Turning a Disaster into an Opportunity

arfasaira · 09-04-2011, 03:50 PM

I've just moved into my new house with my two kids - and I'm loving the fact that I have my own space...but only three days in and disaster struck...

My two year old woke up bright and early this morning while I was still in the land of nod...and found one of my red lipsticks and proceeded to scribble all over the carpet

Now, for the life of me, I couldn't get it out of the carpet - I tried everything from washing powder to soap to nail varnish remover. The damn thing wouldn't budge, so I got online and looked up a local carpet cleaner.

Bless him, he came straight away and had the stains out in less than 10 minutes. Now here's the thing. When I looked this guy up, I was looking for someone who specialized in difficult stain removal and whose work was insured.

The Google search I did meant trawling through several pages to find him and his website was TERRIBLE. Badly put together, bad design, spelling mistakes - the LOT!

So, not being one to waste an opportunity, I offered him a coffee and we got chatting about his website. I quizzed him on all aspects of his site, from the design and copy to the SEO and how he was marketing himself.

And so now, I have an order for re-doing his website completely, re-writing his copy and doing his SEO (this will of course be outsourced, and I just make money for doing nothing but re-writing his content). He has also agreed to a monthly retainer for SEO and Google places listings.

Not bad for an initial disaster

So what can YOU learn from this? I've seen so many newbies asking about client acquisition, and here's the thing: If you're not already, you NEED to start being an opportunist.

I never waste any time asking the right questions, doing my homework and grabbing as much opportunity as I possibly can. Put it this way, if I don't take the time to market my business, no one else will.

I've got several offline clients who have me on retainer (yes, some of these requests are very small, but guess what? They ALL add up and means I have work on a regular basis).

And this is where newbies can take some inspiration. Getting clients isn't that hard because there are opportunities absolutely everywhere you look. Local businesses such as health professionals, lawyers and professional services all have money to spend AND need good copy. Approach them directly - face to face is always better than over the phone.

Make the attempt to get to know them and perhaps sample their services and more importantly, ASK if they need help advertising and marketing. If you don't ask, you don't get - it's as simple as that.

ewenmack · 09-04-2011, 04:25 PM

Arfa, I think you set him up by planting the lipstick stain
and doing your homework on the guy.

Whatever happened, it worked!

Best,
Ewen

arfasaira · 09-04-2011, 04:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ewenmack

Arfa, I think you set him up by planting the lipstick stain
and doing your homework on the guy.

Whatever happened, it worked!

Best,
Ewen

lol! If only I was so devious!

I wish I'd taken a snapshot of Amaan (the gorgeous monkey in my avatar) as he had lipstick all over his mouth and cracked me up!

ewenmack · 09-04-2011, 04:45 PM

Oh no...hope he's not developing gay tendencies!

Best,
Ewen

Mark Andrews · 09-04-2011, 04:57 PM

He ruined my lipstick!

arfasaira · 09-04-2011, 05:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ewenmack

Oh no...hope he's not developing gay tendencies!

Best,
Ewen

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pete Walker

He ruined my lipstick!

lol, you guys are too funny!

Yes unfortunately, he knows how to wear lipstick, eyeliner and powder! And he is only 2!

Oh and he once saw me putting nail varnish on so decided to paint the kitchen floor with a brand new bottle of (rather expensive) gold nail varnish...

phillimac · 09-04-2011, 05:17 PM

Congrats, glad to see you got a good outcome from all of this. I bet the guys happy he's getting a decent site now.

Hugh Thyer · 09-04-2011, 05:52 PM

I'm going to put together a product right now for web developers to get new clients.

For $97 they're going to get a script and a tube of lipstick.

ewenmack · 09-04-2011, 06:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hugh Thyer

I'm going to put together a product right now for web developers to get new clients.

For $97 they're going to get a script and a tube of lipstick.

You're forgetting the racy lingerie, the instructions on how to lick one's lips,
a twirl of the hair and the batting of the eye lashes.

Response rate now 100%.

You're on to a winner here Hugh!

Best,
Ewen

Mark Andrews · 09-05-2011, 06:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ewenmack

You're forgetting the racy lingerie, the instructions on how to lick one's lips,
a twirl of the hair and the batting of the eye lashes.

Response rate now 100%.

You're on to a winner here Hugh!

Best,
Ewen

I've got just the costume here for you. And if you need instructions how to apply lipstick to a grizzly chin, this can be supplied too. At a cost of course.

Although I will give away this free tip... being the kind 'lady' that I am.

