Getting Slightly Famous!: Part II Positioning Your Business for Maximum Impact

Getting Slightly Famous, Part II
What Happened Last Week?

Read Part I here:
http://tinyurl.com/eqclc

=========================================
Step Two: What's Your Favorite Position?
=========================================
Gee, kind of a personal question, Barry!

A little shy?
OK, I'll tell you mine....in a second.

Ever seen one of those pictures of cute, cuddly
puppies or kittens sleeping on top of one another?

I love the way that sleep overtakes them despite
what they're doing and they collapse right where they are.

The results are pictures of adorable little pets tangled up,
one on top of the other, sleeping their cares away.

It's the picture of bliss.

So, what's cuddly puppies and kittens got to do with
your freelance business? Plenty.

The result of positioning your business can be, well..
pure bliss. If you know how to go about it.

====================
My Favorite Position
====================
OK, I'm gonna spill the beans.
My favorite position...

...is the one that requires absolutely zero effort
on my part. That's right. Lazy dazy here.

My favorite position is the one that keeps me and my business
top-of-mind in the lives of freelance copywriters worldwide.

What?
You thought I was talking about something else?
;-)

Positioning your freelance or solo business is
Step Two in Getting Slightly Famous.

===============================
What's In a Position?
===============================
What exactly is positioning?
Good question.

Many freelance business owners quickly become
confused about positioning.

It's not marketing, but it's close.

It's not the same as publicity but it might include it.
So, it's easy to see how positioning gets fuzzified.

But...positioning is vitally important.
Here's why according to Steven Van Yoder:

"POSITIONING communicates, in no uncertain terms,
the benefits your brand delivers to your target market."

One way to position your business for maximum
impact is the develop a positioning statement.

A positioning statement is one of value and it definitively
answers the question: "What's in it for me?"

Here's the positioning statement for BarryMorris.com:

"BarryMorris.com helps freelance copywriters who
want to break out of the fee-for-service income trap
and learn to leverage their time and talent to generate
more profit for their business and more free time to enjoy
life."

I wrote this positioning statement for two reasons:

1. It helped me create a public image for my business
so that potential clients will know precisely why
they should do business with me rather than someone
else.

2. By defining who my customers are, I can more effectively
design my marketing efforts to reach them.

A positioning statement isn't necessarily for sharing with clients.
You won't find this phrase cyber-plastered all over my web site.

Instead, it serves as my business compass, always pointing
toward my ultimate destination. If I get lost, or encounter
two roads diverging in a yellow wood, I need only check my
positioning statement for direction.

==================================
The Anatomy of a Positioning Statement
==================================
Crafting your positioning statement is similar
to crafting a Business Mantra (TM) or an elevator
speech.

It takes practice, but an effective positioning
statement will include, at minimum, a target audience,
a problem your target audience experiences, a solution to the
problem, and the ultimate reward for a client.

Anatomy Lesson:
---------------
Let's dissect my positioning statement above:

"BarryMorris.com helps freelance copywriters who
want to break out of the fee-for-service income trap
and learn to leverage their time and talent to generate
more profit for their business and more free time to enjoy
life."

Target Audience: freelance copywriters
Problem: trapped by the fee-for-service model
Solution: leveraging their time and talent
Ultimate Outcome: more profits, more free time

Developing a positioning statement, like a compass,
will keep you moving in the right direction.

Positioning also helps you become more visible.

====================================
Positioning Allows You To Stand Out
====================================
When I was a kid, being highly visible was the last
thing on my mind.

Like most kids, I wanted to blend in. Just be one of the crowd.
Typical middle child syndrome stuff. ;-)

But when I became a business owner, standing out
from the crowd rapidly became a necessity.

Without visibility, I was in-visible.
Not good.

By positioning my business as the solution to my target
audience's problems, I naturally positioned my business
as the solution...the top-of-mind solution.

But...I hear you saying...what if I'm in a business, such
as copywriting or copyediting, and I just do what everybody
else does? How do I stand out?

Wow. Great question.
Almost like I wrote it myself!

Case In Point:
--------------
Bruce Smith - Travel Agent

How does a travel agent stand out from his/her
competition when everybody sells the same
vacation/holiday packages?

Bruce seriously pondered this question and came
up with a creative answer. "I'll sell trips,
but keep the destinations a secret."

