GUERRillA PROFITS Inentlon: Business Owners, Managers. and Professlonals_ Now you can capture the money that most businesses miss. Most businesses miss profit opportunities on every transaction or customer/client relationship. They have unique profit potential that goes completely untapped-and are unintentionally limiting their incomes without even knowing it. Your very business existence depends on a steady stream of profits to pay your bills .... your salary.. .. your employees ....your vendors and suppliers .... and to secure your financial future . And that's the exact reason for Guerrilla Profits.
Guerrilla Marketers Rejoice Now, what Guerrilla Marketing has done to ignite your business growth, Gue"illa Profits will do to skyrocket your business's bottom line. Guerrilla Profits is the next step in the global Guerrilla Marketing revolution .Where Guerrilla Marketing helps you use low-cost and nocost marketing methods to get new business, Gue"illa Profits helps you find your profit leverage points-to increase your profits and cashflow, capture new prom sources, and get even more business. Without extra profits or deep pockets, you can 't last long .... or support the activities, the resources and the people you need to thrive (especially if the economy gets difficult) . The extra money generated by Guerrilla Profits could even make the difference between the success or failure of your business or practice.
n's Just that ImponanU I SBN 978 - 1 - 6 003 7- 322-0
9 Business/Management: $29.95
~ Habitat " for Humanity· GUlrr111a rronlllmlrDIdoDl1 www.guerrillaprofits .com
Could this ooe book become the kel to lour success iobusioess;' Dear Reader, You are holding an opportunity in your hands ... Here between these pages are the secrets to countless business fortunes that have been distilled into a mere book.
Rarely as a publisher do I get to be as trul y excited about sharing a book with you, the reader- as I am abou t reading it myselr.
Guerrilla Profits is such a book . Jay Conrad Levinson and Stuart Burkow having joined forces (legendary marketing icon .... and master business practitioner) -is a windfall to the world of business and entrepreneurs in every
field . There are lots of great bus iness books out there, but none that has this complete of a laser-focus on the primary factor that drives all business success: Profits. Just as Guerrilla Marketing revolutionized the way businesses conduct market-
ing--Guerrilla Profits wi ll revolutionize the way businesses create profits.
This is one book that you' ll want to read and act on before your competitors do. I'm proud of their triumph .... and proud to be ab le to bring you this book. To your success,
David L. Hancock Publisher Guerrilla Marketing Press An imprint of: Morgan James Publishing, LLC The Entrepreneurial Publisher
Jay Conrad LevInson , Father. Guemlla MarketIng www.gmarketing com
J ay Co n rad Levinso n is th.: author of the best-selling mark eting series in hi story. Gllerrilla Murkeli,,~ . and has \Hillen or co-a uthored 5 7 bllsi nc ~s boob. Jay's books h
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businesses, service or repair contact. Let's focus specifically on three such situations-outside sales, trade shows / conferences, and service / repair. Here are some specific areas to focus on: • Outside Sales Salespeople live or die on their results. The positive side of that equation is that when results are good, so will be the salespersons' attitude. But when sales are down for a particular salesperson (or the entire company), several things can happen. Self-starters-for whom success is common-will most likely view any slump as just temporary and will look forward to their "luck" changing. Most likely, they'll dig in their heels and work a bit harder to get their numbers up. From a customer/client perspective, the selfstarters will likely continue to exhibit a positive attitude because they have the expectation of a positive outcome. However, those with a low expectation of success (or with little experience of success in your business, such as new hires and beginners) will drag their feet or procrastinate. They'll find reasons to focus on the easy work rather than having to face another rejection. Customers/clients will experience these salespeople as less convincing and having low energy-or even worse-a negative attitude. That won't make your existing or prospective clientele feel thrilled about doing business with your firm. Clearly, the best way to keep outside salespeople from falling into a slump is to stay on top of each salesperson's results constantly by daily/weekly/monthly activities, follow-up, follow through, and other results monitoring. Accountability should be required for all foundational and "building block" activities to fill the pipeline such as calls initiated, follow-up done, appointments booked and appointments Chapter 1 - Strategy #1: Maximize Your Interactions
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completed. In addition, salespeople should be peppered with high-quality leads from targeted marketing efforts ("lay downs")-and given access to existing customer/client business ("repeats") when possible. This is especially important to help them keep their plates full-and to help you avoid burning through your reps. • Trade Shows & Conferences These are often used, and misused, vehicles. Usually, the primary goal is to hook up with existing customers/clients to sell more to them. And secondly, to generate new leads (or it's hoped, new business on the spot). But for the staff it often means long, tedious hours-maybe days--ofhanging-out in the show booth waiting to pounce like a vulture on any prospect who happens by. When activity is brisk, the time goes more quickly and easily. But it's harder to get things moving when the pace slows. Some firms go to great lengths to make their booths enticing .... to build interest or curiosity.... to do pre-attendance promotion to bring in the people ....and to even pre-set specific appointments for prospects to meet with the reps. You can also create specific show promotions during the event and tie into other programs, extras and promotional opportunities that the trade show or conference promoter offers. In-booth promotions help generate excitement not only for the customers/clients but also for the reps. It helps keep their spirits up, and that better attitude comes across. Now, I'm not just talking about putting prospects' business cards into a fish bowl to raffie off some gizmo. Some real thought needs to be put into something that directly ties into the show itself, something that relates to what the buyers are there to do and something that1s relevant to what they want (see Chapter 9 - Strategy #9: Create Excitement, for more details) In the fashion industry, for example, it might be having celebrity Chapter 1 - Strategy #1: Maximize Your Interactions
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models in your booth at specific times throughout the trade show (wearing your line, of course). In the wholesale automotive-parts business, it might be having a famous race car driver make appearances to endorse and talk about your products. In the book industry, perhaps it's a chance to meet the authors. But the possibilities aren't limited to celebrities (although that's a good way to go). Often, special-trade-show-only deals, specials, and packages can be a good talking point and give reps something to shoot for. And if you can entertain your customers/clients/prospects in a relevant way, it helps attract them to your booth. Educate them on top of that, and you've got the basis for new business. The main point is: A good attitude can generate additional Guerrilla Profits at trade shows and conferences.
• Service & Repair Here's another opportunity to shine-or decline--during The Critical First Points of Contact. Many service or repair people believe it's not their job to sell. That, they think, is for the sales department. But, ironically, service and repair folks are in the best position to educate people during the interaction-and more importantly-are in the best position to determine other potential wants and needs that your customer/client has at that moment. Great care should be taken to educate any service or repair staff about your products and/or services. They should at least know what the choices and options are and be informed to the point where they can make a suggestion or recommendation, then hand the potential transaction off to the right people for follow-up (like we've discussed earlier in this chapter, "Everybody's in Sales"). As part of every service / repair call report, there could be a section to specifically address other things that a customer/client may be in the market for. It could even be a formal assessment or evaluation to determine if the customer/client needs are being completely met-almost Chapter 1 - Strategy #1: Maximize Your Interactions
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a survey that's positioned as a "service check up." If done with a bit of thought, an entirely new profit center could be waiting to be explored through existing service or repair contacts. This can also be applied internally to your inbound service department or reception interactions. The biggest Guerrilla Profits opportunity here is that service or repair people aren't seen as being as much of a "threat" or an "intrusion"-and in fact, at that point of contact, customers will often welcome any suggestions or recommendations with much less resistance than they might have with a sales rep. If you pre-train and pre-dispose your employees to talk about possible choices from your business offerings rather than show an "it's-not-my-job" attitude, you stand a chance of capturing these extra profits. People-less interactions So far we've been talking about Critical First Points of Contact that involve you or your employees talking to present or potential customers and clients. But what about initial contacts that don't involve people? These are less obvious, yet equally important. Let's look at some of the first points of contact that don't involve live interactions: • Voicemail, Auto-Attendant & IVR Systems (Interactive Voice Response) With all the automation today, lots of companies use an automated front end to their phone system to help route calls, screen callers, assist without live help, and otherwise filter people into the business. This can be a huge source of frustration for callers-and a source of opportunities for Guerrilla Profits for those who carefully design their system from the caller's point of view. That's the key: Many systems are designed for (or default to) the business preferences, with only minor consideration given to the user's experience. What you want to do is to quickly route callers to a limited number Chapter 1 - Strategy #1: Maximize Your Interactions
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of major categories (three to four is ideal) rather than a long laundry list of choices. You can have additional selections in each major category, but you also have to keep each of those to two or three additional choices. The upfront message could say, "Thanks for your call. We want to route your call correctly, so please listen to this short list ofchoices-and we'll get you where you want to go quickly. " In addition to routing calls to the right department or person with your IVR / Auto-Attendant system, you could give callers the option to select and use the automated system instead of waiting to be given an array of choices. Some people prefer that, especially when they're merely calling for routine information like, "What are your hours?" or "What s your address and directions? " If there is only a voicemail option, or Auto-Attendant routing lands at a voicemail box rather than taking people to a live person-just realize that you'll get a large percentage of hang-ups and frustrated people who feel they are not getting the help they are looking for. For systems that do ultimately get live answered, you'll also want to screen for sales versus service calls right up front. But don't make the mistake of labeling those choices from the company's perspective (for example, "Sales Department" should be called "Product Information"). Use descriptive labels that come from your customers/clients' perspective and the reasons why they're calling you. Have it take only one or two "press-button" selections to get to a live person-while still giving you a chance to route the caller to the correct department. Another option, once the caller has selected from the major categories or sub-categories, is to have the phone liveanswered by a person who identifies himself or herself as being there to further assist (for example, by helping route the call to the exact right person or department). In a large organization, this operator assisted, in-person connection serves several functions. But the primary Guerrilla Profits function is to Chapter 1 - Strategy #1: Maximize Your Interactions
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have someone on the line with each person quickly and to determine if there's a potential profit opportunity. This is a good point (before handing off the call) at which to make product or service suggestions, mention sales or specials, or take note of each caller's wants, needs or frustrations. Also at this point, reps should have database access to caller records (if available) or should be keeping a "new" log to gather data. Warning: This must be done in a friendly, non-intrusive (read: "nonsalesy") way. Remember, callers are on the line to get what they came for-not to listen to a lot of company-focused information.
• On-hold profit opportunities When customers are waiting for the live answer, that's an opportunity to educate, give interesting testimonials, or mention specials, sales, upcoming events, or promotions. Many systems allow you to change your message as often as you like (rather than use the same old stale recording or generic music to pass the time). However, almost anything is better than "dead air" while on hold. It's even better if your system has the ability to tell people how long the estimated wait time is every 30 seconds or so while giving an option to leave a message. That on-hold message option is often missing, meaning a caller's only choice is-after investing five or 10 minutes-to hang up and start over. That's very frustrating! You can also make on-hold time entertaining while still using it as a good promotion opportunity. (Try calling Southwest Airlines sometime for an example.) Also, do you have an "distress-escape mechanism" built into your IVR / Auto-Attendant system? It's a good idea to program your system, if possible, to read multiple "O's" being pressed as "distress" (read frustration or irritation) and immediately route the caller to a live person. And speaking of voicemail.it.s a good idea to actually listen to and return calls in a timely fashion (/ know, / know-everyone does this already, right?).
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• Posted hours Sorry, but this one is a pet peeve of mine. You'll need to constantly monitor your locations, phone reps, service departments, and so on to be sure they're actually open and available during your posted hours. Nothing can be more frustrating than doing the 100-yard dash or the fivemile automobile sprint just to be turned away within minutes of the clock striking the hour. I recall a recent trip to the Post Office where it became routine for the "manager" to take a look at the waiting line at 10 minutes before closing time. Then she'd lock the doors early if it seemed like the line was "too long," and turn away patrons at the door who were holding up their watches and raising their voices. The truth is, people expect to be helped if they're in the door (or at the door)-or on the phone prior to your closing time. If you're in a profit-based business, your No.1 job is to bring in and help as many people as possible. If, more often than not, people are piling into your door (or on the phone trying to purchase) at your "closing time," I'd like to humbly suggest that it's time for you to change your hours. Of course, some people have a "lifestyle" business, and that's perfectly O.K. We're just having a conversation here about profits, remember? If you're dealing with employees (and, of course, payroll), it's an ongoing balancing act to find the right mix between the business .... and those you serve. • After-hours alternatives The Internet has opened up huge new possibilities for people to interact with your business 2417, but the phone is also still a primary channel, even after hours. Using the phone and the Internet together delivers a powerful one-two punch. If your IVR / Auto-Attendant system has the ability to timeChapter 1 - Strategy #1: Maximize Your Interactions
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change the menus or messaging after hours, you can direct people into self-help voice systems or direct them to alternate ways to get things done (rather than just, "Leave a message and someone will get back with you "-or "call back tomorrow" ). Have a friendly IVR data-capture system that directs people to leave specific information rather than just a generic message. This has the potential to capture information that might otherwise get lost due to hang-ups and can even be used for order capture. You can also direct callers from the phone to your web site. Make sure you send people to a specific URL/web landing page-don'tjust drop them on the home page. Instead, tell them exactly which page to go to for help or to get things done after hours (but, keep the URL extensions short and to the point). That way, people can be directed properly between both phone and online.
The big picture All of these Critical First Points of Contact, taken together, have a huge impact on the experience that your customers/clients have with your business or professional practice. The importance of good customer/client interactions canlt be overstated. Maximize Your Interactions and earn more Guerrilla Profits by making it easy for people to get what they want from you in an enjoyable way.
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ACTION POINTS • Pay attention to The Critical First Points of Contact which are the "make-or-break" factors that determine who will buy-and who will walk. • Have clearly defined and stated expectations of employee behavior-and use scripts and templates for all forms of communication. • Be sure that everyone in your organization has at least basic product knowledge and the ability to recognize and act on customer/client wants and needs. • Reward the expected customer/client interaction behavior that you want-and also track those who are not being rewarded.
• Mystery shop your location(s) with your employees full knowledge and factor that information into your reward and feedback system. • Monitor and, when needed, modify employee attitude -which has a huge impact on your customer/client interactions. • Design your people-less interactions from your customer/clients' perspective-and make it easy for people to get what they want from you.
Get the latest Methods, News & Updates. Go To: www.guerrillaprofits.com
Strategy #2: Capture More from Your Transactions
O
ne of the underlying principles of Guerrilla Profits is that most businesses miss out on profit opportunities on almost every transaction-and are limiting their incomes without even knowing it. Now, that's not to say that all possible methods should be used every time, in every customer/client encounter. That's just not practical---or perhaps, it's not even preferable. Rather, the potential methods available to you should be strategically peppered into the mix of what's occurring now---or used wherever appropriate for you-and that increased use will inevitably generate more business. Transactions, of course, consist of all the things you do in the course of conducting business with your
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customers/clients. But, we'll differentiate here from your interactions (discussed in Chapter 1 - Strategy #1: Maximize Your Interactions)which focus on human behavior-by focusing now on some of the specific transactional methods you can use. These can help you capture more from the people who are already coming in your door, calling on the phone, emailing you, visiting your web site, or whom you are going out to meet. Let's begin with a quick review of the usual transaction sources and methods. Then we'll dive right in to the Guerrilla Profits approaches to
Capture More from Your Transactions. Inbound Conversion Most businesses have some inbound component, even if they are not location-based. In other words, even if you have a service business or professional practice with a limited clientele, you'll still be taking calls from your existing clients, and hopefully will receive at least an occasional call from someone who is referred to you. Taking that activity level up a few notches; retailers rely heavily on foot-traffic (walk-ins); businesses of all kinds that are regularly advertising and marketing must be responsive to those who are responding to their solicitations (via phone, fax, mail); and, the Internet allows people access to your business 2417 (email, web orders). At every point of inbound activity in your business-you have the opportunity to improve your methods. Now I'm assuming you at least have some sort of system in place to handle inquiries and convert them into a transaction-that is, to answer a prospect's questions and close the sale on what they're contacting you about in the first place. Right? If not, that's a great item to start working on first. Pay attention to what's working best now, and to what the most successful people in your organization are doing that's causing them to get the desired sales results-and document and script those current successful methods (the exact steps taken and words used). Then make Chapter 2 - Strategy #2: Capture More From Your Transactions
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the step-by-step processes and scripts available to every employee who comes in contact with your inbound prospects and customers/clients-so they all know how to at least ask for the business-and then train them to use it. That's the key: asking for the business (i.e., getting your prospective customers/clients to say ''yes''-and buy from you-in a proven, consistent manner). It's the minimum entry requirement for all your inbound activity.
Outbound Sales In situations where you take your business out directly to people, the same basics for inbound conversion apply-with the additional dynamic of being in an active sales mode. You could have sales reps who are actively soliciting business through outbound calling, live appointments, or cold walk-ins; you could be attending live events, shows, festivals, expos, fairs, or other forms of outdoor retailing; or perhaps, you could be at a seminar, association gathering, trade show or industry conference. In all these situations, you get the opportunity to meet and greet prospects and possibly existing customers/clients-in an environment that is usually positive for determining their wants and needs (if not actually closing the sale on the spot). And, just like with inbound conversion, outbound sales is a source of transactions where you can apply many of the usual methods-as well as the Guerrilla Profits methods we'll discuss-in a variety of circumstances. Let's explore some of the usual methods first... Usual Transaction Methods Here's a quick overview of some of the most common methods used by most business types-and in most industries-to generate business (both to generate a transaction and to boost transactional value during the sale). They can be used singly-but are most effective when used in combination. Chapter 2 - Strategy #2: Capture More From Your Transactions
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If you're not already using all of these 7 Common Transaction Methods-then that's a good place to begin boosting your results. First we'll list them-then we'll go into a bit more detail on each one. The 7 Common Transaction Methods would include: • I-Step ... to Close • 2-Step (or Multi-Step) Lead'" to Close • Demos / Trials • Sales / Coupons • Up-Sells • Cross-Sells • Add-ons A few definitions: Just to make sure those terms are clear to everyone, let's go into a bit more detail and define them: • I-Step ... to Close: These situations involve asking the prospect to make a buying decision on the spot, with no additional steps in between. This might be the result of an inbound inquiry, a directresponse ad or marketing piece, a direct offer on your web site, or a sales call. • 2-Step (or Multi-Step) Lead Gen ... to Close: This is when you use the media or initial contact to collect the prospect's contact information (lead generation) for further follow-up and conversion to a sale through subsequent calls, emails, letters, visits, and the like. • Demos / Trials: This is very popular with online services, ASP's (Application Service Providers), software, and subscription services of all types (such as magazines, online data directories, Chapter 2 - Strategy #2: Capture More From Your Transactions
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groups and associations). I'll bet if you give this some thought, you can think of plenty of examples where you've been offered a demonstration or free trial of a product or service. This is usually the ultimate way to lower the buying resistance-and get potential buyers started towards purchase. • Sales / Coupons: These advertising and direct response methods include the Penny Saver, Valpak, Money Mailer, Clipper magazine, Get! Free magazine, print media of all kinds, and so forth. They seek to attract people for a particular item (sometimes even a "loss leader") and then to hopefully bump-up the transaction size by having the customer find additional items they want while shopping--or during the course of completing the transaction. • IIp-Sells: This can be selling a higher-priced item than was originally being considered, or a larger amount of the same item (with or without a discount), or selling continuous or consistent (delivery of your products or services with automatic billing discussed later in this chapter under "Good-until-cancelled"options). Once a customer/client has made a buying decision, it usually takes just a bit of additional effort at the point of sale to have a good percentage of people choose an option that boosts the transactional total. • Cross-Sells: Selling additional items related to the original sale-like a carrying case, service plan, paint sealer, extra feature, carpet spot cleaning, sunroof or car stereo. These allow you to capture additional business at the time of sale-that are logical extensions of the existing transaction. • Add-ons: Additional items that are sold at the time of purchasebut may not be directly related to the original item (such as an additional item selection on the order form, impulse items sold at the register, or a software-bundle or multi-book bundle offer made during the online shopping-cart checkout process). Chapter 2 - Strategy #2: Capture More From Your Transactions
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Now onto some Guerrilla Profits perspectives and methods ... Without too much extra effort, you can take what you have now and adopt some additional, powerful conversion strategies and methods. Most of these methods can be used, adapted, and combined in any type of business or professional practice. Remember: Keep an open mind as to how you can use something---even if at first it seems that it's for some other type of business. • Online Ordering & Service (web)-and Order Confirmation Messages (email / fax / mail) Since so much business is being shifted to the Internet, we'll focus here on your online transactions. But, the same ideas and methods can be applied to your offline transactions as well-and you would be well served to apply the examples listed below to all your sales channels. Many businesses fall flat when it comes to the online-sales process. They don't go far enough (if at all) to up-sell, cross-sell and seek add-on sales while the buyer is already ordering at the point-of-checkout, or laser-targeting people during contact and service for a specific purpose. However, a few great examples of sites that do point-of-checkout sales well are: www.apple.com www.godaddy.com www.amazon.com www.crateandbarrel.com It's very educational to explore and/or buy from these sites. Notice all the options and choices that are presented to you as you're making your buying decision. And best of all, these sites do this added selling in a non-offensive, "helpful" way: They simply show you more and more options until you either fall off your chair from exhaustion--or click "Checkout," whichever comes first. Chapter 2 - Strategy #2: Capture More From Your Transactions
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According to Smart Money magazine (May, 2007), surveys show that typically 15 percent of customers actually want to hear additional offers. And it's likely that if you have something to offer that's relevant to a particular customer's interests-or to the situation at hand-there is probably a large percentage of the rest who might be interested. Some obvious examples in the offline world that you're probably aware of are. Credit card companies offering credit-report monitoring to their customers who've contacted them to report their wallet or purse being stolen. Or, larger sized portions being offered as an option at a fast food restaurant. Or, the systematic (and sometimes multiple) up-sell of higher priced options offered when calling to order by phone-while responding to a TV infomercial offer. Or, the extra service contract that extends the manufacturer's warranty. In the online world, since everything can be automated and customized to the transaction at hand-you have the chance to more consistently present a larger number of relevant options. The downside is that it's also easier for people to skip over these additional suggestionsand just say no. All the same possibilities exist-for up-sells, cross-sells, and addons to your online sales-as you would normally consider using offline. The big plus online, though, is that you can give a lot more details about your additional offer (in multi-media)-and allow customers the option of drilling down to whatever level of detail they need to make that extra buying decision. Since they are choosing to learn more-people don't feel that they are being imposed upon at that point. Some offers to consider in addition to the obvious ones would include:
• Additional directly related products and/or services as a bundle or package deal • Quantity discounts for purchasing 2, 3 or more of the same item, at the same time Chapter 2 - Strategy #2: Capture More From Your Transactions
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• An additional product or service trial offer at a substantial "first time buyer" discounted price For best results, the additional offer should be relevant to the original purchase and should include a quick opt-out mechanism. Even an aggressive online marketer like GoDaddy.com, which sells web site domain names and all the supporting web hosting and services, has a "quick checkout" option that skips the up-sells, cross-sells, and add-ons. After buyers have concluded the initial transaction, there's a next step: the landing page and/or confirmation message (depending on your sales process). In addition to giving shoppers information relevant to the sale just concluded, this is a great place to convert them to an additional special offer not presented before-or to simply come back once again with additional items as up-sells, cross-sells, and add-ons. The best response will result from offers that have a very "short fuse"-that is, an offer that ends in very limited time. A "ticking" countdown clock on the web landing page can work well to entice customers to come right back to take advantage of this additional offer (there are scripts for this that any good web site designer should have access to). Ideally, if the additional sale is generated while they are still on your web site after the initial sale, you'll have your system set up to recall the customer's ordering and contact details-so they won't have to re-key everything to complete the additional sale. Making it easy to complete lowers the barrier to the additional sale. In fact, if you're tracking the current sale with computer logins and/or "cookies," you could set this up as a "one-click" confirmation sale (simply clicking the link would take them directly to the checkout / confirm order page-to approve the sale using the same order details). The same holds true for order confirmations sent via email, except that it won't be quite as easy for the buyers to complete the second Chapter 2 - Strategy #2: Capture More From Your Transactions
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transaction. For emails, make the additional offer after you've confirmed the initial transaction. Then, if you can, include a custom link that takes people back to the web site-and ideally, directly to the transaction page for the new offer with their customer information pulled up from the database. If you ever use fax or mailed confirmations, "offer boxes" work well-where their customer information has already been generated and is on the original order confirmation. This could be a portion of the confirmation page that can be filled-in, checked-off or signed, and then simply faxed back. • "Good-until-cancelled" options An entirely new channel of profits can often be created by offering customers/clients a "good-until-cancelled" automatic billing option. That is, buying once, for continuous delivery of your products or services. Most often, this is done by automatically charging a customer's credit card on a regular, periodic basis-but it can also be done through a printed and mailed statement. For many businesses this is something that's not currently being done--or has never been tried. You're already familiar with this concept if you subscribe to a newspaper, get regular home delivery of bottled water, have a gym membership, are a club member of a winery, or use a contracted pest control service. The basic idea is that you make whatever you offer into a "consumable"-something that buyers are charged for and receive at regular intervals rather than requiring them to make new buying decisions every time they want what you offer. Selling this way has a number of key advantages. First of all, once buyers have purchased the item and checked it off their to-do list, a business usually has to "screw it up" somehow to get them to opt-out. It's also helps make for a more attractive USP (Unique Selling Proposition) for attracting new business-because you can offer an easy-tounderstand, packaged solution to fulfill a buyer's needs. And, of course, you get regular and more consistent income from your existing Chapter 2 - Strategy #2: Capture More From Your Transactions
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customers. What's more, if you set up your good-until-cancelled program as a pre-paid, there's less risk of losing a customer/client as quickly. They're "locked-in" for each period of service-until they say, "Stop." These programs build loyalty to your business, and your good-until-cancelled customers are more likely to refer others to you as well. What can be turned into consumables? Most things, even if that's not the norm for your business or industry. And if you can't sell a recurring deal for quantities of the same item, perhaps you can bundle a variety of things together to give your offer more appeal. Let's take a look at how this might work in different business types:
Service businesses: You could offer packages of services for which you bill quarterly. The buyer gets a price break by joining the all-in-one program. For example, an accounting firm might offer a package that includes estate planning, tax planning, tax preparation, and basic bookkeeping, all at one continuously billed quarterly fee. F or a recurring service (such as cleaning, tree-trimming, pet care, music lessons, fitness training, or spa services), you could simply bundle everything you can into a specially priced monthly fee billed to their credit card. Accepting credit / debit cards in this way eliminates the requirement for your customer/client to have to re-buy from you each time with cash or check. For an occasional service (no set regularity), it's probably best to go with a package deal that can lock in a specific number of transactions (such as an airport limo service offering a coupon book of 10 rides for the price of eight). But if you're selling to a large corporate client, it may still be possible to send them a coupon book (or books) each month on an "auto-ship" program (where you automatically send them a predetermined quantity at a regular, predetermined interval). In other words, whenever possible, create ways to lock in business on a recurring basis. Chapter 2 - Strategy #2: Capture More From Your Transactions
Guerrilla ProllIS. 29 Retail: If you have established relationships (such as frequent buyers you know well), offer them a special Buyers Club where you offer to select items for them based on their preferences (similar to the types, styles, and range of pricing of the items they normally buy)-and which you bring to them on a regular recurring schedule. Then allow them to approve or decline the item, prior to your committing to the inventory purchase with your supplier. The advantage, of course, is that you'll hopefully get more regular and frequent transactions-without having to commit to the inventory in advance. The items you agree to purchase from your supplier will all be pre-sold. Give your Buyers Club a distinct name that positions it as a beneficial convenience-an exclusive, limited availability service for only your best customers. You'll want to communicate with your Buyers Club members regularly via personal notes, special invitations, personal emails, faxes or letters-and having a regular monthly newsletter is a good idea. The set-up dialogue-and program justification for your Buyers Club would sound something like this: "By pooling a group of customers with similar interests as yours, I can buy a quantity of a particular item each time, and pass along better pricing to you. And I can focus on getting you things that I may not otherwise be able to stock in sufficient quantities to have on hand for everyone who would want it. "
There are many examples of clubs, groups, "VIP" (very important person) and loyalty programs in addition to a Buyers Club (see Chapter 9 - Strategy #9: Create Excitement-for more methods related to groups). Some types of clubs even offer a list of member benefits in exchange for a regular recurring membership fee. So, the customers are actually willing to pay for the privilege of receiving the additional member benefits, extra communications and special offers. Chapter 2 - Strategy #2: Capture More From Your Transactions
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As Edward L. Nash, author of Database Marketing: The Ultimate Marketing Tool and former president of the Capitol Record Club puts it, there's "a sense of recognition [with club memberships that] reinforces the customer s relationship with the company and makes them feel special. " By establishing, say, a "VIP Club," you can even sometimes sell products or services that are outside the scope of what you can deliver yourself. A wine merchant, for instance, might make an arrangement with a tour company to offer excursions to Napa Valley for its VIP Club members-and reap additional commissions on the trip's revenues. The profit payoff for a club can include:
• Increased purchases because of customer loyalty • Additional promotions / events / programs
• Referrals of new customers and members • Possible membership renewals (recurring fees)
• Sales of higher-end products and services* • Sales of recommended outside products or services* (*see Chapter 4 - Strategy #4: Build Up The Value and Chapter 6 - Strategy #6: Profit/rom Other Businesses) Ideal retail applications of the Buyers Club concept would be at restaurants (special-fare dinners), specialty foods, high-end clothing boutiques, gifts, collectibles, and hobbies. In larger retail businesses, applying the Buyers Club method can also work, as long as you can establish a specific person as the figurehead who becomes associated with the clulr-rather than having the club come generically from the company. The Buyers Club always works best when customers believe that there's a specific person who's looking out for their best interestsand personally selecting items just for them. Chapter 2 - Strategy #2: Capture More From Your Transactions
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You'll need to allow for the possibility that a customer will occasionally want to return or exchange a particular selection (much as the Book-of-the-Month club does). A lot will depend on how you set up their expectations for your return policy-when you have them sign-up for the program in the first place. The risk, of course, is that you may have to exchange or refund an occasional item. But the good news is that most people are likely to stay with the program if they are happy with the majority of the items you get for them. In the case of returned products to a retailer, you can most likely resell any extra items to other non-members at the store. And, these group and club possibilities are not strictly limited to retail businesses. If you're in a service business, professional practice, trade, wholesale or even manufacturing-with a little imagination it's possible to apply these methods to these business types as well. You may be surprised at what comes to mind once you begin to consider the possibilities in your business.
Wholesale & Manufacturing: Use good-until-cancelled re-supply of essential key items that need to be restocked. This works well with just-in-time manufacturing applications that are on a fixed production schedule (whether you're the manufacturer, wholesaler, or agent). Another wholesale application that can be adapted to many other situations is the "rack jobber" (those who supply items on a continuous basis by restocking the shelves and racks for retailers). This is a mainstay in some distribution businesses-in essence, adding service to the supply chain for products. If you have manufacturing capacity that is underutilized, you could "sell forward" that capacity at a reduced rate to your best clients-for taking delivery of a set amount in excess of their usual deliveries every month. In some situations, they'll make extra efforts to move the excess capacity if the price is right. Chapter 2 - Strategy #2: Capture More From Your Transactions
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But, please beware: You must control your receivables if you're also extending them credit. I'd recommend offering the "sell forward" capacity at the right price-for cash only. • Selling "down the line" Credit for this idea goes to psychologist Dr. Robert Cialdini, author of the excellent book Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion. He cites the Contrast Principle-that is, the way we see the difference between two things that are presented one after another. "Simply put, if the second item is fairly different from the first, we will tend to see it as more
different than it actually is, " Cialdini writes. For example, lift a light object, then a heavy one, and you'll likely estimate the second one to be heavier than if you'd lifted it first without trying the lighter one. In terms of a profit strategy that means there's a huge difference in the results based on whether you are selling "up the line" or are selling "down the line." Or, as Cialdini says, "It is possible to make the price of the same item seem higher or lower depending on the price of the previously presented item. " If you start with a lower-priced item, then keep moving customers to a higher and higher price point when showing them their options and choices for what you're offering ("selling up the line"), they'll tend to get "stuck" somewhere in the middle (unless they're on a very tight budget). They don't want to spend "too much"-nor do they want the cheapest item either. However, if you start at the top price point and then start showing items that cost less and less, customers will tend to choose at a higher price point. That's because by contrast they're having the better (or best) item "being taken away from them" (e.g., the less expensive items seem inadequate compared to the better items they've already seen). That's "selling down the line." Chapter 2 - Strategy #2: Capture More From Your Transactions
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If you start at the bottom end, customers may never even get a chance to compare to the top because they feel that they're being "sold to." But start at the top and work down, and they'll feel that you're trying to help them more. It's just human nature. • Down-sells This is a powerful fall-back position if you're in a difficult sales environment or experiencing abandoned sales or a lack of response. It can be applied to the web, on the phone (inbound or outbound), with sales reps, through direct mail, and most other sales and marketing channels. If you've really given the offer or sale your best shot-but you get to the point the customer is not likely to buy (or in the case of the web, direct mail or other non-interactive response channel, to the point where they may simply move on or discard your mailing)-that's when downsells can work magic. Ideally, your down-sell will be directly related to the original offer. And it will give the customer a chance to get into the deal easier, such as with an alternative related selection, a lower-priced option, payments on the original offer, financing, or a down-payment with deferred billing. Down-sells can help you capture a sale where it might otherwise not have happened-by making the transaction more affordable. Sometimes a down-sell can be used to ultimately get you in a better transactional position. Let's say, for example, that your down-sell is for a quarterly billing option on an annual service fee or subscription-a sample script for this type of an offer would sound like:
"If it s easier for you to take care of this over time, I can offer you an automatic quarterly billing option that lets you get all the features and benefits now. But, your money out-ol-pocket will be much lower-and you can easily say yes' today. " Chapter 2 - Strategy #2: Capture More From Your Transactions
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Then, of course, the quarterly payments should add up to a bit more than the single-pay annual service fee or subscription-giving you a larger overall transaction size. The customer usually doesn't mind because they didn't have to come up with all the money up front. Although not specifically a down-sell method, you can also build the payments option directly into any of your offers-and the full-pay choice can be positioned as a special discounted price for those willing to pay for everything up front. You can also add additional bonuses and incentives to the full-pay option to make it even more enticing. This method is very popular with infomercial offers on television latelywhere the payments option is featured-then the operator will offer the discounted full-pay price plus bonuses when the buyer is placing their order. In extreme cases, you can go from trying to close the sale-to a down-sell of a free demo or free trial. But that's not as solid as getting some kind of purchase commitment (even if only for a small sum). A way around this is to have people sign up for automatic billing that doesn't happen until after their free demo or free trial period is overusing a good-until-cancelled, recurring, automatic billing option. Asking for that commitment up front will lower the responsiveness to a "free" trial down-sell offer-but, will also make it easier to convert the trial into real business after the trial period has ended. That way, the buying commitment (if not the payment) is made up front-and the customer has the option of opting out prior to the end of the free demo or free trial period without incurring any charges. You can also offer an extended "cancel for refund" period of 60, 90 days, or more-to help entice them to stay on while being billed. Then they'll be less likely to mark their calendars with a big "X" to remind them to cancel prior to the deadline. • Bounce-backs These are offers that you put out there as part of a transaction or Chapter 2 - Strategy #2: Capture More From Your Transactions
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customer/client interaction, and they come back to you later. Examples include package inserts included in a shipment, bag inserts at the register, coupons on the back of your register receipts, insert offers enclosed when delivering a subscription service or periodical, offers left as part of a service call, and so on. If you're willing to pay attention to this one, you may find you'll get very good response rates, possibly on par with, or better than, your usual direct marketing to these customers/clients. That's because the transaction for your initial product or service is still fresh in their minds. Give your bounce-back offers a deadline. But make sure that the deadline makes sense given how the message was delivered. An insert offer included in a package shipment, for instance, needs more time before expiration than something given out at the register or included in the bag at the point of sale. A great example of a bounce-back offer at a register is the registertape receipt given at many major supermarket-chain stores-that includes coupons printed on the backs. However, I've often seen this used as an advertising media for other advertisers--either to generate ad revenue or as a cost-offset for the register-tape rolls-rather than for their own internal supermarket offers. The best items to use for bounce-backs are those similar to, or related to, the first purchase. The items can also simply be in the same category or categories as the first sale, but the more closely related they are, the higher your customers/clients' interest level will be. This is also a great way to again offer any of your up-sells, crosssells, and add-ons that may have been presented at the time of the original transaction.
