Going offline, I'm storytellin' here.

by Buildingfutures

Posted: 14 years ago 11 replies

INTERNET MARKETING

I'm going through my yellow pages, looking for prospects, doing the research, etc, due diligence, and all of a sudden, I realize something.

I'm in a town of 100,000 people, any businesses that have a site are already on the top page of google (if they aren't I marked them down and put a nice star next to them, but those are RARE) and made note of those in the pages who didn't even have a site.

Most small businesses I noticed here either have a really crappy site (just to say they have it obviously) or managed to get someone good to do one (fantastic personal trainer site I found, but they didn't seem to be indexed. Made a note.)

Now, as I look, I'm not much of a gamblin' man, but it seems my odds are a little stacked against me.

I gotta say, as I prepare these letters to head out this week, I am kind of excited. The majority of these people I will be contacting are people I have never met before, people I will never have met if I didn't decide to do this.

I'm very glad I was a theater kid and can brush off nervousness in front of an audience. I'm giddy and nervous as hell right now, but I can be calm before a customer, and I can't wait to talk to them.

I'm thrilled to be doing this, I can't express that enough. I'm finally taking the leap into something, and I plan on seeing it through.

I know this is the "Make Money" forum, and hell, I hope I make some money to prove that anyone can do this!

I plan on making 2010 the year that my marketing really takes off and I become a star in my own right.

This offline thing will only be the beginning.

Hopefully, I'd like to have 2 clients by the end of the month. In a small town like this, it may be a little more difficult, but dammit if I don't have plenty of physicians and dentists to contact.

We'll see how it goes.

Best of luck to all of you in your endeavors! I was just letting you know one of my current projects!

Thanks for reading!

-Sean

#offline #storytellin

juzanobo 14 years ago

Good luck in your offline adventure Sean.

Lots of physicians and dentists to meet
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MarkAndrews IMCopywriting 14 years ago

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- Killer Joe 14 years ago
  
  Originally Posted by MarkAndrews IMCopywriting
  
  As I just advised someone else, find out what is keeping these business owners up at night, what is their frustration, what is their pain?
  
  Mark,
  
  As usual, you hit the nail right on the head (or put a shrimp on the barbie, whatever you folks in other countries say ).
  
  I was having lunch with a friend of mine awhile back, and since he is well aware of what I do, we started talking about websites.
  
  He had someone build him one of those 'Business Cards on a Browser" and so I asked him what is the one thing he would want his website to do for him?
  
  His reply?
  
  "Well the LAST thing I want it to do is make the phone ring anymore than it already is!"
  
  Turns out he's running at near capacity and any additional business would require massive capital spending to accomodate it. He's not ready yet to take that on.
  
  So Mark, your advice is spot on, and applies to both ends of the spectrum.
  
  KJ
  
  Thanks
  
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Buildingfutures

14 years ago

Ok, after being sick and having every what thing thrown at me the past week:

I MAILED OUT MY FIRST DIRECT MAIL GROUP!!

Now I'm all antsy and waiting for the letters to get to their intended destinations about the town. 15 letters for my first group here, and I plan on following up with them here in about 4-5 days. AT least following up with the ones who Don't call me, that is.

I'm hella excited, and this is to the newbs out there.

TAKE SOME ACTION!

It feels absolutely fantastic! Throw caution to the wind and just do things!

You never know what might happen.

-Sean

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summer07 14 years ago

Sean, way to go! and best of luck!

Taking action in spite of being nervous is exactly how success happens. Courage isn't lack of fear, it's doing what needs to be done in spite of fear.

I've got some cold calling in front of me tomorrow morning, and I'm going to read your post for inspiration before I do it...thanks!

Keep 'the story" goin'....

Audre
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Dennis Gaskill

14 years ago

Originally Posted by Buildingfutures

I'm hella excited, and this is to the newbs out there.

TAKE SOME ACTION!

It feels absolutely fantastic! Throw caution to the wind and just do things!

You never know what might happen.

You "get it" Sean. Good luck. Be sure to come back and share your first success so the newbies can see the importance of just taking action.

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14 years ago

Glad to see you started.

15 letters ain't gonna cut it. Minimum of 50 letters, 50 emails, and 50 phone calls (leave message when bus is CLOSED) will definitely get you business.

Do not work with people that Don't have a website, only those that do.

Don't follow up with them, they MUST call you. Do NOT chase, I don't care if you don't have a nickle in your pocket.

I make them JUMP thru hoops to talk to me. Yup.

What was your CTA (Call To Action)? Phone number, website, response card, etc...?

If by phone, then have it go to a Voice-mail that collects number, like Skype. Listen to their message, research them and their competition (15 minutes) then call back, wait for several hours. Tell them you were sorry not to receive their call but you were with a client.

Ask them "How can I help you" then shut up! Let them talk.