Crazy, right?
Bruce started selling "Destination Unknown" packages
to honeymooners and other couples, and found a way to make
his business stand out from the gazillion other travel
agencies that potentially served his target audience.

Bruce found a way to stand out from the competition by
tweaking his formerly cookie-cutter service into something
completely new.

====================================
Other Ways to Position Your Business
====================================
Here's a list to consider as you develop your
unique market position:

You could...

** Offer better service
Do you offer rush jobs? Work weekends and holidays?

** Offer better value
Do you offer a choice of basic and comprehensive services?

** Offer better terms
Do you have flexible payment options? Discounts for
payments in advance?

** Offer a creative guarantee
Is it better-than-money-back? No q*uestions a*sked?

** Offer yourself*
Are giving your heart to your clients?

====================================
The Most Powerful Positioning Tool*
====================================
In this article, we've looked at positioning
as a way of increasing the visibility of your business
within your area of influence - your target market.

But, we haven't talked about the most powerful attractor
of all - You!

Yes, it's important to craft a positioning statement that
guides you like a compass as you begin the process of marketing
to your target audience.

And, yes. It's vital to define your services or products
in a manner that allows you to stand out from the rest
of the businesses out there that offers similar services.

But, without doubt, the most powerful tool you have for
attracting the attention of your target audience is your
own personality.

There is no one on the planet like you.
You're an original. I could clone everything
you do in your business, but I can't replicate
what makes your business truly unique and yours.

You.

Your target audience wants to see and hear you.
Not a marketing version of you, but the real you.

The you who isn't concerned with getting it perfect.
The you who understands that your customers are people;
people with problems, looking for a solid solution.

They aren't perfect and they don't expect you to be
either.

Case In Point:
---------------
Me, Myself, I - Copywriting Quarterback

I love typos. Despite my best efforts, those lovely
little misplaced keystrokes happen.

Some of my many loyal readers occasionally point them
out to me via email or phone, and I love it when they do.
[Hey, it means my readers, swimming in a sea of ezines and
newsletters, are choosing to read mine! :D ]

I've come to look forward to these "love notes" from readers.
They let me know that I'm still coming off as human and fallible.

I love the back section in Mark Silver's book, Unveiling
the Heart of Your Business, where he proclaims in large
font...

"Perfection is a quality of the Divine...
...And I'm only human. Although several maniacal editors
have lovingly poured through this book, bugs, problems,
mistakes, typos, and all sorts of things can slip through
despite my best efforts."

But, you know what? Even though I do what I can to prevent
looking human, I still am. I can't help it.

Like Mark, I know that in the end, my customers will feel more
comforted by my humanity than they might be disappointed by it.

==============
Final Thoughts
==============
Positioning your business for maximum effectiveness involves
thinking about its organic components. It requires us to objectively
look at the business, determine how to manipulate the components
into an order that still solves our client's problems, but is perceived
with new perspective.

Accompanying this demand for a unique marketing position, is the
responsibility to become as knowledgeable as you can become
about the problems and issues that face your target audience.

Becoming the knowledge-source that your target audience needs
is a powerful way to position your business for greater
effectiveness and become slightly famous in the process.

Positioning your business will futher clarify your niche, allow you
to continually focus your energy on calling them by name and building
a relationship with them that will last for years to come.

Next week, we'll look at Step Three in Getting Slightly Famous,
and find out what Dr. Phil, Michael Jordan, and Emeril Legasse
have in common and how it can help your business.

Until then...
Thanks for reading!

Barry

Get Slightly Famous - Step One

Become a Specialist
============================
I had a weekend all to myself.
I was alone. Justin was spending some time
with his mom. Bonnie, my girlfriend, was in
San Francisco for the weekend.

I was alone in our rambling beach house.
I was working on what would become the
new BarryMorris.com.

As is my habit, I decided to spend some time
sipping the world's finest coffee in a nearby
Starbucks.

I drove the mile in no time flat.
I walked in. The aroma of fresh coffee surrounded me.

I ordered my coffee. I ripped open my two packets of
Splenda, poured in the Half-n-Half, and I was in
caffeine heaven.

I sat in one of the comfy chairs, got out my pen and
opened my notebook when I heard, "Dad?"

I immediately looked up. My parental radar rapidly scanned
the horizon and came back without a single blip.

The radar is seldom wrong.
It had to be a mistake.

There it was again.
"Dad!"

