Lessons from the World’s Greatest Salesperson
Posted by Rebecca Blackwell on Jan 13, 2009
I’ve recently been newly inspired by a man by the name of Joe Girard. You’ve probably heard of him. He’s called the World’s Greatest Sales Person - and for good reason.
For more than a decade Joe sold cars. A lot of cars. In fact, in 1973 he was given the title of World’s Greatest Sales Person in the Guinness Book of World Records. Here’s a blurb from that entry: ” The all-time record for automobile salesmanship in individual units sold is 1,425 in 1973, by Joe Girard of Detroit, author of “How to Sell Anything to Anybody” and winner of the Number One Car Salesman title every year from 1966 to 1977.”
1,425 cars sold in ONE YEAR! In fact, during his fifteen year selling career, he sold 13,001 new cars and trucks, all at retail - no fleet, wholesale or used vehicles. After selling cars for just 3 years, Joe had so much business it was by appointment only. This is an amazing individual.
Read Joe’s bio when you have a chance. His entire life story is remarkable and inspiring and there is much to be learned from his story. However, I want to focus on just one of the things Joe did to build the amount of relationships necessary to sell thousands upon thousands of cars.
Joe truly understood the importance of relationship marketing if you want to consistently sell anything. (Or, in Joe’s case, completely dominate your market.) He did a couple of key things to build those relationships that all could revolutionize every business.
First of all, he hired people to deal with administrative work so that he could have more time to interact with his customers. Second, he kept in touch with people via mail month after month. At one point, Joe was sending 16,000 cards each month to customers and prospective customers. Imagine for a moment what it would be like to get a card in the mail each and every month from a car salesman. When you needed to purchase a car, wouldn’t it seem unthinkable to go to anyone else?
Dan Kennedy is quoted as saying that 68% of customers leave because they don’t feel loved or valued. You don’t really even know you’ve lost them. They just go away. Think about what would happen in your business if this wasn’t true. If, instead of loosing 68% of your business each year, you kept it. And imagine what would happen if that 68% felt so valued by you that they told their friends, family and coworkers. What would that do to the growth of your business? For Joe, it meant selling 13,000 cars.
This kind of customer retention and referral generation isn’t that hard to do, it just has to end up at the top of your priority list. You could send a hand written “Thank you for your time” every time you meet with a prospect. Send a hand written thank you card for each order. Send gifts of appreciation. Go beyond the flat customer retention programs that many companies mindlessly employ and do something for your customers to show your appreciation that is completely unexpected.
Here’s a great example: I heard about a handyman who built his business on the promise that his company would leave each client’s house cleaner than when they arrived. He trained his employees to not only clean up their own mess, but to noticeably leave the home cleaner in some way. What an amazingly simple way to not only create a wildly successful business, but to completely dominate a market.
What customer retention systems can you add to your marketing strategy this year to not only keep the customers you have, but to ensure that you are their only source for what you offer? How can you apply what Joe did to increase sales? What can you do that provokes those same loyal customers to tell everyone they know about you? Please share your ideas!
Creating Effective Email: A 10 Point Checklist
Posted by Rebecca Blackwell on Dec 10, 2008
This is an article by Corrinda Campbell of Business Connection Network. I thought it was excellent, and worth sharing. Enjoy!
If email marketing is on your list of marketing strategies now or anytime during the year, follow this 10 Point Checklist to increase the number of opened email and convert your prospects into customers.
1) Subject Line – This is often the most overlooked part of the email, yet it is the most important. The Subject Line is the primary factor that determines whether an email is opened or deleted. There’s a lot of discussion about the “art” of writing the Subject Line. Overall, keep it to about 50 characters or so as many email providers only display a limited amount of characters. Shorter tends to be better, but it really depends. Ask yourself, does the reader know who it’s from, what’s in it for them and why they should open this email.
2) From Line – This is also overlooked when creating email campaigns. The From and Subject Lines are mini-billboards. Are you going to open an email from “info” or from a person or company you know. The From and Subject lines work together. By including your name and/or the company name in the From Line you don’t need to repeat it in the Subject Line and have more characters devoted to the Subject Line message. Usually 15 characters or less is best. Use the word count function found in the tools section in MS Word to quickly count characters.
3) Get Permission – Spam laws are getting tighter and tighter with increasingly severe penalties. Including ending up on the black list of ISPs and email providers. Be sure you have permission to send email to the people on your list.
4) Clear Call To Action - So you’ve got permission from the people on your list and you’ve written effective From and Subject lines and your email has been opened. Be sure your readers know what you want them to do when they open the email and the benefits of clicking through the email links to your service, product, or content.
5) Links: Bigger Buttons & Underline in Blue – Many studies of have shown that bigger buttons work better; and specific copy works better than general copy. (e.g.: “Click Here for the Free Report” v. “Click Here”) If you use a text link, blue underlined links tend to perform the best.
