26 {{ upvoteCount | shortNum }}
26 {{ upvoteCount | shortNum }}

Learn to Sell Before Selling

by E. Brian Rose
20 replies
I just read yet another "how can I make X in X amount of time" thread and still have yet to see a good answer in the hundreds upon hundreds of replies.

Too many people are puling the cart before the horse around here... including those so called experts that are trying so hard to make a name for themselves by answering all of these dopey threads.

Internet marketing is about selling. You are selling clicks, selling products, selling education, etc. No matter what you are trying to do, you are selling.

Soooo... one would think that before you can sell anything online, you should learn to sell.

Salesmanship is the basis of any successful business. IM is no exception. How can you think that you can write a good sales letter if you have no idea how to sell?

Here is my advice to all of you "how can I make X in X" peeps...

Hit the pavement. Get out and start banging on doors. Dial until your fingertips are numb.

Sell services to local businesses. You can outsource the work for pennies on the dollar.

After your first hundred cold calls, you will probably start to realize that you need some sales training. So, instead of buying that next "how to get more traffic" WSO, start reading up on selling techniques.

Learn to pitch. Learn rebuttals. Learn to close.

You'll make money while you are in training. In fact, you'll make good money if you dedicate yourself to the art.

Once you have mastered the art of the face to face cold call, then you are ready to make your mark online.

Don't pull the cart before the horse. Learn to sell, make money, then transition your skills.
#learn #questions #sell #selling #sigh
  • Profile picture of the author KenThompson
    Brian,

    Advice I've read before, elsewhere, but still solid and effective. The only problem
    for most in IM is they do not want to do all that hard work. lol. Plus it's scary, too.

    I did cold calling back in the 90s when I was in a mlm/network marketing business. It
    took me about 10 minutes of looking at the phone before I made my first call. I was
    rehearsing and nervous, of course. I was ok though after about 20 calls. But it was
    hard to get it all right.

    I agree with you, learning to sell in real life will elevate the online game, completely. All
    the mechanics of getting traffic, etc, are just nuts and bolts.

    Being a freelance copywriter/writer and talking to people on the phone, and closing
    them, provided its own education. I think my cold calling experience was helpful. At
    least with what I do now, the prospect is warm and not cold. So it's real easy talking
    to them. Not nervous at all.

    A person can sell Kirby vacuums door to door, and I think there are still Fuller brush
    door to door sales people. Separates the wheat from the chaff.


    Ken
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3981910].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author Dean Jackson
    Exactly, Brian. People need to know the fundamentals of being a business owner/entrepreneur... the game doesn't change.

    And like Ken said, all the stuff required for online business are just "nuts and bolts".

    You can see the perfect example of this in a recent thread:
    http://www.warriorforum.com/main-int...cal-story.html

    Everyone started somewhere, but the one thing in common we all have is that we saw opportunity. Somehow, people think the internet is different... learn to sell yourself, your ideas, your products, and the money will follow.

    Dean
    Signature
    NEW: CRAZIEST Copywriting offer ever offered on WF
    My top student WILL make your sales go BANANAS!
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3981945].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author James Clark
      Great post Brain. I have been saying it over and over. But I'm laughing at the statement about getting out there and making some cold calls.

      Yeah, you internet marketers try that one on for size. Making call colds is not easy but its the best way to learn. You'll get the idea of this business real quick.

      Everything else will fall into place. You'll get on the right list to start with. I see a lot of marketers complaining about the gurus email list. You'll soon find out who is full of "BS" and who is not.

      Bye the way, picking up the phone is cold calling also. Just in case some of out you are a little slow out of the hut.
      Signature
      Hard Hitting Information for Marketers
      The Art of Marketing Online
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3982844].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author LB
    True. I worked sales for a few years before having success online. It's tough, but it teaches you a lot.

    I also always answer the "how can I make x in x" question with the response that no one cares if you make "x in x", they only care if you can solve their problems or build their dreams etc. etc.

    People get hung up on making money before they've learned how to create any value.
    Signature
    Tired of Article Marketing, Backlink Spamming and Other Crusty Old Traffic Methods?