It wasn't Justin calling me.
It wasn't Bonnie's son, Charlie.
It wasn't any of my three older kids.
It was a complete stranger.

A little girl, with curls and eyelashes that most
women would die for, was calling me. "Dad?"

But it soon became apparent that
she wasn't calling me at all.

She was calling out to her Dad...
who was in line.

===============================
Call My Name & Get My Attention
===============================
No, it wasn't my little Princess.
She's now 22.

In fact, it wasn't my child at all.
So why did I immediately respond when I heard this
little cutie calling her dad?

Because I'm a dad, too.
It's my main job. :-)
And it's my name.

If you want to get my attention, call me by name.
Dad, Barry, Tall-Dark-&-Handsome..they all work!

That's how a marketing niche works.
It calls the name of the prospect.

===========================================
Why Your Copywriting Business Needs a Niche
===========================================
Many freelance copywriters think that catering to
a larger market is the surest path to success.

They're afraid to target a specialized area because they
feel they'll miss out on the larger market's business.

But in reality, the opposite is true.
If you really want to be busy, specialize.
Find a niche that possesses specific problems that
is in need of specific solutions.

Case In Point:
--------------
Mark Bohrer - www.precision-copywriting.com

Mark turned 25 years of experience in high-tech into
a lucrative and rewarding copywriting business that
targets the high-tech sector.

As a result, Mark is the Top-of-Mind copywriter
for local Silicon Valley and global high-tech companies.

Although Marked niched his business in high-tech,
he's also writing for industries where he hasn't
carved out a niche. He's successfully written business
case studies as well as web copy for a variety of industries.

Mark's experience further explodes the myth that
if you specialize, you'll miss out on additional work.

==========================================
Three Reasons Why You Should Niche-It-Down
==========================================
I can hear you.

"But I don't have 25 years of experience in
anything except breathing! What do I do?"

You don't have to have years of experience in
a specific area in order to successfully niche
your business.

In the book, Speak & Grow Rich by Dottie Walters,
she repeatedly advises beginning speakers to "niche-it-down"
and find the one area where they can become the expert.

To determine if a particular niche is right for you,
Steven Van Yoder suggests considering these questions:

1. Do I have an identifiable target population with similar
interests and needs?

2. Is the market large enough to support my business?

3. Can I tailor my services to meet the needs of this market?

4. Is the market currently under-served?

5. Can I reach this market in a cost-effective manner?

So, why niche?
Here three reasons:

=======================================
Reason One: Price Is No Longer An Issue.
=======================================
When you serve a niched market and work to
establish yourself as the expert in this area,
you are no longer subject to the same pricing concerns that
might crowd you out of a larger market where many generalist
copywriters have determined the prevailing rate.

If you are the expert copywriter in any field,
chances are you can charge almost any rate and
get it.

You've got to be good and really know your stuff, but it's
a safe bet that a specialist will make more than a generalist.

Bonnie Needs Hand Surgery
--------------------------
My girlfriend Bonnie needs an arthroplasty on her
left wrist due to arthritis.

She has two options: getting the surgery performed by her
general practitioner, or getting it done by a hand surgeon.

Does she opt for a generalist who also knows hands,
or does she choose the hand specialist?

I know who I'd choose.
Choosing a copywriter is no different.

By specializing, you become the expert resource for
your target market. If you're good, you can charge
more than the prevailing rate of generalists...
and get it.

Not only that, but having a niche sharpens
your marketing focus.

===================================================
Reason Two: It Gives Your Marketing a Sharper Focus
====================================================
I like focused photographs better than fuzzy ones;
Don't you? They're easier for these old eyes to see.

The more you specialize, the easier it is for your target
audience to see and understand the value of your services.

The more visible you become to your niche, the more
you are associated with expert status. Expert status is
always associated with more income that non-expert status.

Case In Point:
---------------
Dan Poynter - www.parapublishing.com

From his web site:

"Dan Poynter fell into publishing. He spent eight years
researching a labor of love. Realizing no publisher would
be interested in a technical treatise on the parachute,
he went directly to a printer and "self-published."
The orders poured in and he suddenly found he was a
publisher himself.

In 1973, he became interested in a new aviation sport,
couldn't find a book on the subject so he sat down
and wrote one. After four months of writing and intense
research that took him from coast to coast, he delivered
the manuscript to the printer. So far, Hang Gliding has
sold over 130,000 copies-a "best seller"!

Occupying a niche can also make your business easier
to manage.

