Steve Slaunwhite's Blog, page 7

When it’s smart to give up

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Last weekend, I gave up. And it was the best decision I made that day.

Here’s what happened…

After several weeks of being a virtual shut-in, working on way too many projects, I looked out my home office window and discovered it was summer. (Hey, when did that happen?)

So I decided to take a day off and go on a cycling trip.

There’s a trail in my area – the Waterfront Trail – that weaves its way half-way around Lake Ontario through parks, woods, beaches, and neighborhoods.

I decided to bike a section of that trail that’s about 100kms (60 miles) long.

I started early and was having a great time. The weather was perfect. But then I got to a heavily wooded area that required navigation through a confusing network of dirt paths.

And that’s where it all went wrong.

I got totally lost. No matter how carefully I read the Trail Guide I ended up basically going in circles. It was frustrating. I wasted an hour.

Then I asked myself: What am I trying to accomplish here? Do I really want to solve the puzzle of these paths? Or do I just want to have a good time on my bike?

Obviously, the latter.

So I decided to give up on that section of the trail, go north a few blocks, ride through the neighborhood streets, and rejoin the trail later on.

Basically, I changed my approach to getting what I wanted: a nice ride. And it worked. I ended up having a great day.

So what does all this have to do with marketing your services and getting clients?

Plenty.

You see, a lot of clients I work with get too attached to a particular marketing tactic or campaign they’re trying to make work.

Last year, for example, I had one client who wrote and placed more than a dozen articles – good articles – and got only one lead from them. Ouch!. Yet, he told me, “I refuse to give up on this. I’m determined to make this article marketing thing work!”

But is giving up such a bad idea? Especially when what you’re doing isn’t getting you the results you want?

Sure, often it makes sense to have the stick-to-it-ness required to give a particular marketing tactic or campaign an honest try. You follow the best practices. Get the good advice you need. And give it all you got.

But when something just isn’t working, no matter how hard you try, then you need to make some serious changes or try something new altogether.

I find that the most successful self-employed professionals are really, really good at this. If something isn’t working for them, they drop it and move on to something else.

The trick is to focus on what you want to accomplish, not how you’re trying to accomplish it. In the case of my client, he wanted a marketing approach that would position him as an expert and generate a steady flow of leads and new clients. Articles didn’t work for him. But, ultimately, offering free webinars did.

Giving up isn’t easy. As business owners we’re hard-wired to “stick to it.” But when that stick-to-it-ness isn’t getting the results you want, drop it and try a fresh new approach.

The best copywriting formula. Ever!

In this video (about 9 minutes long), I walk you through an easy-to-follow copywriting formula that works really well. You’ll write copy easier and faster – even if you’re not a writer! – and, you’ll get better results.

Do you ask prospects to marry you?

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Next to writing, speaking, and drinking coffee at Starbucks (which I’m pretty sure is tax deductible), my favorite professional activity is consulting. I love working with clients one-on-one.

Yesterday, I had a great session with a client who just started a serious email prospecting campaign to launch his new business.

He showed me some of his initial emails, which were very well done.

But he made one big mistake in those emails… a mistake that may cost him some opportunities to land new clients.

He asked prospects to marry him.

Now, of course, I’m joking a bit here. He didn’t make an actual marriage proposal. But what he did do was ask prospects to make a big decision based solely on an initial email from a stranger.

He asked prospects for an appointment to view his portfolio and discuss the possibility of working with him.

That’s a major decision for a prospect! It’s a little like you agreeing to have a door-to-door salesperson you just met come in and do a one-hour vacuum cleaner demonstration.

How likely are you to do that? It’s just too big of a decision to make on the “first date”.

These days, prospects want an opportunity to get to know you first before they decide to meet you or try your services.

That doesn’t mean you don’t attempt to get a meeting. Getting a meeting is definitely an important step. It’s just not the first step.

The first step is introducing yourself and getting the conversation started.

And how do you do that?

The best way is to offer a helpful article or special report. (I published an example of a prospecting email that does this in a previous blog post. You can read it here: http://www.steveslaunwhite.com/how-to...)

By offering an article or special report, you give the prospect a chance to know you a little better and get a taste of your expertise.