• Package Deals & Bundles By putting a spin on up-sells, cross-sells and add-ons combined, package deals and bundles are a great way to bump the profits on a given sale. They also give your prospect great incentives to do business with Chapter 2 - Strategy #2: Capture More From Your Transactions
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you more quickly. With specific deals and offers available to your phone reps or sales reps--or as part of your other point-of-sales-you can immediately offer the package or bundle as soon as your prospect has decided to buy one of the items that's already included in it. As long as the additional items also make sense for the purchase-and offer a significant enough savings or advantage-a good percentage of customers will take you up on the offer. But, rather than just throwing together several items, dropping the price, and calling it a package deal or bundle, consider carefully how you can include extra incentives and bonuses that really make that choice worthwhile. For instance, is there something you can add that would only be desired or needed because of the original item being purchased? Or, is there something you can offer that's exclusive to that package deal-that isn't available separately? Also consider what you may be able to add to a package or bundle that lends a sense of urgency. For example, can you come up with something that's truly scarce, something that's highly desirable for your prospects-but isn't usually available because of limited supply? Combining that with a deadline to give the bundle/package deal a sense of urgency-and that can help make the deal truly compelling (see Chapter 4 - Strategy #4: Build Up The Value-for more details on Package Deals and Bundles). Remember, have fun with these possibilities! As Donald Trump has said, "As long as you're going to be thinking anyway, think big." Be sure to test these powerful Guerrilla Profits methods for yourself-and apply Strategy #2: Capture More/rom Your Transactions in your business or professional practice.
Chapter 2 - Strategy #2: Capture More From Your Transactions
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ACTION POINTS • Avoid missing profit opportunities-and limiting your income-by focusing on specific methods that can help you capture more from activity that's already coming in. • Document and script your current most successful sales methods-then train every employee exposed to your clientele to use the step-by-step processes and scripts. • Use all of the 7 Common Transaction Methods (I-Step, 2 or Multi-Step, Demos / Trials, Sales / Coupons, Up-Sells, Cross-Sells and Add-ons}--singly, and in combination. • Laser-target customers during point-of-sale, order processing and service-to give buyers relevant additional options, choices and offers with a high sense of urgency. • Offer continuous delivery of your products or services via "good-until-cancelled" automatic billing option-to eliminate recurring buying decisions and lock-in business. • Master the art of Selling Down the Line (the principle of contrast)-and using Down-sells (powerful fall-back positions)-to dramatically boost transaction results. • Include Bounce-back offers to create additional salesand boost your transactional totals with Package Deals and Bundles that give buyers incentives to spend more with you.
Get the latest Methods, News & Updates. Go To: www.guerrillaprofits.com
CHAPTER 3
Strategy #3: Boost Your Marketing Results
T
et's face it, even businesses that do great marketing don't usually have the complete picture--or know the whole score when it comes to their marketing results. At best, here's what they can hope to know with some sense of certainty:
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1) The exact cost of each media buy or marketing effort, then the number of responses generated by each one (cost per lead / response percentage), and then ... 2) 1be number of conversions from those leads (cost per sale / conversion percentage) And that's the usual best-case scenario. Of course, there are some exceptionsthe relatively few businesses that do accurately and consistently track their marketing numbers, statistics and results. These
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companies may also have the ability to know the number of failed lead or order captures (incomplete inbound inquiries, abandoned web forms, abandoned shopping carts, walk-outs without sale, and the like). And, they may know additional statistics like quantity and percentage of successful up-sells, cross-sells, and add-ons--or the recency, frequency and average sale amount by customer/client--or the total purchases by customer/client. But, in reality, most businesses have only a partial clue about the actual numbers and what's working best on a comparative basis. That's especially true because of incomplete or inaccurate tracking, the inability to track from initial response to final sale, or the lack of tabulation and comparison of the data in the first place-even if it's mostly collected, accurately counted, and available for use. Now I realize that many businesses subscribe to the "whatever shows up" philosophy. They figure that if"X" amount of money goes out and "X-plus" amount of money comes back in, then they're good to go. Or, if they're in a retail location, it might be "whatever comes in the door"-with some doing little or no advertising and marketing at all. Others suffer through the push-pull of being too busy with current business to do marketing that keeps the pipeline filled with new customers or clients. When things slow down, they then have to scramble to get new business (over and over again). In this chapter, we'll start with a quick exploration about how to get a handle on the numbers that matter most-and focus on the things you can test and improve. Then we'll get into some powerful methods you can use to generate more Guerrilla Profits in your business using Strategy #3: Boost Your Marketing Results.
Getting to the truth For many businesses that do regular marketing, the most common approach is to simply observe the immediate visible results that come in as a direct result of a particular offer or effort, such as coupons, specific Chapter 3 - Strategy #3: Boost Your Marketing Results
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sale or special offer. And if it seems to work well, then they run it again. A trade show, for example, will produce a stack of orders that you can directly relate to that show, so you'll know if you should return to that trade show next time. An advertisement in the local Sunday paper will give you a countable stack of coupons returned or calls / visits generated-that can then be directly linked to that advertisement. Or, a direct-mail piece will yield "X" number of leads or "X" number of sales that can be directly attributed to that mailing. But it's hard to get around the fact that good marketing--done right-is tracked and measured religiously as an integrated part of the business. And, that information should be gathered and stored in a way that you can compare all your results side-by-side-including the individual steps within each marketing campaign or sales process. Why this is necessary There's a big flaw with relying too heavily on the usual approaches-the "whatever shows up" philosophy, or the recurring scramble to get new business, or the reliance solely on immediate visible results-and that is: lack of consistency. Imagine how liberating it would be to know that you have one or more processes in place-particular advertising and marketing methods and a series of steps to your sales and conversion process-that can be repeated at-will to give you a particular desired result. It's like turning a faucet on and off whenever you want. You can be confident and fairly certain that your expected results will show up every time. But to do that, you must have foolproof methods in place to make sure that all your efforts are tracked properly-so you'll know with a large degree of certainty ~ what is working. And, you can use that accurate data as a basis to test against, to discover new methods that could give you even better results. Your tracking is what allows you to know what you should do-and Chapter 3 - Strategy #3: Boost Your Marketing Results
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what you can afford to do--with your marketing and sales efforts.
The accuracy of statistics A big issue is getting the correct data in the first place to determine your actual response rates. That might mean having offer codes that are required to get a particular discount, for example. Or counting the deliverable emails rather than the list size, or backing out the returned mail pieces ("nixies") from your physical mailings count, or considering the incomplete inbound calls that were a result of bad phone-agent handling. An uninformed receptionist, clerk, or service rep (or two) can often skew the results because of the way the responses were handled, captured (or not), and tracked. Sometimes, the difference between a good result and a not-so-good result has more to do with how it was tracked in the first place-because the data you've got doesn't tell the real story. Rarely, though, is there enough of an accurately tracked, mixedmedia and methods approach-with all the individual results tracked side by side-and considerable thought given to what the results are telling you. These are important numbers, especially when they help you identify unproductive media, or efforts that only worked marginally, or those specific steps that failed. You might have a marketing process and series of steps that could work successfully-by simply improving one or two of the steps. Or perhaps your accurately tracked data can tell you about some combination of approaches that work together to give you even greater results-such as a multi-step campaign that includes direct mail, email, and outbound calling, all combined. Sometimes one particular step in a series or the order in which they are used can make a huge difference in the overall responsiveness of your prospects. If you don't know exactly what results are being produced for each individual component and step in your advertising and marketing process, then how can you make informed buying decisions about your Chapter 3 - Strategy #3: Boost Your Marketing Results
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media-or do proper planning and projecting for your marketing efforts? It's simply not possible to have a predictable business-short of relying on a fiercely loyal clientele.
Keeping track As mentioned, it's important to have foolproof methods in place to make sure that tracking happens as part of your transactions. If you need to rely on individuals, ensure your P.O.S. (point of sale) or other system requires them to enter the tracking code to complete the transaction. The usual direct marketing tools of the trade include many traditional tracking methods. The trick is to make sure that the information funnels back to a central location and is stored, tabulated, and sorted in a way that makes sense in a tracking database. These tracking methods could include: • Print coupons with different tracking codes for each media (not just for different offers) • Discount codes that are required (no manual overrides)
• Different tracking codes for every variation of your Advertisements and Mailings • Extension numbers required upfront by an inbound sales IVR (interactive voice response) prior to reaching a live operator
• Dedicated landing pages that automatically track without having to use "cookies" (more on this below) The Internet & use of "cookies" Many web sites and web-based systems rely way too heavily on the use of "cookies." These are little snippets of text that get embedded in the visitor's web-browser memory, then interact with the web server that Chapter 3 - Strategy #3: Boost Your Marketing Results
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generated it. They have a number of uses, primarily for tracking, authentication, and personalization. But from a long-term perspective for tracking your marketing, they're mostly unreliable. According to a Jupiter Research study, 58% of online users have deleted cookies, with approximately 39% deleting cookies monthly from their primary computer. The study also indicates that 58% of users run anti-spyware software (which deletes cookies), 56% clear cache (which contains cookies), and 52% manually delete cookies. All of which makes for a grim outlook for using cookies to keep track over time. This data is from 2005. No doubt, as people's computer skills (and ease of browser use) continue to grow, so will the deletion statistics of cookies. Many people don't want to be tracked, and they're suspicious of anything that gets automatically sent to their computers without them choosing to download it in the first place. As a practical application, if you require cookies to enter your site (or a particular area of your site), then those who truly want to access that area will turn cookies on for a particular session, only to delete them at some point afterwards. If you're being realistic, you can't expect your cookies to have any longevity past the current session. Testing So once you know what's true (as best as possible) with your current advertising and marketing, then you can realistically begin to experiment with other methods and compare to what you know to be true (test). The most common mistake to avoid (if you actually want to know the truth) is changing many things in an advertisement or mail piece-and then calling that a "test." In reality, it's a new advertisement or mail piece. A real test would be to change only one thing at a time, then compare your results to the original version. Now it's possible to speed up this process so that you don't have to wait so long to get the test results. Just remember to make sure that each item that's being tested is tracked separately and that the sample size (the Chapter 3 - Strategy #3: Boost Your Marketing Results
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number of people who will be exposed to the new version) is large enough to give you meaningful results. The Internet is one way to vastly increase your ability to test new advertising ideas and marketing quickly. Not only can you do testing directly from your web site (by serving up different pages to your traffic), you can also use advertising media-such as Google AdWords-to test your copy and your approach almost immediately. Heres a list of the Top 10 Items to Test: • Headline • Offer / Concept • Price • Body Copy • Graphics / Layout • Guarantee • Deadline / Urgency • Bonuses • Call to Action • Colors These Top 10 Items to Test are among the most important and could have the greatest influence on your results, though that's certainly not a complete list of possible test items. Also, lists and media choice were not included in the items to test because you should always be testing your best current advertising and marketing materials with new lists and media. Knowing what's working The goal, of course, is to have advertising and marketing materials Chapter 3 - Strategy #3: Boost Your Marketing Results
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that you can use regularly so that when you place that advertisement, send that postcard or letter, make that phone call, or send that email (or some combination of these), you can get a desired, expected, positive result. And then, along the way, to always be trying new variables with a percentage of your efforts (say, 10%), looking for something that works better than what you're doing now. So, let's say that you've done all that. And you're doing a reasonably good job of collecting accurate marketing numbers. They're distilled into a usable format. You have your spreadsheet printout ready--or a stack of data in hand--or maybe everything summarized into a colorful chart or two. Now what? The first step would always be to increase your exposure to the best media and methods while gauging the relative value of the lesser producing media and methods. However, this doesn't necessarily mean you should drop everything that isn't the top performer. A big, common mistake is dropping things that work just because you've found something that works better. Often you're getting exposure to different prospects through a particular media or marketing message that you may not be getting in other ways. So the fact that there's less response shouldn't matter as long as what you're doing is producing some positive result-that is, it's profitable upfront, or it has an acceptable lead cost.
Segmenting your messages Another big mistake many businesses make is to take a one-sizefits-all approach to their advertising and marketing copy without giving any thought to segmenting the people they're attracting. In fact, sometimes you can run different ads simultaneously in the exact same media (or publication) to attract different types of prospects. To take advantage of this, you'll want to look at those who are attracted to your current offers and messages first to determine what the "broad categories" are that would lend themselves to separate messaging. Chapter 3 - Strategy #3: Boost Your Marketing Results
Guerrilla Prolits ~ 47 Some good examples and possibilities would include: 1) Dry Cleaners-Busy women with children -orBusiness people who travel 2) Restaurant-Couples on dates -orPeople who need quick lunches 3) Real Estate-Larger families -orRetired couples 4) Physical Trainer-People recovering from injuries -orSeniors who want to stay young 5) Financial Planner-Beneficiaries -orPost-retirement couples 6) Gift Store-People who need shipping -orBusinesses' client gifts 7) Contractor-Empty nesters -orNew families with infants 8) Women's Apparel-Ultra-petite -orCareer women 9) Yard or Landscape Services-New move-ins -orPeople who've just refinanced 10) Hotel-Business / group / packages -orFamily reunions Remember: Take these examples and adapt them to your specific business or professional practice. The main point is to realize that it's possible for your offers to become much more attractive to your Chapter 3 - Strategy #3: Boost Your Marketing Results
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prospects when the communications and marketing messages they receive are more in tune with who they are and what they want.
Series & Sequence marketing In many cases, simply by adding steps to your current advertising or marketing process, you can boost your results disproportionately to what you might expect. Conventional marketing wisdom is that repetitive advertising gains attention because people need repeated exposures to take notice and, ultimately, respond. Now how much of this is fostered by the media that wants your advertising money-versus the reality in your particular business-is the reason for the testing and tracking that we've been discussing. The reality is, if your advertising or marketing doesn't work initially (some form of positive response, either in actual sales or leads generated), it generally won't get better over time. For most businesses, all direct response advertising and marketing-and that's the only type of advertising or marketing that most for-profit enterprises should doneeds to be initially productive. Before we go on, let's define "productive." For our purposes, it's advertising or marketing that pays for itself out of profits generated directly--or it generates leads that are expected to convert to paid business over time (and those profits will cover the costs of that advertising or marketing effort at some point in the foreseeable future). So, let's say that the initial purpose of a given advertisement is to generate leads. Then the process that's used to follow-up with those leads will have the biggest role to play in the ultimate conversion of these to sales. And that's where series and sequence marketing outshines nearly all other methods. Conventional marketing wisdom also states that if you receive "X" response from an initial direct-mail piece, you'll generally receive "2X" by sending a series of three mailings (either the same piece mailed three Chapter 3 - Strategy #3: Boost Your Marketing Results
Guerrilla ProiIIS. 49 times, or a series that's directly related, but with each piece different). One of the most illustrative examples of high-impact, three-step series mailings comes from Dan Kennedy, who teaches how to use the money collections business "dunning" sequence in ordinary businesses. In his book, The Ultimate Sales Letter, Dan describes how mailings No. 2 and No.3 should refer to the prior mailing, with each getting more urgent (just like a collections notice). Mailing No. 3 then clearly states "Final Notice," building urgency as the offer deadline and expiration loom. This form of series can have a huge impact that boosts results higher than usual because of the increased sense of urgency. Going a bit further... Where a series is a number of related steps within a particular communications channel, you can get even greater response by mixing in additional steps (a sequence )-involving contacts made by phone, fax (where applicable), email, inserts (such as in periodical mailings or package shipments), web, and the like-so that prospects are contacted through mUltiple communications channels. This helps assure that your message gets through, and as long as you have legitimate urgency (credible and believable, not contrived), then prospects will usually not feel you're bombarding them with too many contacts. Most likely, people will not receive or pay attention to all of your messaging anyway, so they're probably exposed to a lesser degree than you might imagine. Now remember, we've been describing a follow-up series from a lead-generating advertisement. But, the exact same thinking and formula can go into contacting existing customers/clients for an "internal" promotional campaign. As you test and track your series of steps using multiple communications channels, you'll ultimately hit upon the optimal Chapter 3 - Strategy #3: Boost Your Marketing Results
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sequence that produces the greatest result for your particular business. This isn't necessarily easy, but it can be extremely profitable. And keep in mind the fact that's it's not easy is an advantage over all those competitors who are simply unwilling to put in this kind of effort. Often, very commanding market shares (local, regional, national or international) can be captured by creating, implementing, and then consistently using successful series and sequences in all of your marketing efforts. Standing out from the crowd One of the most lucrative ways to boost response is by doing very high-impact, unusual things that competitors simply don't think of or simply aren't willing to pay for. Depending on your business and the dynamics and profitability of your transactions, you may be able to add steps to your marketing follow-up series and sequences that command attention and cause your message to break through the clutter. On the simplest side of this idea, that might include-immediately after the lead is generated-expedited delivery of the initial follow-up packet to each prospect via a courier, such as Fed/Ex. That then lends itself to an obvious follow-up call, "Did you get the Fed/Ex envelope I sent you yesterday?" Then on the high-impact side of this idea (again, depending on your business type and the dynamics and profitability of your transactions), you could send items that are directly related to your offer-or made a part of your follow-up process that commands attention in ways that most people haven't been (or aren't usually) exposed to. Some examples are: • Include a CD player along with your promotional CD (already in the player)
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• Include a DVD player along with your promotional DVD (already in the player)
• Send a telephone with the suggestion that they call you immediately • Attach your message to a sports ball (or tie-in to current events with a physical object)
• Attach a lottery ticket or cash stapled to the top of your sales letter (included items are known as a "grabber"- to grab their attention) • Include something seasonal or holiday-related (when the timing is appropriate)
• Send a calculator to "add up your savings" These are different from the bonuses or premiums that might be used to attract prospects in the first place. These are additional, unusual items that are unexpected. They're specifically meant to attract attention and make an impact. A bulky physical object makes it unlikely that your mailing will be thrown away without being opened and looked at. And, if you send an odd-shaped item (such as round or triangle)- it requires that your item be kept on top of the their mail stack. Be creative, and always be on the lookout for unusual, high-impact means to get recipients to read and respond to your marketing. But also be careful. Business owners or marketers are often tempted to cut comers or costs-and will send something to attract attention that is perceived in an undesirable way or that cheapens the value of your marketing message. These attention grabbers, if they're truly desirable gifts, can often cause recipients to feel obliged to respond because of the Law of Reciprocity, which states that people want to repay a kindness (see Chapter 3 - Strategy #3: Boost Your Marketing Results
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Chapter 8 - Strategy #8: Gain From Giving Things Away-for more details on the Law of Reciprocity). Hidden benefits that boost response Direct response has always been about identifying and selling the benefits-that is, what a given product or service can do for, or will mean to, the prospective buyer. But there are often non-obvious, hidden benefits that could have even more value to your prospects. And these act as psychological triggers to boost response rates and cause people to want what you're offering. One method comes from famed marketer Ted Nicholas, whose technique is to ask the question, "If I had unlimited powers, what would be the single most compelling benefit I could bestow that my prospects would like to gain from my product?" (or service). He goes on to state that, "The hidden benefit has nothing directly to do with the product itself-but the answer to the previous question can become your most powerful benefit-and thus your headline, as well as the main theme of your offir. Just make sure your product actually delivers on the headline spromise. ":Following that line of thought, some hidden benefit examples might include: • A cleaning product that doesn't just clean, it makes you proud of your home when guests arrive • A fitness program that doesn't just make you feel good, it raises your libido • Financial planning that doesn't just help with retirement, it helps you travel around the world on an endless vacation • Dentistry that doesn't just help maintain your oral health, it gives you the confidence to smile like a celebrity Chapter 3 - Strategy #3: Boost Your Marketing Results
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• A hair-care product that doesn't just help you have more beautiful hair, it makes you extremely popular with the opposite sex Don't these hidden benefits sound a bit more enticing than the usual, obvious ones? Give this some thought and consider your own products and services. Ask yourself: If you had the unlimited powers to grant and fulfill the ultimate wishes and desires of your prospects and customers/clients, what would that be?
Inserts & brochures on steroids Advertising and direct response marketing in print, mail, broadcast, and on the Internet captures the majority of our attention. But sometimes even the most mundane means of reaching customers/clients can also yield hefty Guerrilla Profits if used well. For example, something as ordinary as inserts and brochuresusually relegated to the back bumer-could, with some thought and effort, become major weapons in your marketing arsenal. You can give these ordinary workhorses a makeover. And that mostly that has to do with specifically how you use them rather than what goes into designing and creating them (which is the usual topic of discussion). Non-media marketing Let's consider that there's usually no additional cost other than the printing to deliver these messages to your customers/clients at your own place of business. Then, with just a little effort or cost, these items (brochures, leaflets, flyers, and handouts)-can be distributed whenever needed with almost no restrictions in public--or they can be dropped in quantity at specific locations that you've arranged where they can get exposure to your target prospects. Chapter 3 - Strategy #3: Boost Your Marketing Results
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These are some of the most basic Guerrilla Marketing tactics. But in addition to those usual ways of distributing the information, a number of other opportunities often are overlooked. And, even though there are some businesses that use these techniques in various degrees-and even a few that use them very well-most businesses don't use them at all. Here are several of the most common methods:
• Bag inserts with every purchase • Package inserts with every shipment
• Table brochures and check inserts in restaurants • Invoice and statement stuffers of all kinds
• After hours on-door display brochures • Countertop or waiting-room special offer brochures
• Product-packaging / box inserts Now, here's where it gets interesting from a Guerrilla Profits perspective. You'll recall we discussed the dynamics of bounce-back offers in Chapter 2 - Strategy #2: Capture More from Your Transactions. These are offers that you put out there as part of an initial transaction or customer/client interaction, and they come back to you later. In browsing the list above, you may already see some items you could initiate or expand on-as new avenues for these types of bounceback offers. But, what about other possibilities for using inserts and brochures in unusual ways? For instance, rather than just using them for offers, what about a contest? An announcement for a special event? A postage-paid return card to sign up for your mailing list? (with an incentive, of course). Or how about as an opportunity for Giving Referrals? (Discussed in Chapter Chapter 3 - Strategy #3: Boost Your Marketing Results
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6 -Strategy #6: Profitfrom Other Businesses.) You could even use these inserts and brochures to enroll people in your "good-until-cancelled" programs, Buyers Clubs or VIP Groups (see Chapter 2). All the usual direct marketing techniques apply to inserts and brochures as with your other advertising and marketing materials. Use headlines, strong copy, compelling offers, benefit statements, calls-toaction, and multiple ways to reply. Include a fill-in response form to signify that this is something they should be taking action on. And be sure to put any urgency and deadline information in a prominent position-to entice people to take action.
Creative borrowing I collect "junk" mail and advertisements of all kinds. That's not because I'm interested in all the offers or intend to respond to everything. And it's certainly not because I need another hobby. Instead, it's because these are a huge resource for examples of offers, sales copy, headlines, graphics, style and layout that I can refer to in my own direct marketing efforts and campaigns. So can you, because such "creative borrowing" is a real insiders-secret of the direct marketing and promotional fields. It's been said that most things have been tried before, but I'd say that's only partially true. Some creative modifications and adaptations, while perhaps similar in approach, can bring a fresh spin that is unique to today's marketplace and the current hot topics. Or, this fresh spin could be a result of using something that's worked well elsewhere-and now using it in whole new type of business, industry, or marketing channel. The point is you shouldn't need to reinvent the wheel every time you want to create something that's new for you. There are underlying human behaviors, motivational reasons, and emotional triggers that are universal to why people respond to all advertising or marketing. By studying and Chapter 3 - Strategy #3: Boost Your Marketing Results
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adapting what's already been successful, you can often shortcut the process for your own new ads and marketing. Here are two great books to help jumpstart your thinking on creative borrowing-plus, the underlying motivations and triggers in sales copy that cause people to buy:
• Million Dollar Mailing$, by Denny Hatch • The Adweek Copywriting Handbook, by Joe Sugarman But here's a stem WARNING: Don't Plagiarize. By all means, use other materials as examples: Note their methods of approach, observe their techniques, and study their style. But give your etTorts your own unique spin and style-in your own words. Your prospects and customers/clients will know if they've seen or heard something before, and they'll be turned otT if you are too similar to something they're familiar with. That said, many past examples exist that prospective customers aren't currently familiar with, and those can be borrowed from rather extensively in terms of style and approach. In addition, you can get ideas from studying books on classic ads and copywriting techniques. Among the best of the classic books are:
• How to Write Advertising That Sells, by Clyde Bedell • Tested Advertising Methods, by John Caples • The Robert Collier Letter Book, by Robert Collier • The First Hundred Million, by E. Haldeman-Julius • Scientific Advertising, by Claude Hopkins • Ogilvy on Advertising, by David Ogilvy
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Important creative borrowing tip ... It's important that the examples you're studying, learning from, and adapting actually are successful. Nothing can be more wasteful than modeling a failure. Just because an advertisement looks good or seems clever--or just because you, or someone you know, likes it-is not a good enough reason to follow a bad example. Instead, look to see if it's an advertisement or mailing piece that gets used over and over again in the marketplace. Short of having the inside info on the real results of a campaign (or from the classics or examples you'll find in books and courses), repetition in the marketplace over a relatively long time is one of the only ways you can discern if something is working or not. If you see a magazine ad that's been repeating monthafter-month-for many months, you can be reasonably sure that the businesspeople spending their money on that ad are getting a payback that warrants them repeating it. Of course, you can always take what you believe to be the best elements of an example (or examples), and simply start to test your own version. Then you'll have real statistics of your own on which to base your development decisions. So pay attention to what pops up in your own mailbox, you see on TV, hear on the radio, or find in your email inbox. Study those magazine and newspaper ads. Keep an eye out for how the businesses you visit use inserts, brochures, flyers and other handouts. Draw from all of these sources to form the basis for your own creative borrowing. Your marketing pipeline A key to stability in any business is to always ''prime the pump" ahead of your need for new business. You want to keep the pipeline filled with prospects who are in various states of conversion to your products or services. That way you won't have to suffer from down time or recurring slow-downs and low-activity periods. Chapter 3 - Strategy #3: Boost Your Marketing Results
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And a bonus for you from constant marketing to keep the pipeline filled is that the higher demand for what you're offering can give you more options and choices. If you're in a service business, a professional practice, a wholesaler, or a manufacturer-you can often get to pick and choose the best deals, the best work to do, and the customers/clients whom you want to work with. This doesn't always apply for retailers, who will generally try to absorb the spikes and surges in business and usually want to take all of it that comes their way. But whatever your business, you can also custom tailor offers to help fill up your low-activity periods-by specifically inviting people to take advantage of specials or targeted promotions during those seasons, time periods, days of the week, or hours during the day when business normally is slow. Remember to combine and add in the methods from Chapter 2 Strategy #2: Capture More from Your Transactions-with those we've been discussing here in Chapter 3 - Strategy #3: Boost Your Marketing Results-for maximum effect and maximum Guerrilla Profits.
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Strategy #3: Boost Your Marketing Results
ACTION POINTS • Track, accurately count and compare all the results of your advertising and marketing efforts-plus the individual steps within each marketing campaign or sales process. • Test individual elements from the Top 10 Items to Test list against your current marketing-and always be testing new lists and media choices to find more responsive audiences. • Segment those attracted to your offers and messages-then tailor your ads and marketing for these different types of prospects based on who th((y~ and what they want. • Use series marketing (related steps) and sequence marketing (contact through multiple channels)-to boost your response rates and get commanding market shares. • Grab attention in high-impact and unusual ways-using physically delivered "grabbers," hidden benefits in your messages, and uncommon use of Inserts and brochures. • Tap into the huge resource of other's successful ads and marketing materials-that you can refer to in developing your own-through the use of "creative borrowing." • Keep your marketing and sales pipeline filled with prospects-and always ''prime the pump" ahead of your need for new business-to minimize slow-downs.
Get the latest Methods, News & Updates. Go To: www.guerrillaprofits.com
Strategy #4:
Build Up The Value
D
o you sometimes feel that customers are shopping you based solely on price? Do you think that if you don't offer them the best price or close to it-based on your competitors' prices or the generally accepted view of what your product or service should sell for-that they' ll simply walk away? Pricing is one of the areas where the Guerrilla Profits perspective and approach can help you most. Short of just flat-out raising your prices across the board (a sure-fire way to increase profits in most cases if you can make them stick)-let me suggest that there are alternative ways to deal with your clientele and to Build Up The Value that puts you back in control of your pricing and profits.
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What's needed is a good dose of positioning and a thorough re-thinking of your concept of "who you are" in the marketplace. Large companies as well as small ones wrestle with this issue. A case in point: The Wall Street Journal not long ago (March 25, 2007) reported that Parker Hannifin Corp., a big industrial-parts maker, decided its long-time pricing scheme was crazy. For as long as anyone could recall, the firm had used the same simple formula to determine prices of its 800,000 parts. Managers would calculate how much it cost and make and deliver each product-things like valves or heat-resistant seals-and then add a flat percentage on top, usually aiming for about a 35% markup. Managers liked the method because it was straightforward, but the new CEO saw that the firm was stuck in a pricing rut: No matter how much a product improved, the company charged the same premium, even though fully a third of its products fell into a niche with little, if any, competition. And if the firm figured out how to make a product more cheaply, it cut the price accordingly. Parker Hannifin CEO Donald Washkewicz decided it had to stop thinking like a widget maker and start thinking like a retailer by charging based on what a customer is willing to pay rather than what a product costs to make. The result: By challenging its pricing assumptions, the firm has since boosted operating income by $200 million. Matching price to cost is a common rationale, but it's not necessarily logical. Audiences have different demands based on their environment and circumstances. For example, many resorts in North America with a summertime draw charge more for lodging in July than in January, a baseball team may raise ticket prices when it's playing a well-known rival, and on the flip-side, most businesses don't lower their prices for students and seniors just out of kindness. Even if you are charging what you believe to be the "right" price, how do you know what your customers/clients would be willing to pay? Have you ever checked? Do you price-test to determine what the market Chapter 4 - Strategy #4: Build Up The Value
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will bear? Have you spent time crafting compelling offers that can draw people in regardless of price--or even eliminate price as a consideration or objection altogether? The point is, whatever the size of your business, you may-with a little effort devoted to an honest assessment of your situation-be surprised at how easy it is to command prices and profit margins that you thought extraordinary or even impossible to achieve. Remember, lower prices don't automatically lead to higher sales. In fact, if your price is seen as too low, customers/clients may question the quality of your product or service-and it may tum them off from doing business with you.