If you've got hairy legs and want to make them smooth and beautiful like mine for your fishnets, buy a roll of gaffa tape, apply to the leg and rip off quickly. Works every time! Try it for yourself Hugh!

I'm still working on Malcolm Lambe to join the club, if you get in now Hugh, we could have a threesome.

No, that kind of threesome ya dirty minded bug***!

Pete bats his own eyelashes seductively.

gjabiz · 09-05-2011, 08:43 AM

which is very annoying to people who don't want to join the club...but basically, they teach people to solicit ANYONE who comes within 3 foot (PLEASE MLMers, no need to take offense if your group doesn't teach this, OK?)

The point is:

You can't get hired if people don't know what you do...people who COULD hire you.

arfasaira, GREAT STUFF HERE...thanks.

gjabiz

Quote:

Originally Posted by arfasaira

So, not being one to waste an opportunity,

a monthly retainer for SEO and Google places listings.

you NEED to start being an opportunist.

if I don't take the time to market my business, no one else will.

Getting clients isn't that hard because there are opportunities absolutely everywhere you look. Local businesses

EricMN · 09-07-2011, 04:09 PM

What a fantastic opportunity!

This thread's also hilarious.

Another good idea for any college students out there who are thinking of venturing into the land of copy. Does your landlord own more than one house? Are they making a business out of renting houses? What a fantastic way to live for free if you just help him out with your skills!

I really wish I thought of it while I was still in school =(

wchin · 09-08-2011, 01:30 AM

Thanks for sharing that. I love to write, but am very shy to talk to people, or share anything about the thing that I know, cause I'm afraid that they might laugh at me, or might say I'm not good on what I'm doing now.

That also let me learn that when ever something bad happen, it might be another turning point. God has and will always arrange a way to help us in life.

cheers,

arfasaira · 09-08-2011, 05:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wchin

Thanks for sharing that. I love to write, but am very shy to talk to people, or share anything about the thing that I know, cause I'm afraid that they might laugh at me, or might say I'm not good on what I'm doing now.

That also let me learn that when ever something bad happen, it might be another turning point. God has and will always arrange a way to help us in life.

cheers,

No need to be shy - just be yourself! People love to talk about their business - so that's a great place to start. Ask questions about THEM and their business and naturally angle your discussion towards your area of expertise.

As long as you don't appear pushy or forceful, you should be fine.

And remember, no one will laugh at you unless you don't know what you're talking about. Most people (like in the case of this carpet cleaner) are glad that they've found the solution to their problems - so sell yourself in the best possible light without being pushy or sounding like you're a know it all.

best
Arfa

jetcaptain · 09-08-2011, 09:01 AM

I've found that the first step towards being successful in ANYTHING is to be able to comfortably talk about it and explain it to a total stranger. When I was getting started in local search marketing, I would practice my lingo by starting up a conversation with a total stranger and see if I could get him or her interested in my business, not necessarily in using my services. Great practice and confidence builder!

09-04-2011, 03:50 PM	#1
arfasaira The Copy Magnet War Room Member Join Date: May 2010 Location: UK Posts: 480 Thanks: 669 Thanked 327 Times in 176 Posts Social Networking Contact Info	Turning a Disaster into an Opportunity I've just moved into my new house with my two kids - and I'm loving the fact that I have my own space...but only three days in and disaster struck... My two year old woke up bright and early this morning while I was still in the land of nod...and found one of my red lipsticks and proceeded to scribble all over the carpet Now, for the life of me, I couldn't get it out of the carpet - I tried everything from washing powder to soap to nail varnish remover. The damn thing wouldn't budge, so I got online and looked up a local carpet cleaner. Bless him, he came straight away and had the stains out in less than 10 minutes. Now here's the thing. When I looked this guy up, I was looking for someone who specialized in difficult stain removal and whose work was insured. The Google search I did meant trawling through several pages to find him and his website was TERRIBLE. Badly put together, bad design, spelling mistakes - the LOT! So, not being one to waste an opportunity, I offered him a coffee and we got chatting about his website. I quizzed him on all aspects of his site, from the design and copy to the SEO and how he was marketing himself. And so now, I have an order for re-doing his website completely, re-writing his copy and doing his SEO (this will of course be outsourced, and I just make money for doing nothing but re-writing his content). He has also agreed to a monthly retainer for SEO and Google places listings. Not bad for an initial disaster So what can YOU learn from this? I've seen so many newbies asking about client acquisition, and here's the thing: If you're not already, you NEED to start being an opportunist. I never waste any time asking the right questions, doing my homework and grabbing as much opportunity as I possibly can. Put it this way, if I don't take the time to market my business, no one else will. I've got several offline clients who have me on retainer (yes, some of these requests are very small, but guess what? They ALL add up and means I have work on a regular basis). And this is where newbies can take some inspiration. Getting clients isn't that hard because there are opportunities absolutely everywhere you look. Local businesses such as health professionals, lawyers and professional services all have money to spend AND need good copy. Approach them directly - face to face is always better than over the phone. Make the attempt to get to know them and perhaps sample their services and more importantly, ASK if they need help advertising and marketing. If you don't ask, you don't get - it's as simple as that.
	One-on-one coaching: Earn up to $60,000 a year writing for local businesses from home! "Arfa's copy ... generated a total revenue of $4,253in the first 5 days, with a conversion rate of a whopping 19%" Get Your Own Kick-Ass Converting Copy Here!