As a result, you get a much higher response to your prospecting efforts.

Let’s face it. If you go for the meeting on the first prospecting attempt, you probably won’t get a whole lot of takers.

But if you offer an article or special report, a lot more hands will go up. That’s because you’re making it easier for those prospects to say yes.

Now, of course, there are situations when it is appropriate to ask for a meeting. If you get a referral, or example, or get introduced to a prospect through a mutual contact, then suggesting a meeting makes sense.

But in most “first contact” prospecting situations, asking for a meeting is asking way too much, too soon.

So, in your initial attempt to reach out to a new prospect, don’t make the “marriage proposal” mistake. Instead, make an offer that makes it easy for the prospect to take the next step in getting to know you.

If you do that, the meetings will come. I promise.

The ideal “micro niche” market. (If you can find it.)

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I had an interesting conversation with a friend of mine the other day. She’s a successful video producer and boasted that she never has to do any marketing.

“Business just comes my way through word-of-mouth,” she said, which is not a very friendly thing to say when you’re having coffee with a marketing consultant (me.) Especially when that marketing consultant (me) is buying the coffee!

But a couple of minutes into the conversation, I discovered that she does a heck of a lot of marketing. She just doesn’t think of it as marketing. To her, it’s just meeting people and being helpful.

You see, she belongs to an association comprised mostly of professionals in her target market. It’s a very active group with well-attended meetings each month.

Now, here’s what she does for that association:

Each year, she shoots the President’s welcome message for the association’s website, in return for a short blurb about her services on the website.
During each monthly meeting, she walks around with a video camera on her shoulder, chatting with people and filming their comments and testimonials – pro bono.
Each quarter she comes in and offers members an ultra low rate to shoot short welcome videos for their websites.

In short, what she has done is position herself as the go-to video producer for just about everyone in the association. No wonder she gets so many “word of mouth” enquiries and referrals.

Now that’s great marketing.

I know what you’re probably thinking at this point. “Is there an association I can join and become active in?”

Not every association is worth your time and energy. If you want to attract more clients using this “micro niche” strategy, you need to pick your group wisely.

Try to find an association that is comprised mainly of your target market. This is fairly easy if you’re focusing on, say, fundraising executives. You can simply get active in your local chapter of their association (the AFP.)

It gets a little trickier, however, if you’re targeting a group that doesn’t have it’s own association.

In that case, explore sub-groups of larger associations. Many larger associations have several, smaller special interest groups.

For example, I work with a lot of self-employed professionals in communications. There’s a humongous association called the International Association of Business Communicators (IABC). On the surface, they seem to be comprised mainly of corporate communications managers – not my target market.

But if you dig a little deeper, you’ll find that the IABC has an active special interest group for self-employed communicators. In fact, I’ve done a few workshops for them.

And don’t forget online groups. There are a gazillion LinkedIn groups; although some are more active than others. My rule of thumb is: if someone is posting on a particular LinkedIn group at least once a day, and members regularly comment on those posts, then the group is active enough for me to take a closer look at.

Once you decide on an association to “micro niche” yourself in, don’t be a passive participant. Jump in with both feet. Volunteer. Do a talk. Explore other ways to become highly visible so everyone knows who you are and what you do.

But do me a favor? When the word-of-mouth enquiries and referrals start coming in, don’t say you’re not marketing. You’ll hurt my feelings. And I won’t pay for the coffee!

How to Get More Prospect Meetings.

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Let’s face it. You can do a fantastic job of prospecting, generating leads, attracting referrals and word-of-mouth, and basically getting lots of potential clients to find out about you and your services.

That will definitely get you some business.

But you can get a lot more business – and, I suspect, better clients – if you take a more active role in getting “prospect meetings”.

A prospect meeting is simply an opportunity to discuss a prospect’s needs and how your services may be able to help.

By meeting, I don’t necessarily mean a formal in-person presentation at the prospect’s office. In fact, most of my prospect meetings are much more casual and impromptu, and conducted over the phone.

One thing’s for sure…

The more prospects you can nudge into “meeting mode” – in other words, the more prospects you can get talking about their needs and how your services can help, the more business you will get.

It’s that simple.

