Let’s Play Stump the Stumpy Guy

I usually do the interviews for our coaching calls. I actually like being on that side of the mike, hopefully helping “decomplicate” the expert’s topic, cutting volumes of information into bite-sized chunks, suitable for complete digestion.

But last Thursday, at 5:30 pm, it was my turn to squirm. Copywriting and marketing superstar Dan Kennedy called to interview me for his apparently information-starved Copywriting Students. In my world, being interviewed by Dan Kennedy is like having Jimmy Johnson ask you to drive him around the block.

For one hour, I had to fake my way through sounding intelligent. And in this smart, tough crowd with a fairly expensive $30,000 annual tuition, that wasn’t going to be easy. So, in-between making up big words and ending every other sentence with “in this economy” to sound relevant, I attempted to offer advice.

The REAL reason I was on the call was for having been the idiot who won a new car last year, but turned it down in exchange for an equal amount ($35,000) of copywriting work from contest sponsor Kennedy. Yes, I – the self-proclaimed copywriter – sort of “paid” 35 large for 8 pages of work.

Whatever. I didn’t need the car, but felt I could use learning from a good coach. (Can’t we all?) Of course, those winnings became yours because we took what we learned and applied it to not only our marketing, but to what we offer you.

But during the interview, amid all these people ‘tuned in’ to hear the answers, Dan throws me a curveball. He asks, “If you had all your copywriting tools taken away except 3, what would they be?” There I am, mildly choked to answer, clock ticking, sweat forming. And it’s below.

Whether you’re copywriting “student” or not, the answers still go to the core of marketing. Remember, this was not a “beginner” crowd, so my answers aren’t the normal “big headline, bold guarantee, and hot bullet points” that you’re sick of hearing. And shockingly enough, in the light of day, I still stick by these answers…

Below, you’ll see my answer. I’ve put in italics how you can use this hint in your business, whether marketing, selling, or negotiation. They work for all, and that’s a promise. So, a peek behind the marketing curtain…

AH: “Well Dan, I’m a big fan of the Provocative Headline, Big Promise Headline, The Killer Offer, Powerful Guarantee, and all that, but I assumed – hopefully correctly – that your students (and I frankly) have enough resources on those topics from you and other training. Here are the ones I consider more advanced, more stealthy, that you do NOT hear about much, but generate massive results for us and our clients -

1. I’ll call the first one ‘Planting Psychic’ Seeds. Some may call it ‘empathy’ but its more than that. I like to write as if I’m listening in on what keeps these guys up at night, and shock them with the well placed ‘prediction’ of that state.

The “You’re probably wondering…” is a nearly worn-out but effective version of that. I want to let my clients know that I understand what keeps them up at night, or the problems they’ve faced, or even where their mind is at the moment.”

Contractors – you too want to do this. Force your marketing language, website, sales presentations to enter your customer’s subconscious. Make them say, ‘YES! That’s what I was just thinking!” and you will magnetically gain acceptance. People want to be understood without having to explain themselves.

2. Curiosity Accelerators – I often drop in a foreshadowed thought, hinting at something yet to come. I try to give the readers’ subconscious a moment to dwell, then DESIRE the object of their curiosity. Such as, “I’ll explain that in a moment, but first, here’s why nobody’s doing it…” See? They hear, they hang, anticipation and momentum are built.

Contractors – This is done WAY too little in your websites, and especially your sales presentations. Your Maintenance Agreement forms are the WORST at this. Why? They tell too much, too quickly, ending forever the ability to let the customer ‘weigh’ out the value before you blurt it in their face OR attempt to defend it! An example:

Websites stupidly put, “Read what others say” as if anyone really goes to read a bunch of bragging. Curiosity is OVER. We all know it’s awesome or you wouldn’t put it there. Instead, pepper it ‘inside’ the message, such as “You’re probably thinking I’m full of beans, but so did David Wanker from Canker who said…”

See the difference? Don’t make ‘em hunt it down. Make them want it. Also…

Most Agreements typically line up a bunch of gobbledegook on a page that is SUPPOSED to seem beneficial, but it’s tiresome, boring, hogwash to a customer. All they’re scanning for is the price, but nothing else means anything to them. Instead, you should line up and explain why the bullet point is tantalizingly valuable, THEN put your price in the two-tier method, compared against an UNmaintained system failure.