    Click Here.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3983035].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author DaveHughes
      Dead on, Brian.

      Too many people see the world of IM as an end unto itself, when it's not...it's a means to an end.

      Selling on the internet is no different than cold calling, direct mail, telemarketing, retail sales...the list goes on. If you've ever purchased something from a salesperson, you have some experience with sales.

      As those of us who have been around for a while know, the world of making money online is the same thing Don Lapre used to push with his Tiny Classified Ad system.

      You're not selling the internet (even if you're selling websites to offline businesses)...you're selling results. Period.

      LB is bang-on as well...no one cares if you make money or not. Your job is to answer the question in the mind of anyone that's looking at your sales page..."What's in it for me?"

      Give them a compelling answer to the question "What's in it for me?" and they'll buy. "But the guy that wrote that ebook said you would buy it like hotcakes!" isn't it.

      I've sold everything from cars to advertising to mobile homes to newspaper subscriptions in my life...you either learn to show your potential client what's in it for them, or you get really good at not eating...in the dark.
      Signature
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3983377].message }}
      • Profile picture of the author Joe Benjamin
        @E. Brian Rose -- Spot on. Looking back knowing how to
        SELL is so critical...

        in fact, it's the ONLY reason I've experienced ANY amount
        of success online and off.

        From JV'ing, selling my services, selling products...

        everything IS selling.

        The problem is people try to *substitute* selling for being
        a faceless entity online.

        It's like a bunch of guys trying to date women *online*...

        instead of going out there and TALKING to them, or calling
        them (no texting), it's EASIER to do it without the risk of
        *rejection*...

        as a consequence, everything else moves slower.

        Marketing (salesmanship MAGNIFIED) is the next step for a
        salesperson if they want to take their income to the next
        level.

        LEVERAGE is a result of that, and we all know that leverage
        is by far 100x better than knocking door-to-door...

        but without that sales experience, MARKETING's difficulty is
        also 100x magnified.

        Learning how to market BEFORE you sell is possible...just a
        lot harder and can take twice as long, whereas if you're a
        salesperson coming into marketing you pick up on it quicker.

        Either way, it all boils down to sales and marketing.

        Great thread.
        Signature
        **How I FLIPPED $80 into $690 Pure Profit With ONE EASY Method...2 to 3x Per Week...Only 30 Minutes Per Day (and how YOU can COPY my RESULTS, too!) **CLICK HERE FOR VERIFIED VIDEO PROOF**
        {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3984175].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author Great Caxh Call
    Can we just sell first? and then as we are selling we learn how to sell.
    So we sell, learn something, then do what we learned immediately.
    If we only learn learn and learn, when do we sell?

    As I do now, I learn the basic about IM, sell, and as I sell I learn more, and implement them.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3984462].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author E. Brian Rose
      Originally Posted by Great Caxh Call View Post

      Can we just sell first? and then as we are selling we learn how to sell.
      So we sell, learn something, then do what we learned immediately.
      If we only learn learn and learn, when do we sell?

      As I do now, I learn the basic about IM, sell, and as I sell I learn more, and implement them.
      Go back and read my post again. You must of skipped a few key sentences.
      Signature

      Founder of JVZoo. All around good guy :)

      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3985612].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author meerkat29
    Originally Posted by E. Brian Rose View Post

    Internet marketing is about selling. You are selling clicks, selling products, selling education, etc. No matter what you are trying to do, you are selling.
    That's it. It all comes down to one thing---convincing prospects to give you their money.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3984785].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author brittlesnc
    What kind of sales training do you recommend? And if I myself am weak in sales wouldn't it be better to team up with someone whose a salesperson?
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3985771].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author E. Brian Rose
      Originally Posted by brittlesnc View Post

      What kind of sales training do you recommend? And if I myself am weak in sales wouldn't it be better to team up with someone whose a salesperson?
      Maybe you are weak because nobody ever showed you how to sell. Some of the greatest closers said the same thing as you before they learned.