So how do you nudge more prospects into meeting mode?

Over the years, I’ve developed many ways of accomplishing that. But the most effective and easiest-to-do technique is what I like to call the “Would it be helpful if…” technique.

Here’s how it works.

Say you’re a financial advisor specializing in succession planning for small businesses. You meet a new prospect at a local networking event. At some point in the conversation, she indicates a concern about transitioning her business to her children.

You say, “Would it be helpful if I quickly explained how our succession planning service works and the results you can expect?”

If she has any interest at all, she’ll probably say, “Yes, please do.” And when that happens – congratulations – you’re about to have a prospect meeting. (A short one, but it still counts!)

Here’s another scenario.

You’re a freelance e-newsletter writer following up with a prospect who has downloaded a free report from your website. During the call the prospect says, “We’ve thought about doing an e-newsletter, but we’re not sure if it will work for us.”

You say, “Would it be helpful if we scheduled a quick phone meeting to discuss that? I can share the pros and cons with you, and show you what’s working for firms similar to yours.”

Chances are, the prospect will say, “Yes, let’s do that.”

Why does this simple technique work so well? I suspect it works because it focuses on being helpful. It’s direct and honest. And it’s the logical next step in the conversation. After all, if a prospect indicates a need that your services can address, doesn’t it make sense to have a conversation about that?

So the next time you get an opportunity to do so, try the “Would it be helpful if…” technique. I bet you’ll get more prospect meetings if you do.

How to Follow-Up Without Being a Pest

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A couple of weeks ago, I got the umpteenth call from a sales rep who’s been hounding me since we chatted at a conference seven months ago. I’m actually interested in working with her firm. But her bi-weekly “just checking in” calls are, frankly, starting to annoy me.

I know what she’s trying to do. She’s trying to stay in touch with a prospect (me) who has indicated an interest in her services.

Hey, that’s exactly what I teach and help my clients to do!

But she’s going about it the wrong way. Instead of building the relationship, she’s becoming a pest. (She actually said to me once, “I’m sorry for being a pest, but…”)

The main problem with her approach is that she’s becoming someone I want to avoid rather than someone I want to do business with. And if you’re following-up with prospects, that’s exactly the impression you don’t want to make!

So how do you stay in touch with prospects so you don’t seem like a pest and, instead, become someone they actually look forward to hearing from?

Here are some ideas:

Don’t sell; position. Clients want to work with professionals they know, like and trust. So your follow-up messages should consistently position you a likeable, knowledgeable expert – someone who is really, really good at what they do. When you position well, you don’t have to sell. (Hey, that’s a great rhyme. I’ll have to remember to copyright

that!)
Add value. When calling or emailing to follow-up with a prospect, think of a way to share a slice of your expertise. You could provide a tip, link to a helpful article, or share a client success story.
Publish an e-newsletter. I know what you’re thinking. In this world of blogs and social media, e-newsletters are passé. That may be true. But they’re still a great way to stay in touch with prospects. Many of my clients today were once just subscribers to my e-newsletter.
Use social media. Connect, follow, like, friend – whatever – with all your prospects. Pay attention to their social media updates. Respond, comment, re-tweet, get involved. For me, social media has revolutionized the way I stay in touch with prospects.
Google alerts. I learned this trick from Jill Konrath, author of SNAP Selling. Set up Google alerts for all your prospects. That way, you’ll be alerted whenever there’s news about a prospect’s business… news you can use to tailor your follow-up messages.
Make an invitation. When I was doing a lot of corporate work, I used to invite clients to free 20-minute “lunch and learn” sessions, which I conducted via teleconference. I’d get only three or four attendees per session, but they were often very good prospects, many of whom eventually became clients.

Those are a few ideas. I’m sure you could brainstorm many other ways to stay in touch with prospects without being a pest.

And that reminds me…

I got a follow-up email just last week from a PR consultant I was speaking with earlier this year. She asked me how my social media outreach was doing, and offered a practical tip – one I hadn’t thought of before – for getting better results. She didn’t push for a meeting or even a response. She simply touched base and added value.

Did she come across as a pest? Not at all.

Will I look forward to hearing from her again? Probably.

Will I think of her first when I need PR advice or help? Likely.

