These days, potential buyers are more skeptical and cynical than ever. Therefore, if you want your sales to soar, you need to make it as risk-free as possible for them to do business with you.

For instance, instead of hitting them over the head with a sales pitch, offer a free, valuable educational piece that gives them information that will be of benefit to them, and that demonstrates your credibility. If you are a web designer, offer a checklist of the key features required for a website to attract visitors. If you sell appliances, offer information showing recent brand comparisons for quality, cost, and service. If you are a real estate broker, provide recent comps of properties that have sold and are for sale.

By offering no-risk information, you establish yourself as an expert and "pull" your prospects in to you. With 5 to 7 valuable interactions (per the research), you will become the go to expert in your market and people will call you first when they have a need.

That's not enough. You also should have a strong guarantee so that prospects can take comfort in buying from you. I like the guarantee from the Men's Wearhouse CEO: "You will love the way you look. I guarantee it."

Does your product or service match the promises you make in your marketing? If so, back up your claims with an iron-clad guarantee. Your returns might go up a bit, but so will your sales. That's because you will set yourself apart from other businesses that are unwilling to be so bold, unwilling to put their money where their mouth is.

The key to a strong guarantee is that you make it unconditional. The more asterisks you add, the more conditions you layer, the less believable your guarantee becomes. Eventually, with enough conditions, you do more harm than good.

If you can't offer an iron clad money-back guarantee, at least offer a service pledge. Put together the 5 rules that guide how you serve your customers, and make sure you meet those rules. For instance, if you run a plumbing company, rules might include: you show up on time; you leave a site clean; your plumbers will be professionally dressed; estimates will be accurate; and if you have to come back to make a job right, it is on your dime not the customer's.

There are other ways to take away risk, and these should also be part of your service delivery: Make it easy, quick, and hassle free to order; reassure the customer that they are making a smart choice; provide a "10,000 mile check up" (or the equivalent in your industry) after any sale; and call to follow up with a customer and see if they are satisfied or need any issues resolved. You get the idea.

These days, customers need to see that you are credible and can solve their problem. But they are still reluctant to buy from a stranger. To gain their trust, take their risk away. This process begins with a softer, more educational approach to marketing. It continues with a guarantee on purchase. And then it keeps going with the way you take an order, provide service, and follow up.