6) Landing Page – Your email has been opened and the reader follows your Call To Action. When they arrive at your website, be sure to send them to a specific page relating to the contents of the email instead of the home page. If you’re a running a specific or limited time promotion it may be a good idea to create a special landing page just for that email. This will also make tracking the promotion easier. If you’re selling something make sure your shopping cart is no more than 3-clicks away from the email. After 3 clicks the level of abandoned carts increases.
7) Promotion Layout – Direct mail tests have shown that dollars off coupons versus percent off promotions get a better response. Framing your promotion with a dashed boarder also tends to increase conversion.
8) Text v. HTML – There is a lot of discussion around text versus HTML presentations. Text only email do well, but depending on the content of the email HTML can also be very effective & creative. The downside of HTML an layout is that many email accounts block the graphics. If you use HTML offer a text or web-based version. Also, very important, label your graphics with alt tags. They will appear even if the graphic is blocked. In addition to the alt tags be sure to support the graphics with straight text, don’t limit the whole contents to one large graphic.
9) Relevancy & Frequency – The number one reason email is deleted or unsubscribed is lack of relevancy. Be sure your messages are on point. If you are cross-promoting another product or service, make sure it’s related to the topic. If you broaden the scope of the original content just ask for permission. Segmenting your list can also increase your level of relevancy. The answer to, “How often should I send email messages?” is “It depends.” Ask yourself if this message relevant or if the email includes new information. Relevancy and fresh content also tend to answer the question of the best time and day of the week to send email. If the email campaign is well crafted readers will open it.
10) Proof Read & Test Your Email – Whenever possible it’s best to have someone else proofread your email and provide feedback. This is when a mastermind or peer review group comes in handy to catch mistakes and fine tune your message. Testing your email’s appearance is also important because different email clients and web-based email accounts render HTML and even text differently. Even if your email service provider has a test function built-in I think it’s a good idea to use a dedicated test list. Create a specific list that includes the addresses of the accounts you have created with the top email providers. Send your email to that list first.
Top email readers: Outlook, Thunderbird, and Eudora
Top web-based email providers: Yahoo, Hotmail, AOL, and Gmail
This is a fun link to see mistakes some of the top retailers have made. It’s entertaining but it’s also a good check list of things to watch out for.
http://www.retailemailblog.com/2008/01/oopsy-hall-of-fame-2007-inductees.html
About the author of this post: Corrinda Campbell, M.B.A. is a business and online marketing consultant in Denver, CO and host of the Women In Business Network Luncheon. She is devoted to helping entrepreneurs and small business owners succeed by providing affordable, high impact tools and resources. For more information visit www.BusinessConnectionNetwork.com
Choosing your clients
Posted by Rebecca Blackwell on Oct 30, 2008
Last week I wrote a post that asked the quesiton, “Why Should Customers do Business With You?”
In that post, I dared to ask: “If you don’t know exactly why, in the eyes of your market, your business should continue to exist (and thrive), why should your prospects and customers?”
This is a vital question to answer, and answer clearly. But first - it is very important that you have a clear picture of who you are communicating to. Namely, who your ideal client is.
Understanding the difference between a client (or customer) and YOUR ideal client.
Your ideal client is made up of much, much more than some demographic information. Your ideal client has a face and a name. They have hopes, dreams, wants, needs, desires and attitudes that distinguish them from the “everyone else” that makeup your not-so-ideal clients. They also have a distinct lifestyle, distinct pain, and a distinct amount of money they are willing to spend to deal with that pain (level of motivation).
Until you know who you are communicating to, it is very difficult (if not impossible - as you may have already discovered) to discover the message that will resonate with “them”.
Until your ideal customer is much, much more to you than a general, faceless spreadsheet of demographic information, your message will not be targeted enough to even reach them.
Let alone get their attention.
So… Can you describe exactly who your ideal customer is?
There are many ways to do this. Scroll through your list of current and past customers. Ask yourself who resonated with you. Who has seemed to get the most out of your product or service? If you had to hold up one person and say, “Here! This is the kind of customer that makes me want to jump out of bed in the morning just so I can work harder at solving their issues.”
That is your ideal customer.
Good. Now, you need to know what they want?
You might have to do a little research here to find out what you need to know. Give them a call and ask if you can conduct a 10 minute “interview”. (They’ll be flattered.)
Send out a survey. Ask them questions about what they are worried about, what their hobbies are, what they fear, what they read, what they wish they could do or have, what they are looking for but having trouble finding, etc.
While you’re at it, ask them this: “At this time in your life, what is the one thing you need most from me/ my company?”
And, “In the sea of options out there, why did you choose (and continue to choose) us?” You might be surprised at the answer.
Other ways to find out more and further define your ideal customer: Read their web sites, read what they are interested in, subscribe to their newsletters, and join the associations they belong to.