      Start by Googling... Let me google that for you
      Signature

      Founder of JVZoo. All around good guy :)

      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3986241].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author Scott Skinner
    Very good post Brian. Contrary to accepted reality "selling" is the oldest profession. My first sales job was knocking on doors, selling family portraits. It was great experience at learning to deal with people on a shoot from the hip basis. I was hooked on the adrenaline and challenge quickly and still am. It is a tough skill to learn, but once you do, you will never again live from a base of fear.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3986319].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author Don Schenk
    Oh this brings back memories of what seems like about a hundred years ago when I was just out of college. I was starting a business that required me to do all the sales, and since I was working out of my apartment, I needed to go sell to people in their homes.

    At first I was scared to death, then I began to realize customers were not the enemy, and I was not an enemy to them. If I could help fill a need and solve a problem, and they trusted me to do so, I got the sale.

    As I began to add employees, I kept doing the sales. It actually became fun. I bought sales training books and audio cassettes - Tom Hopkins, Zig Ziglar, Brain Tracy, Frank Bettger - and devoured that material - going over it and over it. Then putting it into practice.

    Selling is a learned skill, and just like playing music, or excelling at a sport, it takes practice.

    BTW I watched a fellow who was learning to sell Kirby vacuums. The demonstration was fascinating. The Kirby almost sold itself. That looked like a fun thing to sell.

    :-Don
    Signature

    Studies prove happier people have massively more success. It has worked for me. Use this one trick too... Click Here

    Total Competition Stomper - Simply the most powerful tactic your IM or Offline business will ever use... See it here!
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3986370].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author ankur sharma
    Most people dont understand buying is not a rational decision. You can manipulate logic easily and thats what copywriters do.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3986765].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author kindsvater
    I'll disagree. If anything else, "ditto" threads are boring.

    - Whether or not someone is pitching a bogus offer about making money is irrelevant to whether they are good at selling the offer. Don't confuse the sales letter with the product.

    - I'm a strong believer in just going out and trying something. One could spend a lot of time studying, learning, etc. - and be bankrupt. Or one could go try and few things and learn while making money. The WSO forum at $40 a pop is dirt cheap with instant feedback compared to how it was done in the old days. For years I've offered the same product as a WSO - each time with a different approach instead of merely bumping the thread. Each time I've learned something new. Ironically, it could be argued that one should learn selling online before trying to make cold calls.

    - Selling and marketing are broad fields. Think of art. One who is a good oil painter is not necessarily good with bronze sculpture. Making cold calls does not qualify someone to write direct copy. It only qualifies them to make cold calls. I'm not saying there isn't value or something to be learned. But I am saying it is wrong to assert cold calling must be mastered before one starts selling online.
    Signature
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3986963].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author E. Brian Rose
      Originally Posted by kindsvater View Post


      - I'm a strong believer in just going out and trying something. One could spend a lot of time studying, learning, etc. - and be bankrupt.
      I'm pretty sure that I said to just get out there and start, rather than just learning. "Hit the pavement. Get out and start banging on doors. Dial until your fingertips are numb."

      Making cold calls does not qualify someone to write direct copy. It only qualifies them to make cold calls.
      I strongly disagree. If you learn how to master rebuttals and closing techniques, then you will have learned valuable lessons in writing copy, product marketing, and getting laid.

      If you know what the objections will be ahead of time, it is very easy to curb them in your initial pitch.... online or off.
      Signature

      Founder of JVZoo. All around good guy :)

      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3987006].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author MeelisM
    I totally agree with you, because I've done that already. In 2 days I'm hitting the pavement again for a 2nd summer of selling educational materials door to door in USA. I'm from europe myself and English isn't my first language, so it's a good experience in every way. 14 hours a day for 3 straight months will help me with online ventures as well

    Everybody must learn to sell, because almost everything in life is selling.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3987100].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author Claire Sharp
    I totally agree with you Brian. Most people really don't want to work hard. They want an easy way to get a thing easily. That is why nothing really succeed.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3987378].message }}

Trending Topics