The Great Debate. JOIN IN!

15 replies
I think this might be good for all of us. While I believe it's important to embrace and respect all possible marketing options, we often are caught in spots where we have to pitch a certain service to be superior of others.

Anyone can join in this and let's make it a heated but tasteful debate. Give us your best pitch on a particular marketing service and why it's better than other methods. It does NOT matter what you choose, just pick something and post your best argument on that why that service is better.

Everyone is also encouraged to challenge someones argument and tell us why something else would be better.

The goal of this thread is to help develop real life pitches, rebuttals, persuasion, and on-the-spot thinking.

No calling people idiots or putting anyone down, let's just put our "marketing argument" skills to the test and see what kind of compelling arguments we can make.

Let the games begin!
#debate #great #join
  • Profile picture of the author bob ross
    I'll start this thing...

    DIRECT MAIL

    Why would you even think about anything else? You reach people on command without waiting for them to find you on the internet.
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    • Profile picture of the author kenmichaels
      Originally Posted by bob ross View Post

      I'll start this thing...

      DIRECT MAIL

      Why would you even think about anything else? You reach people on command without waiting for them to find you on the internet.
      Direct Phone Calls

      You reach people on command without waiting for the postman.

      Sorry bob, could not resist

      On a real note. We do do DM. However for us its easier, faster and cheaper to test and tweek campaigns
      over the phone vrs over mail.
      Signature

      Selling Ain't for Sissies!
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      • Profile picture of the author bob ross
        Originally Posted by kenmichaels View Post

        Direct Phone Calls

        You reach people on command without waiting for the postman.

        Sorry bob, could not resist
        haha yes that's good! that's what I want to happen. A good salesperson can pitch any service and make it sound better.

        But just so you know, direct phone calls aren't so direct when 90% of them are a waste of time as you fail to reach decision makers.

        (Remember, I am just arguing my point, I'm not against cold calling of course lol).
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        • Profile picture of the author John Durham
          I say direct calls, because you can get sales everyday on the spot, and its easy to learn, if you compare it to a day job working 8 hours and making a fraction of the money.

          One can literally get sales their very first day and many have, but thats only the first reason.

          The second and more important reason is that once you know your numbers its easy to duplicate and scale out and to produce a consistent predictable result that you can count on for growth, and it isnt subject to any whim, it just works like a clock once you get it working.
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          • Profile picture of the author bob ross
            Originally Posted by John Durham View Post

            I say direct calls, because you can get sales everyday on the spot, and its easy to learn, if you compare it to a day job working 8 hours and making a fraction of the money.

            One can literally get sales their very first day and many have, but thats only the first reason.

            The second and more important reason is that once you know your numbers its easy to duplicate and scale out and to produce a consistent predictable result that you can count on for growth, and it isnt subject to any whim, it just works like a clock once you get it working.
            So if you make these direct calls what service are you pitching them and why should they use it?
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  • Profile picture of the author John Durham
    Lol... Oh man...

    Well...

    Because I know how to email Matt Laclear in short...lol

    Because, we do professional work, and use industry savvy designers who will give you not just a site but a competitive looking industry appropriate one.

    Because every element of your site comes together and delivers the same clear message (whatever message they want to deliver), all of the elements point toward that thing, keeping visitors focused on your message.

    Because every bit of content is optimized, and designed to do only one thing, drive people to your contact form.

    Because we understand how search engines work, and how to reach your customers in the places where they hang out and draw them to your site through backlinks.

    Because we dont just provide keyword rich content with the proper desnity to really draw search engine power...but more importantly each page on your site is written also with professional ad copy that is designed to draw your customers into ACTION, not just read and leave.

    Because, we go extra lengths to study your market and find what your customers are looking for, in fact "before I came to the meeting I printed out this key word report for you, and this is where most of your competitors are missing it...but where you can HIT it, and gain all the traffic that they dont even know they are missing...the proof is right here".

    Because, even if you never got traffic from it in the worst case scenario, .you need a professional website to represent your company online, so people take your business more seriously.

    Because we can set up an aweber account for you, and help you capture your customers email addresses, and whenever you have a special promotion you can reach them all in one shot and create a spike in business coming in the door at will. (Whooo that one was hot!)

    Because other companies will charge you 5k for a basic website, then come back later and tell you they need to charge another 5k for a google places listing, but WE know thats an integral part of your site working properly for you in the serps, and so we consider that [part of your web design package and include it.

    Because we work with a network of the best designers, seo people, and programmers on the planet, who are the best in their field and know how to deliver results.

    Because working with a mere "web designer" is the reason most peoples sites are money pits, and the reason they always seem to require more and dont just work right the first time. We will give you more than a mere design, but a site that WORKS the first time....

    Shall I go on...or let someone else take the floor, I have 3 times this many reasons...lol

    Depends on what service you are offering.