This is an important task - don’t overlook it. It’s not only important in the process of developing a core marketing message, it’s important for your own happiness, well-being and effectiveness.
If you don’t define the kind of person you want to work with, you might end up with a group of customers that drain you and that you aren’t well suited to help. You could end up burned out and with the damaged reputation of being mediocre. Nobody wants that.
This post is part of a free email course that shows you how to uncover the motivating factors that drive your ideal customers to buy, and then breaks down the process for creating a core message that will drive them to buy from you. Subscribe to this free course now.
Your Successful Small Business (Under any and all circumstances)
Posted by Rebecca Blackwell on Oct 7, 2008
Two important questions:
Do you have an answer ready to this question, “What are you really selling, and how will your business offering fare during hard times?” (What you think you’re selling and what your customers are really buying are likely two different things.)
Do you, as this article suggests, periodically “review and revise your plan to include everything and anything your business or startup needs during a crisis”?
If you don’t have a solid answer to the first question and answered no to the second, review your sales and marketing plans now. Get prepared.
Over-preparers take note (you know who you are): Getting prepared doesn’t have to be complicated and doesn’t require you to create fancy graphs and charts, emergency food rations, and an emergency exit plan involving the national guard. (Although, honestly, having an exit plan is just plain smart under any circumstances.) Something as simple as adding different price points can also enable you to weather an economic storm.
You could create (or recreate) a product or service (and marketing strategy) focused on marketing to the affluent. This could also involve creating (or repositioning your current product or service) a successful small business around those items that just make people feel like they are splurging. (Again - what are people really buying? Evaluate the real value of your product or serice.) After all, no matter what the economy is like, most of us will still splurge from time to time. Often, even more so when we are bummed.
Can you add value and market to a higher income demographic? (Check this out. The affluent are definitely still spending money.)
Can you add lower price points and keep customers who want to stay with you but can’t afford you right now?
You may need to completely reposition yourself. For inspiration (and just a really great story), check out this article by Larry Galler.
Regardless, get prepared. Get prepared not just to survive but to thrive. Shifts in demand are inevitable. But, there is no reason in the world why you have to be at their mercy. You can, in fact, remain in control and view times like these as rich with opportunity.
Big Marketing for Your Small Business
Posted by Rebecca Blackwell on Oct 5, 2008
Read a good article this morning by Steve Mulder titled “5 Marketing Tips for Tackling Twitter”.
This article, written in September of this year, outlines 5 ways that marketers can use twitter to listen, communicate to, and better connect with, their customers and potential customers, and lays out great examples of large companies that are using twitter to facilitate this kind of intimate connection with their customers.
This spotlights an interesting (though not very new) trend, also discussed in a 2005 article by John Jantsch, author of Duct Tape Marketing.
Small is the new big.
In that article, John wrote that, “Large organizations are beginning to wrestle with the reality that their markets want something more personal, more honest and real, from the companies they buy products and services from. It’s obvious that small businesses possess natural advantages in this arena, so the rush is on to think small. Acting like a small business, it seams, is the latest killer innovation.”
This was true in 2005 and is even more true today. What’s more, new social networking tools, like twitter, have provided an extremely effective and efficient platform for large companies to act small.
The interesting thing is - these same platforms have also provided ways for small busineses to act large. Social networking platforms (like twitter) have leveled the playing field for both large and small businesses.
Large businesses can act small (connecting with customers, projecting a personality, reacting quickly, etc.) and small businesses can act large (reaching large numbers of people quickly, driving customer opinion, generating buzz, etc.).
If you are in business today, large or small, chances are your best advantage lies in implementing the same strategy. And that is new. Years ago I stated an opinion that consumers were tiring of the very large, impersonal type of business that have the distinct advantage of being able to offer a wide selection at low prices, but also have the distinct disadvantage of not really being able to connect with their customers and build the type of loyalty that only comes from personal relationship. Well, it seams that very large companies are finding the resources they need to retain the above mentioned advantages, while mitigating their impersonal nature.
At the same time, small businesses, which have the distinct advantages of being closer to their customers, creating strong customer loyalty, and can shape and adjust quickly, can now use social networking tools to reach ever increasingly larger audiences on the cheep.
So, what does this mean if you are trying to build a successful small business today? Simply that if you aren’t currently using the many social networking resources available to you now, you are missing out on an advantage that you can’t afford to miss out on. In the world today, it doesn’t matter if you are large or small, you have the ability to stay “small” and act big.
If you need a jumping off point for social media, check out this blog: http://pistachioconsulting.com/. If you need to figure out how to better incorporate social marketing into your existing marketing strategy, or if you simply need to construct a solid marketing strategy, better contact the team at Your Marketing Lab, Inc.
Follow me on twitter: http://twitter.com/YML