3. My next most crucial element is “The Turn” as Maxwell Sackheim called it. This is very difficult for most amateur marketers and salespeople. This is where you go from consultive coach to presenting the offer they should accept. I mean, if they’ve expressed a need, it is your duty to present a viable offer.

Contractors – too much of your marketing, and many of your “salespeople” simply spout off specs, scribble something down, and blurt out a price as if magically people’s Visa cards will float from their highly guarded wallets. Ain’t gonna happen. That’s called “Order taking” not “Selling”.

The turn is where you skillfully build a communication “bridge” from “I know you, and know you have this problem” to “Now that we know each other, here’s how to solve it. Just look.”

Your presentations and marketing sales pieces have 3 parts: the opener, the presentation, and the close. These are essentially seamless except for a clinical sales discussion, and the turn is between presentation and close. So, if you’ve got great presentation skills and a lousy closing ratio, it is THE TURN that is causing you to fall flat.

All successful infomercials have “the turn”; watch them. (Heck, all great movies and books have “the turn”) Become a student of the turn.

So, there’s your look into a formerly secretive ‘list’ of items I use to persuade you, and you to persuade others, now advising you to use in your marketing and selling. Happy Sales!

Adams Hudson

Questions:
□ If I took all your marketing tools away except 3, what items would YOU keep?
□ How effectively are your sales presentations at any of the 3 items on MY list above?
□ Do your sales presentations need a makeover?
□ Does your marketing need to be polished up for 2010?

Repeating History’s Repetition

For some reason, a group of historian type people want to tour our offices this Sunday. Further, they’ve asked me to speak to them in some meaningful fashion, relating the historic mission for downtown and our role in it. Personally, I feel they’re really hoping I’ll say nothing but serve Bourbon.

Long time SMI readers will remember that our renovation of this 1880’s building (5 years ago) employed most every tradesperson in 3 counties, including trades that hadn’t been invented at the time. I was billed virtually every time they inhaled, and charged overtime for their exhales.

There were many excellent, pleasant, skilled techs and companies that came through here, doing exquisite work that has withstood great use. There were also a few tradespeople with skills and attitudes that rival meth-addicted wharf rats, except with less dexterity.

Of all those trades folks – perhaps 20 in all – I still use exactly 3.

That coveted group includes:

The electrician (charges more per hour than a cosmetic surgeon, but worth it… darn it), the roofer (needs shock therapy to return a phone call, but competent and fair) and the HVAC company (undermarketed to a fault, but fair and reliable.)

Why do I still use them? And why will I unhesitatingly recommend them to the 30 or so assembled ‘influence peddlers’ on Sunday, and any other time? The reasons you’ll read are the exact same as why they’re doing well in this economy, and the others, well, aren’t.

A “hint” given first …

The historic group this Sunday is touring properties to see and hear firsthand: 1) How does a historic building function into today’s business environment? 2) What obstacles and advantages does a commercial restoration entail? And 3) How does an overly-critical short guy ever get to manage anything? Plus, why can’t he spell “INC” properly?

In addition, every time there’s a tour through here, people also ask “Who” did the work? What’s generally implicit in the question is “Who would you recommend?” (Pointless to give names of the UNrecommended.) And there’s a free lead source for the contractors who understand and work this angle. I may only be telling 30 or so people on Sunday, but they all have homes (I think) and are “influence peddlers” to their peer group. Very important. Somewhere in your town, right now, someone’s asking a knowledgeable person “Who do you use for your ?”