After they talk, tell them you help small bus owners reduce their marketing cost while at the same time increase their sales. Would you be interested?

Tell them their site is NOT on Google maps, Yahoo! local, 2 page+ on the SERP's and they are Invisible to the Internet. Like a Billboard in the desert.

Have your Keyword stats handy and tell them the Keyword "CityDentist" is getting X amount of hits per month. Let them know people are Searching for them.

Keep the initial phone call brief, maybe 15 minutes. Ask them to confirm email. Tell them they MUST answer a Questionnaire if they are interested in working with you.

Then send a Free report you have prepared showing the Power of the Internet and how businesses are prospering with this media.

Then include Snag-its of the search traffic they are NOT getting.

Then capture Page 1 Google and Highlight (yellow, arrows, crazy doodles, etc..) their main competitors. Show them why they are lagging their competition and why the Competion are driving Mercedes, BMW's, expanding their bus, etc... you get the point.

Follow up is CRITICAL!

After you send that email, then do follow-ups ONLY by auto-responder. One every 2 days for 14 days. Keep sending info about Google, Keyword search stats, White papers, MP3, invite them to your tele-seminar, webinar, etc...

They will CALL YOU, trust me.

Good luck.

Originally Posted by Buildingfutures

Ok, after being sick and having every what thing thrown at me the past week:

I MAILED OUT MY FIRST DIRECT MAIL GROUP!!

Now I'm all antsy and waiting for the letters to get to their intended destinations about the town. 15 letters for my first group here, and I plan on following up with them here in about 4-5 days. AT least following up with the ones who Don't call me, that is.

I'm hella excited, and this is to the newbs out there.

TAKE SOME ACTION!

It feels absolutely fantastic! Throw caution to the wind and just do things!

You never know what might happen.

-Sean

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FiberClean 14 years ago

Keep us posted! I'm interested in doing the same kind of work. I think you're being too pessimistic about your prospects, though--the YP salesman in your town will look a lot more than 10 deep in every business, and businesses without a site are great prospects for an upsell to your SEO offerings.
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Buildingfutures

14 years ago

A quick tip to those who are looking to try this. Have someone whose done it read your letters BEFORE you send them out.

Seriously. They know what these business owners want and what they want to see.

Thank goodness for my buddy Mark! Helped me work on that letter the past week, and we both said it was time to throw it to the businesses and see who bites.

Write like you would to yourself. IF you were running a business, no time to market, to do anything, what would you like to see? What would get your attention in the header?

How would you feel reading this letter?

Most importantly though, WRITE HONESTLY.

Do not promise the universe. Hell, don't make too many promises period. Just say what you're able to do, what you can offer, and that you'd be willing to help them out by offering up your skills.

Its really that simple when writing the letter.

Honesty, integrity, and connection. Connect to these readers, like with a piece of good copy, and you've got a winner for sure.

-Sean

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14 years ago

Comments in Blue.

Originally Posted by Buildingfutures

A quick tip to those who are looking to try this. Have someone whose done it read your letters BEFORE you send them out.

Absolutely.

Seriously. They know what these business owners want and what they want to see.

Business owners want consistent lead sources, better lifestyle, not do marketing themselves, Honest answers to marketing questions, and someone they can depend on.

Thank goodness for my buddy Mark! Helped me work on that letter the past week, and we both said it was time to throw it to the businesses and see who bites.

Write like you would to yourself. IF you were running a business, no time to market, to do anything, what would you like to see? What would get your attention in the header?

How would you feel reading this letter?

Most importantly though, WRITE HONESTLY.

Do not promise the universe. Hell, don't make too many promises period. Just say what you're able to do, what you can offer, and that you'd be willing to help them out by offering up your skills.

Find their real problem and Agitate the heck out of it. Then offer the solutions.

Show them the True power of the Internet.

Its really that simple when writing the letter.

Honesty, integrity, and connection. Connect to these readers, like with a piece of good copy, and you've got a winner for sure.

Don't forget compelling copy.

Each sentence should lead the reader to want to read the next sentence.
Sense of Urgency (offer good until end of month, x amount of days, price going up, etc...)
Exclusivity (limited to only 1 business per area) This works best for me.
CTA (Call To Action) why they should take action today

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DogScout 14 years ago

I have no doubt you will get a better response than you think. It may not be until the follow-up, but I suspect since you did the research and wrote from the heart you will knock 'em dead! Good job.
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GoGetta 14 years ago

Good Luck Buddy,

I agree with AP though, 15 aint enough!

Think of it like driving traffic to a salespage, its a numbers game!

I would be more inclined to send 100 letters, or at least 50!

Make calls as well while you wait for responses, hit every avenue you can and you will generate more than 2 clients this month! ; )

Good Luck,

GoGetta
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Going offline, I'm storytellin' here.

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