Selecting your customers/clients A big flaw in many businesses' approach is a "take-alI-comers" attitude. In other words, whoever shows up--and is willing to pay youqualifies as your customer/client. In some situations that makes perfect sense, such as a food trailer at the county fair or a telecomm company that's positioned aggressively to take market share away from competitors. (Even this latter one might benefit by some re-thinking.) But if you're in a service business that requires a relatively close involvement with clients or you sell a product that requires follow-up to the sale (such as higher-end equipment sales), you may want to be a bit more selective. You may even want to decide ahead of time who you really want to attract. (See Chapter 10 - Strategy #10, "Capitalize on Your Business's True Wealth" about profiling your best customers and prospects. ) I'd even go so far as to say that you should make a customer's willingness to pay a premium price one of the qualifications for your selecting them as a customer/client. Now, I can already hear the clamor: "What?" ...."How can I turn down business?" ...."Why would someone want to pay me more than they could pay elsewhere?" Or even the flatout statement, "People won't pay that!" Chapter 4 - Strategy #4: Build Up The Value
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But the real thinking behind that line of self-questioning is, "Why am I so special?" And that's actually a good place to start. Why are YQY so special? ... What would make what you offer so compelling that people would be happy to part with larger sums just to deal with you? If you relegate yourself to a "commodity" business-where your offering is interchangeable with what most anyone else offers-then you'll find it difficult to command higher prices. But with a bit of finesse, you may find that even a perceived commodity can be positioned in a way that yields higher margins. In fact, as "change guru" Tom Peters says, "The more the world perceives the product to be a commodity, the greater the opportunity to differentiate and create new and unexpected niches through the unending accumulation of small advantages." The problem with price shoppers An issue we need to address upfront can help steer our thinking here: What should you do about price shoppers? If you have a business that relies on coupons, flyers, ValPak and the like, you're automatically positioned to attract these price-oriented buyers. Also, if you run directmarketing discount promotions, in-store sales, trade show specials, or seasonal/occasional offers, you'll experience these buyers. Not that there's any problem with doing business with price shoppers. In fact, at times that's exactly whom you want for closeouts, excess inventory liquidations, and fast action. The problem comes from then expecting these customers to remain loyal to you after they've made their initial purchase. Also, it may take even more price-based offers to attract their attention next time. Simply put, converting price shoppers to more "regular" pricing-not to mention premium pricing-is less likely to occur with these buyers. That said, one of the hlg exceptions is when you market specifically to try to capture the "right" buyers by using trial offers, sampling, or even very low-cost introductory offers. In these cases, as long as you're Chapter 4 - Strategy #4: Build Up The Value
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realistic about losing 40%-60% of the price buyers after the initial offer-and your numbers still work in those cases-it does make sense to filter the "right" buyers into your business this way. Then the customers who stay and are converted into your usual (or premium) pricing for products/services will become valuable customers/clients that you can continue to develop. A better solution to selling on price For businesses with limited available time or capacity (such as solo entrepreneurs, small practices, and small manufacturers), severe limitations exist on your ability to make more money without ultimately getting more profit yield from what you're already doing. These are the businesses on which price shoppers will have the greatest impact. Not only are your profit margins squeezed, but these types of buyers are usually the biggest pain to deal with (again, see Chapter 10 about profiling). They'll cause the greatest amount of service issues, sap your time (or your employees' time), and will generally be more unsatisfied as shown by product returns, customer service issues, and impatient or even irritable behavior. When you focus on attracting the customers/clients you want andspecifically, for the purposes of this strategy, Build Up The Value-you focus on attracting those customers/clients who're willing to pay higher prices (using methods we'll discuss shortly), you'll find you have a bit more breathing room. You may even find that these higher-price buyers make better customers/clients, cause you the least amount of headaches, and are generally nicer to deal with. (In my own dealings over the years, that's certainly been true, with only an occasional "problem" customer/client exception.) These buyers are willingly deciding to deal with you-and at higher prices than they might get elsewhere. So there must be a reason why that happens. And there must be ways you can duplicate the process of finding more of these "better" customers/clients. Because in Guerrilla Profits, we don't focus on cost-cutting, penny-pinching or inventory and Chapter 4 - Strategy #4: Build Up The Value
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operations control-but, rather, enhancing profits and finding alternative profit opportunities-that's exactly where we'll start to look for these higher-price buyers. Qualifying your customers/clients A number of ways exist that you can use to think about whom you want your customers/clients to be and how you want them to show up. Aside from the usual marketing-selection criteria (demographics and psychographics), you'll want to qualify customers in ways that attract them to your higher-priced offerings. Here are three specific qualification categories, differing by degrees of loyalty: 1) The "Popularity Contest"-This is the usual "default" method of most customer/client selection processes. Customers are simply attracted to and deal with people they like. That means that if you're charging a bit more than competitor A or competitor B (and what you all have is similar), you win out because that customer likes you better. Although this is great if you happen to be the one that usually comes out on top, it's truly hit-or-miss in terms of consistently attracting buyers. But at least there's some basis for this loyalty and for the willingness of these customers/clients to stick with you for reasons other than price. Another winning "popularity" factor that pulls people in your direction--even if your price is higher-is convenience. People will pay a premium if you make their life easier. 2) Self-Selection Based on Offer-In this case, customers are attracted based on the appeal of your offer-and become qualified by being willing to take you up on a specific offer, package, or bundle. If you structure your offers carefully (more details on this in a moment), you can use the offer itself Chapter 4 - Strategy #4: Build Up The Value
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to the "right" customers/clients show up. And one of the qualifiers could be that the offer is positioned to attract those who are willing to pay higher prices in the first place. When prospective buyers self-select themselves by responding to your detailed marketing message, you can be confident they're most likely to be people you can convert into a customer/client at the pricing and terms you've stated. They're less likely to want to shop around and more likely to simply want to get their remaining questions answered in order to make a buying decision. Once they've purchased, they'll likely remain loyal beyond the initial transaction. 3) Qualified Based on Criteria-For this form of qualification, people need to participate in some sort of qualification process. And once qualified and accepted, they're actually thankful for the chance to do business with you. You establish the general "minimum" requirements for people to qualify, then they must submit information, complete survey, or answer specific questions in order to proceed. This raises the bar because people are waiting for "approval" prior to having the certainty of getting in on your offer. And, you become the preferred provider to which all others are compared. Then it's your competitors who are playing catch-up. The loyalty levels for these highly qualified customers/clients is extreme because they don't want to lose out on being involved with you. And depending on how well you're able to position yourself, price is rarely even a question.Customers who are criteria-based qualified will often pay the highest prices.
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stage for higher prices. Most involve some combination of the following strategies and methods: • Seeking exclusivity. This is a first step in getting to higher prices. When you're able to base your offer on exclusivity-meaning you have something to offer that others don't-you're naturally able to command higher prices because of the limited availability. Even when you may not believe you have an edge, you can still find something that helps your exclusive positioning. Take, for example, the chain of ice cream parlors called Cold Stone Creamery, which is positioned as "the ultimate ice cream experience." Now, you may think that after Baskin-Robbins, Ben & Jerry's and Haagen-Daz (to name only a few of the big ones) and the countless smaller chains and independents-plus, the frozen yogurt stores-that the marketplace might be pretty well saturated. Also, Ice cream could be considered a fairly low-priced commodity, especially in such a mature marketplace. That's where the exclusivity comes in and Cold Stone Creamery's ability to command much higher, premium prices. It's positioned itself based on the concept of ice cream as an experience, which includes Cold Stone's process. To quote the firm directly, "It starts with using the highest quality ingredients and ends with our signature process for preparing your custom creation on a frozen granite stone." What that means for its customer is ultra-customized, made-to-order ice cream concoctions, hand-mixed in a unique process right before your eyes." Does this warrant the exceptionally higher prices? Well ...yes, if you consider customers want to be entertained as part of their purchase and to feel individually unique. The same principle applies to the ultracustomized "cup 0' joe" from Starbucks. But there's a difference between real and perceived exclusivity. Real exclusivity comes from the ownership of proprietary legal rights, licenses, distribution deals, exclusive physical locations in high-traffic areas, and other things that, by their very nature, lock out anyone else Chapter 4 - Strategy #4: Build Up The Value
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from having the same advantage. Perceived exclusivity comes from brand-building, your offers, limited access, and the perception in the marketplace that you have something to offer that others don't. The best exclusivity will come from a combination of both the real and the perceived. Appeal to your customer's/client's human nature-to want to purchase things they can't get elsewhere-and in many cases, you'll be able to charge premium prices. • Offering limited quantities. Partially, this goes back to the ageold law of supply and demand-and is also an extension from the previous section on exclusivity. Items in limited supply generally tend to bring higher prices in the marketplace. That is, if it's a given that the products/services are in demand in the first place-and you have the ability to reach the people who want them. But just because something's in short supply doesn't mean that you'll automatically get a higher price. It usually means you have to "talk it up" in print, on the phone, or in person. This works especially well in retail sales where you can show-and-tell to a potential buyer. In past retail dealings, I can recall instances where, rather than relegating items to a sales rack, the remainders were actually marked-up and sold at a premium specifically because they were the last ones. If you have items that appeal to collectors or items that could be associated with a specific group, organization or association-this is where a special "limited availability" sales promotion can work wonders. If you have a service to offer with limited availability or production with limited capacity (such as solo entrepreneurs, small practices, or small manufacturers), you can use the limited quantities of your available time or capacity to your advantage in your marketing and sales approach. This is especially effective when done in combination with the other approaches listed here.
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• Devising compelling and irresistible offers. This can get very interesting. When you focus on crafting offers to attract the people you want (think "self-selection based on offer," mentioned above), you can cast a wide net and pull in those who're willing to pay higher prices. Rather than doing price advertising and marketing, do customer/client offers where prospects are making their buying decisions based on their reasons. In other words, what they want most out of a transaction with your business. One way to do this is to play up a very specific benefit that you specialize in (and feature in your offers) that the more generic offers of your competitors fail to capitalize on. Most businesses don't do this because of an often-demonstrated fear that is usually expressed something like this: "If you're going to go to all the time, trouble, and expense to advertise or market, you'd better be darn sure that people know everything about all you have to offer so you don Y miss out on anyone." Nothing could be further from the truth when it comes to attracting people at higher prices. The more effective strategy is to focus laser-like on the one benefit that causes those who are exposed to your message to identify with itand compels them to respond. You'll recall the "hidden benefit" concept attributed to legendary marketer Ted Nicholas in Chapter 3 - Strategy #3, Boost Your Marketing Results-that usually unstated, not-so-obvious compelling reason that drives people to act. Well, the same holds true for all benefit statements in your advertising and marketing. The amazing thing is that by focusing on one very specific benefit (to the exclusion of all others for that particular message), you usually get more people who may ultimately be good candidates for all the other things you do have to offer. And when you specialize in your message themes and differentiate or segment your media or lists to reach o~ly those most likely to be interested in that particular benefit, you'll find that those customers you attract are of a much higher caliber and are more likely to want to deal with you, even at higher prices than the competition. Chapter 4 - Strategy #4: Build Up The Value
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Please note: I'm not talking about specializing as it relates to your product or service. I'm talking about specializing within your advertising and marketing. For example, an ear-nose-and-throat doctor has her medical specialty, but her Message Benefit Theme could be "a warm and caring bedside manner." Now that's a benefit that many people want. • Defining your advertising and marketing theme. You can't just use the generic terms and phrases everyone else employs, like "quality," "service," or "we're the best." None of that has any credibility until after someone has dealt with you. Most businesspeople just guess about what they think their customers/clients want without giving the issue much thought. I don't recommend that. Instead, you really want to tap into what the majority of your existing customers/clients think about your business, what they say to others about you, and what they truly feel they get from your product or service. And here's one of the best ways to find out: Ask them. Focus on asking your best customers/clients first (you want to know their answers separately from the rest). Offer some kind of incentive or premium to take a quick survey. Put together a short list of questions (this isn't the time to hit them over the head with your wish list). Keep it to a maximum of five to seven questions. Questions like:
1) What comes to mind first when you think about (your company or product/service)
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2) What's the No.1 reason you do business with us? (Or, why do you buy (your product/service) from us?) 3) What do you feel is the biggest problem or issue with _ __ (your product/service)-and how do you think it could be improved?
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4) In what ways do we excel in providing you with (your product/service)
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5) How would you describe our _ _ _ (your product/service) to others? Then compile all the answers and pull out the prominent and recurring themes to discover the one most powerful benefit that you can use to attract others through advertising and marketing. When you combine that powerful benefit with the other elements of a compelling and irresistible offer, you can discover your winning formula to attract the people you want-at higher prices. The point here is to attract people in a way so that price is not the primary reason for their buying decision. And to also market in a way that allows you to test your price and then charge what the market will bear-or the optimal balance in your pricing considerations.
• Lowering the response barrier. Another way to attract the buyers you want is to lead-generate by giving away helpful information, such as a report, white paper, expose, or public service announcementand then convert people to a particular offer related to that information after they've, figuratively speaking, raised their hands. People attracted this way are demonstrating their current interest in the topic or category for what you have to offer-and giving this information also helps to position you as the expert or specialist (more on this topic shortly). This can be very useful in having people self-select and identify themselves-but you'll have to go the extra mile to convert these prospects through a carefully orchestrated, systematic, multi-step followup process. You can't expect these people who were attracted to a free information offer to be pushovers. You'll need to hit them with your most compelling marketing messages-in addition to providing the information requested. Be sure to offer information about a very specific subject-directly Chapter 4 - Strategy #4: Build Up The Value
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related to your offer-that not only positions you as the expert, but also has content strong enough to support your expertise. Here's the key: The most important factor in generating response-next to the copy itselfis the title for the information you're offering as you set up the information offer and give-away. Below are some examples from various business sectors. Please remember to keep an open mind about adapting suggestions from a different category to your business (often, the best breakthroughs come from unexpected applications of these ideas). Service & Professional: "Consumers' Guide to Finding the Right Mortgage Broker" "How to Recognize the 5 Ways Your Current Lawn Service Could Be 'Clipping' You" "The Dangers to Watch out For When Selecting a Personal Trainer" "The Insiders Guide to Safe Financial and Estate Planning" "How to Choose a Painless Dentist Who S Right For You"
Retail: "How to Care for Fine Jewelry" "The Keys to Determining the Real Value of Your Artwork" "10 Ways to Select the Absolute Best Gifts for Your Family and Friends" "Grilling Secrets of the Award-Winning BBQ Masters" "The Top 3 Celebrity Tips to Keep From Becoming a Fashion Disaster"
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8) Guerrilla ProiliS Manufacturing & Wholesale: "Inventory Management Secrets of the Leanest Companies" "How to Source Super-Star Vendors" "The 5 Keys to Reducing Employee Burn-Out" "The 3 Biggest Mistakes Made When Buying Packaging Supplies and How to Avoid Them" "The Shipping Industry S 'Dirty Little Secrets '-How to Select a Freight Company that Won t Take You for a Ride"
But beware: Don't skimp on the value of the free information with a half-hearted effort--or present it in a way that's not well thought out. Make sure that what you give is worth receiving. As an example, I recently saw this free information technique used poorly by a major health-plan company that should have known better. The mailing was an 8 ~ x 14 legal sized paper, single-sided printing, quarter folded (coupon at bottom), with the return address in the top 114 panel positioned to view through a window envelope. The offer was for a "brochure" intended to interest small business owners. The brochure title was, "Exercise for Busy People." That's not necessarily a bad title for the free brochure, but the headline across the top of the letter read, "I was going to call in sick the other day. Then I remembered I was the boss." The problem is that it seemed to be obviously written by someone who was an employee (wrong concept for business owners.... no one who owns a business EVER feels like they have to remember that they're the boss). But I'll bet someone in the health-plan company's marketing department must have thought it was clever. The letter, after a quick opening line to identify with the business owner from a health perspective, then led with the company's selfinterest and finally got to mentioning the free brochure again in the last Chapter 4 - Strategy #4: Build Up The Value
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sentence (before the signature line )-by simply repeating the title. It felt like a "throwaway," and it was obvious the intent of the letter was to get you into a sales conversation about the health-plan. On top of an educational "brochure" being weak from the client's perspective in the first place (low value), the copy reinforced that there was nothing really valuable for the recipient in the free offer-because there was no mention of the benefits to be derived from receiving the free brochure. Moral of the story: Give something of value and give it with gusto. Build the value and "sell" what you're giving away, just as if you were charging for it. Use a benefit-driven theme as we've discussed. Make it about your customers/clients-and make it interesting.
Expert & Specialist Pricing vs. Generic Provider This is where overcoming the "commodity" stigma can be achieved most easily and you can position yourself to get the highest prices in the marketplace. When you (or your company) are perceived as the expert and/or specialist in your field, people naturally gravitate towards doing business with you. Let's look at a few examples that generate higher prices or fees in the marketplace due to this genuine expertise: • If you own a BMW automobile, would you take it to a general auto repair shop-or the BMW specialist?
• If you needed an operation on your little toe, would you go to a local clinic-or the podiatrist? • If you wanted help in preparing your estate-planning legal documents, would you go to a financial planner-or an attorney?
You get the idea. But the added point is, for most "regular" nonspecialized businesses, you can take a lot of steps to differentiate yourself Chapter 4 - Strategy #4: Build Up The Value
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and appear to be the expert or specialist without acquiring a long list of certificates or credentials. You can do it with "perceived" expertise. A couple of the ways we've already discussed include: 1) specializing by focusing on a specific customer/client benefit, and 2) offering very useful information about a specific subject directly related to your offer. By combining these two methods-and choosing a specific specialty to focus on-you can create your own unique approach in your particular niche. You can become perceived as the expert and/or specialist-and can command higher prices-by attracting people through your advertising and marketing efforts who want to deal with "the pro." According to Tom Peters, you must "Niche or be Niched. ... lf you are not configuring your organization to become a fast-changing, highvalue-adding creator of niche markets, you are simply out of step. " Here are a few possibilities to spur your thinking: • Dry Cleaners-specialist in leather and suede -or-
men's suits • Restaurant-specialist in romantic dinner packages -orgourmet omelets • Real Estate-specialist in jumbo loans -orsimultaneous closings • Physical Trainer-specialist in men's upper-body strength -orwomen who've just had a child • Financial Planner-specialist in early retirement -orowners of income property • Gift Store-specialist in high-end wrapping -or-
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• Household Products-specialist in organic ingredients -orultra-safe packaging • Landscape Services-specialist in homes with pools -orhillside homes • Hotel-specialist in 30- to 50-people group meetings -orhotel+entertainment packages As you can see, lots of possibilities exist to position yourself as the specialist that naturally attracts people who want to choose you. And you're often able to ask higher prices than your generic competitorsdue to the perception that you can do a particular specialty better than others. When seeking to differentiate your product/service, don't forget to make that difference very clear to the customer. Tom Peters also tells of a Scandinavian airline that launched a fare-reduction program and called it "F50"-meaning fares were cut 50%. After the F50 program flopped, the next CEO retained the idea but renamed it the "Twenty Dollar Plan," signifying the actual fare. The switch to simpler terminology caused the program to really catch on. "What people don i understand doesn i exist, " said the new CEO, Jan Carlzon. Testing the higher-priced waters When you begin to use these higher-price strategies and methods, you can start by ratcheting up your prices in steps. If you still get no price resistance, keep raising your prices. Depending on the nature of your business and your relationships with your customers/clients, you may choose to quote higher prices to the new buyers and "grandfather in" your existing buyers. (This may depend on whether you're mostly or completely booked already.) Having such two-tier pricing serves a couple of important functions: 1) It makes your existing buyers feel like they're being taken Chapter 4 - Strategy #4: Build Up The Value
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care of, and 2) You can begin to fill in any additional capacity with higher-priced business over time. Then, at some point, simply raise all prices to the new level-with proper warning, of course, tied to a "last chance" offer. But, of course, in having a two-tier pricing structure (or any other variable pricing plan)-you'll need to be willing to charge different customers different prices for the same thing .... at the same time. As mentioned, this is common in businesses where the price varies depending on the supply and demand (or seasonality), such as airline seats, rental cars, or vacation resorts. A daring, but seldom used, method is to simply and drastically raise prices on all new business but keep only the best customers "locked in" at the old prices as long as they maintain a certain level of consistent business with you. That can act as quite an incentive to keep your existing buyer's loyalty-and of course, before you make the switch, you'll need to test the marketplace to be sure that enough new business is available at the much higher prices. You can also create new premium levels of service or premium products relative to the usual items being offered at the old prices-and charge a much higher price for this new level (think "concierge level," "gold memberships, "or "deluxe-options package"). That way there's no change to the existing customers/clients-but rather, a new higherpriced, higher-end option. This is a great way to go for many businesses concerned about having to "stay competitive" or anxious about disturbing the status quo of their current clientele. Whichever way you choose to approach higher prices, you can be sure that they'll help boost your bottom line and generate more Guerrilla Profits for your business. Building Value with Package Deals & Bundles We referred briefly to package deals and bundles in Chapter 2 Strategy #2: Capture More From Your Transactions-when discussing Chapter 4 - Strategy #4: Build Up The Value
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how to convert more inbound inquiries into sales. But packages and bundles can also help you to Build Up The Value. Rather than just using them as a discounting tool-Qr as a way to increase the overall transaction size (the usual methods)-they can actually help you command premium prices if done right. This is a very profitable area because it impacts a couple of other important profit points. First, it's a way to increase your response rates by creating more compelling and irresistible offers. And second, it's a way of making your offer(s) unique and exclusive as compared with all the other offers in the marketplace. In your current product/service offers, do you simply offer a single item choice? Or do you perhaps have different levels of product or service quality-Qr a mix of different products or services at different price points for prospects to choose from? In the case of packages and bundles, the objective is to offer a mix of items (products and/or services) that together provide a more compelling choice in the minds of your customers/clients and prospects. And, in many cases, you can add bonus components to the mix that have a high perceived value-but that don't have to be costly for you to fulfill. High desirability The key for positioning packages and bundles is that any item in the mix, whether a main component or an added bonus, must be highly desirable on its own. This isn't the place to pad with overstocks that you're trying to clear out-Qr to try and bump activity on a slower item in your inventory. If that's your intention, then by all means go ahead and create closeout bundles or "grab bag" -type specials. But here we're looking at using packages and bundles as part of your regular product mix-as an enticement, an incentive, and as a way to uniquely position what you have as being different than your competitors. So make sure that you put your best foot forward and give buyers a real reason to say "yes" to your offer. Lead with your best stuff. Chapter 4 - Strategy #4: Build Up The Value
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Because, if you don't, they won't stick around to hear the rest of the story. I can't tell you how many times I've seen examples of offers where the marketer holds some of the "best items for last"-when presenting, or in a sales letter, or on a web page---causing many prospects to simply lose interest and vanish before reaching the point where they'd hear about the "best items" and be making a buying decision. Ideally, there would be a good even mix of all highly desirable items in any package or bundle you create, with your lead item being the main thing your prospects desire most. The additional items in the package or bundle shouldn't distract from that primary desirability and focus, but rather, they should add to the overall perceived value-to help increase your total sale .... and your bottom line. Building up the value while commanding higher prices within a package or bundle often comes from including items that are intangible where you can set the "prices" or value of these extras at whatever seems appropriate for your clientele (items with a very high perceived value and a very low cost to fulfill). These are usually a service-type of component or bonus-and they can be bundled with either physical products or other services. Examples might include added service on an equipment sale, educational teleseminars, one-on-one or group consulting time, training classes or online tutorials, on-location audits, critiques or assessments, or downloadable information in text, audio or video. These items all help build up the overall value of your package deal or bundle-and, since you're setting the price and value of these extras-they can help you command higher prices than if you were simply offering your usual products or services where the prices are already known. Many times, there's also a relatively low redemption rate on these types of intangibles given in a bundle-so that the time and effort to fulfill in addition to the cost is relatively low-because of the lower number of people who actually take advantage of them (of course, you should initially assume that all offered items will be redeemed-until you are able to test what's true in your business). Chapter 4 - Strategy #4: Build Up The Value
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Differences between Packages and Bundles For the purposes of Guerrilla Profits, here's how we differentiate between the two (with some examples given in the next sections): Package: A group of items in the same category that are useful together. When combined, they give a greater total value to what's being purchased--either in terms of a volume or bulk sale-or the specific purpose for which the products/services are to be used. Bundle: A group of items that may be similar in terms of their category but which may not be directly related to each other. Each item has its own usefulness and purpose-separate from each other-and might be purchased frequently without the other components in the bundle. Why are these differences important? Well, mainly so that when we discuss them in the context of Guerrilla Profits you'll think differently about each one. There are reasons why you will want each to have a different spin or flavor when deciding what's in them-and how to present them to your customers/clients and prospects. Packages When putting together a package, think about what items a customer/client would want to have together at the same time. A men's clothing store, for instance, might offer a package that includes all the components for a complete suit or outfit, including the shirt, belt, socks, shoes, alternate slacks, alternate jacket, and overcoat-and at a special package price, of course. Spas and day salons regularly offer packages that group a variety of services for "a total experience." The same is often true for travel tours, cruises, and vacations. If you're not already offering a package in your Chapter 4 - Strategy #4: Build Up The Value
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business, think about how you could you apply this. I'd be willing to bet that there aren't many businesses that couldn't find a way. To take this a bit further-and combine it with some of the other subjects we've been discussing so far-how about a doctor offering a preventative health-and-checkup package? Or maybe a dentist offering an annual cleaning-and-whitening package. (She might, for instance, get patients to commit to an every three- or four-month schedule rather than every six months (or longer), and then bill them quarterly.) Or an industrial equipment company might be able to turn a one-time equipment sale into a monthly billing program that includes all costs of equipment, service and maintenance. Bundles With bundles, you can put together anything that makes sense from a buyer's perspective. A fitness trainer, for example, may be able to bundle together some body-diagnostic services with sports massage and/or with dietary counseling. Or a CPA may be able to put together a "total financial review" bundle with the appropriate outside noncompeting professionals-such as a financial planner or investment counselor-along with his or her own portfolio analysis from a tax perspective. For a restaurant, a possibility might be to offer a complete anniversary or romance bundle. That could include flowers, chocolates, candle-lit dinner (all inclusive, with dessert and champagne) and maybe even tickets to a music or theatre event afterwards. Be sure to come up with a unique, enticing name for any all-inclusive bundles like this, something that makes the event-and the customers' experience of itsomething special. As you can see, with just a bit of imagination, you can apply this bundling thought process to most any business. In addition to your customers'/clients' experience of your bundle-think about it in terms of their convenience, so they don't need to worry about any of the details. Chapter 4 - Strategy #4: Build Up The Value
Guerrilla ProiIIS. 83 Premium Pricing on Packages & Bundles Where there are predominately tangible components that are expected to be redeemed, packages and bundles can not only add value for the buyers, they can actually command premium prices for you. In many cases, the way packages and bundles are usually structured and presented, the buyers assume there's a discount-they assume they're getting more stuff than usual so there should be some package-deal price. But you can also position your package or bundle as a premium or limited availability item that makes it more exclusive. I've even seen instances where there's a qualifier requirement, meaning not all customers will get this deal. Think exclusive membership nightclubs or events where people must jump through a few hoops in order to qualify for the offer. A great example: a limited edition, deluxe concert ticket package for fans of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers for a recent concert tour. Only a limited number of these packages were made available to fan-club members only. While it was a great deal from a convenience and overall experience basis (best seats, preferred parking, extra gifts, special collectible concert tickets, news and announcement alerts via email}-the package also came at a premium price. In short, the exclusive package became a very engaging and exciting approach. Using Bonuses in your offers Something else that really boosts response rates, especially when there's an offer-expiration deadline, is the thoughtful and strategic use of bonuses. In some businesses, it's a very common practice, but even I-if you haven't tried this approach-you'll find it can be adapted to most businesses. Here are a few tips: • High desirability is key. All bonuses must help enhance your overall offer. As mentioned before, if it wouldn't sell well on its own, don't try to give it away as a bonus. Usually, bonuses Chapter 4 - Strategy #4: Build Up The Value
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• More is better, up to a point. It's tough to get people to wrap their minds around more than about five items, even though there are those in the publishing and periodicals business that say there can never be enough bonuses. You must test your bonuses with your offers to discover what your particular customers/clients and prospects will best respond to. • You must "sell" the bonuses in your copy. It's important to build up their perceived value just as if you were charging for them. Don't be haphazard or careless here. The desirability of your entire offer is also dependent on your presentation of the bonuses. • Test giving a bonus that's considered an indulgence or a splurge item. Make it something that people want but may not go out and spend their own money on, except on a special occasion. These bonuses usually aren't directly related to your business-for example, a spa certificate, an expensive bottle of wine, dinner for two at a great restaurant, or a gift certificate for a pricey store. Sometimes, the bonuses are perceived as being even more desirable than the original item being offered. That's especially true of limitedavailability or truly scarce items, such as great tickets to a major, soldout sporting event. When you have a highly prized and timely bonus that's tied into the deadline for your offer, you've got what can be a terrific combo. Customers will have no trouble realizing that the deadline you've set is for real-when they know that there's a specific date attached to such a bonus.
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ACTION POINTS • Challenge your pricing assumptions-and price-test, position and custom-tailor your offers to your target audience-in ways that attract people regardless of price. • Select your customers/clients and prospects-and if possible, make a customer's willingness to pay a premium price one of the qualifications for your selecting them. • Use both real and perceived exclusivity, limited quantity offers, and devise compelling and irresistible offers-to help set the stage for higher prices. • Define your Message Benefit Theme in your advertising and marketing-and tap into what the majority of your clientele already think about your business. • Position yourself as the expert or specialist-to help lower the response barrier-and to help you command higher prices than other generic providers. • Create Package Deals & Bundles to help build up the value for your clientele-and also increase transaction size and profit margins for yourself. • Add Bonuses to help boost response rates, increase perceived value, and build a sense of urgency by tying bonuses to specific offer-expiration deadlines.