===================================
Reason Three: Niches are Manageable
====================================
It's been said that:

A generalist knows nothing about everything,
while a specialist knows everything about nothing.

What's that go to do with anything? Plenty.
Occupying a niche market can make your job easier.

You don't have to be everything to everybody.
Specializing takes the pressure off you to be as generic as
everyone else. You're free to be who your market needs.

You can get your mind and budget around a smaller population
in order to plan and execute a smart marketing strategy.

Case In Point:
---------------
Tony Roeder - www.RedWagons.com

Knowing that it would be near to impossible competing
against the behemoths of Amazon.com and eToys.com, Tony
decided to offer only Red Flyer brand wagons.

His site carries Red Flyer's complete product line while
his big competitors carry only a few of each brand.

By focusing on one aspect of the toy market, he further
specialized seeking the audience of Red Flyer enthusiasts.

By reducing his niche to just one area of interest, he
has effectively reduced the amount of information he
needs to present to his customers.

They don't care about any other brand. As long as Tony can
supply their desire for Red Flyer brand toys, he's going to
continue to be the Top-of-Mind "expert" Red Flyer customers seek.

==============
Final Thoughts
==============
Getting slightly famous involves, first and foremost,
selecting the right target audience. Selecting a market
niche is the first step.

A market niche can create all the exposure and income you
might require. The added benefit to service a market niche is
also enjoying the other work that comes your way when

The next step is using the niche to position your business
for maximum impact. That's what I'll discuss next time.

Until then...
Thanks for reading!

Barry

Marketing Ball: Striding Across Home Plate or Scoring a Run with Your New Client

This the final installment in the Marketing Ball series.
We've covered a lot of ground in the last five weeks.

Thus far in our series of Marketing Ball
articles, we've come to understand the importance
of both the locker room for planning our game, and
what it takes to get to first base.

In week two, we learned how to use information, lots
of free content to steal second base. We learned that
in order for a potential client to commit to doing
business with us, we must give to them the information
they need.

Last week, we saw how employing the techniques of
Selfless Selling will overcome the resistance that
our prospects have around closing the sale.

Finally, resting safely on third base, our sites
are set on home plate and scoring a run. Doing so
means that we will have signed a new client.

So, how do we do that?
We simply answer the question....

============================
What's It Gonna Cost Me?
============================
Eee gads!
The dreaded question about our fee rears its
ugly head.

"Quickly. Kill the monster and all its spawn."

Sometimes, we'd rather run away than slay this
particular beast. It's like we have some sort
of internal resistance mechanism that kicks in when
someone asks us about our fees.

The main reason this happens in the beginning stages of
being a freelancer is that we don't believe in the
intrinsic value of our services.

To quote Robert Middleton,
"We become attached to an obstructing thought."

What is the obstructing thought? It's probably different
for each of us. Such as...
...I don't have an expert's background.
...I don't have a degree.
...They'll see right through me.
...I'm a pretender.

=================
Let's Do The Work
=================
Byron Katie (a woman with a very masculine first name) wrote
a book titled, Loving What Is. Katie, as she is known, is the
founder of the "The Work." (www.thework.org)

The Work is a powerful way to confront obstructing thoughts
that get in the way of us being at peace with reality. We
simply ask ourselves four questions about our belief.

Let's "do the work" on the obstructing belief,
"I don't have an Expert's background."

Question 1:
Is it true?
..uh..yes..or else I wouldn't have written it. Duh.

Question 2:
Can you absolutely know it's true? (for all time no matter what?)
..well, uh..no...I could get some training I guess...so, No, it can't
always be true.

Question 3:
What does it feel like when you think that original thought?
..I feel bad...I feel depressed...I develop a headache.

Question 4:
Who would you be without that thought?
..without that thought I wouldn't worry about not having
a certain background in order serve my clients.

Turn the Thought Around:
Instead of "I think I don't have an Expert's background."
Try out, "I think I do have an Expert's background."
or
"I don't need an Expert's background."

How does that feel? Better?
It is true or truer than the original thought?

Approaching limiting thoughts using The Work has turned
both my business and my life around. Try it on your limiting
beliefs; I know you find it useful.

========================
For more on The Work, check out my friend Mona Grayson's site:
www.letsdothework.com

or my article:

Expert Marketing:
The Single-Most Paralyzing Barrier to Becoming an Expert
It's here: http://tinyurl.com/ppl6c

==========================
We're Almost Home
==========================
Closing the sale involves getting agreement
on your fee and your terms.