09-04-2011, 04:25 PM	#2
ewenmack Senior Warrior Member War Room Member Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Auckland, New Zealand Posts: 2,092 Thanks: 790 Thanked 1,027 Times in 558 Posts	Re: Turning a Disaster into an Opportunity Arfa, I think you set him up by planting the lipstick stain and doing your homework on the guy. Whatever happened, it worked! Best, Ewen

09-04-2011, 04:45 PM	#4
ewenmack Senior Warrior Member War Room Member Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Auckland, New Zealand Posts: 2,092 Thanks: 790 Thanked 1,027 Times in 558 Posts	Re: Turning a Disaster into an Opportunity Oh no...hope he's not developing gay tendencies! Best, Ewen

09-04-2011, 04:57 PM	#5
Mark Andrews SmokingHotCopy@gmail.com War Room Member Join Date: Apr 2011 Location: In Somebody Else's Shoes Posts: 1,685 Blog Entries: 2 Thanks: 1,587 Thanked 1,333 Times in 722 Posts Contact Info	Re: Turning a Disaster into an Opportunity He ruined my lipstick!
	"He struck the match. Fire flickered. The fuse lit and an explosion of emotional trigger words emanated like lightning through his fingertips..."

09-04-2011, 05:17 PM	#7
phillimac Active Warrior War Room Member Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Germany Posts: 51 Thanks: 2 Thanked 14 Times in 9 Posts Social Networking Contact Info	Re: Turning a Disaster into an Opportunity Congrats, glad to see you got a good outcome from all of this. I bet the guys happy he's getting a decent site now.
	Want An Injection Of Fast Cash? Download The Free Fast Cash Secrets Report Then Now.

09-04-2011, 05:52 PM	#8
Hugh Thyer HyperActive Warrior War Room Member Join Date: Nov 2008 Posts: 341 Thanks: 84 Thanked 147 Times in 88 Posts	Re: Turning a Disaster into an Opportunity I'm going to put together a product right now for web developers to get new clients. For $97 they're going to get a script and a tube of lipstick.
	Direct Response Copywriter For Hire Ever wondered how copywriters work with their clients? I've answered that very question in detail-> www.salescomefirst.com

09-07-2011, 04:09 PM	#12
EricMN JSEN Copywriting Join Date: Jul 2011 Posts: 165 Thanks: 93 Thanked 96 Times in 65 Posts Contact Info	Re: Turning a Disaster into an Opportunity What a fantastic opportunity! This thread's also hilarious. Another good idea for any college students out there who are thinking of venturing into the land of copy. Does your landlord own more than one house? Are they making a business out of renting houses? What a fantastic way to live for free if you just help him out with your skills! I really wish I thought of it while I was still in school =(

09-08-2011, 01:30 AM	#13
wchin Warrior Member Join Date: Sep 2011 Location: MY Posts: 1 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: Turning a Disaster into an Opportunity Thanks for sharing that. I love to write, but am very shy to talk to people, or share anything about the thing that I know, cause I'm afraid that they might laugh at me, or might say I'm not good on what I'm doing now. That also let me learn that when ever something bad happen, it might be another turning point. God has and will always arrange a way to help us in life. cheers,

09-08-2011, 09:01 AM	#15
jetcaptain Warrior Member Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Lexington, Kentucky , USA. Posts: 1 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts Social Networking	Re: Turning a Disaster into an Opportunity I've found that the first step towards being successful in ANYTHING is to be able to comfortably talk about it and explain it to a total stranger. When I was getting started in local search marketing, I would practice my lingo by starting up a conversation with a total stranger and see if I could get him or her interested in my business, not necessarily in using my services. Great practice and confidence builder!