Get the latest Methods, News & Updates. Go To: www.guerrillaprofits.com
Strategy #5:
Change The Rules
ome of the biggest profit pressures facing businesses of all sizes come from being in a crowded field. Often, too many similar businesses flood the market with competing offers. Or, your product(s) or service(s) are being treated like commodities in the eyes of your buyers. The more common solutions to the crowded-field problem-such as cutting your price, changing your offer, or giving better service-simply keep you in the same game against the same players. But perhaps what you need to do is Change the Rules of the game. "Market leaders make up the rules," writes Seth Godin, a popular business blogger and author of Small Is the New Big. "They establish the systems and the covenants and the benchmarks that a market plays by. ...If you play by those rules, you will almost certainly lose. After all, that:S why market leaders make rules. They
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establish a game they can win, over and over again, against smaller and newer competitors. " Newcomers and underdogs need to change those existing rules of business. Or as Jay Abraham, the legendary marketing consultant and author of Getting Everything You Can Out ofAll You've Got, says, "When you limit your business to doing things the same way every other competitor of yours does, you can only produce modest, incremental gains-at best. At worst, you could easily lose ground." And in fact, being new to a business or profession could work to your advantage-since you don't already "know the rules." The culture of change I regularly observe that one of the most difficult obstacles to trying out new ideas in an existing business is an attitude of, "That S not how we do things here." Or, if you're a solo entrepreneur or have a small business, there simply may not be a lot of time to take on new initiatives. Only the absolute most pressing things get your attention---even if it's something that could make you more money. But assuming that you're willing and able to try new things, then it's just a matter of adding, step-by-step, each new idea or method. And over time, you'll gain momentum-and can add the resources and operational infrastructure to support these new methods. Sometimes, changes can happen quickly, and you can make large advances all at once. But most likely, you'll want to ease-in.... to test first.. .. and then expand on successes as they occur. When it comes to profits, nothing is more important than finding new ways to create them, other than capturing the profit opportunities you're already generating. As you read this chapter, let your imagination run free with new possibilities. Look for ways to either apply the methods we'll discuss to your business, or create entirely different, new ways based on the original methods. I'd recommend making notes of Chapter 5 - Strategy #5: Change The Rules
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these ideas as they occur to you, so you won't risk losing track of something that could have great potential. What kind of changes? Business literature and lore is full of examples of bold, against-thegrain, alternative approaches to business. There's the often-told FedEx story, for instance. It applied the banking industry's method of clearing checks overnight-to the overnight delivery of packages. Just as banks sent all checks to a central processing point, FedEx began doing the same with cargo. By routing most of its packages to Memphis-and then back out for delivery overnight-it parlayed that hub-and-spoke concept into a $34 billion business. And, Michael Dell who started his $56 billion company from his college dorm room with $1,000 in capital. He hit upon the idea of differentiating his company by selling custom-made computers directly to end users, eliminating the middleman and emphasizing service. Or, there's the Tom Monaghan example .... a college dropout with hardly any business experience, who opened a little pizza joint that had first-week sales of$99. Twenty-five years later, Monaghan presided over Domino's Pizza, with 2,500 outlets in the United States and abroad. Monaghan's breakthrough was setting up a whole new category of pizza parlors that emphasized delivery-with a unique proposition: ''fresh, hot pizza at your door in 30 minutes or less, guaranteed." Exciting and noteworthy as these kinds of Change the Rules examples are, that's nQ1 what we're talking about here. The big, breakthrough business concepts are great when they happen-but for our purposes-we'll focus on particular methods you can adapt to your existing business. In this chapter, we're looking for new, innovative ways for you to capture money that didn't exist before-and to see new profit connections and opportunities that you might have completely overlooked. Adrian Slywotzky, co-author of How to Grow When Markets Chapter 5 - Strategy #5: Change The Rules
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Don t, says that one way to grow in a saturated market is to "innovate your own demand." Another writer, Dr. W. Chan Kim, co-author of Blue Ocean Strategy, advises, "Don t compete with rivals-make them irrelevant." The Guerrilla Profits solution combines those two ideas: First, Create New Ways to profit.. .. and second, Go Where Others Aren't. Let's start with some of the methods: Create New Ways: Harness Your Competitors to Your Advantage This section touches on the strategies covered in more detail in the next chapter: Chapter 6 - Strategy #6: Profit From Other Businesses. But here, we want to set-up some of the alternative methods you can adapt and use to Change The Rules. Differences always exist between businesses, even if the perceived offers, products or services seem the same in the eyes of the buyers. The most visible difference to your customers/clients is their experience with either you and/or your employees-which we covered in Chapter 1 Strategy #1: Maximize Your Interactions. But the practical differences lie in the way your business interacts with others and provides whatever product or service you're selling. There's the initial contact, the presentation of information, attention to the customer/client desires and details, follow-up, handling of problems and the intangible feelings they have about you. Customers buy not only because they believe you'll provide what they're buying at what they consider a reasonable or fair price-but also because they believe you're the right provider for them. I hate to say it, but more often than not, the buying decision is more like a "popularity contest" than it is a rational choice based on the facts. That's where this Guerrilla Profits opportunity lies here: The fact that there are some people who simply won't buy from you-and conversely, there are some people who won't buy from your stiffest competitors. Once you fully realize the impact of that fact, you'll be able to open a whole new door of possibilities. Chapter 5 - Strategy #5: Change The Rules
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• Unconverted Leads One of the best places to tap into this existing potential profit opportunity is with those prospects who have not yet purchased. We'll get into some more exciting possibilities for your own leads in Chapter 7 - Strategy #7: Recapture Lost Profit Opportunities. But, here in this section, we'll focus in on a great way to Change The Rules with unconverted leads. The first thing to do is to look at your current unconverted leads (people who have come in, responded, or contacted your business in some manner)-and ask yourself, "Why aren't these people already buyingfrom me (or using my services)?" Now I'm assuming that you have some form of lead generation in your business-such as display ads, yellow pages, classifieds, direct mail, Internet inquiries, or even simple flyers-and some process by which you inform prospects .... follow-up .... and try to convert them to buyers (that is, encourage them to do business with you). For most businesses, there is some aspect of the transactional process that lends itself to, at minimum, capturing the prospect's contact data-then having some kind of follow-up process to close the sale. And, if your business lacks a formal process-you'll want to start there-and look at whatever processes, if any, you do use. Many service businesses or professional practices rely on referrals and simply don't have any formal lead generation-to-conversion process. This could be a fatal flaw. Ifkey clients leave, you're left with a big hole in your cash flow and you could have to scramble to replace them. But assuming that lead-to-buyer conversion is already part of what you're doing now, asking the question "Why aren't these people already buyingfrom me?" will help you focus on the issues that your prospective clientele has with your business-and with your industry. If possible, survey some of these people and ask them directly, "Why haven't we been able to do business together yet?"-and make a list of their reasons. Once you have a full grasp of those reasons, realize that your competitors Chapter 5 - Strategy #5: Change The Rules
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are plagued by the same issues as you are. Again, assuming that you have some sort of system in place to convert prospects into buyers (and you're not in a field with a very long sales cycle ),-you could then go to your competitors with a Reciprocal Lead Swap Deal-and say something like:
"Look, we both have leads for people who, for one reason or another, didn t buy from us. But they may buy from the other. I've (your business been studying why people don t buy from / industry type)-and have a system to convert people into buyers-that can work for both of us. * I believe there s an opportunity here for us to help each other by trading unconverted leads-so that we each might try to convert them and recapture some of that lost investment we've both made." (*Sample "introduction letter" included as part of the Bonuses.) What if you don't have leads to exchange? Then you can simply offer competitors a share of the proceeds from your efforts to convert their old leads. But the easiest "sell" on this type of approach is to have leads to trade because it's human nature for others to believe they can do a better job than you. (That may, or may not, be true.) And, if you're not offering them an exchange, they may believe that they'll eventually get these people to convert somehow. Remember, these older prospects weren't converted despite money, time and effort being invested in them by your competitor. So these leads are a "wasting asset," and you're offering competitors a way to recapture some of their investment from leads that, in many businesses, simply get ignored after a certain period of time. The key here is to recognize that the prospects (leads) showed up for a particular reason in the first place. Their interest was keen when they first replied. So long as too much time hasn't passed-or the prospects haven't already fulfilled their needs elsewhere-some need or Chapter 5 - Strategy #5: Change The Rules
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interest should still exist. You'll want to arrange to start your follow-up process with your competitors' old leads as soon as practical after the competitor has "given up" on them. Ideally, your arrangement would be to get a weekly batch after a specified amount of time has passed from the first contact date. Set-up your competitor (and yourself, if it's a reciprocal deal}with a simple introduction letter (or email possibly, but an actual firstclass, mailed letter would be better). You can use the sample letter provided as part of the Bonuses as a starting point for creating your own customized version. The letter introduces you to the prospect by making direct referral to the actions that the prospect had originally taken with your competitor. It clearly states that your competitor has asked that you contact them on their behalf. Make sure to personalize it-addressed to the prospect by name-and refer directly to the person andlor company that the prospect will recognize as having been who they've heard from before. Also, refer directly to what they were interested in (replying to}-and why your company might be a good choice for them instead. Note: It's important to mention exactly what you can do for them that's directly related to what they were originally seeking. Don't add a laundry list of your offerings-be specific. Make them a special offer (such as a free consultation, free gift or a bonus) to entice them to contact you. Then, properly train any initial-contact employees in your business about exactly how to handle these new people who may be contacting your business. They should be treated differently than prospects who come in through your usual methods. Ideally, you would put these "borrowed" leads into a multi -step conversion process-with a deadline for urgency. You can make this as elaborate or as simple as you want. Just realize that a single letter is much less effective than multiple contacts. And, if you have access to their phone numbers for outbound Chapter 5 - Strategy #5: Change The Rules
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follow-up--you can leverage that in a number of ways. When you run into people who've already satisfied their needs for your particular product or service, ask them: "When will you likely need our product or service again?" Or, "Are you satisfied with the new provider you've found?" And, "Whom else do you know who might have a need for our product or service now?" You may find that this could be a good set-up for generating referrals. And, the information you gather can help you fine-tune your own conversion process.
• "Marketing through" versus "marketing to" We'll get into the details about "profiling" to attract your best customers/clients in Chapter 10 - Strategy # 10: Capitalize on Your Business's True Wealth. But for now, we'll assume that you can already identify a specific customer/client type that you want to attract through your marketing-and are taking steps now to market to those prospects. With that as your starting point-the first possibility is to identify and locate other non-competitive businesses or special interest groups in your area that attract similar types of people (or in your field, if you're not in a location-based business)--and to go introduce yourself to them. For example, let's consider a high-quality cafe with a healthy menu. Some of these other businesses might include gyms, spas, health food stores, physical trainers, Pilates or yoga instructors-and any other health-oriented people, groups and organizations who come in contact with others-who would want healthy food. You'll want to focus your introduction to these other businesses as just that-"Ijust stopped by to say hi, and to introduce myseif'-then go on to offer them something free that entices them to come in and visit you (or the equivalent to this approach if you are contacting people at a distance-to try out your product or service). Again, in the cafe example, it could be a free meal-so the new contacts can sample the food. Or for other businesses, it might be a free Chapter 5 - Strategy #5: Change The Rules
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consultation, assessment, gift, or sample-whatever would be enticing enough to actually get these business people to come in to see you (or to try out your product or service). Once they've stopped by to visit and say "hi" (or replied)-then give them what you promised, and more. Build their natural desire to want to reciprocate-and assuming they're happy with what they've received from you-to be inclined to introduce you within to their circle of influence. Remember, these people are the gatekeepers .... the ones that have access to people that you want to attract. And, once they've sampled or experienced what you're offering-not only could they potentially become customers/clients themselves-but they are also more likely to refer people to you. And, they are more likely to say yes to you when you suggest that you could leave some menus, brochures, coupons, or special flyers at their businesses for their people to take advantage of (or provide a gift offer.... or do a promotion directly to their clientele, organization, group, or audience). In essence, you're marketing to these businesses (the gatekeepers) differently than how you'd be marketing to the individuals that usually come in to your business. And, you'll want to systematically cultivate and develop these relationships so that you stay "top of mind" with them-and so that they do feel special-and are participating with you at a different level than being merely another customer/client. That lends itself to many other possibilities such as: You could hold a special event that these other businesses would be happy to announce for you (an entertainment event, open house with free samples, special private sale, free educational seminar, and the like). In addition to regularly dropping off your menus, brochures, coupons, or special flyers at their businesses-you could possibly post flyers or even a poster at their business. Or, you may be able to have them send an announcement to their email list as a "joint-venture"-where they participate or receive some consideration or monetary benefit. There are many possibilities. Chapter 5 - Strategy #5: Change The Rules
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The example above is that of "marketing through" rather than the usual "marketing to" approach. That is, you are marketing your business through other businesses-and of course, this is just one channel in addition to your usual marketing to the prospects you want to attract directly. A couple of twists on these approaches ... Now, let's shift our focus to a specific method of making your direct "marketing to" approach much more highly targeted within a specific geographic area-so you can attract exactly the right prospects. In our cafe example, there are a number of good publications, groups and associations with rentable lists available-in the fields of healthy food, healthy living, lifestyle, fitness, and diet-that would be ideal places to find prospects that are interested in this cafe's healthymenu fare. The issue of course is to be able to segment these lists by your local zip or postal codes near you-and being able to identify enough prospects that are close to you from a list to make renting those segments worthwhile. Then, renting just those portions of the lists that work-and contacting these prospects via mail with your offer (more about lists later in this chapter). The same would hold true for most other businesses that draw on a geographic area. Do you know how many publications, groups and associations there are with rentable lists-that have access to the audience you want to attract for your business? This form of list segmenting-along with highly targeted messages that speak directly and specifically to each publication's, group's or association's audience--can be highly effective at generating larger response rates than you would get by using generic complied lists or general advertising to the public. But, both the "marketing through" and the "marketing to" approaches should be used simultaneously-rather than choosing one or the other. All the offers, ads and marketing materials you create can work Chapter 5 - Strategy #5: Change The Rules
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equally well (with just a bit of adaptation) in both approaches. You can even use the "marketing through" approach with local publications, the same as you might do with local non-competitive businesses and other special interest groups. Invite them over to tryout your products/services. A reverse twist on the "marketing through" approach is to contact all of your customers/clients-and do a promotion directly to them-to ask for referrals of all the non-competitive local groups, associations, organizations, and businesses they know who might be interested in learning more about your business. Include a list of names of all the local entities you already knowand tell them that you're looking for others that aren't already on the list. And, offer them something unique or sufficiently enticing as an incentive (the cafe could offer a complete meal for two, for example}--in exchange for the complete contact information and any other details they know about the entity. And, if they personally know someone they can directly refer you to--even better. The beauty of this, of course, is that you now have a referral from one of your customers/clients-who you can now refer to when contacting the entity, "Our mutual client suggested that I call you..."which gives you easier access. And, it makes it more likely that they'll give you their attention-and be receptive to learning more about your business when you introduce yourself. (See sample contact letters included as part of the Bonuses.) Other Change The Rules Alternatives Most businesses use only a handful of methods to promote and sell-and rarely tap into all the possible methods that you now have access to through Guerrilla Profits. And, they use these same methods in most of the media and markets in which they participate. What are yours? For our purposes, we'll define these methods as the strategies, tactics, and messages that are used to attract people to your offers (your Chapter 5 - Strategy #5: Change The Rules
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activities). The media are the specific marketing and communication channels where your messages are being received (your vehicles). And, the markets are the specific groups and niches of people with whom you're communicating (your prospects). Often, the methods currently used are the most common for your particular business or profession (the ways that "it s done"). And, depending on your type of business, your media might include: • Yellow pages • Display Ads • Flyers / Inserts • Internet (Search / Pay-Per-Click / Po stings) • Direct Mail • Classifieds • Speaking / Seminars • Trade publications • Trade Shows / Conferences • Radio / TV In this chapter, Strategy #5: Change The Rules-we want to focus on combining all three into new and alternative ways for you to profit, through: Alternative Method, Media & Market Combinations. For instance, let's say that you're a financial planner, or retirement counselor. We'll define your primary market as "affluent investors"and some of your usual methods and media combinations might include: • Presenting to investment clubs (Speaking is the method; groups are the media.)
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Guerrilla Prolits. 99 • Exhibiting at financial conferences (Exhibits are the method; conferences are the media.) • Advertising in financial publications (Advertising is the method; publications are the media.) Now, consider some other alternatives, such as:
• Articles in financial publications • Having a financial book published
• An active referral network with other professionals • Reciprocal gifting with non-competitive professionals
• Endorsed marketing through targeted groups As you can see, a number of ways exist for a financial planner or retirement counselor to broaden his or her horizon through alternative methods and media combos. And we've started by focusing on the obvious. What would you imagine might be some of the less obvious possibilities? How about:
• Publishing your own financial newsletter or periodical • Making yourself available to the media as an expert
• Becoming and add-on sale through other professionals And, by changing the specific messaging (sales copy)-to focus on a different market segment other than "affluent investors" (say, "people going through a career change")--our financial planner or retirement counselor could open up whole new possibilities using these alternative methods and media combos in an entirely new market. These are also combinations that almost anyone in most businesses Chapter 5 - Strategy #5: Change The Rules
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and professional practices can tap into. You don't need to be a financial planner or retirement counselor-just substitute your business for those business types-and let your mind run wild with the possibilities. Each of the Alternative Method, Media & Market Combinations is a unique venue where you can continuously attract new prospects to your product and service offers.
How would this differ for retailers? In addition to the combos we've covered, retailers can take advantage of foot traffic. Now, I define "foot traffic" loosely here to include online retailers that may not have actual feet crossing their thresholds. With that in mind, consider these methods that you can use with a variety of media: • On-location or outdoor retail events (online = hosted web promotions through affiliates) • Sponsorship of community events or initiatives (online = participate in blogs / content provider) • Host product demonstrations or workshops (online = audio and/or video feeds / web seminars) What about other business types? Many of the methods we've covered also apply, in varying degrees, to wholesale distribution and manufacturing. And, in addition, you may want to consider these starting points: • Sponsor tie-in events either before or during conventions • Host educational seminars or training within your industry
• Find alternative industry associations and trade shows
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Use your imagination. Be creative. Think about other times when you have successfully attracted business easily. How can you expand on your past successes in alternative ways? Throughout Guerrilla Profits-you'll find expanded exploration of alternative methods that can be combined with a variety of different and alternative media. When you tie the right combinations together for you-you'll find the sweet spot of results that you're after-that can then be repeated across a broad spectrum of alternative markets. In effect, you can create a cookie-cutter program that can be rolled out and duplicated. Go Where Others Aren't: Promote & Sell Through Alternative Markets Other than increasing the number of alternative methods in your arsenal-and testing them in alternative media-the next area to focus on is testing your methods and media combos in Alternative Markets. People are creatures of habit, and, by extension, so are businesses. We get used to doing things our way. Sometimes that's a very good thing and works well. Other times, especially when it comes to exposure for our products and services, our old habits can be a bit like having blinders on.... we only see what we see. Let me suggest that, more than likely, there are overlooked and completely unexplored markets that could potentially be a good fit for your business. Perhaps even a large number of different groups-and niches of individuals who would be responsive to your offers-that you have not even considered before. These could be markets that your competitors aren't using or even considering-and they could possibly turn out to be even more lucrative than the markets you're tapping into right now. We've already defined your markets as the specific groups and niches of people with whom you're communicating (your prospects). Let's expand that to include any potentially responsive groups or niches that you can communicate with in a cost-effective manner. So often, a "market" is simply defined as the particular product, Chapter 5 - Strategy #5: Change The Rules
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service category or field of specialty that your business participates insuch as retail clothing. computers. dentistry. investment advisors. real estate. restaurant. or health and fitness. Or. it's defined by the industry category you're in-such as energy. transportation. consumer goods. business services. and the like. In this case. with our broader definition of market as "any potentially responsive groups or niches that you can communicate with in a cost-effective manner," we can start to identify many potential markets that are distinct and uniquely different from each other. Each market has its own flavor. its own nuances. and perhaps even its own vocabulary that you'll want to use and be mindful of--even if they are in the same broad categories. For example. in the health and fitness field. you would have quite a different conversation when talking with someone about the benefits of yoga-versus the benefits of weight lifting. Think of each market as a unique marketplace or forum where you can go to attract the customers/clients you want. Vast Resources a Your Fingertips.•• In addition to the huge commercial List Rental industry-that can supply you with a seemingly endless number of response-generated or compiled lists of almost every possible group. niche, buyer. consumer or business type you might imagine-there are many other great sources. These include directories. online information databases, and trade organizations and associations that specialize in being the gatekeepers for their groups. There are literally tens of thousands of recognized and established groups and organizations that exist-as well as many hundreds of thousands of less formal groups and organizations. Not to mention all the pUblications. periodicals. news and media outlets. forums. venues and events-that all have audiences you can potentially reach. Some of these sources can be tapped with minimal or no cost.. .. but. will require your time and effort. Others are available for a fee and require testing before you roll out in larger numbers. The point is to Chapter 5 - Strategy #5: Change The Rules
Guerrilla Profits. 103 imagine how you can apply your current methods and approaches in these new potential markets-and generate positive response to your product/service offers. Most information sources have been completely transformed by the Internet over the last 10 years-and the best way to find out about all their offerings is through their web sites. So we'll focus exclusively on referring you to web addresses (URL's) as the primary point of contact (current at the time of publication).
• Paid online information sources Let's start with a number of good publication info sources, list brokers, and directories. Some have become very good at supplying selfservice online tools to help get you started-and then they usually have additional ways for you to get more personalized assistance, online data access, or physically delivered resources, as needed. Remember, these listings are not a specific endorsement for these sites and/or companies. You'll need to do your own due diligence to determine if any of these providers are right for you: Publications & Media www.mediafinder.com www.oxbridge.com www.srds.com www.ulrichsweb.com
Response & Compiled Lists www.infousa.com www.edithroman.com www.epostdirect.com www.harrisinfo.com Chapter 5 - Strategy #5: Change The Rules
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• Paid association directory In the paid-directory category, there's the Directory of Associations that stands out in this category: www.marketingsource.comlassociations Here's the description from its own web site:
"Reach the hidden market! The Directory of Associations is a comprehensive source of information on associations and professional societies. We provide detailed information on business and trade associations, non-profit organizations, and other charity and community associations throughout the us. with over 37,000 associations in our database. "
Over 11,000 National associations Over 16,000 State/Regional associations
Lists 29,000 association executives Over 6,200 US associations with international reach
Over 25,000 records with website and email addresses It may seem as if I'm placing an ad for the directory in the middle of the book. I'm not. I just wanted you to get a really good feel for just how extensive the associations market can be. Use your own good judgment when it comes to deciding who to contact and how much effort you want to expend (free sources, or paid). Obviously, there will only be a small subset of those 37,000 listings that will apply to your business. But what if you were able to find 15 or 20 that were a perfect Chapter 5 - Strategy #5: Change The Rules
Guerrilla Pronts ~ 105 match? They might give you exposure to thousands of individuals. What if you only found 10? Or just 5? Each group, organization, or association has the potential to reach many individual members. Because that last URL is a paid service (and there may be other good association directories not listed here), it's important that you have a plan for exactly what you'll be doing with these contacts once you've laid down your money. Here's the main point about a paid service: It has an incentive to get the details right, to keep its database up to date, and to give you the correct and current contact information for these groups.
• Free online group, association & business directories Of course, Google is the current king of online search, and there's also a wealth of information available through its online, organized listings (businesses or interests by category I associations)-if you're willing to wade through it and sort out what you're looking for: www.google.comlTop www.google.comlToplBusiness/Directories www.google.comlTop/ReferencelDirectories Also try the Internet Public Library: www.ipl.org
(Subject Collections» Business & Economics» Business Directories) www.ipl.orgldiv/aon (Special Collections» Associations on the Net) For a free site, this next one has a lot going for it. Although the old adage "You get what you pay for" probably holds true, you may want to check out the associations section at: Chapter 5 - Strategy #5: Change The Rules
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The following URL has a searchable database that allows you to pull up information in a variety of ways. Most useful to businesses that are targeting particular geographic areas is the ability to search by city I state or province I and country: www.asaecenter.orglDirectories/AssociationSearch.cfm Then, there's the open-directory project. Though it has a lot of the look and feel of Google up front, the similarity soon ends. You'll find different listings here: www.dmoz.org www.dmoz.orglBusinesslDirectories www.dmoz.org/Reference/Directories This next one-with links to a variety of resources-looks promising. But you'll need to do a little digging. Still, there should be a good deal of useful leads here for trade associations, group directories, promotional and marketing links, PR I publicity, and other organization listings: www.knowthis.comlgroupsltradelocators.htm And I couldn't help but include this Australian specific resource because it's very comprehensive. If you're in Australia--or do business there--check out: www.ourcommunity.com.auldirectory
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More Online Resources Here are some additional hand-selected, topic-specific URLs that appear particularly useful. Remember, these listings are not a specific endorsement for these sites and/or companies. You'll need to do your own due diligence to determine if any of these providers are right for you: • Trade shows, conferences & expos www.eventseye.com www.biztradeshows.com www.expocentral.com www.allconferences.com
• Public relations & publicity www.prweb.com www.24-7pressrelease.com www.pmewswire.com www.send2press.com www.businesswire.com www.intemetnewsbureau.com
• Events, festivals & outdoor retail www.festivals.com www.festivalfinder.com www.fleamarketguide.com www.dmoz.org/Arts/Crafts/Events
• Online discussion, groups & forums Chapter 5 - Strategy #5: Change The Rules
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• Adult extension classes & courses www.leamingannex.com dir.yahoo.comlEducationiAdult_and_ Continuing_Education www.worldwide.edulindex.html www.edu411.org
Stay focused Remember, when it comes to working with specific groups, or communicating and getting exposure through new channels, it's easy to get a bit overwhelmed by all the available data and options. It's important to stay focused on your outcome .... and your particular methods and media combos that you want to use in these Alternative Markets. As you search for groups, organizations, and associations to connect with, keep in mind these questions:
• What exactly am I promoting and selling now? • What am I planning to promote and sell in the near future?
• How can what I have (or do) benefit the group? • How can I make the group leader look like the hero for introducing me to its members?
• What extras, bonuses, incentives or premiums can I offer its members as a gift? • What process(es) will I use to attract and convert its members into buyers-in an appropriate way? Chapter 5 - Strategy #5: Change The Rules
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Getting into the approach strategies for these Alternative Markets, structuring your offers, designing your follow-up system(s), deciding how to contact them and get through to the right decision makers-are big topics that will be discussed in chapters throughout Guerrilla Profits. But, first, become clear on how your outcome-and how the best interests of each group, organization, entity or association intersect. Then you'll be able to craft your approach with the right attitude for becoming involved with each group's membership.
Important points about markets Remember, the exposure you get from all markets (whether your usual markets or alternative ones) should have mechanisms in place to not only convert people into customers/clients but also to capture their contact information and build your list. Do both. That way, prospective customers who are not quite ready to take the next step will be known to you-and, it's likely, you can convert some of them over time. Some of the markets specifically don't lend themselves to a direct sale. Those need to be carefully approached to get the greatest potential attraction and data capture-so that you don't waste the opportunity to gain a prospect. By all means, make a direct sale whenever possible. But also gather enough information about the prospects-for example, the source of their inquiry, the reason for their interest, their time horizon, what they want-and gather those prospects into your complete database of prospects who've given you permission to contact them on an ongoing basis. Then of course, follow-up regularly. Matching Offers to Markets In addition to considering your potential markets, you'll also want to match your messages and offers to each particular market and, more importantly, to each group within that market. Like mentioned earlier in this chapter, your messaging needs to speak the "same language" and use the same vocabulary as that particular group uses. I can't stress enough Chapter 5 - Strategy #5: Change The Rules
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how important this is for your success. Nothing can bring your prospect's interest to a grinding halt faster than for them to think, "this is not for me." Once you've identified the best product/service Offer Match for a particular market (and have successfully promoted and sold that initial offer), you can then start to consider what would be the appropriate next step--the next offer-to bring to this market. You can even take this a step further with your existing customers/clients (consider them to be your own private market) when you consider, "What else would my customers/clients be interested in that s a direct extension of what they've already bought from me-or could be offered in addition to what they're currently buying from me?" In some cases, these can be more than just simple one-shot sales; it could open up entirely new profit centers. In marketing circles, this is known as the "back end" to your business. And, for many businesses-it's where the real money is.
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ACTION POINTS • Create New Ways to profit-by using innovative, alternative methods that are right for your business-to help you capture money that didn't exist before. • Harness your competitors to your advantage through the use of Reciprocal Lead Swap Deals and by developing "Marketing through" opportunities. • Combine your marketing activities, vehicles and approaches to profit in new ways through the use of Alternative Method, Media & Market Combinations.
• Go Where Others Aren't-to find new Alternative Markets and profit opportunities that you might have completely overlooked, or hadn't even considered before. • Tap into the vast resources available to identify and specifically target Groups, Niches of individuals, Organizations, Associations, Forum & Unique Marketplaces. • Consider how the best interests of the Groups and Organizations you're contacting intersect with yours-so you can maintain the right attitude when contacting them. • Identify your best product/service Offer Match-for each particular market and, more importantly, match your messaging and vocabulary to each group within a market.
Get the latest Methods, News & Updates. Go To: www.guerrillaprofits.com
Strategy #6: Profit From Other Businesses
M
ost businesses act as if they' re an "island in a sea of marketing." They generally act and promote independently from what other businesses are doing around them (or in their industry). But, let me suggest that other compatible businesses could be an untapped reservoir of new profits for both of you. If you've been in business for any length of time, you'll instantly recognize the following scenario: You're at a networking event where you' re meeting some people for the first time. And inevitably someone asks you, " What do you do?" They express an interest in your products or services, and you excitedly tell them about it with the positive expectation that they may And sometimes they do. Now imagine that role is reversed: You're interested in someone else's
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products or services. That same excitement and interest towards the interested party (now you) is what the other person feels. Then multiply that feeling of excitement many fold when you contact someone nQ1 for yourself personally but rather on behalf of a whole group of people-your customers/clients. Now that businessperson's interest level goes way up because they might possibly gain a number of new buyers. That's what often happens when you call someone to ask, "I'd be interested in introducing your _ _ _(product/service) to my customers. Can you tell me more about it?" That'll be one ofthe easiest profit-generating phone calls you'll ever make. Be the Gatekeeper... This picks-up where we left off in our discussion from the end of Chapter 5 about creating entirely new profit centers-the "back end" to your business-which is often where the "real money" is. That's because, once you've gone to the time, effort and expense of finding and converting a prospect into a customer/client-then it's usually less time, effort and expense to get them to purchase again. In addition to bringing them offers for your own existing or new products/services (the usual course ofbusiness)--in this case-you'll be bringing Outside Products and Services to your customers/clients that are provided by another business. There are on two entirely distinct profit centers that can be built around the powerful method of becoming the gatekeeper for your clientele-in exchange for a share in the revenue or profits generated. And, these are just the starting points for harnessing the power of Strategy #6: Profit From Other Businesses (we'll also explore some additional methods later in this chapter). These first two are: 1) Dedicated Promotions-where you do a direct offer / promotion to your clientele on behalf of another business.
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2) Giving Referrals-where you occasionally, but also systematically refer your customers/clients to others. Dedicated Promotions These promotions are often called "dedicated" because all efforts made during the promotion are to produce a single result: Create a specific sale of a product, service, package or bundle. They may contain a series and/or sequence of marketing steps--or the promotion may be as simple as sending out a single email announcement. There are no rulesjust whatever works, or is agreeable to your partner businesses. In all of these deals, the details are usually handled with a brief setup discussion in the beginning. And, the responsibilities of the partners in these joint-venture arrangements should be clearly defined ahead of time (more details on this later in this chapter). IMPORTANT POINT: The same thinking here that goes into creating these Dedicated Promotions for other business's products and/or services to your clientele (with you acting as the gatekeeper}works in reverse. You can just as easily take your own product/service promotions to other businesses-which then act as the gatekeeper for their clientele (again, refer to our discussion of Alternative Markets in Chapter 5). Agora Financial and Agora Learning Institute are sister companies that both get this. They are publishers of newsletters and information products/services-and have a very loyal following of hundreds-ofthousands of people who rely on them for exciting and compelling offers-and who enjoy buying these informative products and services. But, while a majority of their offers are "in house" promotions of their own items-a large portion of their promotions are joint-ventures and partnership deals that they negotiate with a variety of providers. And, they have perfected this into an art form. If you'd like to see how they do it--{and who knows, you may be interested in their exciting offers and be compelled to take advantage of some ofthem}-I'd recommend signing up for their free email lists at the Chapter 6 - Strategy #6: Profit From Other Businesses
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following URLs: The Daily Reckoning: www.dailyreckoning.com Early To Rise: www.earlytorise.com The Oxford Club: www.investmentu.com People often have a greater capacity to buy from us than we have the capacity to bring them new offers. That's where running dedicated promotions of Outside Products and Services can work wonders (and prove very profitable). Amazingly, the long-term value of the transactions for outside products and services you provide for a particular customer/client can sometimes be more profitable for you than the products or services you provide directly through your own business.
The promotion basics First of all, determine the items that obviously have a direct relationship to the current transactions in your business. Let's look at examples of what these might be in different business sectors: Service & Professional: Some services are directly related to what you're already providing, such as a fitness trainer introducing other forms of fitness, nutrition, or spa services. Similarly a CPA, a lawyer, real estate agent, or a financial professional might introduce any of these other professional services to their clientele. Or a contractor, household or personal-services provider could introduce outside products or services that are a good fit to the specific job he or she is doing for clients.
Rnai!: Items here may be either natural add-ons or products of high interest that you simply don't carry. Special sales, Chapter 6 - Strategy #6: Profit From Other Businesses
Guerrilla Prollts. 117 events, tastings, or samplings-can help generate some excitement surrounding the introduction. Look for products that your customers have been asking for while shopping in your store but that don't quite fit with what you regularly stock. Wholesale & Manufacturing: The industries you serve usually have their own particular needs. You're in a unique position because most manufacturing or wholesale transactions are relationship-based (that is, you generally might have a better working knowledge of individual customers than would someone in retail, for example). With that information, you can introduce many items that can help and support your clients. Then go a bit deeper. In addition to the obvious examples, others aren't always so obvious-but can be very profitable. Look for common threads in the requests that you get from customers/clients. Consider doing a survey of your clientele to ask what other products/services they may be looking for-that they're not already being adequately provided. Within your products/services category-think about informative and helpful items that you could introduce, such as books, seminars, classes, training programs, and outside events. Also, ask yourself, "What items could help my customers/clients do .... or get more.... of what they want?" With a bit of research, you may find common threads within your clientele that could give you a clue about other things that might be a good fit- that you can arrange to offer them (see Chapter 10 - Strategy #10: Capitalize on Your Business's True Wealth for more information on profiling your customers/clients) Joint-venture (JV) partners Once you've picked one or more outside products or services to consider bringing to your customers/clients, you'll then need to choose Chapter 6 - Strategy #6: Profit From Other Businesses
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whom you should be dealing with for these items. Ask yourself, "Who might be the best provider ofthese items for my customerslclients?" And also, "Who would be a good candidate for me to be a joint-venture (JV) partner with?" Don't just pick your friends and/or closest business associates to work with. That may seem the easy route when getting started-but, like mentioned when we began this discussion about being the gatekeeperasking to introduce another's products or services to your customers/clients is one of the easiest profit-generating phone calls you'll ever make. Use that to your advantage. Do a little research first and consider carefully who could be the best provider for you and your clientele. Then make that phone call to ask. Even very large companies are interested in alternate distribution as long as the scale makes sense to them. For example, you may not get much interest from IBM unless you're Office Depot. But, that example aside-there are millions of potential joint-venture (JV) relationships that exist out there with businesses of all types and sizes. And at least dozens exist that are a perfect fit for your business. The scale is going to completely depend on the access and relationships you've built with your customers/clients. The larger and more active clientele you have, the more attention you'll receive from potential JV partners. That's why, as a Guerrilla Profits practitioner, it's critical to always focus on building your list and making regular contact.
Structuring the Deals In most JV situations where one party has the buyer and generates the sale-and the other party does most of the work after the sale-a 50/50 profit split (or the equivalent if calculated on gross sales) is appropriate. That amount, when stated in terms of gross sales, can vary widely depending on the particular product or service and the costs involved to market and fulfill everything. For example, if total costs to run a promotion and fulfill the sale (marketing expenses, product/service hard costs, merchant fees, and Chapter 6 - Strategy #6: Profit From Other Businesses
Guerrilla PrOIiIS. 119 shipping or handling costs not covered by the transaction, for example)--are 50% or less-then each partner will receive at least 25% of gross (half of 50%, or more depending on actual costs). If you have higher than 50% costs in a transaction, move on to something else! It just isn't lucrative enough to warrant the time and effort. In the case of online email promotions(becausemanyofthecostsarelower).it.s not uncommon to see a JV partner with the outside products or services pay out 40% to 50% of the gross to their list partners (you). In some cases, marketing-savvy companies are willing to give away up to 100% of the up-front proceeds (gross sales) on a lower priced item to JV partners-so that they can then have a free-hand at selling additional higher priced products or services to their newly acquired customer (yours)-with no further obligation to you. In other cases, you can strike a deal to participate in some or all of the additional or subsequent sales that your JV partner is able to generate from your clientele. On the Internet, this arrangement is common in affiliate programs-where it's practical to continuously track additional business after the initial sale. You'll need to decide if that's an option with each JV partner and deal you set-up. However, if your JV partner is getting the benefit of a high-value customer/client with no further obligation to you (especially true with services or events), it's justifiable for you to take the lion's share of the upfront sale. Gross sales vs. net profits A share in the gross sales or proceeds is easier to account for than a share of the profits. Both will work, but it's often easier for you to get your new JV partners to say "Yesf'-by making it simple for them to understand how you get paid. (Remember, you're asking them to make their product or service available to your customers/clients in a dedicated promotion that you run on their behalf.) You can also get paid a flat rate or fee per sale on a particular promotion-which is also easy to account for. In all of these scenarios, you'll be referring the transaction to your JV Chapter 6 - Strategy #6: Profit From Other Businesses
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partner for processing and fulfillment. A profit-share is more common if there are hard costs up-front that need to be reimbursed as part of a promotion. It is common for these to be paid back to the JV partner that covered these costs otT the topbefore a profit-share calculation is done. Also, it is often the case that the partner with the most expense in the deal is the one that controls the transactions and the accounting-so they can get their costs back right away. Of course, if you're the one who is handling the transactions-then you'll be paying your JV partner the percentage of gross, profit-share, or flat rate per sale, with you keeping the ditTerence-depending on your deal.