Once you are clear on the value of your services,
you're in a stronger position to state your fees.

Fees should be based on value, not on time.
Especially for copywriters, quoting a project fee is best.
Even though you have a deadline, you're not penalized for getting
the job done faster.

I recently edited a Master's degree thesis for a client
pursuing an architectural degree from the University of California.
His first language isn't English and it needed a revision.

I quoted him a flat fee. In doing so, he could plan for payment
immediately. Had I charged by the hour, I'd be under pressure to get
it done quickly and he'd have been checking his watchand becoming
more agitated with each passing hour.

Neither of these dynamics contributes to a win-win situation.

====================
It Must be a Win-Win
====================
You simply cannot obtain a new client without the
resulting deal being a win for both parties.

The client must win.
You must win.

How does the client win?
By seeing the value of your services and the solution that
your services provide. They win because you will provide the
solution to their perplexing problem.

How do you win?
By performing your service in manner that solves the
client's problem, that promotes an equitable exchange of
services for monetary remuneration, and in a manner that
goes the extra mile.

You win because, if you perform your services in this manner,
you will create a raving fan - a fan who isn't shy about shouting
about you. With a raving fan in the grandstands,
you can win over and over again.

My client with the architectural thesis is now a raving fan.
Why?

Because I solved a very painful problem that he had no way
of solving for himself. I went the extra mile and included a
side-by-side matrix so that he could see how and why the edits were
made. And he wasn't held to an unfair, open-ended hourly rate.

=============
Final Thoughts
==============
Looking back on this series of articles, it's easy to see how we
can make errors in our attempts to attract new clients.

Most try to step up to the plate and hit a home run.
Bad advice. It's simply not possible to play the game that way.

But if you keep the rules of marketing ball in mind, you'll,
more often than not, have no difficulty attracting new clients.

Remember:
1. The client notices you and invites you to speak with them.
2. You must take your time and establish trust before engaging
in any sales behavior.
3. Provide solid, deep content to your prospect if
you want them to keep talking to you.
4. Employ the techniques of Selfless Selling by asking the
questions that invite introspection and conversation.
5. Finally, when it's time to close the sale, make your proposal
a win-win situation.

By doing all of the above, you'll win the game of
Marketing Ball each time you play.

-------------
Of course there are boatloads of information out there about
closing the sale, putting together a winning proposal, and
specific skills for negotiating with decision makers.

That's a bit beyond this overview. However, if you want
that information, I'd urge you to check out Robert Middleton's Info
Guru Marketing Manual below.

See you next week!
Until then, thanks for reading!

Barry

Brain Copy: Are You Writing for the Eye or for the Brain?

"Words don't sell. Pictures do."
--Sean D'Souza,

Picture one of your clients.
She's sitting in front of her computer staring. She's not even blinking.
The fly that came in through her open window lands on her forehead and
begins crawling around above her right eyebrow.

Nothing. A block of granite.
She continues to stare through the smudge on her glasses and into her
flat screen monitor.. reading.. mesmerized by your copy.

The fly, bored, buzzes away.

Questions:

• Which client did you imagine?
• Was she wearing a suit, a sweater, anything at all?
• Did you see the smudge on her glasses?
• Did you see the fly arrive through the window?
• Did you see it fly away?

Why?
------
Why did you see these things? They aren't real.
I made them up.So why did they seem so real?

-------------------------------------------------------------
They're real because I wrote for your brain, not your eyes.
-------------------------------------------------------------
Today's article was inspired by a series of articles in Sean D'Souza's site - http://www.5000bc.com/.
It's a membership site and well worth the price of admission should you be so interested.

Sean is a specialist in consumer and sales psychology
(as well as a master copywriter) and has written extensively
about creating messages that motivate customers to buy.

And lately, he's been rattling around in my brain late at night.. uninvited.

I have a certain routine after Justin is asleep.
I stretch before bed to release muscle tension.
I read a bit from a novel; This week it's The Intelligencer by
Leslie Silbert -a thriller about Renaissance counterintelligence issues. I
sip a bit of milk.

I switch off the light. I stare at the knotty pine ceiling.
I toss. I turn over snuggling up to emptiness.

I hear the rhythmic roar of the ocean crashing wave after wave
on the moonlit beach. I sit upright and watch the silvery reflection
of the moonlight shimmering on the water.