She’s making a completely different impression on me than the sales rep who has been calling me every other week.

Something to think about the next time you follow-up with a prospect.

The Fastest Way to Find Prospect Names

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When my daughter was six or so the game we enjoyed playing most together was Where's Waldo. It involved finding the Waldo character amongst a crowd of other people, who were usually doing interesting things like juggling or lion taming.

If you ever played that game with your kid, you know how challenging it can be. I remember one time searching a page for nearly half an hour before becoming convinced – convinced! – that Waldo wasn't there.

(My daughter found him about a minute later.)

Fun game, even when it's frustrating.

But it reminds me of another game that business owners play that is rarely, if ever, enjoyable. And that is: Where's The Prospect?

This came up a few times last month during my Practically Painless Prospecting workshop. It's easy enough to find companies you want to do business with. But how do you find the names of the people in those companies you need to reach?

For example, say you're a graphic designer and want to do business with XYZ Plastics. You probably want to reach the marketing communications manager. But who is that person? What is his correct job title, phone number, email address, and specific areas of responsibility?

Unlike Where's Waldo, most business owners hate playing that game.

So how do you find prospect names and contact information? Well, there are many ways. A business directory that contains the names of your prospects may be available. You can join the same association your prospects belong to and get access to the membership directory. You can dig through the company's website in the hopes you'll find the right name.

One of my favorite techniques is to do a search on LinkedIn.com because most of my prospects have LinkedIn profiles.

But all of these methods can be frustratingly time-consuming. A coaching client once told me she spent three hours researching the internet to find exactly four prospects names. Ouch!

Is there a faster way?

There is. Just pick up the phone.

Calling the company is not only the quickest way to find out who the best person is to talk to about your services. In some cases, it may be the only way.

So how do you make that call and what do you say?

Rather than calling and speaking to the receptionist – or whoever has "phone duty" that day – I suggest you ask for the sales manager.

The sales manager is most likely to be on your side. After all, she has probably made hundreds, if not thousands, of similar calls during her career. She sympathizes! She knows what you're trying to accomplish and, unlike the receptionist, is likely to be helpful.

When you reach the sales manager, say something like, "Hi, this is Jane Sangster of JS Design calling. Can you help me? I'm trying to reach your marketing manager but I'm not sure who that is."

It's that simple.

Will every sales manager you call give you the information you need? No, not everyone. But a good percentage will. In fact, calling the sales manager at a company you're targeting is probably the quickest and surest way to get the prospect name you need.

Try it. Unless, of course, you really do like playing the game of Where's The Prospect? for hours on end!

“Leverage” Your Way to Better Marketing Results

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I had the opportunity to chat with a fellow marketing guy earlier this month. He was about to do a workshop for a local professional speakers group I belong to and I was helping him set up.

This marketing guy – Aidan Crawford – is one smart fellow. His target market is professional speakers. So doing the workshop obviously helped position him as an expert in front of an eager-to-learn audience. I wouldn’t be surprised if a couple of those in attendance became new clients for him that very day.

Like I said, smart guy.

Now Aidan could have simply done the workshop, reaped the benefits, and went home with a smile on his face – satisfied he made a connection with twenty or so people in the room.

But he didn’t.

Instead, he used the power of leverage to get even better results.

First, he arranged to have the workshop streamed live on the internet (which, by the way, is remarkably easy and inexpensive to do.) Then he asked if we could spread the word about it to members who couldn’t attend the live event. That would be a big benefit to them, so of course we said yes.

During the workshop, he put a flip camera on the podium to record his presentation. He knew the sound and picture quality wasn’t going to be perfect but, as he put it, “I’ll probably get a few good clips for my website and YouTube page.”

And if that weren’t enough, he also posted his slides on a slide sharing site to drive even more traffic to his doorstep.

I figured by doing those few simple things he tripled the size of his workshop audience – at least – and significantly boosted his marketing results in terms of more awareness of his services, more enquiries, and more leads.

Now that’s leverage.

And that’s something to think about the next time you attend a conference, place an ad, network on a LinkedIn forum, write a blog post, or launch an email prospecting campaign. Ask yourself, “How can I leverage this?”