How did these 3 companies get to be the answer?

1) Relentlessly regular contact. I promise you, I could not – at gunpoint – tell you the name of the plumber. Or the tile setter, landscaper, brick mason, window man, painter, or locksmith… all of whom I’ve needed several times since, and been asked about umpteen times more. But the “chosen” tradespeople have stayed in touch, making them a) Stand out against the sea of ‘call-me-if-you-need-me’ nincompoops who FORGOT that people FORGET (ironic isn’t it?), and b) Rise to the top of ‘recall heirarchy’ as Maslow said it or TOMA as we say it, plus c) They become the default choice for referrals. Smart to recontact. They stay in touch ‘mostly’ through mail, occasionally by phone. Two attempted ezines earlier, but those floundered and were systemically eliminated in favor of regular mail.

2) They use Professionalism as a Competitive Advantage. This is going to make some of you mad. Whatever. Trades in general do NOT have a very professional demeanor, thus status, assumptions, and price points are commensurate. I don’t make the rules, but you tell me – Two guys have IDENTICAL diamonds for sale. One guy is in an exquisitely elegant, hushed environ, immaculately dressed and as polished as the gem he represents. The other is wearing an Alice in Chains T-shirt, hasn’t shaved, and smells vaguely of Vienna Sausage. Which one are YOU going to confidently pay WAY more money to? Oh, silly me, I never mentioned that either one spoke. Guy #1 coulda been on out work release and Guy #2 a graduate gemologist, but you didn’t wait to make your judgment either. You got that impression purely by the professional ‘aura’ presented. Don’t expect your customers to be any different.

3) Great Customer Service Creates Price Elasticity and Pain of Disconnect. That’s a mouthful, but a high degree of Customer Service means I “pay” more but “get” more… though largely intangible and without ‘cost’ to the company. This is attributable to general courtesy, appointments confirmed, neatness, prices submitted upfront, material options presented, follow-ups initiated by the company, and thank you via phone and with invoice. After that, I’m in their “sequence” (newsletter, recontact, see #1.) The “Pain of Disconnect” is a direct response marketing term for a loyalty creation that is hard to ‘unhook’, thus, “going back” to the non-Customer oriented contractor makes an odious comparison. Good customer service is by nature, relatively rare, highly attractive, and very “sticky”. Train for this and financial gains naturally flow.

Maybe you read this and say you “knew” these 3 elements, are sick of hearing of them in some form or fashion, and were looking for something “new”. Why? History, as they say, is a great teacher.

Questions for You:

1. What is your ‘system’ of recontact? There is no “winging it” in a system.

2. What is ONE THING you could do TODAY to bump your professionalism? (Phone courtesy, uniforms, truck rewrap, new logo, better ads, scripted presentation, burn the Alice in Chains shirts?)

3. Scale of 1-10, what is your company’s customer service ranking? How could you make it go up today?

Minority Rule

An old adage: “When the word on the street is ‘buy’, it is definitely time to sell.” This supports the contrarian’s favorite point that the grand herd called “they”, are generally far behind, already approaching irrelevance, since the leaders have long since left the party.

Zig whenever “they” zag. It is true elsewhere.

Those rare folk who sold at the height of the market – deemed idiotic at the time – are now considered enlightened. The crowd moves in huge swells and sways, while leaders in thought and action pull away, immune to the self-appointed critics. The top 14% of the earners in the U.S. out-earn the remaining 86% combined, all of whom are certain “their” way must be right. It sure doesn’t seem that way…

Currently, about 40% of the population spends exactly what they earn or less – zero or negative savings. Another 40% eke out a living, with less than 10% of their income for ‘non-essentials’ including savings, recreation.

The next 15% up are considered the new mass affluent ($155,000 household income and higher, a group 23% larger than just 10 years ago. Yes, even now.) The top 5% generate over $500,000, some way over. Categorically, they’re considered “thought leaders, business leaders, community leaders” – and there’s just one word consistent in those descriptions.