Controlling access As the gatekeeper, you'll need to decide how much control you want over the transactions themselves. However, you'll absolutely want to retain control of the access to your customers/clients throughout the contact process-so that, in most cases, your JV partner only gains access to a new buyer. There are many degrees of transactional control. Lets categorize them into three specific types: • Complete Control-This means you contact, you sell, you complete the transaction, and you deliver the product. Or in the case of a service, you then hand otT your customer/client ~ the sale is made and you've collected the money. This gives you the most control, but in the case of a product sale, your JV partners aren't getting access to the buyer at all, so it's more like a wholesale transaction for them than a true Jv. • Shared Control-Here you contact, you sell, and you control the transaction (collect the data from the buyer) but then you hand the customer data from the sale otT to your JV Chapter 6 - Strategy #6: Profit From Other Businesses
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partner for fulfillment. In this scenario, either party can do the transaction processing, as agreed. And both are sharing in the customer data (as well as the proceeds) generated from the transactions. • Entrusted Control-This requires dealing with someone you can rely on to; a) do what they say, deliver quality, be reliable and responsive; and, b) treat your customers/clients right; and, c) pay you and do honest accounting. When you have a gem of a JV partner like this, you can focus on handling the marketing with your customers/clients-and simply have your buyers respond directly to your JV partner. Then they'll take it from there-handling the transaction, doing all the processing, fulfillment, covering all costs and details, and providing all accounting and payments. All the work is done for you. But, please beware! Entrusted control doesn't mean that you put everything into the hands of others. Don't just hand off your list, contacts, or database to someone else, then trust that they'll do exactly what they've agreed to. That rarely happens to your expectationsespecially with something as valuable and sensitive as your customer list. You'll want to handle the marketing and communications to your own people yourself-and then decide how you want to handle the responders. Defining responsibilities You'll be well served by having a clearly defined list of details and responsibilities for each JV partner to refer to. This should cover the basic points about the promotion, offer, dates and times, marketing steps, and details about who handles which specific functions. Clearly spell out the details of your JV deal, transactions and payments. Also, consider who's the point of contact for Customer Service-when your Chapter 6 - Strategy #6: Profit From Other Businesses
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customers/clients have a question or issue about anything. You may want to keep yourself in the loop about this, just to make sure that your people are getting cared for properly-even if the primary responsibility is placed in someone else's hands. A simple confirmation email-clearly stating what will occur in the JV can be very useful-so that you at least have something to refer . to should a question about the deal arise. Or, you can confirm the details on your letterhead-via fax or mail. If you have nothing at all in • writing-you could run into problems when memories fade-after a period of time has gone by since your initial set-up talks (especially when dealing with a new JV partner with whom you haven't had regular . dealings). Usually, long contracts are a bad idea; they simply inhibit your ability to set-up JV deals in the first place. And, try not to get into a big negotiation or protracted deal discussions. In many cases a simple deal memo (one or two pages) is a good idea-if there's any participation extending beyond the initial transaction-to spell out the terms and specifically what's expected. You would also be wise to offer to write any simple deal memos yourself-in plain language. But much beyond that often spells the end of JV possibilities, not the beginning. Doing due diligence When considering a new JV partner-be sure to check out their reputation, quality, values, ability to deliver-and, generally-whether you believe they will make you "look good" to your own clientele. How can you do this? Do several Internet searches on your new N partner's name, company name, and any proprietary product or service related details you can discover to search on. Check with industry or trade contacts, groups or associations (if applicable). Ask them for references of others whom they've partnered with-and call them. Request references of their current customers/clients so you can ask how satisfied they are. Remember, this is definitely a situation where "guilt by association" applies-so you don't want to become involved with Chapter 6 - Strategy #6: Profit From Other Businesses
Guerrilla Prollts. 123 someone who might soil your own good reputation. With just a little bit of caution, however-and some good JV partner choices that your customers/clients will appreciate-Dedicated Promotions of Outside Products and Services can become an outstanding source of new Guerrilla Profits for you. Giving Referrals Imagine what it would be like to have others-outside your own business or professional practice (not employed by you}-do the work, but you still get paid. But, that's just the beginning ... What if those new-found profit sources were only partially related to your current business, or even completely unrelated? And let me go a step further: What if those new-found profit sources could actually eclipse the profits being generated now from your traditional business? That's the power of: Giving Referrals. During your dealings with customers/clients, there are times when it will be natural to introduce an outside product or service to them. Unlike what we've been discussing with dedicated promotions (doing these introductions in an active way through a marketing promotion)with Giving Referrals, you'll do this individually, one-on-one. New products or services can be introduced as part of the individual conversations, consultations and interactions that you (or your employees) have with your customers/clients. You should always place yourself in the position of being a trusted source of relevant ideas, news, helpful and useful information to your customers/clients. And by being in that position, you're in a position to recommend new things to them that they may also want. You'll recall the section from Chapter 1 - Strategy #1: Maximize Your Interactions-where we discussed how service and repair people are in an ideal position to make suggestions or recommendationsbecause, at that point of contact, they aren't seen as being as much of a 'threat" or an "intrusion." The same principal applies at many points of contact-and in many situations you'll find yourself in with clientele. In Chapter 6 - Strategy #6: Profit From Other Businesses
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those situations, where your customer/client truly wants or is in need of a particular product or service, having a specific recommendation coming from someone they trust and are already doing business with is welcome. In fact, you can set-up an entire network of such referral relationships-where you systematically and regularly refer-and you get paid a variety of fees, receive a share of profits or revenue, or other forms of compensation and consideration from your "preferred providers." These are deals where you send people directly to the outside product or service provider-and the transactions are coded and tracked-so you both can account for the resulting new business that's generated.
These deals are "Pure Profit" The downside to systematically Giving Referrals is that it happens over an extended period of time-rather than the relatively quick pace of doing dedicated promotions. The upside is that these deals are "pure profit"-meaning that there are no costs and minimal time and effort on your part. Once you have you preferred provider(s) in place-and they actually do what they say and pay you-this can become an ongoing stream of income for you. Just like with dedicated promotions-you'll need to decide up-front if your participation is for a lion's share with no further obligation to your referral partner. Or, if you are able to participate in some or all of the additional or subsequent sales that your referral partner is able to generate from your clientele. Starting with the basics Most businesses receive some form of referrals. In fact, some survive solely on them as their primary source of new business. But how many times can you recall someone going out of their way to hand you a new customer/client without you asking? Don't you appreciate it when that happens? You gain a new customer/client who is predisposed to do business with you because they trust the person who gave them the Chapter 6 - Strategy #6: Profit From Other Businesses
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referral. Think about when someone has done that for you and how the whole process happens naturally. Let's say you needed a new CPA, gardener, dry cleaners, handyman, business vendor or supplier-so you ask friends or business associates for a referral. If they knew of someone good, weren't they usually happy to tell you? In business (especially sales), it's common practice to have a formal system in place to ask for referrals once you've successfully completed a sale, job, or other transaction with your customer/client. It may be less common to have a network of referral providers that you cultivate in your networking circle, but that's still fairly common. Yet, it is relatively uncommon to set-up a network of Referral Partners who you ~ business to on a compensated basis. These deals are similar to dedicated promotions-where you become a source of new business for others. With Giving Referrals, you go to outside providers and say something like, "I'd like to refer some ofmy customerslclients to you that (productlservice)-for a share of the new could use your revenue that s generated. How does that sound to you?" Would you find that proposition interesting if someone said that to you? Do you think others might be interested in receiving new business they didn't have to work hard to get, advertise for, or pay sales and marketing expenses to acquire? Do you also see that because it's "found money," it's easy to justify paying the referral provider a share of the revenue (for some period of time) because they didn't have any costs or effort to get this new customer/client? The fact is that most people you approach will say "yes" to a no-cost, no-risk proposition like thatprovided that you do have the ability to give them quality referrals. Types of Referral Partners to look for Just like with dedicated promotions-the first step is to consider the Outside Products and Services that are directly related to your current business and the circumstances of your current transactions. If fact, some of these new referral partners might be the same ones with Chapter 6 - Strategy #6: Profit From Other Businesses
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whom you can do dedicated promotions. What other items are directly related to the products/services that you now offer? What does your clientele need to have just before buying your product/service that you're not providing? And, what else might your customers/clients want or need in addition to what you're now offering-after you've provided your product/service? Again, let's look at some examples from different business sectors: Service & Professional-Any financial or legal-related practice (such as CPA, financial planner, lawyer, investment broker, real estate agent, or banker) can cross-pollinate with the others to form a network of Giving Referrals. A residentialbased service (like yard service, cleaning, repair or handyman, pool service, tree service, chimney sweep, or landscaping) can do the same by Giving Referrals within their circle of residential-based services. The same thing holds true for the grouping of personal services such as spa and massage, physical trainers, nutritional counselors, chiropractors, and other wellness services. And, one group in particular has a definite advantage in this process: contractors. That's because it's in the nature of that business to be consultative and recommend other items that could fit within a particular project. But don't limit yourself just to other services. The same idea can be applied to products that are related to the service you offer. Retail-It's usually true that retail provides an environment for higher in-person traffic than other business types-and that increases your ability to tap into the "buzz" by listening to what's being requested by your customers. Many people come in with something already in mind that they're looking for. Often, if you don't have what they want, customers will Chapter 6 - Strategy #6: Profit From Other Businesses
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Guerrilla Prolits. 127 naturally ask, "Do you know where I can find ?" (the product/service). And, this provides a great opportunity for Giving Referrals (the same holds true for hospitality, restaurant, and travel-related businesses). Your ability to gather information while helping customers helps you tap into what's "hot." Many businesses will try to incorporate these new hot items or categories into their business and will use customer requests as a way to increase their offerings, change their offerings, or otherwise satisfy those customers themselves. The problem with that is, sometimes it takes a while to implement such changes. But by Giving Referrals, you can short-cut your ability to profit from new hot items without investing in them. Aside from tapping into the buzz-having a network of referral partners works the same for retail as was described in the examples for service and professional businesses. Walk-in retail specialty stores-such as gift, fashion, cosmetics, jewelry, and accessories--can all be Giving Referrals to each other in a systematic way. And pairings of products with related services are a natural: • Fashion or Menswear -with- Drycleaners • Gift and Jewelry -with- Engraving • Furniture -with- Interior Design & Decoration • Home Improvement Supplies -with- Contractors • Restaurants -with- Entertainment & Events Wholesale & Manufacturing-This is a naturally good environment because consultative relationships also are common in wholesale and manufacturing. Perhaps not quite as common as with some service businesses or professional Chapter 6 - Strategy #6: Profit From Other Businesses
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Guerrilla Profits practices, but certainly enough to make Giving Referrals an integral part of your approach. Often you have a trade association or other industry groups, organizations, and conferences where you can network with other wholesalers or manufacturers who offer non-competing items that your customers/clients may also purchase. Entering into these Giving Referral arrangements can be very easy to arrange, and they can be especially lucrative if you can find partners that are also willing offer your products/services to their customers in return. "Wheeling and dealing" are common practices in many manufacturing and wholesaling operations, so putting deals together like these often comes second nature.
Be creative Think about how you can set-up a formal system in your business for Giving Referrals-and don't just limit yourself to the obvious items. Once you've set-up a few of these arrangements, it can become a natural part of how you do business. Soon you'll begin to notice Guerrilla Profits opportunities using this method that you'd never even considered before. Setting-up the deals So what's an appropriate way to set-up the deals with referral partners? The answer is: It depends. Mostly, it depends on two things: 1) The ease (and willingness) to track and account for the referred business, and 2) The value of the new business that comes from your referralversus the cost to generate that same business without you. You'll find that with service businesses of all kinds, the service providers will want to phase-out (or "sunset") the payout more quickly because of the general attitude of, "Hey, I'm the one doing the work here." Wholesale and manufacturing businesses will be more likely to allow these arrangements to last longer (or even indefinitely)-especially Chapter 6 - Strategy #6: Profit From Other Businesses
Guerrilla prolllS. 129 since finding the customer is more likely to be recognized as the real value in these businesses. The profits in these lower margin operations happen over time and come from repetitive transactions-usually conducted by a primary account executive or contact who can track the business that's generated from each referral. Eventually however, in a larger organization, someone may decide that they've paid out enough and the deal may need to be re-negotiated. Retail is another story. There you'll need specific ways to keep track of multiple transactions that take place over time-usually without a specific person being in the loop on every transaction. If you do happen to strike a deal with a smaller merchant who will personally be involved with each transaction-this process could run smoothly in their hands. But generally, tracking can be more easily accomplished by Internetbased businesses (affiliate programs are one such example)--and also by many catalog, mail-order, and other companies that are database driven. If tracking will be an issue in a referral arrangement-but you still want to deal with the products or services-the best way to structure these deals is on a transaction-by-transaction basis. Create a specific offer that's exclusive or unique to your referrals. That way, your customers/clients will be going to this new business for a specific deal, and everyone who shows up at your partner's business for that deal will be directly attributable to you. Another way to profit more on the upfront transaction is to focus on higher-priced items where you'll receive enough on that initial transaction to be worthwhile (such as luxury goods of all kinds). How much should you get paid .... and for how long? Again, the answer is: It depends. It depends mostly on the transaction size .... multiplied by how often your referral will purchase again from your partner.... over a specific time period. If there's a large value to be generated over time-and not necessarily on the first transaction-then it's more likely that you can justify your continued participation. In these cases, have it be an open-
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ended arrangement, where you are able to continuously profit from your referral. But, where there may be some hesitation over an open-ended . arrangement-then consider this guideline: A term much longer than 12 months tends to decrease the likelihood that your new partner will want to deal with it. And term of 12 months-or less-will make your Giving .• Referrals deal more attractive because your partner will see that his or ~ her business will have the new customer/client "free and clear" in a • reasonable amount of time. In many situations with new or untested referral partners (or when : this process is new for you)--it's often a good idea to have a shorter term . where you get the lion's share of your payout up-front. Also, the best results often happen initially when you refer some of your best customers/clients and they could wane a bit over time after that initial period. Plus, you'll be more likely to receive payment while the deal is still fresh .... and your new partner's interest is still keen. You'll also want to capture a larger percentage of the front-end sale for yourself if the transaction size is smaller. There's no "usual" payout amount for these deals-and different businesses or professions may have customs for referred business already in place (deals can be anything you're able to arrange and agree upon). But, as a general guideline and reference-the following chart may be useful-which lists amounts paid to you by your referral partner as a percentage of gross revenue on the first sale: l
Transa~ti!!n Siz~
First Sale 019
Less than $50
50-60%
$50-$100
40-50%
$100-$300
35-50%
$300-$500
33-50%
$500-$1,000
30-50%
Over $1,000
25-40%
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You'll notice that as the transaction size goes up, the bottom end of what might be available goes down. This chart also doesn't take into account the additional back-end sales-which could reduce the first sale percentage you get-if you've got a solid long-term deal in place. But, more importantly, the amount you get is a result of the negotiating you do with your partner and how compelling a case you can make for the vitality and value of your customers/clients. Much below 25% would only make sense at a significantly higher transaction size and would depend greatly on the nature and cost structure of the business you're partnering with. I can almost guarantee you that it costs most businesses more than 25% of gross to acquire a new customer/client in the first place (think ad budgets, yellow pages, direct mail, salespeople, trade shows, overhead to conduct business, and other considerations). So paying you at least that amount in most cases just makes good business sense. If you create a compelling package or bundle offer for your clientele to respond to, that deal can have a certain amount of profit built in to help cover your share (and for your partner to justify the transaction). And often the most valuable reference point you can use in making that compelling case is to compare your deal to the time, effort, and cost your potential partner would normally have to go through to get that new customer/client on their own. You'll simply have to feel out each situation to get a consensus on what might be available or agreeable for compensation. Once you get an idea of what seems right for your particular business-and get specific partner feedback by testing the waters-you can then use that as the basis for additional deals you set-up going forward. Ways to refer So let's say that you've arranged for one or more referral partners. Now what? Let's take one of the easiest examples to track and account for in low-transaction sizes or in higher-traffic situations such as retail: printed referral cards that offer a free gift, free sample, free trial, a Chapter 6 - Strategy #6: Profit From Other Businesses
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discount--or something similar that you give to your customers-which has a source code that can be tracked at the receiving point-of-sale, register, counter, or web site. For higher-priced products or in professional practice referrals-a fancy certificate or "letter of introduction" can be used-with an offer for a gift consultation, a test drive, an exclusive preview event, a private tour, or the equivalent. These can give the referral a higher sense of value. You can also use special coupons, offer slips, bag or package inserts, statement stuffers, or hand-out flyers. With these Physical Offer Devices-your partner now has a way to count up the sales attributable to you at the end of the day-and pay you your agreed amount. And, if possible, build in urgency to your referral offers-to compel your customers/clients to take advantage of it right away. A wonderful example I've seen of this-a timely referral with urgency built in-is where a local deli restaurant handed-out coupon cards to its patrons at the end of each meal that offered them a discount for going to the movie theatre next door on the same day as their meal. There was actually a date hand-stamped in red ink on the business-card sized referral card. Giving Referrals is one more way you can generate Guerrilla Profits in your business or professional practice. And, once set-up, this can become very lucrative. More ways to Profit From Other Businesses In Chapter 5 - Strategy #5: Change The Rules, we began discussing methods that involve other businesses by covering Reciprocal Lead Swap Deals and "Marketing through" opportunities-as well as getting an overview of the vast possibilities using Alternative Markets. Here, we'll continue with our theme of generating alternative profits by involving other businesses in unusual ways, with: Guerrilla Profits from your Vendors and Suppliers. Many businesses simply view their vendors and suppliers as the " ...place where I get ___"-without really considering what other Chapter 6 - Strategy #6: Profit From Other Businesses
Guerrilla Profits. 133 options or opportunities there might be, in addition to getting supplied with the items those companies provide. But consider this for a moment: if you have a supplier that's providing a major component of what you do .... without whom you may not even be able to do what you do-then realize that they have a major stake in seeing you be successful. Because, the more successful you are, the better it is for them. So it stands to reason that, if asked, they might be willing to participate in non-competitive ways that you both could profit-or be willing to share non-confidential information that could be helpful to you. And, all it might take to set something up is a quick phone call (or be as easy as asking}-since you're already doing business with them. A natural, of course, is to set-up Giving Referral arrangements with select vendors and suppliers where you could refer other similar non-competitive businesses in your field who need some of the same items. From a valuable information source perspective, for example, if you're a retailer being supplied by a distributor or manufacturer-the distributor or manufacturer might be able to suggest other hot items that they don't carry-that they've noticed are doing well for some of their other similar retailer clients. Or, they may be able to suggest other retailer clients of theirs that might be good JV partner candidates for you. The same "information source" tactic applies to service businesses and professional practices. An office machine supplier to an attorney's office might be the ideal person to ask for info about growth-oriented financial professionals, CPA's and other professional service offices in your area to partner with. A printer may have a diverse clientele that would lend itself to this approach beautifully. Perhaps your vendors or suppliers may have a local trade association or commerce group where you could be introduced to the membership. Or, if you're a service provider or have a professional practice with a good reputation and track record with your suppliers-perhaps they'd be willing to allow you to send a letter of introduction to their compatible clients. Chapter 6 - Strategy #6: Profit From Other Businesses
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Here are a few more possibilities: • A box and packaging supplier is an ideal source of people who need courier or delivery services • A restaurant supply company is an ideal source of people who could use an electrical contractor
• An equipment rental company is an ideal source of people who'd want building materials • A home medical supply company is an ideal source of people who might need care givers
• A car insurance agent is an ideal source of people who might want mobile car detailing services • A produce supplier is an ideal source of people who might also buy other food items
• A local hardware store is an ideal source of people who might need a general contractor • A private mailbox store is an ideal source for businesses that could use out-sourced business services
• A truck freight company is an ideal source of people who may need warehouse supplies • A computer supply company is an ideal source of people who might need networking or other computer consulting services All of these potential scenarios can be used as a direct source of referrals .... or as possible joint-venture deals where it is in the supplier's Chapter 6 - Strategy #$: Profit From Other Businesses
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financial interest to help you. You can structure these deals in any way that makes sense. The main point is-if you'll help them get what they want-they'd probably be willing to help you get what you want. So, give this some real thought. Sit down with pad and paper and really brainstorm this-rather than simply reading this section in passing. Ask Yourself: 1) Who do I know that supplies me now that could help me?
2) Which of my suppliers have access to other businesses or people that I want to reach?
If they have customerslclients that I
want to reach .•.. How can I be o/service to them in a way that they'd be happy to refer me to their customers/clients?
3)
4) What other suppliers have access to the businesses or people I want to reach that are not currently my suppliers? 5) What other types of businesses have similar clientele as mine?
A sample initial vendor and supplier contact letter has been included as part of the Bonuses (modify as needed)-that could set-up a phone call to discuss your ideas further. Of course, since they are a vendor or supplier-you could simply pick up the phone and use the above letter as the basis for an initial contact script. This can work in reverse The flip side to working with your vendors or suppliers-is that you may be a vendor or supplier to someone else. In that case, you may want to be the one that initiates some of the Guerrilla Profits methods in reverse (suggest that they could earn extra profits by Giving Referrals to you). Chapter 6 - Strategy #6: Profit From Other Businesses
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Ask yourself:
1) What trade associations do they belong to? 2) What conventions, seminars or events do they attend?
3) What other types o/vendors or suppliers do they have-that others like them would have? 4) What trade publications, magazines, or other periodicals do they subscribe to?
5) What trade directories or web sites might they participate or be listed in? As you can see, there are many possibilities to help identify and target select, specific groups of similar customers/clients-by simply spending a little time and research on this. You could survey your customers/clients to ask them-and a lot of this information is available by simply searching online.
Taking this a step further... Vendors and suppliers can also be a great source of referrals for other vendors and suppliers that you need- that aren't in competition with .... or the primary suppliers of your existing vendors/suppliers. Most of them would be happy to suggest a possible source for other things that you may need. And they may even be able to help you shortcut the usual research process you'd have to go through to find great prices, quality service, or perhaps, flexible suppliers that can custom tailor to your specific requirements. Just remember to come from their perspective on this. If it seems like you're trying to circumvent them and get to their suppliers .... they aren't likely to want to help you. If, on the other hand, you are asking about service providers or product suppliers that are not directly related to what they are supplying you with now-then they'll most likely be willing to be helpful. Use your good judgment. Chapter 6 - Strategy #6: Profit From Other Businesses
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Strategy #6: Profit From Other Businesses
ACTION POINTS • Be the Gatekeeper and bring a variety of Outside Products and Services to your customers/clients that are provided by other compatible businesses. • Run Dedicated Promotions-where you do direct offers and active marketing campaigns to your customers/clients that feature these Outside Products and Services. • Take your own product and/or service promotions to other businesses-which then act as the gatekeepers to run Dedicated Promotions to their customers/clients for you. • Set-up a network of referral partners-where you are systematically Giving Referrals to them-and you get paid a variety of fees, or a share of profits or revenue. • Use Physical Offer Devices-so your referral partners will have a way to count up the sales directly attributable to your efforts-and so they can easily pay you. • Decide how much control you want over N transactions and fulfillment-but, retain control of the access to your customers/clients throughout the contact process. • Capture alternative profits-and gain access to valuable information that could be helpful to you-through your relationships with your Vendors and Suppliers.
Get the latest Methods, News & Updates. Go To: www.guerrillaprofits.com
Strategy #7:
Recapture Lost Profit Opportunities
W
hen people show up because of your advertising, marketing, referrals, trade shows, the Internet, or simply because they just walked in the front door, the clock starts ticking. Everyone has a reason to show up in the first place. Whether it was to receive the perceived benefit you've communicated, because they're interested in or want what you're offering, or because they were attracted to your business for some other reason-at that moment they're at a peak level of interest and desire. Then time goes by. If they don't buy from you or make a decision to use your services right then (either in-person, on the phone, online, or through any other channel)-your only hope is to collect enough valid contact information for follow-up. You then have a declining window of time to convert them. That length of
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time depends on: a) the lifecycle of your product or service (the frequency 0 f purchase for a particular item); b) the customers' Iclients' ability to get what they want elsewhere; and, c) their continued interest in and/or desire for what you're offering. As an extreme example at one end of the spectrum: If you have a restaurant on a trendy street with a number of good restaurants next to each other--each with a hostess standing out front next to the menu and encouraging passers-by to come in-that length of time to convert can be measured in minutes or seconds. And, there's usually no data capture or follow-up done of any kind. At the other end of the spectrum, for example: If you sell a piece of industrial machinery with an expected useful life of 48 months, you obviously have a much longer conversion window as your prospect considers your equipment versus your competitors-and weighs all options to make the best equipment choice. These sales will often involve multiple contacts, phone calls, and perhaps an in-person meeting and/or live demonstration. And, in another example, if you're offering tax-preparation services-people who use another service will tend to stick with what they've got-unless they're ready to (or need to) make a change. In that case, it's a moving target, and once the need arises, clients will choose a new service relatively fast-based on their workload and deadlines. Some situations do lend themselves to quick recurrence. In our restaurant example, the prospective diners-unless they're from out of town-might try that place another time. But, for most businesses, once the initial contact is made-your prospects will either buy from you within the natural buying lifecycle, buy elsewhere, or not buy at all. And often, the difference in converting them-if they are still interesteddepends on the information you gather and your diligence in follow-up. You can't do much about lack of interest or desire-but, assuming your prospect still wants what you're offering .... and hasn't bought yet (or could buy again soon)-you still have a chance to convert them and Recapture Lost Profit Opportunities-that were missed during the Chapter 7 - Strategy #7: Recapture Lost Profit Opportunities
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initial contact. Your greatest Guerrilla Profits advantage you have in these situations-comes from paying attention to your Lead Flow as a process within your business. Three basic truths about leads: 1) Most businesses don't formally examine, distill and refine their Lead Capture-to-Conversion Process (Lead Flow). 2) Many businesses have no formal process(es) in place for capturing leads at all. 3) And, most businesses that do collect leads, create an effective database, and even have some specific followup programs, then drop the ball on capturing the details needed for the continuous and added personal contact it takes to ultimately convert over time. Now, I'm specifically focusing here on those prospects who haven't bought from you yet. Once people buy-and they become a customer/client-then the information-gathering process is more likely to be a part of the transaction (unless it's over-the-counter retail, or like our walk-in restaurant, for example). However, in all these situations (even in retail and the restaurant)-capturing leads should be made a priority-and processes put in place to regularly and systematically follow-up. There are many examples throughout Guerrilla Profits-of methods you can use to contact people, spice things up, create excitement, make compelling and irresistible offers, build value and convert prospects into buyers. Consider using all of them. But here in Chapter 7 - Strategy #7: Recapture Lost Profit Opportunities-we'll focus on developing your Lead Capture-to-Conversion Process Chapter 7 - Strategy #7: Recapture Lost Profit Opportunities
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mind set-and on re-activation methods for customers/clients who haven't· bought from you for a while.
A Missing Piece of the Conversion Puzzle The biggest lead issue and challenge within most businesses isn't just identifying when that lead showed up, what they were responding to, or where they were responding from-such as an offer, an ad, a mailing piece, a trade show, or a web page. Instead, the information you really need to help convert them into buyers over time is: Their reason for why they showed-up in the first place, and what specifically they want. And you can only get that information by asking them directly (preferably at the first point of contact). You'll want all prospects to at least: 1) Give you their basic contact information as a regular part of all transactions (at a minimum, this should include their full name, address, phone, and email). 2) Tell you why they showed up and what they want. If they had something specific in mind that you don't carry, you should ask what else they're most interested in that you do carry. Make gathering this information easy and fun by giving people an incentive to answer (see Chapter 10 - Strategy #10: "Capitalize on Your Business's True Wealth"-for more details on specific incentives you can use). If you give your prospects good reasons and incentives for the information you request, they'll be more willing to give you the correct and complete details you are asking for. Where many lead capture approaches fall flat is when it comes to converting people over time. The only way you can reconnect with people-in a way that's meaningful to them-is to pick up with the conversation that they were having with you (not the conversation you want to have with them). Again, what you're seeking to learn is why they Chapter 7 - Strategy #7: Recapture Lost Profit Opportunities
Guerrilla Prolits. 143 came to you-and what they want. Examples for specific situations might include:
• A restaurant learning why they came in (such as a romantic dinner, a quick meal between errands, or a convenient place to go during lunch hour)-and what types of dishes they prefer. • A financial-services professional learning why they contacted the firm (such as lacking assistance in that area, unhappiness with their former service provider, or having had a change of circumstances)-and what specific services they need.
• A movie theatre learning the non-obvious reasons why they're there (such as a date night, family movie outing, or dropping off the kids for a matinee)-and what types of movies they prefer. • An airport-shuttle service learning why they're traveling (such as a one-time vacation, frequent business traveler, or regular visits to family)-and what type of shuttle service they prefer.
• A gift shop learning why they walked into the shop (such as something for themselves, something for a significant other, or a gift for a friend)-and what specific gift they had in mind. Not only is this data useful for individual follow-up and conversion purposes-it can also help you segment your list for crafting targeted messages to segments of your list that have similar desires and interests. Many times this information comes up naturally during the course of a Chapter 7 - Strategy #7: Recapture Lost Profit Opportunities
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new prospective client interview (either on the phone, or in person)--or with a sales clerk in a store. But do you have a mechanism in place to actually capture this information to use later? Whatever you do should be non-intrusive and feel like it's a part of the natural course of the business at hand. And, your process should allow you to help people get what they came for. For example, in a retail store with an out-of-stock situation--or where the requested item isn't currently being carried by the store, the clerk could say, "Let me check on that for you and I'll get back with you as soon as I find out." Then, the clerk would gather the basic contact information, the reason why that customer is there, and what particular item is being requested. When it's done in a casual way like that, most people will respond positively to an offer of assistance. Then, at that same time (after the initial information has been gathered), it's easy to ask, "Is there anything else that you're lookingfor that I could help you with?"-so you'll know what else they may want (whether you carru that item or not). And also ask, "Would you like to be notified of store specials and sales that are related to these items that you're looking for?" That way you can get people to opt-in to your mailing list-whether or not they've purchased from you at that moment. And, of course, follow-up with the specific requests you receive to convert people into buyers whenever possible. This approach helps capture information that's usually lost when people walk out (or hang up) without finding what they were looking for. But, remember, anyone who's taken the time to physically walk into your place of business (or call your office )-is more likely to do so again if they feel like you're interested in helping them get what they came for. And, being able to systematically follow-up with them because you've captured their data-makes it more likely to happen. There are also good ways to do this on your web site, with "live operators"-who can answer questions on the spot through Live Chat (serving the same purpose as an in-person or phone encounter). Using the same formula described above in the retail example-you can implement web site solutions that make it easy to have a live operator capability. Chapter 7 - Strategy #7: Recapture Lost Profit Opportunities
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Some possibilities include (remember, these listings are not a specific endorsement for these sites and/or companies. You'll need to do your own due diligence to determine if any of these providers are right for you): www.activalive.com www.boldchat.com www.zifftalk.com www.liveperson.com
The quality of your leads Knowing why they showed up (or responded) and what they want-helps give you the information needed to initiate a future conversation and recapture their attention. The same holds true for knowing what else they might be interested in that you could possibly provide for them. In addition to that, if possible, capture information that can help you determine people's interest levels for particular items, and specifically, to qualify them for how close they are to a buying decision. This is especially important with a longer Product or Service Lifecycle-and with higher priced items. A Moving Target As we've already mentioned, there's usually a declining window of time to convert them to their original why and what. You should have a follow-up system in place to systematically contact people immediately about their inquiry (depending on the Product or Service Lifecycle, within the first few minutes / hours / days / weeks / months}-and then in a series of additional contact steps that makes sense for your business. The better and more detailed the information you've captured about each prospect up-front-the greater chance that, even if you don't make the original sale, you may still be able to do business together at some point. Chapter 7 - Strategy #7: Recapture Lost Profit Opportunities
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Many times, especially in higher-value or higher-cost transactions, an assumption is made that because they didn't buy from you initially they must have bought from someone else. That mayor may not be true. In many cases, they haven't made the purchase at all, and you are doing yourself a disservice by giving up on these prospects too soon. In these cases, a personal letter or note card could work wonders (see sample contact letter included as part of the Bonuses). With each day that goes by, it's usually more and more difficult to get back to that original peak level of interest and desire that was present at the moment of first contact. But, the biggest form of waste in lead value doesn't usually come from this waning interest over time. (In many cases, a product or service lifecycle will bring prospects back to desire again at some point.) Rather, the biggest waste in lead value usually comes from your ability to collect, maintain, and pay attention to the why, what, and what else details about your prospects-so you can act on that information over time. That's where the greatest Guerrilla Profits Lead Capture-to-Conversion opportunity comes from.