    One more:

    Because most biz owners shut down at night after business slows down, not being able to afford to stay open for the random stray customer that comes in after hours, and having a website gives you an opportunity to stay open 24/7 without all the expense of employees and keeping your store open at night.

    Last one,
    Because we work with a vast , diverse network of professionals from every genere of development , we can accomodate anything you need and have the resources to handle ANY problem on the spot!

    Okay a few more:

    Because you will have access to your webmaster 7 days per week to handle any concerns or questions regarding your website.

    Because unlimited maintenance is included in your monthly fees.

    Because we dont require a contract, our customers stay because we get them results, and are free to cancel at anytime.

    Hope this helps.

    I have 15 years worth of these Bob, I could go on forever.
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    • Profile picture of the author bob ross
      John,

      Ok so in other words the small business owner has to take a second mortgage out on their home in order to buy your all-in-one interwebs marketing package and hope it will draw people in?
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      • Profile picture of the author John Durham
        Originally Posted by bob ross View Post

        John,

        Ok so in other words the small business owner has to take a second mortgage out on their home in order to buy your all-in-one interwebs marketing package and hope it will draw people in?
        Not necessarily, I just threw that figure out, Im selling my package for $1,497. plus $197 per month.

        This month my brother and I are firing Vicom back up and will be offering our sites at that price, with a $197 month maintenance, and a free listing on a directory site we are building.

        The sales from vicom (which offers a full package) will fund the development of the directory site.

        This is a package I have recently designed. I have sold many different packages in the past at different price points, and this one may change over time, but I feel its a good start for the new business.

        I will be doing appointments, and he will be running them. Our goal is to set 4 appointments per day and close two.

        Our cost for web design will be around $300, and our cost for g places will be around 100.

        I will write the copy, and also do a quick mobile version and throw that in too.

        We will spend a simple $50 per month on some backlinking services for each site. so the monthly profit will be around $140 or so on each site.

        And later they may take a bigger optional seo package for a higher monthly price.

        So we are looking at about $1,000 per sale profit on the front end, and starting this new model next week, only my list will get the regular accountability updates...

        Once it hits 20k within weeks or 30 days...we will hire some telemarketers to start pushing the bower model simultaneously, financing it with vicom until such a time when its covering itself and profiting.

        Our goal is to drive it (The bower site) to 25k per month as the first bench mark, so I can come back here and stick my tongue out at a guy who said I couldnt do it.

        But, no, we are starting at $1497.

        If we only reach half of our projections which shouldnt be hard with both of our successful experience, we are doing 20k the first month, but hoping for 40k.

        It will require about 4 hours per day of my time for the first 90 days. 2 hours cold calling and two hours writing the page content for our daily sales.

        I say these things confidently, because though the prices and packages change, this is a model that I have built in the past and it works like a clock.

        Originally Posted by Jason Kanigan View Post

        Well again, I don't pitch. I think you'll find what you're asking is about a different thing than what I do. I have sold websites, web copy, WSO copy, custom database applications, accounting software, CRM programs and other things I've probably forgotten about.

        I ask questions. First I find out if the prospect is experiencing any serious issues that I could help them resolve. If not, then they qualify Out. If they do, I explore what's happening, how long it's happened, why they haven't done anything about it before now, and so on.

        If it continues to turn out that we could be a fit, I get them to calculate how much it's costing them not to change.

        From there, it's pretty easy to find out how much they would pay for a solution ("the investment").

        If they can afford the investment, and money can almost always be gotten, it's a no-brainer at this point. Nobody else--and I have gotten many, many projects because of this reason...my clients tell me so--takes the time to find out about their world and address their specific situation.

        So you see no pitch is required. First I qualify, then I sell. The main difference between how traditional selling works and what I do is where the demonstration or presentation is in the process.

        The solution is the last thing I talk about, not the first.
        Indeed. well that works, its a different operating system, more "consulting". Not as easily duplicable though IME. In my own operating system, you find a phrase that turns the money and roll it out verbatim to produce a predictable result that can be scaled upon.

        They both work though, its just this is what my career has mostly been, setting up business models based on the idea of scaling. Using verbatim pitches...

        This way your business is systems dependent instead of dependent on the whims of the "talent".

        Basically I like it because you can calculate and make projections off of it, and have a verbatim system for getting the same result or whatever number you are aiming at volume wise.

        Thats why I personally use this system, although on a personal note my pitches may be more consultative, that style has never worked for 'scaling out" for me, and I like to think in terms of multiple callers...feels like you are always chasing "talent" when you try to train people to consult.... I prefer to create something that I know the averages on, based on average peoples ability.

