t let this turn into “yeah, I showed it to some people and they thought it worked okay.”

There are many reasons why this type of information-gathering could lead to bunk conclusions, but primarily it comes down to the first axiom I discussed — the person in the next cube, down the hall, etc. is most likely not your target user. If they’re a software developer like you are, and they think it’s easy to use, your user may beg to differ.

More usability guidelines

These pointers are just the tip of the iceberg. If you’re interested in learning more, there’s a lot out there but I’d suggest starting with (and referring to often) this site. It contains a ton of good info for those just starting to think about usability and seasoned professionals alike.

Again, these are just some quick pointers and guidelines. There’s a lot more to the multi-faceted study and practice of usability and user experience, but hopefully this can get you started in the right direction!

FreshBooks welcomes Adrian Miller as our newest guest contributor to Fresh Thinking. Adrian will share the wisdom garnered from her many years of experience in sales training.

In her first post, originally written for CustomerThink, Adrian gets us thinking about our sales methods. Next month will bring the first of her many original contributions to Fresh Thinking.

No, that title’s not an error.

My question isn’t about your goals, your aims, your vision, your mission, your business plan, your targets, or any of that other stuff that comes together and answers the question of why you are in business.

I’m here to ask you, specifically and simply: how are you in business?

What are you like?

Are you pleasant? Are you responsive? Are you fair? In how you are in business, do you demonstrate that you care about helping people with whatever solution you provide? Do you give your customers a reason to be glad that they do business with you? Would you buy from yourself?

Here’s the thing: business culture today is so focused on the target/goal/objective, that the means of achieving those ends — the ‘how’ of business — is often an afterthought. In fact, sometimes the ‘how’ is not thought of at all, and so it becomes utterly subjugated, sacrificed and snuffed out in a relentless — arguably obsessive — pursuit of the bottom line, of exclusively measurable outcomes. The ‘how’ becomes nothing but a necessary evil between you and the ‘why.’ And like all necessary evils, you treat it with resistance, contempt and disdain.

Focus on the ‘how’

I’m not saying every single customer you meet should receive flowers or a ticker-tape parade (”Hooray! You’re our 9th customer today!”). I’m saying that the ‘how’ of your business is as essential as the ‘why.’ The ‘how’ matters. It’s important. Your customers deserve more ‘how’ from you. And if they get a taste of it from your competitors, they’ll come to expect it from you, too. If you don’t have the ‘how’ of your business in shape, you’ll lose them. And who can you blame for this other than yourself, and your anti-’how’-ism?

So. What can you do to inject some high-quality ‘how’ in your business?

It’s easier than you think. Simply start here:

• Don’t act like you’re doing your customer a favor by selling to them; guard against this especially if, right now, you’re very busy and your stuff is in high demand. Business is a cycle; you’ll come down to earth sooner or later, and the trail of pissed-off prospects in your wake won’t care to help you get back up.
• Don’t ever confuse soft-selling with that ugly creature called “anti-marketing”; the former is an authentic and empowering way to develop a relationship with a prospect, while the latter is an invention of miserable, self-absorbed people who should be in deep, multi-discipline therapy.
• Focus on two fundamental aspects of customer happiness: their happiness with the sales process, and their happiness with the solution they buy from you. When people engage in word of mouth marketing, they often emphasize the ‘how’ of the sale more than the ‘why’ or the ‘what.’
• Remember your customer’s name! Don’t be afraid to ask for it if you happen to forget, because nothing is worse than getting a name wrong; it’s sloppy. If you can remember your own name, you can remember someone else’s.
• Make sure the colleagues around you support your efforts to develop a quality sales experience; don’t have Sarah from shipping or Joe from accounting running around, madly waving a waybill the air, while you’re trying to talk to a prospect about your “total commitment to customer service.”

See? Simple things.

Start with these, and build a ‘how’ consciousness into your business. Don’t take my word for it, just see for yourself. You’ll soon see that a better ‘how’ leads to a better everything else — including a better bottom line.