Reactivating Your Former Customers/Clients Other than selling to your active customers/clients-or converting new prospects into buyers-the next best source for generating business and Guerrilla Profits comes from reactivating your former customers or clients who have stopped buying from you (or whom you haven't seen in a while). Start by taking a look at the frequency of purchase for your products and services (the Buying Frequency Period). Is there a clearly definable point when people need to come back to you for more? Do you have a way to track and determine when someone hasn't come back to buy again from you in the expected amount of time? It's rare to find a business where you sell something once, then never do business with that buyer again. If your business is like that, it could get you in trouble. An obvious example of a tough second-sell would be a contractor that exclusively does swimming pools-because Chapter 7 - Strategy #7: Recapture Lost Profit Opportunities
Guerrilla Profits. 147 homeowners usually don't put in a second pool. So, it's hoped, that if that's your business (or something similar), you'll be thinking about, "What else can I offer to people who've just bought pools?" Of course, that's in addition to asking for referrals, "Who else do you know that may be interested in having a pool?" Those kinds of businesses aside, most rely heavily on repeat buyers and depend on them for the bulk of their day-to-day business. Customer/client churn At some point, some of your customers/clients will stop buying from you. Maybe they move away (perhaps they've even passed-away), find a new supplier, change their habits, or are no longer satisfied with your product/service. But, interestingly, the No.1 reason cited by many sources (as many as 60-70% of responders surveyed)-that customers or clients stop buying from a particular business is: They didn t feel as if anyone cared about them. They were put off by what they perceived as indifference, little or no contact, delayed responsiveness, employees not doing what they promised, lack of follow-up, and other similar causes. And that No.1 reason means that it's squarely on your shoulders to Initiate the Interactions and conversations to show that you do care about them. You can't just pitch them on something and hope they'll come back because they like your new offer (although you could get some response that way-and that's how many businesses handle reactivation attempts). If you want exceptional reactivation results, then you'll need to actually contact them in a meaningful way to ask them why they left (remember, you care!)--and to discover what you can do to remedy things, if needed. Now, I know this can be a bit scary. After all, what if what they tell you opens up a whole list of new problems and issues you have to deal with. Well, let me ask you, would you rather know about the problems and fix them (for everyone)? Or keep your head blissfully buried in the sand? (I didn t say this was going to be pretty, but it doesn t have to be Chapter 7 - Strategy #7: Recapture Lost Profit Opportunities
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too tough, either). Along these same lines-knowing this information can be very useful to you in the normal course of business. When you are prepared to address problems and issues head-on when they arise-you can often turn around a potentially damaging or unprofitable situation and regain a satisfied customer/client. You can also make it a regular part of your after-sale follow-up program-to Initiate the Interaction and conversation-and make sure your recent buyer is satisfied.
Having a dialogue .... not a monologue The biggest issue I see in many reactivation strategies and tactics is that they focus on making special price offers to bring customers back in. But customers have many different reasons for not coming back to your business, and price isn't usually the main one. After all, we're talking about people who've already bought from you, so price wasn't the issue in the first place. Following this line of thought-and wanting to show that you care (you do, right?}-the best approach is to personally contact people, if at all possible. That can take the form of a phone call, personal visit, personal letter, or a note card .... anything that's personal. A personal approach is much more productive than just barraging a customer with impersonal solicitations or offers-in the hopes that one will catch their attention. As Seth Godin notes in his book, Small Is the New Big: "How did Amazon get so big and so profitable and so important? Not by interrupting people who don ~ want to be interrupted. By interacting with people. Interactions are a million times more powerful than interruptions." When thinking about the time or the cost involved, consider how much it costs you to get a new customer/client in the first place. And, that's true even if you rely primarily on referrals, where there's often the mistaken belief that it doesn't cost you anything. It does still cost you all Chapter 7 - Strategy #7: Recapture Lost Profit Opportunities
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the time and energy you've invested in the relationships with the people who refer to you. So it's even more critical not to lose these people. Spend at least a large portion of the time, energy, and cost you'd usually expend in getting a new customer/client-to reactivate former customers/clients who haven't bought from you in a while (or who have gone beyond the usual Buying Frequency Period). You may find that it actually takes much less effort to reactivate someone who already knows you than it takes to activate someone new.
A powerful method One method stands out in these circumstances and has a good chance of working-when used along with personal contact. And that is: the "Ask+Gift Approach." Let's examine this. Have you ever had a business you've stopped buying from actually try to contact you to ask "why?" It's a rare occurrence-so being asked "why?" makes that business positively stand out from the crowd. It also conveys that the business cares about you as their customer or client-and wants to retain your business. Now apply this thinking to your own clientele-who will have a similar reaction when you contact them to ask "why?" And, when making this personal contact to ask "why?"--offer them a gift to entice your former customers/clients to personally contact you in return. With this approach, you've got a shot at re-connecting. Just make sure the gift is very relevant to your business .... and also relevant to what they came to you for in the first place. (Sorry, no steak knives unless, ofcourse, cutlery is a part of your business). That way, the gift helps reconnect you in a way that helps pick-up on the business conversation and interaction you were having with that customer/client. A great gifting tool that does this is information-a guide, report, white paper, directory, audio interview, or the like. Give it an enticing and desirous title like, "The 7 pitfalls to watch out for when working with - - -" (for more examples, revisit the section entitled, Lowering the response barrier in Chapter 4 - Strategy #4: Build Up The Value). Chapter 7 - Strategy #7: Recapture Lost Profit Opportunities
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Remember, the gift should be helpful and directly related to the business you're doing with them. Other possibilities could be a sample of a brand new item they haven't seen or tried yet, a complimentary new dish being prepared from a new menu, or something related that's very useful, such as a highway safety kit gift coming from a tire store. When contacting using a personal letter, you'll want to start by recognizing that it's been a while since you've seen them (or since they've been in), Mention that they must have a good reason, or perhaps their circumstances have changed. Either way, you want them to know that you're available to help them and be of service. And, if there's something wrong that needs to be fixed, to give you a chance to fix it. Then, you'll lead into offering the free gift-if they'll contact you or simply come in (see the sample reactivation letter included as part of the Bonuses. You can put the letter on your company stationery (use nice paper, not just regular old printer paper). It should be a one-sided, one-page personal letter. And you can enclose it in a matching nice envelope (same paper choice, that is). For an extra personal touch, have the envelopes hand-addressed (also, nice handwriting) -and always use live, firstclass stamps. Don't skimp on this step. Nothing can do more to damage this approach than to use a pre-printed postage indicia that makes it look like advertising or marketing materials. It's probably best to not use your usual company envelopes or logo on the envelope. It should be addressed from one person to another.
Taking this a bit further With just a little modification, the Ask+Gift Approach using a personal letter (or other method}-can be used to go back to your unconverted prospect lead file just as effectively as with your former customers/clients. It can also be used as one of the steps in your original Lead Capture-to-Conversion Process. Since you haven't yet done business with these prospects-modify your letter to ask them to give you a chance to prove yourself to them. Also Chapter 7 - Strategy #7: Recapture Lost Profit Opportunities
Guerrilla profits. 151 ask them to do you the courtesy of letting you know either way, even if they've already decided to buy (or have bought) from someone else. You want to come from the perspective of "helping you whether you buy from me or not." Another powerful twist on this method is to use the Ask+Gift Approach-as a variation on the introduction letter to harness your friendly competitor's Unconverted Leads (as described in Chapter 5 Strategy #5: Change The Rules). With just a bit of finesse, you can become very good at Reactivating your former customers/clients-and also at using these techniques and methods to generate more Guerrilla Profits with your prospects or those of other businesses.
Recapturing Other Business's Lost Profit Opportunities Now that we've discussed some of your lost profit opportunities, we'll get a bit more in-depth about working with other businesseswhere you set-up ways to help them Recapture Lost Profit Opportunities (while creating profit for both of you). This will expand on the ways to leverage other non-competitive businesses, friendly competitors, or even not-so-friendly competitors to mutual advantagethat we started exploring in Chapter 5 - Strategy #5: Change The Rules-and Chapter 6 - Strategy #6: Profit From Other Businesses. This can be a significant source of Guerrilla Profits. As a businessperson, when you experience other businesses that are different than yours, what comes to mind first? Do you simply relate to them as a customer/ciient--or, do you think about how they operate and about all the complexities and issues they face? And, when you consider and experience your competitors, what comes to mind first? Do you experience competitors out there doing what you do in a friendly way, with plenty of room for everyone to share in the marketplace? Or, do you experience them as being cut-throat and trying to take business from you in a significant way? (Perhaps you just go about your business without giving it much thought at all.) Chapter 7 - Strategy #7: Recapture Lost Profit Opportunities
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Whatever your experience of other businesses that are different than yours--or of businesses that directly compete with you-let me suggest to you that every other business is a source of hidden revenue for those who know where to look (although, not every other business may be a good match for you to tap into that hidden revenue). And, it's the way you perceive and think about other businesses-and their intangible, Hidden Revenue Sources-that holds the key to unlocking that revenue.
The Hidden Revenue Sources of a business Remember, in all businesses-people show up and buy from that business because of the advertising and marketing that business is doing .... or via the Internet.. .. or via referrals .... or simply because the customer/client walked in the front door. Each business expends a considerable amount of time, energy, capital, labor, materials and/or effort to attract people to their business-and there is always a good sized percentage of what comes their way that simply doesn't get translated into completed sales. Or, they also have customers/clients who have done business with them in the past that are not currently active (just as may be the case in your business). The opportunity lies in the fact that most businesses simply don't recognize or properly value and utilize the past leads they've generated that haven't converted. Or, they don't realize the potential value with their former customers/clients that haven't bought from them (or been in) for a while. And quite possibly, they aren't using any of the techniques and methods we've been considering. Let's think about this for a moment Consider a company that regularly advertises in a consumer computer magazine, for example. Let's say they regularly run half-page ads to generate leads about a particular product, and let's say they have been consistently using the same ad for a period of more than 6 months. This company has a significant investment in that ad-and chances are that they are receiving a positive result--or they would have changed the Chapter 7 - Strategy #7: Recapture Lost Profit Opportunities
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ad, or stopped running it (but for our purposes here, it could be to our advantage if the ad was under-performing). The company most likely then has a follow-up, sales and conversion process in place. There are most likely investing in a series of steps and contacts made with each lead that comes in-to try and convert them into a completed sale. Sometimes this can be a significant effort and cost. The flip side to this may be a company that is relatively weak at this follow-up, sales and conversion process-which can also work to your advantage when contacting them. For all businesses that advertise and market to run a Lead Capture-to-Conversion Process-that investment of time, energy, capital, labor, materials and/or effort has been made upfront. Once the results are in (sales completed)----or the follow-up process is done for those contacts (the "dead" leads file)-that's it. Most businesses simply move on to the next promotion or campaign, and at best, the contacts are dumped into the general mailing database for occasional contact-or have been opted into the company's email list as part of the initial process. In rare cases, there will be additional segmenting done-with future attempts to reinitiate contact with these leads based on what they originally responded to. Now... .let's consider all the businesses that are out there every day-advertising online, in newspapers, in magazines, on the radio, on TV, through direct mail, and all the other direct response methods. Then imagine all the time, energy, capital, labor, materials and effort that has been expended to produce a result (or not)-multiplied by all the businesses doing it-and you can start to get a feel for the enormous amount of value that gets "used up." That's many billions of dollars spent , pick your and gone every year (or globally, billions of currency).
And, that's where you'll find the opportunity..• Armed with this knowledge, you can be the one to capture these additional Hidden Revenue Sources-by systematically going out to other compatible advertisers and marketers-and suggesting some alternative ways for you both to profit. When you get real good at Chapter 7 - Strategy #7: Recapture Lost Profit Opportunities
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spotting these Lost Profit Opportunities in other business's advertising, marketing, sales and conversion efforts-you'll be in the unique position· of being able to help each other out significantly. There's generally no downside to these types of deals-and more likely, there's much to gain.. You'll be the one that can suggest: • Capturing value from their past advertising, marketing & sales efforts • Creating new sales from their unconverted leads • Reactivating lost customers/clients that haven't bought from them in a while In effect, you want to put yourself in the position of being the gatekeeper of the ways and methods to do this-while educating them about the fact that it can be done. Rather than showing them how to do it, you'll want to focus on making it as tum-key as possible for them (handle most or all of the details). That way, you can avoid becoming replaceable. Of course, that may happen anyway, so be prepared to suggest other profit opportunities. You could also put a completely different spin on this-and try reintroducing the original provider's product(s) or service(s) in a new way for them to their unconverted leads or non-active customers/clients. Or, you could even introduce other 3rd party's Outside Products and Services to your JV partner's unconverted leads, former customers/clients, or active customers/clients (brokering a 3-way deal). The sky's the limit-as long as the numbers make sense-and you have willing JV partners. But, keep in mind-the easiest possibility to get approval for is to make use of the unconverted leads or inactive buyers they have-that they're not doing anything with right now. Suggest a low-cost, small test first-to make sure that there's enough value to recapture. Then, once you have a positive result-you can ramp up your efforts. Chapter 7 - Strategy #7: Recapture Lost Profit Opportunities
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Strategy #7: Recapture Lost Profit Opportunities
ACTION POINTS • Pay attention to the Lead Flow as a process within your business-and constantly examine distill and refine your Lead Capture-to-Conversion Process. • Capture the reasons why prospects showed-up in the first place, and what specifically they want-in addition to the usual contact and responder data. • Take extra steps to capture the information about what else a prospect may be interested in that you don't carry (or provide)-and that they're most interested in that you do. • Consider your Product and Service Lifecycles-and look at how often your customers/clients buy your products and services to determine the Buying Frequency Periods.
• Initiate the Interaction with all prospects and customers/clients in a meaningful way-to help you understand any problems and issues you need to deal with. • Reactivate your former customers/clients using personal contact methods-that show you care about and are interested in them-such as the "Ask+Gift Approach." • Recapture other business's Lost Profit Opportunities by helping them discover the Hidden Revenue Sources in their business-that they're probably unaware of.
Get the latest Methods, News & Updates. Go To: www.guerrillaprofits.com
Strategy #8:
Gain From Giving Things Away
M
any businesspeople have had some experience with sampling, trials, free gifts, and bonuses as part of their marketing. And most have certainly experienced these as a consumer. But many businesses that do use "gifting" often do so in a random way. Or, they ' ll make use of gifting as a response tool-as part of their marketing or a new product launch-without exploring the full spectrum of possibilities. So now, we'll take the obvious advantages of gifting and put a Guerrilla Profits spin on it. Plus, we'll factor in some additional, not-so-obvious methods-to help you generate more business and better results. There are some businesses that are ideally suited for the practice of giving things away. as part of their customer/client interactions. For instance, grocery stores or specialty food retailers put out sample trays. Professionals often
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give free initial consultations. A computer software publisher may offer a free-trial, a store offering home-improvement supplies may set-up a doit-yourself seminar, and a wholesaler may regularly provide samples to the trade. The obvious reason, of course, is that giving something away lowers the barriers to entry. It makes it easier for prospects to begin a dialogue with you, to seek more of what they've been given, and then makes it easier to say ''yes'' to your offer. And, for those businesses where gifting is not a regular practiceor where it seems that it's not as ideally suited-let me suggest that there are still ways to harness powerful gifting methods that can work for most businesses.
A Powerful Alternative Way to get New Business One such method is Reciprocal Gifting-where businesses partner-up to systematically and actively use a method similar to Giving Referrals (from Chapter 6 - Strategy #6: Profit from Other Businesses)-but in a very specific way, and with a different outcome. Here's how this works: All around you, businesses exist that don't directly compete with you but have access to the same clientele that each of you wants to attract. We've referenced some of these examples throughout the book, which include: • Clothing Retailer / Dry Cleaners • Restaurant / Entertainment
• CPA / Financial Advisor • Real Estate Broker / Contractor
• Massage / Spa Services • Fitness / Nutrition
• Pet Store I Veterinarian
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Guerrilla Prolits. 159 And the possibilities aren't just limited to these obvious pairings. For businesses that are in close proximity to each other, such as retailers and service businesses within the same mall, it's possible for almost any of them to partner up. For example, the frozen-yogurt shop might join forces with the gift store. The two main qualification questions to ask yourself are:
1) Does that non-competing business have access to the prospects I want? 2) Can I give them access to the prospects they want? If the answer to both questions is affirmative, you then go to that non-competing business-and offer them a free gift they can give to their customers/clients. And, at the same time, you suggest they give you one that you can offer to your customers/clients in exchange (rather than it being a profit or revenue-sharing deal). In the case of professional, service, or B2B (business to business) firms-create an introduction letter for each partner that introduces one to the other and gives the reason for the free gift (see sample gift letter included as part of the Bonuses). For retail, use an insert that's given to each buyer at the point of sale. The gift should be of sufficient value to get the attention of customers/clients and be appreciated by them. And, of course, it should set-up the possibility of additional sales once they've received their free gift-but purchase should not be required for the gift to be redeemed. Some examples could be: Professional & Service--Offer a free consultation, assessment or evaluation with a particular purpose (such as, "Learn how to protect your heirs from probate," or, "Help reduce your skyrocketing heating bills with a comprehensive Home Heating Chapter 8 - Strategy #8: Gain From Giving Things Away
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Audit," or, "A 7-point health check-up for your dog. ").Be specific. Let the prospective clients know what to expect-and lead them towards the next step without the free gift being a sales pitch. Retail-Give a free sample that, when redeemed, allows your staff to follow-up with an immediate up-sell, coupon book, addon item, package deal, or some combination of these. "Enjoy brealifast on us," for instance, or "a complimentary dry cleaning of a men s or ladies' suit." This sampling-with-follow-on-offers technique is also effective for manufacturing, wholesale, and agent use. From a prospective customer/client point of view-most won't be put-off by there being additional choices and options being presentedwhen they are obviously receiving something of value. They realize that, "you don ~ get something for nothing"-but, they also don't want to get hammered with your pitch either. But, it must be done in a carefully crafted way. The soft-sell approach is best. You won't close every person, of course. And, you can expect a certain number of people to take the free gift-and that's that. But some will also likely take you up on the next step or offer, and if you've presented yourself well, become regular, paid customers/clients.
Reciprocal Gifting has some distinct and key advantages: • Both businesses can look good to their existing customers/clients for bringing them this gift. • Both are able to get referrals from credible, trusted sources that they may not otherwise have had access to. • Both get more responsive customers with almost no cost. Chapter 8 - Strategy #8: Gain From Giving Things Away
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As a straight exchange between two businesses, setting up Reciprocal Gifting deals works best if the traffic flow or customer/client lists are similar in size. But, if not, don't worry. If you and your partner have different traffic-flow volumes or customer/client list sizes, you can always pick a specific number of "exposures" to exchange (coupons, certificates, inserts, letters to send, and so on). And, you can always offer a larger partner some share in the first transactions generated from their customers/clients to sweeten the deal.
The Law of Reciprocity Market-research firms have mailed consumer surveys with a dollar bill attached. They knew the dollar wasn't really all that important to the recipient. But by keeping the money, many recipients felt obligated to reciprocate by answering the survey. So response rates increased because many felt it would be wrong to take the dollar without filling out the questionnaire. Similarly, you've probably received personalized address labels in the mail with your name and address printed on them-from charity organizations hoping that you'll make a donation. That same principle of reciprocity is being put to use by the charity-that went to the trouble to produce the address labels for you. Or, to take another example, aren't you influenced by the free food samples given away at a supermarket or specialty food store? First, of course, you must like the morsel's taste. But if you do like it, aren't you· inclined to occasionally buy the item that you received the sample of? Dr. Robert Cialdini, in his ground-breaking book Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion-that we cited earlier, also writes about the "Law of Reciprocity," which he says is pervasive in human nature:
"The rule says that we should try to repay, in kind, what another person has provided us.... if a couple invites us to a party, we should be sure to invite them to one of ours. By virtue of the Chapter 8 - Strategy #8: Gain From Giving Things Away
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reciprocity rule, then, we are obligated to the future repayment of favors, gifts, invitations, and the like. So typical is it for indebtedness to accompany the receipt of such things that a term like "much obliged" has become a synonym for "thank you, " not only in the English language but in others as well. "
You can also use this Law of Reciprocity to your advantage. One example comes from Bob Bly, a direct marketing consultant and copywriter (and author of more than 60 books). He tells of a promoter who sent a crisp, new $50 bill to 23 people with mailing lists that he thought would work to promote his coaching services. Thus, he gave away $1,150 in cash. But he certainly got the attention of these potential JV partner recipients. Eight of the 23 promoted his program to their subscribers. (A few others, who had to decline the offer, sent back the $50.) But here's the bottom line: The promoter added 4,000 new subscribers to his e-mail list-and closed coaching contracts worth around $100,000. Even after paying out a revenue-share to his new JV partners-there was still a sizable remaining chunk of revenue left over. And, all of those new coaching sales were to customers on his affiliates' lists-people whom he didn't have access to before. So, giving away $1,150 in cash turned out to be money well spent. "Reciprocity," Bly wrote, "means you give something away to your prospects-and in so doing, you create in them a need to reciprocate in some way. As a result, they feel obligated to-if not buy what you are selling-at least consider your proposition."
Give Something of Value In your business you don't necessarily need to give away money, like the promoter example. You can give away something else that has value-a product, a service, or some other consideration or discount that your prospect will appreciate. If the recipients find your gift valuable and Chapter 8 - Strategy #8: Gain From Giving Things Away
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useful, that doesn't guarantee a sale. But it does increase the likelihood that they'll listen to your sales pitch, read your sales copy, perhaps accept a free trial of your product or service, and will more seriously consider buying from you. Let's look at some of the forms these gifts can take:
• Sampling & Trials Giving away samples has been around since people first began trading with each other. It's evolved in the modem-day mass consumer market to include such things as brand-building sample packs and offer handouts at high-traffic venues like sporting events, fairs, shopping malls, and inserts in the Sunday paper. Many businesses that don't sell consumer products still have their own versions of sampling and trials. And, if you don't already have some form of sample or trial as part of your business (most every business or professional practice can find something to offer)-then that's a good place to start. However, the key to creating Guerrilla Profits with sampling and trials is to make it part of the transaction-rather than having them make two "buying" decisions--one for your triaL .. and the next one for the actual product or service purchase. Because even if they're not paying for the sample or trial-they still are "buying you" when they decide to invest their time and attention to learn more about your product or service. Several ways exist to do this. First, you can have them agree to only pay you if they're satisfied with what they've received-after the product has been delivered or the service has been rendered. This may seem very risky to you, but a number of companies have made a standard practice out of this approach. Some examples include: • Book of the month club (or CDs, wine, or chocolate) Chapter 8 - Strategy #8: Gain From Giving Things Away
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Guerrilla Prolits • "Send no money now"-30-day free trial (mail-order offers) • Carpet cleaning-must be happy or don't pay • Only pay shipping up front-in-home trial offers • Attend first half of I-day seminar free-then pay to stay
In all these examples, there's the underlying understanding that customers are participating in a transaction-but the buying decision has only been tentatively made (also known as a "soft close.") The customers still have some control over the buying decision-and retain the ability to change their mind for a specified period of time. There's also a famous example about a puppy dog (known as the "puppy dog close"), which, when summarized, goes something like this: The transaction takes place up-front at the pet store-with the expressed understanding that they're going to still have some time to "try it out" at home-to make sure they're happy with their new pet. Once you send a puppy home with the family for a "trial," chances are high that they'll get attached to the puppy and will want to keep it (especially if children are involved). Many other situations might work the same way. Another way that we discussed in-depth in Chapter 2 - Strategy #2: Capture More From Your Transactions-is the "good-until-cancelled" approach. But here, the twist is to capture the full transaction details up front-while offering a trial-period-allowing customers/clients a specific period of time to cancel, prior to any charges being made. Billing begins after the trial period expires and then continues on a regular basis. Customers then also have the option to cancel at any time after billing starts. This is very common with home-delivery water services, gym memberships, and local newspapers. The main point to remember is-rather than just giving away a sample or trial and then asking prospects to make a separate buying decision-ask them to make their initial buying decision as part of the sample or trial. Chapter 8 - Strategy #8: Gain From Giving Things Away
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• Free Gifts Gifts are a real workhorse of direct response marketing. Usually, free gifts are used as an enticement-to take some form of action such as: • Take fast action (beat a deadline) • Accept an appointment for a product demonstration
• Choose a higher-priced option • Physically show-up for a consultation
• Visit a department store • Tour a time-share property We'll make a distinction here between free gifts and bonuses (which we'll discuss in more detail below). A Free Gift we'll define as something used to induce action or desired behavior that doesn't require a transaction. Bonuses, on the other hand, are used to build the value of your offer and are included as part of the transaction. Gifts do not require a transaction to be received. They are the inducement to interact with you. A very powerful use of free gifts is to provide them in exchange for information. What kind of information? Well, this could require the filling out a survey, giving a referral, providing specific performance feedback after a transaction, or furnishing contact information when a prospective customer/client signs-up for your mailing list. These extra "thank you" gifts can help boost dramatically the favorable response to your requests. But, please, make sure you offer something that's enticing enough to show customers/clients that you value their time as well as the information you're asking for. I've seen too many instances where the free gift was either weak or mismatched to the circumstances (or completely missing). And the business owner was Chapter 8 - Strategy #8: Gain From Giving Things Away
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probably left wondering why he or she got such a small response. • Bonuses Bonuses are another valuable tool in the direct response bag of tricks-and we've already covered using bonuses as a way to build-up the value and urgency in your offers (see Chapter 4 - Strategy #4: Build Up The Value). We'll expand on that that discussion here. Sometimes the use of bonuses can take the form of a massive, even overwhelming, "value build" of additional items. In these cases, the perceived value of the bonuses may even far outweigh the cost of the main item being sold. The usual school of thought is that you should be cautious about offering so many bonuses that you run the risk of losing people's attention (like mentioned, it's tough to get people to wrap their minds around more than about five items). That said, there's a flip side to this thinking which is to simply go for the gusto-and test offering prospects everything you can get your hands on that makes sense for your offer---even 10, 12, 15 items or more. Then, it's thought, prospects will simply cave-in to the overwhelming value, often without looking at the particulars or even understanding each bonus. They simply buy because there's so much being offered, and they've noticed at least a couple of the bonuses that they really do want. In some cases, the buying decision springs from the fact that the customer's desire for one or more of the bonuses is even greater than the desire for the original item. This could be because a bonus is rare or is a collectible, is something that's simply hard to get, or perhaps is an indulgence that the customer wouldn't ordinarily splurge on. The buying decision could even come from an Unlikely Bonus Match-up that just happens to be desirable enough to boost response. The famous example from early direct response infomercial days was the set of steak knives. It was such a popular unrelated bonus that it became almost a joke in the marketing industry. The announcer would excitedly Chapter 8 - Strategy #8: Gain From Giving Things Away
Guerrilla Profits. 167 say, "But wait, there s more! Plus, you get this fabulous set of steak knives." Do you remember those offers? It was simply discovered through testing that customers were highly motivated by and desired the steak knives as a bonus. The point is, ask yourself, "What would be enticing with my clientele and with what I'm offering-that I haven i even considered?" And also consider, what would your prospects find so compelling that they might desire it in addition to-or even more than-your original product or service? • Loss Leaders In retail, it's common to advertise particular items at a very low price to attract prospects with the hope that, once they show-up, they'll find other things that they want or need to buy at regular prices. A similar mechanism is at work in convenience stores where staple items (dailyneeds items, such as bread, butter and milk)--are offered at lower prices than the usual margins. That encourages customers to shop often for those basics in the hope that they'll also buy other items at higher markups. Other loss leader examples might have "bonus-like" qualities-but, where bonuses are generally meant to build-up the value, as part of an offer, to close the sale-loss leaders usually offer price discounts or upfront lead generation incentives to attract the buyers in the first place. That might include a day spa that offers a free facial with every deluxe spa package booked. Or a resort hotel offering half-priced rooms for parties booking "X" amount of tours, dining, golf, spa or other services offered by the resort during the stay. A restaurant could promise a free dessert, free bottle of wine, or a "kids-eat-free" deal with certain types of reservations or group sizes. It's also very common in services for there to be special pricing for first-time clients. Or sample rates that wholesalers or manufacturers give Chapter 8 - Strategy #8: Gain From Giving Things Away
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first time buyers to have a product available for comparison or testing. Now, let's put a Guerrilla Profits spin on it:
• You can give away something from Category "A" (or offer a very large discount) for each item that customers buy from Category "B." (Example, in a retail store, let patrons choose anyone item from the "Gift Rack" for free for each regular item purchased). • A wholesaler could allow customers to purchase "X" amount of a desirable item at a specific discounted pricein exchange for each "X" amount of an item purchased that the wholesaler wants to sell.
• Businesses with a continuity component (that is, customers paying on a recurring basis-such as "gooduntil-cancelled" options)-could offer an item up-front that would usually be sold for full price that's obviously worth more than the first month's cost-as an incentive for people to sign-up. And you can often use the item being offered as a loss leader as a qualifier-to attract the people you want in a particular category. A great example comes from Drew Kaplan ofDAK Industries who, in the early days of audiotapes, advertised the blank tapes as a loss leader through mail order to attract people who were interested in audio. Once he was able to identify customers as buyers of blank audiotapes ("audiophiles"), he could then assume they would also be interested in audio equipment and other audio supplies. His specialty was in going to the Orient to personally check out all the latest gadgets, then reporting back to his buyers and making the best items available to them for purchase. This built a huge mail-order business with more than 400 employees. Starting with loss leaders like the blank audiotapes, he went Chapter 8 - Strategy #8: Gain From Giving Things Away
Guerrilla Profits. 169 on to sell 250,000 equalizers, 100,000 subwoofers, 150,000 modems, 450,000 radar detectors, 75,000 computers, and 350,000 CD-ROM drives and scanners-to the list of buyers he'd accumulated through his loss leader advertising. Looked at from this perspective, it's easy to see that loss leaders, done with some forethought and planning, could give you access to many more customers/clients. Your job is to then keep them coming back for more-after you've initially attracted them in the first place. Cross-Pollinate Methods & Test All of these possible gifting items: Sampling & Trials, Free Gifts, Bonuses and Loss Leaders-serve the same primary purpose: To attract new business. We've touched on some possible new methods you can use specific to gifting-such as Reciprocal Gifting and how to make Sampling and Trials part of the transaction. You can also use many of the other Guerrilla Profits methods we've been discussing in other chapters, along with gifting. Lead generation is a primary beneficiary from this chapter's perspective on Gain From Giving Things Away. You'll want to test and use every type of incentive that works in your business to get your prospects to, figuratively speaking, raise their hands. In addition, you'll also want to be mindful of: • The downside of giving things away. Giving things away doesn't always immediately result in business. A certain number of people will be attracted to your lead generation but have no intention of buying. They simply want the freebie. This has become so commonplace on the Internet that it makes many of the freebie-generated, opt-in email lists very low quality in terms of responsiveness. When you're dealing with lead generation that involves direct contact with people (in-person, phone, in the field), then you're more likely to get better conversion rates. So as Chapter 8 - Strategy #8: Gain From Giving Things Away
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Guerrilla Proilis long as the economics make sense anyway (even if a high percentage of the people don't ultimately buy), then you're on the right track with whatever process you're using. • The necessity of trial and error. You need to figure out if it's better to give things away with no strings or to give things that are directly attached to the type of response you seek. Think about all the examples given in this chapter as well as your own experience either as a businessperson or as a customer/client of other businesses. • The logic of testing many different items & approaches. Often what turns out to be the best free gifts, bonuses, and loss leaders can come as a surprise. What your prospects see in terms of maximum desirability may be very different than what you might think are the obvious items.
Of course, the overarching point is that you don't have to accept the status quo in your business or profession when it comes to generating profits-and new business. "In life and business, there are two cardinal sins," said well-known investor Carl Icahn. "The first is to act precipitously without thought and the second is not to act at all." By acting to take advantage of Strategy #8: Gain From Giving Things Away, you can open the door to another one of the 10 Powerful Guerrilla Profits Strategies.
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ACTION POINTS • Implement Reciprocal Gifting programs-where noncompetitive businesses partner-up to actively lead generate with free gift offers to each other's clientele. • Harness the power of The Law of Reciprocity-which causes people to want to repay a kindness or gift either "in kind"--or alternatively, with their attention or a response.
• Give Something of Value-that your customers/clients or prospects will appreciate-and which makes it more likely that they will seriously consider what you're offering. • Make Sampling & Trials part of the transaction-so the purchase details are handled up-front, rather than having your prospects make two separate buying decisions. • Put a twist on Free Gifts by providing them in exchange for information-such as filling out a survey, giving a referral, providing feedback or contact information. • Test highly desirable Bonuses that could have an even greater influence on prospect's buying decisions-and look for Unlikely Bonus Match-ups that boost response. • Use Loss Leaders-to attract buyers through advertising, stimulate traffic, and as a qualifier to attract specific catagories of buyers.
Get the latest Methods, News & Updates. Go To: www.guerrillaprofits.com
Strategy #9: Create Excitement
eople like to be entertained. And they like to have an experience that takes them out of their normal surroundings and circumstances---or to take part in something special. Just look at the popularity of reality TV, movies on the big screen, live sports, county fairs, music concerts, dramatic theatre, and the like. These all serve to give us a diversion, to thrill us, to engage our attention. And the same mechanisms that are at work there can also be applied to your business to help you gain attention and attract people to your offerings. So, what does it take to get people excited ani interested? What will cause them to choose to give you their time and attentionamid all the other choices they have?