I lay back down.
I hear a voice. It's got a funny accent.
It's saying something over and over and over...

"Words don't sell. Pictures do."

---------------------------------
"Speak the speech, I pray you.."
---------------------------------
In my high school years I was easy to find. I was only in one campus locale:
In or near the auditorium.

I took four years of drama and appeared in quite a few productions.
Some of my roles included Radar O'Reilly in M*A*S*H, Lord Capulet in
Romeo & Juliet, "Chuck Charming" in an children's version of Cinderella,
as well as Col. Purdy, III in The Teahouse of the August Moon and
Charlie in Flower's for Algernon.

I loved it. It was there I found the real Barry.
The one who relaxed and felt perfectly at ease,
albeit at the center of attention. (Some things don't change.)

So what's drama got to do with copy?

----------------------------------------
Drama and story make for good copy.
-----------------------------------------
Drama has a place in good copywriting.
Another copywriting guru, Peter Bowerman, puts it this way.

"Begin with a story. Drop your reader right into the middle of the action."

That's good advice. That what I did at the beginning of this article.
I dropped you directly into the scenario I put forth.

What happens to the reader when we use drama and story?

--------------------------
A good story suck us in.
--------------------------
Even though Justin is nine years-old,
he still loves a good story before bed.
The reason I read fiction before bed is that I,
too, love a good story.

Most of us do. Our clients might not be aware of it,
but so do they. But what kind of story is appropriate f
or our clients when writing copy?

-------------------------------------------
You can see, hear, and feel a good story.
-------------------------------------------
Here's another dose of D'Souza philosophy:
"You know that your audience is either kinesthetic, auditory,
or visual -- or a combination of all three."

This is similar to the three classic learning styles.
You'll recall that we all learn in predominately one of the following types of styles.
Of course, in reality, we are a combination of the three.

If we are a kinesthetic learner, we like to have something in our hands,
take things apart, and see how the parts fit together.

Auditory learners sit in class, listen to the lecture or tele-class,
and soak up the information like a sponge.

Visual learners prefer nice PowerPoint presentations to accompany the lecture;
They like neat and orderly handouts. Their notes are usually camera-ready.

Similarly, a good story will address the visual, auditory,
and kinesthetic elements.

----------------------------------------
How do we get all three into our copy?
----------------------------------------
We use action, auditory cues, and description.
Let's look at the example from above:

I have a certain routine (kinesthetic) after Justin is asleep. (visual)
I stretch (kinesthetic) before bed to release muscle tension. I read a bit from a novel;
This week it's The Intelligencer by Leslie Silbert -a thriller about
Renaissance counterintelligence issues. I sip (auditory) a bit of milk.

I switch off (kinesthetic) the light. I stare at the knotty pine ceiling (visual).
I toss (kinesthetic). I turn over snuggling up to emptiness (kinesthetic).

I hear the rhythmic roar of the ocean (auditory) crashing wave after wave on
the moonlit beach (visual). I sit upright (kinesthetic) and watch the silvery
reflection of the moonlight shimmering on the water (visual).

I feel the cool breeze (kinesthetic) coming in the open window (visual).
I lay back down. (kinesthetic) I hear a voice (auditory).
It's got a funny accent (auditory). It's saying something over and o
ver and over...(kinesthetic and auditory)

"Words don't sell. Pictures do."

============================
Final Thoughts: Take Control of Your Copy
============================
Whether you're a copywriter generating copy,
an agency creative directing the copywriting process, or a business owner
in need of copy, you have a role to play.

What is that role?
Your role is to insure that your copy has a much good story as possible.
Stories with drama and packed with visual, auditory, and kinesthetic
clues will go a long way toward making your messages stand out.

When written for the brain, good copy will be pleasing not only to
the eye, but to all our senses.

Thanks for reading,
Barry
(c) 2005 Barry W. Morris

Marketing Ball - Rounding Third & Headed for Home!

Marketing Ball:
Rounding Third - Headed for Home
- or -
The Art of Selfless Selling
===================================
Thus far in our series of Marketing Ball
articles, we've come to understand the importance
of both the locker room for planning our game, and
what it takes to get to first base, then second.

(If you've missed these three articles, you can
read them here: http://BarryMorris.blogspot.com)

Last week we learned how to use information, lots
of free content to steal second base. We learned that
in order for a potential client to commit to doing
business with us, we must give to them the information
they need.