Before I continue with the peep show (a marketing hint right there) let me back up a sec.

This has not been the most fun year for the contracting majority. You can’t pick up a newspaper or listen to news without being reminded. Those of us in business, out to slay the daily dragon, now get to hear the constant chorus of wails and moans in the background.

“They” begin to seep into our dreams, leaking from under the foundation, causing a less enthusiastic voice answering the phone, a less than committed upsell, a pulling back on the marketing reins, and a tail slowly tucking inward because “they” are all doing the same.

“They” are usually wrong. So accepting that and responding accordingly is Step #1 of the vastly more successful, tiny minority. In other words, they zag quite regularly.

They are deaf to the crowd’s advice. They are mute to chiming in on the “me, too” Pavlovian response to bad news. They’re blind to seeking crowd approval. (And yet, ironically, their self-esteem supremely well-intact.)

And in contracting, despite the fact that consumers are spending less and more resistant to the optional than ever, small numbers of very successful contractors tout the rarely discussed “good”. They draw it inside their ranks, becoming “bad news immune” and thus a magnetically more confident company. This too is contagious.

Supporting that –

□ Consumer Trends found out what we all know: “Nearly ¾ of the American public has tired of the recession news, some openly resisting same. Buying pattern increases indicate a renewed attraction toward durable, reliable, trustable.” Advice: Same for the past year – Good news is attractive. Reliably market your reliability. If you go silent in your marketing, your phones follow.

□ “A drop in new housing starts is bringing renewed interest in existing home-improvement, energy upgrades, environmentally-sound investing.” Advice: Pay attention to the word “investing”. Unlike the “norm”, now is not time to low ball every bid. Flaunt your higher priced upgrades that can demonstrate a sound investment. (Hint: Your Proposal Books and online consumer videos need updating.)

□ More good news: “Is the do-it-yourselfer dead?” HGTV saw massive drop in popularity of “flipping” and “do it yourself” shows in favor of maximizing value, with the subtext of professional trade contracting. (Holmes on Homes, Renovation Nightmares both illustrate “false economy” of unprofessional and DIYer.) Trends to watch: Shows for contractors supporting model customer service, smart marketing, image-enhancement. Advice: As in a recent editorial, some “normal” contractors send homeowners (me!) to a big-box to “save me some money”. If you’re a professional, you should either support professionalism or quit the profession. Fair enough? The successful minority shows the risks of DIY and unprofessional work on their websites, newsletters, and publicity.
□ Customer service is becoming the great “separator”. People are tired (and distrusting, see first bullet) of the low-image, slacker contractor – rudely handled phone calls, the follow-up that never happens, the unanswered after hours phone, the static and self-absorbed website all indicate “old” think. Consumer buying, repeat buying and referring all follows superior customer service. Advice: The majority falsely believe they’re “saving money” by cutting training and expertise.

Do the different thing, contractors. Follow the advice of the successful minority. Tap into that however, and whenever you can. Be willing to do what’s different from the crowd, most of who are complaining. That alone will get you noticed.

I believe that 2010 will widen the gaps in the “haves and have nots”. The “haves” will not have gotten there by following the masses, that’s a promise.

Questions for you:

1. What are you doing differently in your marketing? Sales presentations? Customer service? How is the “language” in your shop different from that of the “normal” contractor?

2. Do you regularly “shop” the competition to see how they either blend in or stand out? (Our Competitive Intelligence guide in your PowerPack is an outline in doing this, or you can do it yourself.)

Before You Hit “Delete” or Run out the Door…

We've all heard enough 'bad' news this year to last for several more. Yet, if you believe we still live in a great country, if you still have enough health to get through the day, and still have the love of family and friends among you, you can indeed be thankful.

And regardless of your income, the many blessings you have – and even enumerate in your conscious now – makes you a very rich person.