For example, have you ever had a client say nice things about your services? If so, don’t just bask in the glory. (Okay, bask a little.) Ask if you can use the compliment as a testimonial, and also ask if she knows anyone else in her network who might benefit from your services. That way, you might get testimonial and a hot new lead.

Do you write a blog or e-newsletter? Bundle similar articles together into a special report which you can use as a free offer to generate more leads. You can also get your articles reprinted on websites and in publications your target audience reads.

Do you plan on attending a workshop in the hopes of networking with potential clients? Volunteer to introduce or thank the speaker. That way, the entire audience will know who you are and what you do, rather than just a few prospects you happen to meet.

See what I mean? Always be looking for ways to get more oomph out of every marketing opportunity.

I admit. I’m not nearly as good at leverage as I should be. But from now on, I’m committed to squeezing more juice out of every marketing effort. Consider doing the same.

"Leverage" Your Way to Better Marketing Results

Click here to subscribe in iTunes; or, listen to the audio version below:

I had the opportunity to chat with a fellow marketing guy earlier this month. He was about to do a workshop for a local professional speakers group I belong to and I was helping him set up.

This marketing guy – Aidan Crawford – is one smart fellow. His target market is professional speakers. So doing the workshop obviously helped position him as an expert in front of an eager-to-learn audience. I wouldn't be surprised if a couple of those in attendance became new clients for him that very day.

Like I said, smart guy.

Now Aidan could have simply done the workshop, reaped the benefits, and went home with a smile on his face – satisfied he made a connection with twenty or so people in the room.

But he didn't.

Instead, he used the power of leverage to get even better results.

First, he arranged to have the workshop streamed live on the internet (which, by the way, is remarkably easy and inexpensive to do.) Then he asked if we could spread the word about it to members who couldn't attend the live event. That would be a big benefit to them, so of course we said yes.

During the workshop, he put a flip camera on the podium to record his presentation. He knew the sound and picture quality wasn't going to be perfect but, as he put it, "I'll probably get a few good clips for my website and YouTube page."

And if that weren't enough, he also posted his slides on a slide sharing site to drive even more traffic to his doorstep.

I figured by doing those few simple things he tripled the size of his workshop audience – at least – and significantly boosted his marketing results in terms of more awareness of his services, more enquiries, and more leads.

Now that's leverage.

And that's something to think about the next time you attend a conference, place an ad, network on a LinkedIn forum, write a blog post, or launch an email prospecting campaign. Ask yourself, "How can I leverage this?"

For example, have you ever had a client say nice things about your services? If so, don't just bask in the glory. (Okay, bask a little.) Ask if you can use the compliment as a testimonial, and also ask if she knows anyone else in her network who might benefit from your services. That way, you might get testimonial and a hot new lead.

Do you write a blog or e-newsletter? Bundle similar articles together into a special report which you can use as a free offer to generate more leads. You can also get your articles reprinted on websites and in publications your target audience reads.

Do you plan on attending a workshop in the hopes of networking with potential clients? Volunteer to introduce or thank the speaker. That way, the entire audience will know who you are and what you do, rather than just a few prospects you happen to meet.

See what I mean? Always be looking for ways to get more oomph out of every marketing opportunity.

I admit. I'm not nearly as good at leverage as I should be. But from now on, I'm committed to squeezing more juice out of every marketing effort. Consider doing the same.

Email prospecting example (that worked… )

Subject line: Handouts for the upcoming Plastics Expo

Charlotte,

I read in Industrial & Marine Valves about your appointment as Marketing Director of CAM Engineering. Congratulations! I suspect you’re now knee deep in getting ready for the upcoming Plastics Expo.

Did you read the article by Jim McBraden in that same issue? He said that, this year, more companies will be competing for fewer leads at trade shows than ever before.

That’s become a real concern for many of my clients. Does it concern you, too?

If so, you may be interested in an article I recently published: “7 Handout Ideas That Increase Leads at Trade Shows.” It’s based on what I, and my clients, have learned about what’s working (and what isn’t) in the “new” trade show economy.

Let me know if you’re interested in that article and I’ll forward you a copy right away.

All the best,

Jane

—–

Jane Chadha

JS Designs Inc.