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And, how do you tum this excitement into potential profit opportunities? That's what we'll explore in this chapter. Why should you want to Create Excitement? When people are in a heightened state of involvement, participation, and activity-their experience is out of the ordinary and causes them to be more receptive to what's going on. Consumers have gotten very good at blocking out sales messages coming from all kinds of marketing channels. But an exciting environment helps lower the usual blocking patterns and barriers towards these messages. That's especially true when that environment comes from the business that's providing the excitement for them in the first place. Let's start by defining excitement for our purposes here: An environment with a heightened sense of interest, awareness, receptiveness, and responsiveness. You can create excitement in a number of ways. Some methods are a part of what you would normally do in your marketing-such as making compelling offers, giving incentives and bonuses, or creating deadlines and urgency. Other methods that we'll discuss in this chapter include Special Promotions, Contests & Drawings, Recognition Awards, and Live Events. Also, when you involve customers with interactive participation-and doing things in a unique, unusual, or uncommon way for your business-that naturally creates excitement. The one method that's "king" in terms of involving people is finding ways to stage .... and invite people to attend .... exciting, in-person, live events. It's one of the fastest and easiest ways to generate lots of interest, awareness, receptiveness, and responsiveness-in a short amount of time. Live events are, of course, held at a specific date and time-and generally at a specific location. But you aren't limited to a strict definition of "location" for your events. Some businesses are having tremendous success using teleconference calls and teleseminars-and one of the newer incarnations over the Internet is Chapter 9 - Strategy #9: Create Excitement
Guerrilla Prolits. 175 called a "webinar." Just keep in mind that the one of the most effective methods-in terms of participation and responsiveness-is an in-person, live event where people show-up. Getting People Involved To get people to participate, you need a compelling reason or something that they want. All the usual motivating factors would apply. For example, the customer/client who has a very high interest level in your product(s) or service(s)--already has their own compelling reason. Short of that, one of the best ways to get people to participate is to offer some form of gain or advantage-such as a prize, an award, exclusive and limited privileges, special considerations, recognition, assistance, special pricing, exclusive offers, a one-time experience, an indulgence, or just a good time. Special Promotions Take the possibilities and suggestions given here-and brainstorm how you might be able to apply them to your business or practice. Remember, many ideas are completely transferable, and you can take the examples and ideas from one business type and adapt it to your business. Have fun with this .... and use your imagination: Your Usual Products or Services: Here's an obvious place where you can take what would have been a simple (or even complex) marketing project and have some fun with it. Do a special assessment or audit that helps your customers/clients discover things they could improve-and, of course, your product or service helps them do exactly that. Find something in the news that has created a "buzz" that could be related to your product or service, and refer directly to it in your marketing communications. Tie your promotions to holidays--or to specific outside events in the community that people can relate to. That will give you the added advantage of creating urgency as the holiday or Chapter 9 - Strategy #9: Create Excitement
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event nears. In all forms of special promotions, be sure to have a" deadline. It's often best to use a series of communications with a ' countdown to the expiration of the offer.
New Arrivals: The same approach applies here as you might use . for your usual products or services but with even more emphasis on the items themselves. If you have a service business or professional practice, .' then instead of new arrivals, your focus will obviously be on a new offer, announcement. Depending on your business type, it's also a good idea to , emphasize that you'll notify customers/clients of new product arrivals or . special offers on your services-when they sign up for your list (and in all channels you intend to contact them: email, mail, phone, or fax). Possibilities might include: giving a gift to the first 100 people who come in to view the new collection (or come in for a consultation for the new service), special pricing on the new items during a special promotion on : the release day, or extra services (or other considerations) for early buyers. Inventory Reduction or Clearance: Consumers love to get a good deal. And special sales are a mainstay in retail, though manufacturers or wholesalers can also use these types of promotions. Try listing the items in a special flyer to be handed out at your store(s), mailed to customers/clients, or distributed at a trade show or outdoor retail event. Give specific quantities and detailed information about the original prices versus the marked-down price. Be specific on actual prices. Listing them as "Marked Down to $9.95" is much better than saying "50% Off" because it makes it easier (and obvious) for customers to know the final price without having to give it much thought.
Scratch-and-Dent Sales: This is also known as the "non-fatal flaw approach." People understand that there are often open boxes, returns, items that get slightly damaged or scratched, or have small flaws or:~
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Guerrilla Prollts. 177 imperfections but are still in perfectly good and usable condition. These are ideal items to build a promotion around. There's even a fabled marketing story about an appliance company that secretly takes a hammer to the backs of select items it wants to include in its scratch-anddent sale, creating a dent that's not visible once the appliance is installed. Now I'm not suggesting you purposely set out to damage goods that are otherwise in perfect condition, just that you think creatively about how you might be able to apply this idea to your business. Private Sales: Here's where you can really make your customers/clients feel special and feel as if they're getting special treatment beyond what Joe Q. Public might receive. Do invitation-only, very time-sensitive exclusive promotions for your best customers/clients in which the offers are genuinely being made "behind closed doors." Another popular approach in retail is to have a special preview day that allows your existing customers/clients to get a head start over the public. For a service business, especially if there are limited appointment times available for a particular offer or package deal, you can do a private offer to existing clients first-giving them first shot at your available time slots. Contests & Drawings This is a way to get people very excited-and can be a huge motivator-because for relatively little effort (and, in some cases, relatively little cost), customers can get the chance to be rewarded in a grand way. Just look at the popularity (and history) oflotteries, gambling, sports betting, sweepstakes, and other competitions. And, when it's used in business to create excitement in the form of contests and drawings, the same forces are at work. First, have something meaningful or worthy of being a prize. Nothing causes a bigger yawn than offering something that isn't significant enough. And, depending on your business and the size of your Chapter 9 - Strategy #9: Create Excitement
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audience, there are often other businesses that would be willing to donate . the items you give as prizes-in exchange for gaining exposure (and/or leads) during your contest promotion. The sky's the limit on what you· can offer as prizes. Truly, this is a wonderful opportunity to create . excitement. But perception of value is in the eyes of the beholder. So it's probably a good idea to conduct a quick survey of a select group of customers/clients to ask them which out of, say, five choices-they might be most interested in winning as a prize. If you do this right, you could also set-up these same people to be more receptive to your contest or drawing-because they were involved in helping select the prize. (Note: Specific examples of items that could make great prizes are listed in the Recognition Awards section, below.) Contests and drawings are also used in lead generation efforts. That's not what I'm talking about here. I'm talking about using a contest or drawing as an incentive to help build excitement, attract attention, and to motivate people to take some action that you want them to take. As with all contests and drawings, it's best to offer a number of second and third prizes, rather than just a single grand prize-if there will be a lot of entries (and, therefore, fewer chances to win). You can even offer a "fourth prize" that everyone wins no matter what-and that could be some kind of assessment or audit that you put a "price tag" on, if purchased separately (give it a real value). The assessment or audit can help your customer/client discover things they could improve (related to your products or services, of course )-and also act as a tool for you to collect information that could translate into new business. Here are some great Contest & Drawing possibilities: Store or Office Visits: A very simple, yet effective, technique is to offer a chance to win every time your customer/client visits your store, office, or other location within a certain period of time. Allow people to enter as often as they like (perhaps limiting it to one entry per day). Also, Chapter 9 - Strategy #9: Create Excitement
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allow them to bring along a friend, who can also enter as often as he or she likes. (You'll want to mention this "bring a friend" suggestion in your announcements about the contest or drawing.) Have a name and reason for the contest or drawing-give it a special title and description. That helps bring people in on more days than they might otherwise visit. You can either tie it to a transaction (purchase required) or make it no-strings (just for showing up).
Orders Via Mail. Phone. Fax or Internet: Sometimes you might want to build up a particular response channel, and offering a contest or drawing as an incentive can often work wonders here. Just like with the on-location approach, you allow people to enter as often as they likebut it's for each transaction they complete through that particular channel. But beware: There's a drawback to limiting people to one entry per day or one entry per transaction: the likelihood is that some people will draw out their purchases to create more entries (either more individual transactions or over more days). It's better to allow them to get one entry per item ordered with no limits. This helps give an incentive to order more items per transaction-and doesn't inspire any order-shifting tricks. Of course, if you have a single high-ticket item that customers aren't likely to order more than once, then the contest or drawing could be used as part of a special promotion where all response channels are offered. Refer-a-Friend Promotions: Here's where many businesses have used contests and drawings to their advantage. Give your existing customers/clients an entry for each person they refer-with no limitsalong with incentives they can freely share with their friends (such as a special offer, coupon, discount, gift, or other valuable bonus) to entice their friends to come in or respond. Of course, offer the same incentives to your referring customers/clients ("one for you, one for a Jriencf'). A number of ways exist to set this up. You can simply have your existing Chapter 9 - Strategy #9: Create Excitement
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customers/clients tell their friends to mention their name to get the incentive. Then make sure your organization is set-up and prepared to ask for and keep track of these referrals-and follow-up with your referrer to give them their incentives (and confirm their entry). Another way is to provide your customers/clients with "fill-out cards" that offer their friends a coupon, discount, gift, or other valuable incentive on one side, then have spaces for your customer/client to put their name on the other side (so they'll get the credit for it). You'll also want to have fill-out spaces on that side of the card for the referrals to put their contact information. And as a kicker, you could also allow the referrals to enter the contest-and also set them up as referrers-ifthey'd like to get more entries. Survey Responses / Giving Feedback: The usual approach to getting survey responses and asking for feedback is to offer some kind of gift, bonus, incentive, or more often than not, nothing at all. And then there's the classic "attach a dollar bill" (or something valuable) to the top of a mailed survey-with the reasoning that the law of reciprocity will kick-in (like we discussed in Chapter 8 - Strategy #8: Gain From Giving Things Away). Why not try using a drawing on top of the usual incentives? That way, people get the immediate gratification of receiving the incentive up-front, plus the added incentive of a chance to win something more. Of course, with a survey, there should be only one chance to win per person-and you'll need some mechanism in place for keeping things honest. But, in the case of feedback, you can offer people an entry for each specific idea or unique comment with no limits. If you want to allow people the maximum freedom of expression-you'll want to tell people that multiple ideas and comments submitted at the same time will still qualify them for multiple entries (again, so they won't string out their feedback submissions just to create more entries). In that case, you'll need to rigorously and accurately track these-so people get the number Chapter 9 - Strategy #9: Create Excitement
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of entries that they're entitled to. As an alternative, you may want to ask people to submit unique ideas and comments separately to automatically create separate entries via email or the web. In all situations, you'll need to decide what will produce the best results for you-and create the greatest excitement for your clientele. Trade Show Attendance: A lot of what we've been discussing in this section applies equally as well to trade shows. And, again, we're talking about using a contest or drawing as an incentive to help build excitement, attract attention, and motivate people to take some action that you want them to take (rather than just a fishbowl drawing to collect business cards). So additionally, at a trade show, you might want to consider: Specific times for drawings that require people to be present to win (that is, return to your booth); a show special or package in which everyone who purchases it gets entered into a special drawing just for them; a "during trade show only" drawing that allows a small handful of people to attend a specially hosted training session (a benefit for them and a chance to tell your story); a drawing that's based on order size with an entry received for each "X" amount purchased of your products or services; or a contest with a grand prize for the largest number of referrals to your booth during the show (provide fill-out cards as we discussed in the "Refer-A-Friend" section above). Just focus on how you can offer the greatest incentives for the desired behavior, and you'll be on the right track. Recognition Awards People love to be recognized for what they've accomplished or for things that are important to them. And this is a great way to connect with customers/clients in a way that's meaningful. Recognition awards are different than simply using gifts in marketing because the recognition is focused squarely on your customer/client-and is not tied to a transaction. These could include things that are personal to them-but Chapter 9 - Strategy #9: Create Excitement
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generally, they are related to your business, such as length of time as a customer/client, high-volume buyers, achieving a level of accomplishment (such as completing a training program, implementation, or installation), for referring people to your business, or simply for customer appreciation. One grand example of recognition awards that were given for "customer appreciation" (but, on a much larger scale than usual and for obvious PR benefit)-was when Oprah Winfrey celebrated the premiere of her 19th season by giving away 276 new cars to each and every person in her audience. Now that's recognition! Recognition solely related to your customer/client could include birthdays, anniversaries, spouse's birthdays, kids' birthdays, and graduations---or some other recognition that's personal. It could even be recognition of their pets-if you happen to run a pet store. Be creative and use your imagination. People love to have others remember and recognize what's important to them. Southwest Airlines, for example, does a great job of sending its frequent-flyer club members a special birthday card as personal recognition. But I'd also recommend including some type of Recognition Award-in addition to the card. Don't you just love getting birthday presents? Wouldn't it be great to see a $20 gift certificate in your name included in the card (that's being sent anyway)-that's say, good towards the purchase of any flight within the next 60 days? Clubs and other rewards programs (including frequent-buyer punch cards) are often geared towards incentives that help generate new transactions for the business. But they often lack any recognition awards for customers, except for those who jump through the hoops to participate at higher levels by purchasing more frequently. It's a good idea to build in other awards that help keep people engaged in the program, reinforce their joining the program in the first place, and build the sense that you care about them. I can't tell you how many frequent buyer clubs I've joined where the only communication I get is focused Chapter 9 - Strategy #9: Create Excitement
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on the business and their promotions-with almost no recognition or acknowledgment of me, personally. Remember, recognition awards, as we're describing them here, are given independently from the transactional activity-and are not tied to purchases. They're meant to be in addition to those programs you may already have in place. And in some cases, you may be required to collect and track certain data and information, so you can implement the program. Here are some of the best Recognition Award choices: Gift Awards: This is the most common form of recognition award. Many businesses will offer a special item as a gift, cash, or a gift credit towards products or services because of a special occasion (like the recommended Southwest Airlines birthday example, above). Sometimes the "gift" is a discount or other similar coupon, but the problem with that is that it just doesn't seem as generous to your customer/client-even if the discount works out to more than the gift credit. It's better to give something specific, like a gift credit with a specific value or a particular extra service, rather than a discount. If you have a business that holds live events, seminars, or other trainings that people usually pay to attend, offering free attendance is also a great gift award. You may also want to consider gift certificates from other businesses-such as restaurants, department stores, mail-order catalog companies, or "indulgence" service providers, such as a day spa. This is often perceived as a much higher value because you had to go out and get it. (If you're dealing with a particular supplier on a regular basis, you may even be able to negotiate bulk-purchase discounts for these gift certificates.) Certificates. Plaques and Trophies: These most recognized of award items have the added appeal of the recipients being able to show them off and put them on display. Don't underestimate the recognition that certificates, plaques, or trophies bestow. It may seem a bit corny, but Chapter 9 - Strategy #9: Create Excitement
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people do still respond well and feel appreciated. And such items are relatively inexpensive compared to many recognition awards. Think about how you can combine these awards with others listed in this section. You may want to offer a plaque plus a gift certificate, for example, to give the recognition award added impact. Travel and Mini-Vacations: Obviously, these are high-end giftsand it would depend on the economics of your business relationship whether giving something of such high actual value would make sense. But if the transactional size of the business allows for this, you couldn't ask for a better way to create excitement and goodwill. Often, even a quick overnight weekend getaway can make a huge impression. And the many all-inclusive packages available make it easy to give something impressive while keeping the arrangements to a minimum. Good examples include a bed and breakfast, a mountain or beach lodge, a ski resort, a two-to-three-day cruise, a golf resort, or a wine-tasting tour. .sporting. Music Events or other Entertainment: Tickets for an evening out to a very popular event are great for recognition awards. The major drawback: If you're awarding an item that isn't part ofa contest or drawing (where the people were attracted to the tickets in the first place), then you may wind up with a recipient who's not a fan of the particular event. A way around this is to offer a choice in the award, but this doesn't have the same impact as someone holding the actual tickets in hand when they first receive the award. Even better would be to survey ahead of time to know a bit about your customers/clients' interests-and then custom tailor the recognition award to those interests. This is almost never done, unfortunately, except in cases with a limited clientele with lots of personal involvement, or with a select group of top clients that make it worthwhile to go to the time and effort to get acquainted with them. But technology tools are available where the appropriate data could be collected and personal interests tracked on a large scale. And you could Chapter 9 - Strategy #9: Create Excitement
Guerrilla prolits. 185 make this information a part of every customer/client record (see Chapter 10 - Strategy #10: Capitalize on Your Business's True
Wealth). Live Events As mentioned at the start of this chapter--one of the best ways to create excitement is through live events. They provide the highest levels of participation-and the greatest opportunity to get to know a number of customers/clients all at once, on a personal basis. An event must be interesting, enticing, and compelling enough to warrant someone interrupting his or her usual schedule, possibly traveling, and otherwise setting aside the time to attend. These events can be as simple as an intimate gathering of a dozen or two of your best customers/clients (or prospects)--or as elaborate as a huge circus tent in a stadium parking lot with parking for hundreds or even thousands. And in some cases, you can conduct a live event via teleconference or "webinar"-that is still very effective and requires no travel. To attract people, you'll want to make sure that your event has a clearly stated title and purpose. To create excitement, you'll need a good reason for people to show-up--and not have your event be perceived as just another sale. But you should absolutely use these events as a way to showcase your products or services-and give your customers/clients or prospects the chance to take advantage of special offers. Here are some excellent Live Event opportunities: New Product or Service Launch: Throw a party and invite your customers/clients. Have them bring spouses, friends, or business associates. Have demonstrations, activities related to the new product or service, or just a great chance to show-and-tell-while providing great food and entertainment. Of course, people should be offered the opportunity to purchase or book an appointment, but that shouldn't be the only focus. The main focus should be to educate, demonstrate, and Chapter 9 - Strategy #9: Create Excitement
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introduce something new with fanfare-while giving options for taking the next step should they choose to. Have special launch-only pricing, a charter member or buyer club with extra benefits, client-exclusive appointment schedule to choose from, or some of the other examples listed in the earlier Special Promotions section. For instance, a clothing store could hold a fashion show to reveal the latest arrivals; an equipment manufacturer might demonstrate a new piece of equipment (along with some kind of "take away value" and benefit, such as education or training, in addition to a special offer); an art gallery or gift shop could hold a reception to showcase its new additions; or a car dealership could host a new model test-drive at a local racetrack or in a stadium parking lot.
Completed Project Parties: Every time you complete a project, installation or assignment could be an ideal opportunity to-not only celebrate-but to create excitement that could lead to more business. This is also one of the easiest ways to generate larger-scale referrals than the usual one-by-one methods. The best use of this party isn't just to reward the client whose job has just been completed, it's to use it as an opportunity to show-off your work to other prospective clients who visit the new installation and get direct positive feedback and testimonials from your existing client. Because you're hosting the party, most clients will be agreeable about you inviting people to admire your work-and you'll also want to encourage your client to invite family, friends, neighbors or business associates (depending on the completed project, of course)-to the party who may be looking for a similar installation. This form of completed project party can be adapted to many services. For example, a computer network firm could throw an office party upon completion of an office network installation. Or, a contractor could host a house-warming party to celebrate a recently completed remodeling, room addition, or landscaping project-or a poolside party for a pool installation-and thereby get a chance to meet all the friends and neighbors who may also Chapter 9 - Strategy #9: Create Excitement
Guerrilla Prollts. 187 be interested in getting some work done. Office Remodel or Open House: Here's a chance to capitalize on a capital expenditure-and a great way to reward your existing customers/clients-as well as possibly re-activate old customers/clients with whom you haven't done business in a while. And because it's such a rare occurrence (after all, how often do you remodel?)--it's a perfect excuse to hold a live event. Of course, the same reason can be used for a store remodel, a major warehouse renovation, or a major equipment upgrade at a manufacturing facility. Holiday or Seasonal Events: Hold an event to celebrate a specific holiday or the season, such as a summer BBQ, harvest festival, holiday party, winter fest, first day of spring, and so on. Numerous holidays and seasonal events offer possibilities all year round-and sometimes more than one in a given month. Even though many businesses use marketing campaigns that reference specific holidays, few actually hold a live event that's planned specifically to Create Excitement-using the variety of methods and suggestions that we've been discussing. One winery that I know of holds a Harvest Festival BBQ and picnic with live entertainment as part of its wine club member-appreciation event-and members can also pick up their latest wine club selections. Give this some thought: How many ways can you tie your business into all the holidays or seasonal possibilities? Regular Entertainment or Activities: This is an easy way for certain types of businesses to generate additional traffic-and excitement-by hosting regular entertainment or activities. Some examples: A coffee house may have local musicians at certain times or even host a regular live-band night; an arts and crafts store can hold craft workshops for specific types of projects or for the kids; a bookstore might host book signings and "meet the authors" events; or a restaurant Chapter 9 - Strategy #9: Create Excitement
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can hold cooking classes. Although these examples are primarily skewed towards retail, if you have a different type of product business, a service business, or even a professional practice, you can adapt by using entertainment or activities as a draw for the occasional live events that you host. Customer Appreciation Events: We've discussed recognition awards and methods that don't necessarily involve a live event. But, using live events for customer appreciation, recognition, or as the finale to a contest are all great ways to Create Excitement. All of the possibilities we've been discussing can be used in various combinations to produce a unique event for your customers/clients, one that lets them know how much you care about them-and appreciate their business. You can also allow them to bring family and friends, depending on your budget-but the added benefit of attracting new people to your business will usually justify the expense (in addition to the goodwill that you build with your existing clientele). But a warning: Plan well. You want to make sure that your event is cohesive and runs smoothly, with the customer recognition done expressly and wholeheartedly. Also, take steps to create an environment for people to relax, feel good, and enjoy themselveswhile also offering clear ways for their family and friends to learn about the benefits of doing business with you-in a soft-spoken, easy, nonthreatening, but direct way. Interactive Ways to Create Excitement Many ways exist to be interactive with your customers/clients, and the Internet has made this even easier (even if impersonal). There are also many ways that you can have your customers/clients participate to create excitement. (Remember, we're defining excitement as "An environment with a heightened sense of interest, awareness, receptiveness, and responsiveness.") What we're seeking here is to merge the two and look for ways that the combination-interaction plus excitement-gives your clientele a unique experience. Chapter 9 - Strategy #9: Create Excitement
Guerrilla profits. 189 Let's start by considering what you do already. What types of interactions do you create now? Are you currently:
• Faxing customers a fax-back form to fill out? • Emailing them a survey to complete?
• Prompting them to a pre-recorded voice message? • Outbound-calling them?
• Voice-broadcasting your messages? • Providing instant messaging or chat on your web site?
• Visiting them at their places of business? • Holding teleconference calls with Q&A?
• Blogging on your web site? • Doing web-based polling with instant tallied results? As you can see, a number of ways exist use current technology plus tried-and-true methods. But, where this gets very interesting (and exciting) for your customers/clients is when you can craft promotions that really get them involved-and ask them to participate in more meaningful ways than just responding to a marketing message or sales pitch. These can take the form of:
• Having customers/clients involved in helping you design and create products or services they really want. • Rewarding them for specifically helping you improve your business through interactive surveys and feedback.
• Opening up a dialog with customers/clients to connect with them and give them an outlet to be heard (through Chapter 9 - Strategy #9: Create Excitement
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Guerrilla Profits a special email in box, a telephone hotline, open call-in phone sessions, or live online forums). • Offering an interactive live-operator function as part of your voice broadcast to get immediate response or feedback.
• Giving them an opportunity to submit their questions prior to a live teleconference call or seminar-and then specifically addressing those questions. • Allowing them to vote on and influence your product or service offerings-so you can get early feedback, prior to investing a large amount of your time, money or effort on it.
• Letting them choose from a select group of choices what content they'll receive in a publication, at a training session, or in your email communications. Be creative and use your imagination. People want to feel connected to the places they frequent. And, there's no better way to keep people coming back for more than by making them feel like they're involved with your business through interaction.
Getting Free Media Exposure and Other Coverage Here's where you can be the one who gets excited. Because, in many cases, you can leverage your Special Promotions, Contests & Drawings, Recognition Awards, and Live Events through the media or through a variety of publications and organizations. Whenever you create something that's newsworthy, of special interest, has human interest, or is otherwise notable, you can often get written up, thus giving you relatively low-cost exposure that helps attract people to your businessby including them in your Create Excitement activities. There are usually a good number of broadcast media, publications (newspapers, magazines, trade journals, newsletters, and so on), groups, associations, Chapter 9 - Strategy #9: Create Excitement
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and clubs in any given area that are always on the lookout for interesting things to bring to the attention of their readers, viewers, listeners, subscribers and/or members. And, if your business scope is greater than local-then regional, national, and even international outlets exist as well. Lots of books and training are available for business owners, managers and professionals to learn how to do PR themselves (public relations -or- publicity)-and of course, there are many firms that you can hire to do it for you. If you're with a larger company (which is more likely to be retaining a firm to handle this)-simply ask your PR firm which of your Special Promotions, Contests & Drawings, Recognition Awards, and Live Events it believes would be best to promote-and when the deadlines are to effectively use PR in the media they suggest. Then make sure that all your promotional materials and event details are submitted to your PR firm in a timely way-so it can submit the press releases and announcements to the appropriate outlets. (A significant lead-time is often required to be considered and make the deadlines for calendar sections in your local newspapers, for example). For those who intend to do publicity themselves, I'd recommend the following resources: 'PR Books:
• Guerrilla Publicity: Hundreds of Sure-Fire Tactics to Get Maximum Sales for Minimum Dollars by Jay Conrad Levinson, Rich Frishman, and Jill Lubin. • The Publicity Handbook, New Edition: The Inside Scoop from More than 100 Journalists and PR Pros on How to Get Great Publicity Coverage by David R. Yale.
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• Complete Publicity Plans: How to Create Publicity That Will Spark Media Exposure and Excitement by Sandra L. Beckwith. PR Training and Assistance: • Raleigh Pinskey - www.promoteyourself.com • Rick Frishman - www.rickfrishman.com • Jill Lublin - www.jilllublin.com Explore these books and resources-and consider all the ways you can Create Excitement in your own business or professional practicewhile harnessing additional free exposure through PRo You may be surprised at how a little effort in this channel can help yield results that are vastly greater than the effort that it takes. But it will require some learning, some planning, and some follow-through. But, keep in mind that getting free media exposure-or other free coverage-is the icing on the "excitement cake." The bulk of your focus should be on the excitement you can create with your prospects and your existing customers/clients-by using the methods we've been discussing in this chapter. Adapt and use as many of these methods and examples as possible to Create Excitement-and to help you generate even more Guerrilla Profits.
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ACTION POINTS • Create an environment with a heightened sense of interest, awareness, receptiveness, and responsivenessto help gain attention and attract people to your offerings. • Use Special Promotions to spice-up your usual offerswith new arrival announcements, inventory reduction, clearance, scratch-and-dent or private sales. • Hold Contests & Drawings to motivate people to respond or take a desired action-such as increase visits, respond in a specific way, refer-a-friend, or give feedback. • Give Recognition Awards-to connect with customers/ clients in a way that's a meaningful to them-and to help you build their loyalty and participation. • Host in-person, Live Events-one of the fastest and easiest ways to generate lots of interest, awareness, receptiveness, and responsiveness in a short amount of time. • Involve customers/clients and prospects with Interactive Ways to Create Excitement-and do things in a unique, unusual, or uncommon way for your business. • Get Free Media Exposure and Other Coverage for your promotional activities by creating something that's newsworthy, of special interest, or that has human interest.
Get the latest Methods, News & Updates. Go To: www.guerrillaprofits.com
Strategy #10: Capitalize on Your Business's True Wealth
he real "gold" in any business are the relationships you have with your customers/clients. These are the people who are loyal to you-and who keep coming back again and again-and will usually continue to come back unless something gets screwed-up, they move, they die, or a competitor steals them away from you with a better offer. These relationships are the true essence of your business. They are what feed you and make it possible for you to be in business. And, they are the measure of the true wealth that can be monetizedshould you ever decide to sell your business. That's why, when observing some businesses, I'm often appalled at the complete lack of a conscious effort to build their customer /client list in a methodical wayand to then use that information to their advantage on an ·
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ongoing basis. It seems as if they simply expect the customers who've shown up before (or prospects who've called, or replied)-will continue to do so again with no additional effort. That's rarely the case. You can't just take it for granted that because they buy from you now that they'll continue to do so. The importance of having and building a comprehensive list (database) of essential customer/client and prospect information--can't be overstated. As Jack Welch, the legendary former CEO of General Electric, has said, "Everything we do is aimed at either getting a customer or keeping a customer." Let me suggest that your database is what allows you to understand your customers so you can get more of them-and allows you to build loyalty so you can keep the ones you've got. Even the local coffeehouse can lose some people just because they want a change of scenery. But by building and using a customer list, the coffeehouse might spice things up a bit with announcements about new menu items and treats, or enticing events such as a live-music evening. But, more importantly, that list of their most loyal customers (which I'd venture to say that most coffeehouses don't have)-would add tremendous intrinsic value to the business itself-as well as Guerrilla Profits to the bottom line.
First of all ... You must collect information regularly as part of every transaction. You must gather that information into a central location (database) where it can be reviewed and segmented. Then you must be able to act on that information-and custom-tailor your messages to customers/clients based on their interactions with your business-and the major categories about them that you can identify. The previous few short sentences encapsulate an entire philosophy and business culture that few businesses achieve. Of course, if you have fewer than 10 clients, you can personally do this. But if you intend to Chapter 10 - Strategy #10: Capitalize on Your Business's True Wealth
Guerrilla Prollts. 197 have 50--0r you already have 100 or 1,000, or if you're a Fortune 500 company with global reach and hundreds of thousands of customer records to deal with--chances are you've already got some serious issues. The larger the organization, the more likely your approach is campaign driven. There may be several follow-up steps, but the effort is usually geared towards specific marketing goals or sales campaigns. Then customers or clients get relegated to an occasional follow-up status-or they just receive the more generic communications going forward that are sent to the entire "house list." What's generally missing is the whole notion of identifying people based on specific criteria-so you can categorize them for ongoing, targeted communications over time (like we've discussed in Chapter 3 Strategy #3: Boost Your Marketing Results-about knowing who they ~ and what they want-and also in Chapter 7 - Strategy #7: Recapture Lost Profit Opportunities-about your Lead Capture-to-Conversion Process). Call it "mass customization" in highly-target messages-to specific customer/client types. Categorizing can help group those who're most likely to be interested in items related to that subject, need, desire, product, or service. Let's be clear about our terms: A "customer list" is simply a form of database-with the most basic contact information. And a "real" database, generally, is an enhanced customer list. That can also be fairly simple-or it can include any types and quantity of information that can be collected in a manageable way. For solo entrepreneurs and smaller businesses, a real database could be collected into an application such as Outlook, Apple Mail or QuickBooks (which additionally allows the tracking of transactions along with customer data). Anything that allows you to have standard contact data....plus extra customized data fields (a specific category of data, such as "last name"). We'll discuss more robust database options a bit later on in this chapter. But, whatever tool you use Chapter 10 - Strategy #10: Capitalize on Your Business's True Wealth
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to collect and use your customer/client information-you'll want to make it a part of your business to build your database at every opportunity.
What data •... and how should you collect it? Short of a complete dossier on every individual who makes any form of contact with your business, you'll need to have a practical and realistic approach to what and when information is acceptable to ask for-and most likely to be received-given each circumstance. I can recall being asked for my complete contact information at Radio Shack (a good effort on its part) but resisting because I was paying cash for just a few batteries and was in a hurry. Now, I realize Radio Shack wanted to put me on its marketing list, but there was no incentive offered for me to do so--or explanation about what all the data would be used for. Such a request would come across much better if there were beneficial reasons (if not actual incentives) given for collecting different types of contact information. There could perhaps be different types of opt-in such as catalogs via mail (along with a coupon for 10% off your first purchase via the catalog)------or special private sales and exclusive discounts for people who receive the weekly "news flash" email. In those circumstances, people would be giving a much greater level of "buy in" to being included on the customer list-and would be inviting the sales messages via those communications channels. After all, you don't want to waste your time, effort and money on follow-up with people who aren't likely to be responsive. Another starting point I've seen that's less intrusive at the point of sale (with walk-in business)-is to ask for ZIP codes (postal codes) with the specific reason given that you want to know what areas people are coming from who shop or visit there. Once customers have given at least that initial bit of information, it's easier to take the next step and offer to put them on your mailing list. Mostly, when I've seen this done-there still wasn't any beneficial reason given except to receive announcements Chapter 10 - Strategy #10: Capitalize on Your Business's True Wealth
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and notices. It would be much better to give specific incentives and "sell" people on the benefits of being on your mailing list. Just keep in mind that-without specific incentives and benefits being provided through the communications channels you are collecting the data for-a sizable percentage of the information you receive will be bogus. (Sorry, folks, some people just don't want to be bothered. They just want to get their transaction done.) So it's very important to build in specific mechanisms that require customers to give you their correct contact information. This is especially true with email addresses. Many people now often have their "public" email address-and then their "real" private email address that they only give out selectively. I promise you, as a marketer, you'll be getting the public address. That's the one they only check occasionally (if at all). But, if you're giving them an incentive they really want, you'll possibly get their "real" email address. Contact through multiple methods When gathering data, consider giving customers multiple incentives to entice them to want to opt-in and give you a variety of ways for you to contact them. Depending on your type of business, these incentives could include: • Physical address-Mailed coupon book, printed report, or physically delivered premium • Email-Links to: PDF download, audio recording, or private web page-or specialized information directly via email • Phone--Free consultation, report of findings, or private sale • Fax-Weekly "hot sheet," requested information, or "flash" specials As mentioned, offering incentives helps you get their "real" data, Chapter 10 - Strategy #10: Capitalize on Your Business's True Wealth
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and giving them multiple incentives helps give you more accepted and approved, opt-in ways to contact them.