So instead of rushing to close the sale, we gently
provide them with information that speaks their language.

============================
Getting from Second to Third
============================
First of all, I apologize.
Sorry, sorry, and sorry.

David, from the UK, wrote to me this past week
and reminded me that the baseball analogy doesn't
translate well across the Atlantic.

And he's right. In presenting this information
using the analogy for my home sport of baseball, it
may not mean as much to readers in the UK, Europe, Australia,
or Africa...where many of my readers are located.

Although I did play for the Robbs of Hexham cricket team
in the northern part of England back in the 70s (being the
token yank on the team, I'm sure I gave everyone a good laugh),
I can't recall enough about rules of the game to adequately do
it justice.

This being World Cup Soccer time, I considered that metaphor
as well. I do know the rules of soccer more intimately than cricket,
but still the information doesn't fit that sport either.

Anyway, all this to say that I appreciate the patience many
of my international readers have relied on these past few weeks
while I prattle on about Marketing Ball.

But, we can't stop mid-game,now can we?
So, here we are on Second base, eyeing third with envy.

We know that getting to third base means that the potential
client is satisfied with the information we've supplied and
in his heart, the conceptual sale in made.

====================================
Getting from His Heart to His Wallet
====================================
Of course getting from an emotional sale to one that
involves real cash is another thing altogether.

Here we want to wow the potential client with
our slick salesmanship, right?

WRONG!

In effect, this conversation is saying, "OK, You already
understand the value of my services, now let's see if
they're right for you."

The entire conversation is about determining the exact needs
of this potential client and explaining how your services or
products can help.

In this conversation, we talk about our process...how we will
be able to help solve the client's problems. But in order to
do this, we need to find out their needs.

================================
The Selfless Selling Conversation
================================
Most of us a trained or conditioned to believe that
to be in sales we need to act like a used car
salesman. I call it SELFISH Selling - because we are pushing
the prospect to buy based on our desires: Never a good idea.

There is a lot of pressure to buy something we don't even want.
If this is your experience, as it was mine, you will need
to revisit the subject of SELFLESS selling.

Selfless Selling is no different than actually
performing your services. You're helping your potential
client discover what's right for them in a gentle manner.

You're asking questions like:
1) What would you like me to help you with?
2) What would it look like if you were to accomplish
this goal?
3) How do you see me being able to help you achieve this?
4) What have you tried already that hasn't worked?
5) Why do you think it didn't work?

These questions are open ended and allow the potential
client to self-discover their needs. They allow you to
effectively screen your prospect at the same time.

Contrast those with Selfish Selling questions:
1) Would you like me to help you?
2) Do you think you can accomplish this foal without help?
3) Where would you like to begin?
4) Will you be giving me a retainer today?
5) When should I start?

SELFISH selling always has an origin in neediness.

==========================
Confronting Our Neediness
==========================
In Mark Silver's excellent book, Unveiling the Heart of
Your Business, he talks about making sure we confront our
"neediness" before engaging in the sales conversation.

If we approach sales because we are needy in terms of
money, sales quotas, etc., our prospect will feel it.
It's because of this neediness that we begin to push to sale.

If we approach sales from a position of selflessness, then
our questions and our attitude express a helpful quality that
puts our hearts forward instead of our heads.

===============
Injecting Value
===============
Selfless Selling also involves talking about value.
Customers buy on value not just on price.

Why would some pay $2000 for a seminar that lasts four days?
Because of the value it brings them.

Why would some pay $30,000 for a new car when they could buy a
a used one for $5000? Because the higher priced car is a better
value.

Moving the conversation from helping the prospect discover their
needs to getting them to see the value in your services is also
part of the base running plan.

Value is king. Price is secondary. Always.
Talking about the lasting value of your service will almost
always get the customer to become less resistant to price.

==============
Final Thoughts
==============
Getting from second base to third involves:

1) Building on the trust you've created by way of the information
you provided on your web site, marketing materials, etc.

2) Engaging in SELFLESS Selling by asking questions that
encourage the exploration of their needs: you and your potential
client can further these needs and determine whether your
service is right for their situation.

3) Injecting value into the discussion. By citing example of past
client successes, you can go a long way toward reducing the
sticker shock when you talk about fees and terms.

And that's what we'll cover week in "Scoring a Run."

Until then, thanks for reading!

Barry