        Edit:

        On second thought Jason,. when I wrote the first telemarketing report, I was doing semi consulting, asking "what kind of web projects do you have in mind..." and got a variety of different types of projects. Alot of people succeeded from that approach. So , I agree, its a personal choice, but thats what I would recommend for an INDIVIDUAL- Lately Im thinking more in terms of "rolling out", and I know from experience, and from watching bigger companies that verbatim pitches are the most reliable strategy for doing anything on a large scale. Just like verbatim "post cards" would be in direct marketing.
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  • Profile picture of the author Jason Kanigan
    I don't do this. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder...and so the reason why something is the "best" is in the eye of the individual prospect. My job is to uncover this and have them acknowledge it...or qualify them Out based on not being a fit with what I do.
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    • Profile picture of the author bob ross
      Originally Posted by Jason Kanigan View Post

      I don't do this. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder...and so the reason why something is the "best" is in the eye of the individual prospect. My job is to uncover this and have them acknowledge it...or qualify them Out based on not being a fit with what I do.
      But shouldn't we be able to give clear explanations of why whatever service we're pitching is the best thing to invest in right now?

      "whatever service you're selling, I have a web guy who handles all my stuff and now that everyone is using facebook, that's where I want to start putting my effort and money into."
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      • Profile picture of the author Jason Kanigan
        Originally Posted by bob ross View Post

        But shouldn't we be able to give clear explanations of why whatever service we're pitching is the best thing to invest in right now?

        "whatever service you're selling, I have a web guy who handles all my stuff and now that everyone is using facebook, that's where I want to start putting my effort and money into."
        Nope. I don't "pitch", either.

        Their reasons will always be more effective than our reasons.
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        • Profile picture of the author John Durham
          Originally Posted by Jason Kanigan View Post

          Nope. I don't "pitch", either.

          Their reasons will always be more effective than our reasons.
          Jason, I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that you are a top telemarketing mind...but, how much have you tested these things on making offline sales as far as web products, because I find thats one of the number one reasons people fail, for trying to be a jack of all trades and master of none.

          I believe in offering alot of services, but not in one pitch because it isnt focused and verbatim, you cant duplicate it at will, you have to depend on senses that newbies dont have yet. Even though it may "make sense" to them.
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          • Profile picture of the author Jason Kanigan
            Originally Posted by John Durham View Post

            Jason, I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that you are a top telemarketing mind...but, how much have you tested these things on making offline sales as far as web products, because I find thats one of the number one reasons people fail, for trying to be a jack of all trades and master of none.

            I believe in offering alot of services, but not in one pitch because it isnt focused and verbatim, you cant duplicate it at will, you have to depend on senses that newbies dont have yet. Even though it may "make sense" to them.
            Well again, I don't pitch. I think you'll find what you're asking is about a different thing than what I do. I have sold websites, web copy, WSO copy, custom database applications, accounting software, CRM programs and other things I've probably forgotten about.

            I ask questions. First I find out if the prospect is experiencing any serious issues that I could help them resolve. If not, then they qualify Out. If they do, I explore what's happening, how long it's happened, why they haven't done anything about it before now, and so on.

            If it continues to turn out that we could be a fit, I get them to calculate how much it's costing them not to change.

            From there, it's pretty easy to find out how much they would pay for a solution ("the investment").

            If they can afford the investment, and money can almost always be gotten, it's a no-brainer at this point. Nobody else--and I have gotten many, many projects because of this reason...my clients tell me so--takes the time to find out about their world and address their specific situation.

            So you see no pitch is required. First I qualify, then I sell. The main difference between how traditional selling works and what I do is where the demonstration or presentation is in the process.

            The solution is the last thing I talk about, not the first.
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  • Profile picture of the author mjbmedia
    'We make people more money. We dont care about SEO, PPC , Social media, SMS or anything. we're just passionate about making you more money, you do feel our passion dont you? ' or ' you would like us to see us achieve that for you, wouldnt you?' or 'can you imagine us achieving that for you? (how would that feel to you) ' depending on if theyre receptive to feeling,seeing, etc

    Business owners seek SEO, PPC, websites, mobile sites , SMS etc ONLY to win more sales and make more money (whether short or long term) , the sales and money are the main attractions, how thats achieved is of little interest as long as its legal and ethical etc ,SEO PPC etc are just means to an end and of little interest on a stand alone basis to most business owners, the bottom line on their bank accounts and cashflow sheets ARE of extreme interest so why would we talk to them about SEO or anything but precisely what mainly motivates them , we'd get their main motivation points out early on (holidays, kids thru uni, health procedures, house, car, hobbies, ) and focus on them in the subsequent ROI discussions.
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    Mike

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  • Profile picture of the author nehasingh
    I'm Little Concern About Email Marketing:

    Online marketing is a high response and opportunistic medium for communicating with customers, and if executed right, has the power to bring huge benefits to your business. Go ahead, initiate an extremely targeted e-marketing and see your profits grow.

    Promoting services or offers using email is very effective. Email marketing is one of the most powerful form of building customer relationship and customer aquisition tools available for marketers. You can use email marketing to tailor to specific groups of customers and also to communicate with them cost-effectively.
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