Tools of the trade With all the powerful computers and software available, you have many options for keeping your data together-from a simple spreadsheet to very complex database applications-to hosted, online web-based applications. The primary functions and features you'll want for any real database solution you might choose are: 1) To customize the individual fields to suit the data you'll be collecting 2) To import entire records and specific data fields into existing records
3) To sort, search on and export sub-sets of your total information-in a variety of formats 4) To create specific fields to track what customers have purchased or inquired about (including long notes). This should be something that makes it easy to get real work done-and that doesn't have too steep a learning curve. A personal favorite is FileMaker Pro, which is available for both PC and Mac: www.filemaker.com. Whatever tools you do choose, you can be fairly certain that it's light-years ahead of the old Rolodex--or 3-by-5 card system. There's just no excuse not to use these very powerful and relatively inexpensive ways to create your customer/client database. Chapter 10 - Strategy #10: Capitalize on Your Business's True Wealth
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Profiling Your Best Customers & Prospects Most information you'll encounter about "profiling" your customers/clients is skewed from the perspective of the advertising and list industries. These sources talk about things like "hypothetical demographic," ''predictive data mining," and "data enhancement." All of which are valuable marketing tools, but they are not where the Guerrilla Profits opportunities are for most businesses. The most useful concept to pull out of all this is: "Similar Others." Because armed with this information, you can leverage you current customers/clients in ways you may never have considered-in addition to attracting new ideal prospects. The basics A primary focus in marketing is to "profile" your current clientele-to create a demographic (characteristics such as age and gender) and psychographic (interests, attitudes, and opinions) modelthat you can use to attract prospects based on that model. Then to go out and use every type of media you can find-to attract others who are like them. This presumes that if you do attempt to find and specifically target those that fit your ideal profile, they will also be attracted to and interested in your offerings. It's hoped the media you choose will include a high probability of finding those prospects who are already expressing an interest in items similar to what you offer. For instance, an IT/tech offering might work well in Network World magazine as a display ad. And, if they wanted to find prospects who are local to them (versus attempting to market to all businesses in their area)-they might be able to select a segment of that magazine's list that's geographically desirable to reach using direct mail (see our discussion about "marketing through" and "marketing to" in Chapter 5 - Strategy #5: Change The Rules). The media itself may help you determine potential interest in a particular category of product or service. And usually, an advertising or Chapter 10 - Strategy #10: Capitalize on Your Business's True Wealth
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rentable list's Media Kit will include basic information, such as age, gender, geographic location, responder vs. buyer, and recent buyers or subscribers (known as "hotline buyers"). Sometimes, you'll be able to select a list based on occupation, job title, income, or marital status-and some might even have some behavioral data such as actions taken in response to other campaigns. Most response lists should have specific details about products or services purchased along with the exact price points-or ranges of prices paid. We can't get into all the nuances here about selecting the proper media or lists (and other issues like response vs. compiled lists). Needless to say, this is the guts of direct response marketing, and you'd be well served by learning all you can about it. (A great reference is Edward L. Nash's book, Direct Marketing: Strategy. Planning, Execution. ) Where this can get you in trouble Where this falls flat is in not really being able to know where your prospects are in terms of their Interests, Needs, and Desires-and also at what point they are in the Buying Cycle (that is, how close are they to making a purchase of your product or service). And beyond that, you need to ask yourself the question, "Are these prospects likely to become some o/my best customers/clients?" The match that's usually being made is between your product or service offer (or lead generation promotion)-and the prospects available through a particular media or list-with the expectation that a certain small percentage of them will be interested in your offer. While that works, and is a tried-and-true way to proceed, the danger is that those prospects you're attracting-and the process you're creating-may not be bringing you those who can become your best customers/clients. Rather than just focusing on having people respond (traditional marketing thinking)--consider up-front whom you ideally want to respond-and specifically target them with your messages (see the Chapter 10 - Strategy #10: Capitalize on Your Business's True Wealth
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section on segmenting your messages in Chapter 3 - Strategy #3: Boost Your Marketing Results). This one shift in focus by itself can transform the way you think about your marketing and your business. Marketing and business consultant Dan Kennedy cites the budget chain Motel 6 as a textbook example of being selective in targeting the clientele it can serve best-while avoiding those it cannot. It advertises for customers (such as traveling salespersons and budget-conscious families) who want a no-frills, no-services room, and nothing more-but at a price far lower than most motels. So, rather then over-promising, it lowers expectations by telling prospects they'll get a clean, comfortable room, and nothing more. This would fail to satisfy many other types of customers. But Motel 6 goes out of its way to let those more demanding folks know this is not where they should stay. It very deliberately segments the available market, matching its message with a target segment and, as Dan Kennedy says, "... talking to that segment in a way that it will like but that you know will be a big turnoff to the other segment. "
Asking the right questions Traditional profiling asks questions like: • Who are my customers/clients? • What do they need or want?
• What do they buy now? • Where can I find them?
• What will they respond to? But Guerrilla Profits profiling asks questions like:
• Who are my best customers/clients? Chapter 10 - Strategy #10: Capitalize on Your Business's True Wealth
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Guerrilla Profits • What do they have in common?
• How can I find more of them? • Why are they attracted to my business?
• What will keep them coming back? Attract The People You Want Life is too short to be dealing with people who are a pain. This can be applied to all types and sizes of businesses, not just solo entrepreneurs and small business owners-who are lifestyle-focused. The same principle applies to larger, employee-driven companies-because a handful of troublesome prospects and customers/clients can drain the time, energy, motivation and attitudes of even your best people. The difficulty with larger and more public businesses is that you can't control who walks in the door. However, you can have clear policies in place for dealing with "problem" customers to help limit their impact. For example, you can remove from your mailing list the names of customers/clients who repeatedly return things-because the cost to handle these customers can outstrip the profits generated by the few items they may keep. Or, you can monitor the customers/clients who generate the greatest number of service issues and complaints. Once you've been able to determine a pattern of abuse-and are certain your employees are not the cause-simply take steps to "flag" these people in your system and alert others in your organization. If you're lucky enough to be in a position to "fire" these problem customers/clients, you'll find that it can help improve morale for your employees who've had to deal with them-and will set the tone (and example) that you also care about your employees. But be careful The old adage, "The customer is always right" still applies (up to a Chapter 10 - Strategy #10: Capitalize on Your Business's True Wealth
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point). Employees must realize they are there to serve first-and solve problems whenever possible. But if you've got a customer/client who simply can't be satisfied, then-if you're able to in your businessliberate yourself by taking that customer/client aside and suggesting he or she may be able to get better served elsewhere. But on the Internet this may not be possible. Seth Godin has this to say about handling customers online: "This is the Internet age in which bloggers and news groups and Google can turn every act-positive or negative-into a recorded experience. That means every customer is 'a potential brand destroyer. ... or a potential brand builder. ' No person or no company can escape their past. The result: Treat every customer as though he could turn into a testimonial. Treat every vendor as if she could give you a recommendation. And then, when the time comes, the seeds you've sown will payoff." (p. 274, Small Is the New Big)
Most people will be fair-if you're fair with them. But for those few who aren't, you'll free up unproductive time if you don't have to deal with these "psychic vultures." If you are in a position to gracefully bow out of bad situations with toxic people-and can successfully cut them out-it can lead to higher productivity and higher profits. But that's not the main focus and purpose of this section.
Getting to the heart of the matter••. The real Guerrilla Profits point about profiling is: 1) How do you define and identify your best customers/clients and prospects? 2) How do you use that information to attract more Chapter 10 - Strategy #10: Capitalize on Your Business's True Wealth
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First of all, from your list of customers/clients, identify those who are in the top 25% of your buyers in each of several categories (most active, largest transaction sizes, largest total volume, most profitable, least service issues, and so on). Clearly define which combination of these qualities is most desirable for you. For example, someone who purchases often and does large volume with you but is only marginally profitable-may, or may not, be who you really want to attract now. Then again, that same customer could be ideal to have as a closeout buyer. Or, if you're a manufacturer, that customer might help carry your production base. Or, for a wholesaler, that high-volume, low-margin customer could help keep up certain volume requirements to get larger discounts. The same holds true for a retailer who attracts the "sale" and "coupon" buyers. It really is up to you to decide whom you do want. And, it is important to have a variety of different customer/client segments that you attract for different reasons. So, I'm suggesting that you use this profiling process to find those "ideal" customer/client segments that you defineso you can do two specific things: 1) Use those criteria to help attract prospects who share those characteristics (and, therefore, stand a chance of becoming some of your best customers/clients). 2) Be able to focus your efforts internally to increase business with your best customers/clients. Once you are clear about who your ideal target customer/client segments are (on your terms )-then you can use direct marketing to attract prospects with similar characteristics-and specifically target Chapter 10 - Strategy #10: Capitalize on Your Business's True Wealth
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those segments with your custom-tailored advertising, sales copy and messages. As an example, there are two letters that are part of a copywriting book by AWAI entitled, "Great Selling Ideas for 50 Super-Successful Direct Mail Letters and Direct Response Ads." These two letters in contrast-show very distinct language that seeks to bond with each very different target audience. Sample from the letter for Popular Mechanics magazine: "This invitation isn't for deadbeats, rip-off artists, or 'gentlemen' who hate to get their hands dirty. It sfor the rest of us. It sfor the average guy who works hard for a living (and wants to live better). Who knows the value of a buck. ... Who is willing to trade a few drops ofsweat for the chance to save big bucks. " Contrast that one with this sample from a promotional letter for the Oxford Club, a investment advisory service: "You have been chosenfrom a select list to receive an invitation to into what must be the world s most remarkable-and profitable-financial alliance. It s an alliance that includes many wealthy investors, financial experts, and extremely successful entrepreneurs... " Note the different language styles used in these two letter samples. Short, staccato words are used in the first example-to appeal to the doit-yourself crowd. And longer words and sentences and more sophisticated phrasing in the second one-that's aimed at serious investors. This contrast should be helpful in jumpstarting your own thought process-about distinct messages to use for the different segments in your business. Chapter 10 - Strategy #10: Capitalize on Your Business's True Wealth
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Tailoring Offers To Your Best Customers/Clients Most businesses completely underestimate the willingness and ability of their best customers/clients to buy from them-or use their services. Often the simple process of defining and identifying those people whom you do want (and what they have in common) will almost immediately bring to mind a myriad of ways you can custom-tailor your offers to them in a way that boosts the level of business you're doing together. You want to be mindful to come from your customers' /clients' perspective with these new offers. That is, think what they want from you rather than what you want from them. Asking yourself, "How will this serve them?"-is a good way to keep focused on what matters from your customers/clients perspective. There's no doubt that it's easier to generate additional business from customers who already know you and trust you-than from someone who's still deciding whether or not to do business with you in the first place. Re-shaping your internal marketing to specifically focus on segments of your existing customers/clients can be one of the most profitable ways to get better results (and you can have lots of fun with it). Be sure to offer them extra incentives-and focus your efforts on them as individuals. Take it to the next step Beyond what you can find out by examining the customer/client data in your own business or practice, the next step is to ask them. Survey your best customers/clients to not only get feedback for sales and marketing purposes-but to truly give them a hand in helping you shape and custom-tailor new offers. Ask for their input, feedback, opinions and suggestions. You'll be surprised at how much people want to have some say-so if they believe it will help them get more of what they really want from you. Michael Dell writes, "Our best customers act as leading indicators Chapter 10 - Strategy #10: Capitalize on Your Business's True Wealth
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for where the market is going and tip us off to ways of improving what we already do well. They raise the bar, encouraging us to continually evolve from a company that sells components of a solution to a company that provides the entire solution." While there are lots of ways to spend your day, "there s nothing more redeeming or refreshing than spending time with customers," Dell adds. "/ ask lots of questions, like: Are we doing a goodjob? How do you like our products? Our service?" Seeking customer input builds loyalty and recognition in ways that you can't do through marketing alone. Think about the launch of the Saturn automobile in 1990. Its motto was "A different kind of company, a different kind of car." Saturn values were communicated through its advertising. Saturn employees spoke a carefully selected language meant to emphasize a "new world" of cars, steeped in the best customer service practices of the travel, hospitality, and consumer retail industries, not necessarily the traditional car business. The result: Saturn inspired a "cult" following with annual gatherings of Saturn owners-as well as day-to-day special events in retail settings. Don't just ask leading questions meant to bring people to some logical marketing-contrived conclusion. This isn't meant to be a stunt. It's meant to be a way to really know what your customers/clients think, how they feel, and how you can better serve them. Use this information to enhance the customer/client data you already have for them as individuals.
The fallacy of the "hot" prospect We've come a long way together in this book-as we've covered the 10 Powerful Strategies of Guerrilla Profits. And, there are more profit-generating tools and resources for you-to help you capture that Extra Money to be found in your business-{}escribed in the next section: Bonuses, Free Gifts & Exclusive Offers. You can immediately access them all-by following the special web page URL that you'll be given. In addition, you can get the latest Chapter 10 - Strategy #10: Capitalize on Your Business's True Wealth
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methods, news and updates-by going to the Guerrilla Profits support web site at: www.guerrillaprofits.com I'd like to leave you with one additional thought for now about your existing customers/clients-versus your prospects-that can help you Capitalize on Your Business's True Wealth. Be careful about not falling into the "grass is always greener" trap when marketing to the pUblic. Once you've clearly defined and identified your ideal customer/client segments, there's an underlying facet of human nature to deal with: The feeling that a customer or client you may have now isn't as good as that next, bright, shiny, "hot" prospect. Rather, adopt a relentless internal focus-to highly develop the individual relationships with your existing customers, plus a constant, ongoing external focus-to "prime the pump" with new prospects that could potentially become some of your best customers. The best return on your investment of time, energy and resources will most often come from the combination of using all the Guerrilla Profits strategies and methods you can-to help increase your profitability and cashflow. Decide now to take action and get involved with Guerrilla Profits in your business. Find your Profit Leverage Points .... create a strong Web of Profits .... and begin to think differently about your business or professional practice every day.
Chapter 10 - Strategy #10: Capitalize on Your Business's True Wealth
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Strategy #10:
Capitalize on Your Business's True Wealth
ACTION POINTS • Build a comprehensive list (database) of essential customer/client and prospect information-to help you understand your clientele and to help you build loyalty. • Use specific incentives and benefits that you provide through the communications channels you are collecting data for-so you will receive your prospect's correct data. • Get to know about your prospects Interests, Needs, and Desires-and also at what point they are in the Buying Cycle (how close are they to making a purchase).
• Attract The People You Want to your business-and consider up-front who your ideal prospects are .... and who are likely to become your best customers/clients. • Profile your customers and prospects to discover segments of Similar Others-then target those segments with your custom-tailored advertising, sales copy and messages.
• Custom-tailor Offers To Your Best Customers/Clientsand also ask for their input, feedback, opinions and suggestions to help you shape and custom-tailor new offers. • Develop a relentless internal focus-to build the relationships with your existing customers, p~ an ongoing external focus-to "prime the pump" with new business.
Get the latest Methods, News & Updates. Go To: www.guerrillaprofits.com
Guen1111 Prints. xxiv
Your Secret Combination to Unlock The Vault ... Bonuses, Free Gifts & Exclusive Offers
"How Much Extra Money per month in your Business would Completely Change Your Life?" by Stuart Burkow President, Guerrilla Profits International
ometimes in business, all that stands in the way between you and your dream life are a few specific strategies, tactics and methodsthat YOU ACT ON. Reading this book is one thing. Getting started and then taking that action is a completely different subject. And, that's the purpose of these additional profitgenerating tools and resources I'll be describing in this section of the book: To help jumpstart your success. If you haven't read this book yet-then please start in the front. All the Bonuses, Free Gifts & Exclusive Offers in the world won't mean anything
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to you if you don't have the background on their use and their purpose. You'll be doing yourself a huge disservice-and will greatly reduce your profit potential. These bonuses and gifts are part of a complete "package"-and will have much less meaning and effect-if used prior to you beginning to truly read (not just skim) Guerrilla Profits. Start reading the book first. Your Reasons for Success... True entrepreneurs are a particular breed of people. For some, there's such a strong, burning desire to accomplish and build-out their vision-that nothing else compares to that passion. They are someone who is willing to take a risk-and put it all on the line-to accomplish their goals and vision. However, this is NOT the majority of people in business. You may simply be in business as a way to take charge and control your own destiny-and you have the confidence to produce better-thanemployment returns on your efforts. Or, your professional practice is the result of years of dedication to your profession-and you want nothing more than build up a satisfied and loyal clientele. Maybe you're part of a company that is willing to support learning and implementing new strategies and methods to generate extra profits. Or perhaps, circumstances are requiring that you choose self-employment-and you need to make a go of it. Then again, you may be thinking that you'll eventually start your own business-and you want to learn all you can now. Whatever your reasons for being attracted to this book and the whole new category of Guerrilla Profits-you have demonstrated your interest in alternative, new ways to Increase Cashjlow, Boost Earnings and Get More Business. So the natural next step is for you to decide that you want to harness the full potential of Guerrilla Profits in your business or practice (or your start-up). And, then--decide what your target goal is-in terms of extra money per month that could completely change the dynamics of your life. Now, that's something to shoot for. Bonuses, Free Gifts & Exclusive Offers
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What is that number for you? Is it $3,000 more per month? .. .is it $5,000 more? ... or, $1O,000? Maybe, for your business or practice that number is $50,000, or even $100,000 .... or more-in extra money
generated per month that's yours to keep or do with as you please-that will truly change your life. For larger businesses, these numbers may still seem too low. For start-ups, you may be happy to see results at the lower end of the spectrum. But, regardless of which number is right for you-simply decide now to fully utilize and implement Guerrilla Profits to help you achieve your target goal. That's the key. And that's also the exact purpose of the Bonuses, Free Gifts & Exclusive Offers ....to help you get started towards the profit results you want in your business or practice. The Web Site holds the Key to your Bonuses & Gifts At GuerrillaProfits.com-through a special web page URL (details in a moment)-that's where you'll have access to:
• Fast-Start Guide-to help you get a step-by-step jumpstart at the members-only, private section of the web site.
• Audio Introduction-mp3 audio download that I did with Jay Conrad Levinson gives a Guerrilla Profits overview.
• Contact and Promotional Letter Templates-referenced throughout the book, are all archived for your use.
• Extra bonus Profit Articles-to give you additional detail and insight to expand on.... and add to the book topics.
• Online Interactive Training Program-will take your profit awareness to the next level-through a series of steps and exercises designed to get you started with Guerrilla Profits implementation in your business. Bonuses, Free Gifts & Exclusive Offers
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• Guerrilla Profits Alert Service-sent via email and fax will give you the most timely, up-to-date information, news, announcements and details about Guerrilla Profits. It is the lifeline to keep you in the loop and informed. • The Guerrilla Profits Letter (printed monthly newsletter via mail)-gives you the extra edge needed-by providing you information that's not released to the public, exploring more advanced methods, and by giving you added detail beyond what's covered in this book.
A Comprehensive Guerrilla Profits Experience Remember, earning profits is about more than just the difference between income and expenses-or cost-cutting to maintain your margins. It's about focusing on the innovative, alternative, and more effective activities that produce higher profit margins-and that generate more business for you. Guerrilla Profits is all about learning and then using these Unconventional Methods to increase Profitability and Cashjlow. And that's where your free trial to the Guerrilla Profits Letter (sent via mail)-can help you the most. It's the insider's information that supplements and expands on this book. Once you've set-up your web site access login account-and have signed-up to receive all your bonusesyou'll be rushed the current month's Issue of the Guerrilla Profits Letter as soon as it's "off the press." This is a monthly subscription newsletter-and you'll receive an Exclusive Offer to continue your subscription at a preferred Charter Subscriber Rate-or you may simply cancel after your free trial, with no obligation. As part of your trial, you'll also receive a separate envelope via mail-with some very special extra bonuses: Three critically important Profit Reports (these three reports alone are valued at $87, priced at $29
Bonuses, Free Gifts & Exclusive Offers
Guerrilla Prollts • xxviii each). I only ask that you cover a very small amount for postage-and these three valuable, printed and mailed Profit Reports are yours:
Profit Report #1: "The 3 Easiest Alternative Ways to Get New Customers or Clients Fast" Profit Report #2: "The Single Biggest Reason why most Internet Marketing Plans Fair' (and what you can do about it) Profit Report #3: "Getting Things Done while maintaining your Sanity and a Balanced Life" You'll need to go to the following special web page URL (link)where you'll set-up a login account for web site access-and will signup to receive all your bonuses and gifts, at:
gifts.guerrillaprofits.com (no "www" needed) If you go to the web site directly (without using this speciallink)there are additional resources for you that will be updated periodically. But, you can only access these Book Reader Bonuses & Gifts by following this URL. All together, the Bonuses, Free Gifts & Exclusive Offers are easily worth hundreds of dollars (if we put a price tag on everything)but it terms of what they can do to help you....their real value could very well be the target profit goal you've set for yourself. They can also help propel you to action-to get those results you want in your business. Bonuses, Free Gifts & Exclusive Offers
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Additional Options For Those Who Want More On an extremely limited and highly selective basis-I'll personally work with a handful of clients to help them achieve results in three ways: 1) Profits Critique: This is intended to focus on a specific Advertising and Marketing campaign or process within your business-and all related marketing materials, the series and sequences you use .... your conversion steps .... and any related or missed profit opportunities. 2) Premier Profits Consulting: When you want to work on specific Profit Issues or Projects-this is the best choice for getting some real work done. In addition to your specific areas of focus, and as part of this process-you'll receive a dynamic and powerful 70-Point Profit Assessment. 3) Complete Company Profits Makeover Program: This is a very in-depth, 12-month program that is meant to literally transform your entire company's profitability. It is geared towards growth-oriented businesses that are already doing significant sales (and is a very hands-on, high-impact program).
Please keep in mind that I'm doing this to give some structure to the requests I get for help-and so I can carve out enough time. Mostly, I'm taking care of running my own business-and must be careful not to overbook my schedule. I've got more on the line by taking time away from my own business to help you-than this type of service work could ever produce for me. But, I do love doing it, on occasion, and I love working with great clients who value my contribution. It's also a good way for me to add some variety-and helps keep my Guerrilla Profits focus sharp. For complete details go to:
www.kingofprofits.com Bonuses, Free Gifts & Exclusive Offers
Guerrilla Prents.
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You'll also find an additional offer from Jay Conrad Levinson (on the 2nd to last printed page of this book)-to join and participate in the Guerrilla Marketing Association. That's where you'll be able to get additional insights from .... and involvement with the Father of Guerrilla Marketing-with live weekly teleclasses and monthly Insider's Reports. This is available through Jay's members-only web site at: www.guerrillamarketingassociation.com So, let's get started You'll be in the best position to put the Guerrilla Profits methods into action-and to grow your business profits-by going to the web site now to sign-up and access all your extra Bonuses, Free Gifts & Exclusive Offers-at: gifts.guerrillaprofits.com. And, I'll look forward to hearing from you about your success story...
Stuart Burkow, The "King of Profits" www.kingofprofits.com Guerrilla Profits Intemational 7486 La Jolla Blvd. #251 La Jolla, CA 92037 USA Voice: 1-858-597-0055 Email:
[email protected] Bonuses, Free Gifts & Exclusive Offers
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Reference & Resource Directory
Books: Abraham, Jay, Getting Everything You Can Out of All You've Got (St. Martin's, 2000) Alessandra, Tony, and O'Connor, Michael, The Platinum Rule: Discover the Four Basic Business Personalities-and How They Can Lead You to Success (Warner Books, 1996) AWAI copywriting book, "Great Selling Ideasfor 50 SuperSuccessful Direct Mail Letters and Direct Response Ads." Beckwith, Sandra L., Complete Publicity Plans: How to Create Publicity That Will Spark Media Exposure and Excitement (Adams Media, 2003) Carlzon, Jan., Moments of Truth (Collins, 1989) Cialdini, Robert, Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion (Collins, 1998) Dell, Michael, and Fredman, Catherine, Direct from Dell: Strategies that Revolutionized an Industry (Collins, 2006) Godin, Seth, Small Is the New Big (Penguin, 2006) Hatch, Denny, Million Dollar Mailing$ (Bonus Books, 2001)
Reference & Resource Directory
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Jellison, Jerald M., Managing the Dynamics of Change: The Fastest Path to Creating an Engaged and Productive Workplace (McGraw-Hill,2006)
Kennedy, Dan S., How to Succeed in Business by Breaking All the Rules (Dutton, 1997) Kennedy, Dan S., The Ultimate Sales Letter (Adams Media, 2006) Kim, W. Chan, and Mauborgne, Renee, Blue Ocean Strategy: How to Create Uncontested Market Space and Make Competitors Irrelevant (Harvard Business School Press, 2005) Levinson, Jay Conrad; Frishman, Rick; and Lubin, Jill, Guerrilla Publicity: Hundreds of Sure-Fire Tactics to Get Maximum Sales for Minimum Dollars (Adams Media, 2002) Nash, Edward L. Database Marketing: The Ultimate Marketing Tool (McGraw-Hill, 1993) Nash, Edward L, Direct Marketing: Strategy, Planning, Execution (McGraw-Hill, 2000) Peters, Tom, Thriving on Chaos (Knopf, 1987) Slywotzky, Adrian, and Wise, Richard, How to Grow When Markets Don t (Warner Business, 2004) Sugarman, Joe, The Adweek Copywriting Handbook (Wiley, 2006) Yale, David R., The Publicity Handbook, New Edition: The Inside Scoop from More than 100 Journalists and P R Pros on How to Get Great Publicity Coverage (McGraw-Hill, 2001)
Reference & Resource Directory
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Books-Advertising Classics: How to Write Advertising That Sells, by Clyde Bedell Tested Advertising Methods, by John Caples The Robert Collier Letter Book, by Robert Collier The First Hundred Million, by E. Haldeman-Julius Scientific Advertising, by Claude Hopkins Ogilvy on Advertising, by David Ogilvy
Database Software: FileMaker Pro - Complete relational database system (PC and Mac) www.filemaker.com
Web sites I Online Resources: Remember, these listings are not a specific endorsement for these sites and/or companies. You'll need to do your own due diligence to determine if any of these providers are right for you. Chapter 1 • Mystery shoppers www.mysteryshop.org www.shopreports.com Federal Trade Commission (FTC) consumer alert entitled "The Secrets of Mystery Shopping Revealed," available at:
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www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/pubs/alerts/mysteryalrt.htm Chapter 2• Point-of-Checkout Examples
www.apple.com
www.amazon.com
www.godaddy.com
www.crateandbarrel.com
Chapter 5• Publications & Media
www.mediafinder.com
www.srds.com
www.oxbridge.com
www.ulrichsweb.com
• Response & Compiled Lists
www.infousa.com
www.harrisinfo.com
www.edithroman.com
www.salesgenie.com
www.epostdirect.com
www.hoovers.com
• Paid association directory
www.marketingsource.comlassociations • Free online group, association & business directories
www.google.comlTop www.google.comlToplBusinesslDirectories www.google.comlToplReferencelDirectories www.ipl.org www.ipl.org/div/aon www.businesstown.comlassociations/index.asp Reference & Resource Directory
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Guerrilla Prollts www.asaecenter.org/Directories/AssociationSearch.cfm www.dmoz.org www.dmoz.org.Business/Directories www.dmoz.orglReference/Directories www.knowthis.comlgroups/tradelocators.htm www.ourcommunity.com.auldirectory (Australia only)
• Trade Shows, Conferences, and Expos www.eventseye.com
www.expocentral.com
www.biztradeshows.com
www.allconferences.com
• Public Relations / Publicity www.prweb.com
www.send2press.com
www.24-7pressrelease.com
www.businesswire.com
www.pmewswire.com
www.intemetnewsbureau.com
• Events / Festivals / Outdoor Retail www.festivals.com
www.fleamarketguide.com
www.festivalfinder.com www.dmoz.org/Arts/Crafts/Events
• Online Discussion Groups & Forums www.dmoz.org/Computers/UsenetINewsgroup_Directories groups.google.com groups. yahoo. com
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www.newsdemon.com
• Adult Extension Classes and Courses www.leamingannex.com dir.yahoo.comJEducation/Adult_and_ Continuing_Education www.worldwide.edulindex.html www.edu411.org
Chapter 6• Promoter Examples The Daily Reckoning - www.dailyreckoning.com Early To Rise - www.earlytorise.com The Oxford Club - www.investmentu.com
Chapter 7• Live Support Operators www.activelive.com
www.zifftalk.com
www.boldchat.com
www.liveperson.com
Chapter 9• PR Training and Assistance Raleigh Pinskey - www.promoteyourself.com Rick Frishman - www.rickfrishman.com
Jill Lublin- www.jilllublin.com
Reference & Resource Directory
xxxvii •
Guerrilla ProDts
Index 2-Step 22
Bundles 35, 78-83
7 Common Transaction Methods
Buyers Club 29, 30, 55 Buying cycle 202
22
Buying frequency period 146,
A
149
Add-ons 22, 23, 35, 40, 116 Advertising and marketing theme
c Complaints 4, 204
71 After-hours 15
Completed project parties 186
Alternative markets 101, 108,
Conferences 8, 11,98,99, 107,
109, 132 Alternative Method, Media & Market Combinations 98, Ask+Gift Approach 149, 150,
Conversion 20,24,39,41,91, Cookies 26, 43, 44 Coupons 22,23,35,41,64,132
151 Associations 96, 97, 100, 102106, 108 11
B Barriers to entry 1, 158 Bonuses 34,36,83, 85, 165, 166 Bounce-backs 34, 35 Brochures 53-55, 95 Index
Contests 177-1 79, 190 140, 142, 153
100
Author Bios
128
Creative Borrowing 55, 56, 57 Critical First Points of Contact 2, 6, 7, 11, 12 Cross-Sells 22,23, 25, 26, 35 Culture of change 88 Customer appreciation 182, 188 Customer chum 147 Customer service 65, 121, 209
Guerrilla Profits •
D Database 14,27,30,43, 141, 196-200 Dedicated promotions 115, 124, 125 Definition: Guerrilla Profits vi Demos 22 Directories 102-106 Direct marketing 35, 43, 55, 206 Down-sells 33 Drawings 177-181, 190 Due diligence 103, 122 Dunning sequence 49
xxxviii
Good-until-cancelled 27-31, 34, 164 Grabbers 51 Guerrilla Marketing 54
H Harness your competitors 90 Hidden Benefit 52, 53, 70 Hidden Revenue Sources 152, 153 High-impact marketing 49, 50, 51 Higher prices 65, 67-70, 75-80
Inbound conversion 20
E
Inbound inquiries 40, 79
Employee attitude 8
Incentives 34-36,37, 108,167, 174,179-182,199,200 Indulgence 84, 166, 175, 183
Exclusivity 68, 69 Expert 75, 76 Expos 21, 107
F Festivals 21, 107 Free gifts 157, 165, 169 Free media exposure 190, 192
G Gatekeeper 95, 102 114, 115 Gift awards 183 Giving Referrals 114, 123-132, 135, 158
Inserts 35,53-55,132,161 Interactive 12, 174, 188-190 Interests, Needs, and Desires 202 Inventory reduction 176 Irresistible offers 70, 79 IVR - Interactive Voice Response 12-16,43
J Joint-venture 95, 115-117, 134 N partner 117, 118-122, 133,
154, 162 Index
xxxix •
Guerrilla Prolils
L Law of Reciprocity 51, 161, 162 Lead Capture-to-Conversion Process 141, 150, 153 Lead generation 91, 167, 169, 178 List Brokers 103 Live events 174, 183, 185-188 , 190 Loss leaders 167-170 Loyalty 28, 29, 66, 67, 78, 196, 209
M Mailing list 144, 165, 198, 199, 204 Marketing Channel 179, 199 Marketing pipeline 57 Marketing through 94-97 Matching Offers to Markets 109 Membership 29,30 Message Benefit Theme 71 Multi-Step 22, 42, 72 Mystery shopping 7
N
Office visits 178 On-hold 14 Online ordering 24 Open House 187 Order Confirmation Messages 24 Outbound sales 21 Outdoor retail 21, 100, 107 Outside Products and Services 114-123, 125, 154 Outside sales 9
p Package Deals 35, 36, 78-84 Physical offer devices 132 Positioning 62, 68, 79 Posted hours 15 Premium pricing 64, 83 Price shoppers 64, 65 Product and Service Lifecyc1es 140, 145, 146 Profiling 201-206 Profit Leverage Points xvii, xix, 210 Profit Sources xviii, xix Promotions 10, 114-117, 174-177 Publicity 106, 107, 190-192
Non-media marketing 53
o
Q
Offer match 110
Quality 63, 71, 145
Index
Guerrilla Profits
R
T
Reciprocal Gifting 158-161, 169 Reciprocal Lead Swap Deal 92 Recognition Awards 181-184 Refer-a-Friend 179, 180
Tailoring offers 208 Templates 5
Referral partners 125-132 Relationships 29,95, 118, 127, 195
8
xl
Testing 44,45, 101, 170 Top 10 Items to Test 45 Tracking 6, 40-44, 129, 197 Trade Shows 10, 11, 107, 181 Training 5-7, 191, 192
Response barrier 72
Trials 22,23, 157, 163
5
u
Sales 5, 9, 12, 13, 21, 24, 32, 33, 41, 125, 176, 177
Unconverted leads 91,92,154 Unlikely bonus match-ups 166
Salespeople 9, 10
Up-Sells 22, 23, 26, 35
Sampling 157, 163 Scratch-and-Dent 176
V
Scripts 5, 21 Seasonality 78
Vendors 132-136 VIP Club 30
Segmenting 46, 96, 153
Voicemail 12, 13
Selecting your customers 63
w
Selling Down the Line 32 Sequence marketing 48-50 Series marketing 41, 42, 48-50 Similar others 201 Specialist 75-77
Web of Profits xix, 210
Statistics 39-43 Suppliers 132-136 Surveys 161, 189
Index
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