I Just Landed One of My Biggest Sales!

Good one Lori. Its nice of you to share your experience with other warriors. Am sure this is worth more than two cups of starbucks coffee for our offline brothers. And for me, it reaffirms the power of building relationships, networks and partnerships. That is pretty much what I'll be working on in my own field of product creation and affiliate marketing.

Enjoy your success.

Thank you Lori Kelly with this killing advice

Always treat people politely and give them the credit that they deserve and more "treat customer as a king"

Congrats!!!

Congratulations Lori and thank you for sharing your valuable insights with us.
Love the 3rd part: "sending a thank you card". Very good.

Great post thanks for the wisdom and insight!

great work taking marketing offline. I am going to start paying more attention to business cards and ads I see now. Thanks!

Great post.
Knowing how to politely present yourself and your services is a priceless asset. I went out for a meal on New Years Eve and picked up a really nice design/marketing project at the restaurant bar. I listened to the guy's issues with his existing designer for two minutes and gave him 3 good reasons why he should go with my company. A few days later the check for 50% was banked.
Selling in these situations is knowing how to put yourself forward without getting into people's space.

Yeah great lesson, you never know who you are going to meet.

This is one of the many posts I've read about someone getting clients by basically just talking to other people. It's important to see that getting a client can happen anywhere at anytime. Just talking to people about what you offer will get you places.

While sitting behind the computer sending email after email works and is easy, getting out and actually meeting ppl works great too. Plus, face to face is better for relationships which lead to referrals.

Great job!

Sean

Lori,

Great post. I never heard the phrase muckedy muck- is that a Texas term? I can tell you are excellent at relationship building just from the thoughtful e-mail you sent to me when I asked you some questions. Good point about the thank you notes too.

Debbie

Congrats that's sounds awesome.

I've been approached by quite a few people to build them a website, but I haven't had the time until now.

If you don't mind me asking what are people charging for building a WP website?

Just an example to me of using people to market "for you".

If you give people the time without an "agenda" other than to help them, they will usually WANT to give something back to you.

I gave a guy who called me marketing advice, he wanted to do SEO with me but was in a contract with another company.

By the end of our conversation he wanted to give me free services he offered in his health clinic. Thankfully i didn't need any and thus respectfully declined. The intention however, indeed on both ends, was there.

Reap, sow.

Good job Lori

Lori,

Great example of doing things differently and going the extra mile! Keep going and to more continued success!

Great job Lori! Also I really enjoyed your insight, some of your ideas (like the thank you cards) are something I would have never had thought of. I agree with you about establishing a good connection between you and the consumer. I always try to get as much personal info from the consumer as possible, it not only helps to get an idea of who they are and what they are it also lets them know that they are important and you are listening to them. I always try to be on a friendly level when I contact them again and ask how they are doing, being sure to mention something from a past conversation (i.e. “how is your pet doing lately?” or “How did Cameron do on that test you said he had coming up?”). Great tips Lori!

Well done Lori.

It's amazing what happens when we put the laws of nature into effect..ie. we were given 2 ears and one mouth so we should use them in the same ratio...ask questions, listen a lot, talk a little.

Through you doing that and with your caring attitude you got your reward.

Love the follow up with the "Thank You" card. That's what makes you different !!

Take good care of those that you love.

Robbie T

Hi Lori,

That's awesome I love that you focus on the person and relationship building as a vehicle to building business. People sense when someone is putting the dollar buck ahead of the needs and desires of the prospect/customer.

Wishing you evermore success

Tracy

Well done mate

Believe and faith are key, faith is the ability to see the impossible and belive in the unbelivable!

This reminds me of an expression one of my top salespeople used a lot:
"The harder I work, the luckier I get"

So true.

Congratulations,
DTaylor

Thank you Lori for this great post!The most important thing is building a relationship with the client!Most of the times you buy the person, not his services!

2 months ago i bought a new house and these days i am going to different places to find the furniture.Today, i went to a large shop, looking for a big couch, a dining table, a bedroom etc I did not go mad with his furniture, honestly. But i loved how he sold his self to me!

His service was great!And even i will probably not buy from him, i will definitely consider proposing him to other people for their furniture..You see my point?

Thanks again and congratuulations for your approach!

Cheers

Dimitris

Great post, and congrats!

Right on Lori, good job and congrats! Where in TX by the way? Plano here. Keep up the good work!

rackemup - I'm in the Hill Country, just a few miles west of Marble Falls.

When I make my calls, I only make about 5 calls before I get a hot lead. Usually within 2-3 calls, I get a warm lead.

I believe this is due to me being a local designer. A connection with our local community is immediately established - developing one of the first steps in trust.

I don't sell my services. I explain the benefits of having a website.

If I have to sell a website to someone, I won't waste my time.
In 2012 if people don't understand the importance of a website, I'm not going to take the time to education them. (Lori's rule #3.)

That may sound harsh, but there are too many people who already realize the value of having a website and those are the ones I want to work with.

Here's a little info on my calls.

On Friday, I called plumbers.
One plumber I called explained that times are tough and due to the economy, their business wasn't doing so well.

I asked her how the ad she ran in the paper was working.
She wasn't sure.

It is difficult to believe that business owners do not ask a potential new client how they heard about them.

So I said, "You know what might be a good idea?
Every time you get a call, say hey, how'd hear about us? And make a note of it. That way, you can tract where your customers are coming from.

[Sounds simple, doesn't it?]

She started talking (and really important, I listened and took notes).

She told me she did a direct mail campaign when the post office was offering a special.

I asked her what her rate of return was with that ad campaign.
It only paid for the cost of the mailing.

Plumbers don't necessarily need a site with all the bells and whistles - they merely need an online presence and a chance to get ranked so they can be found locally.

When the objection was they couldn't afford a site due to their fluctuation in income, I asked her how much profit she made on her average sale.

Turns out she could afford a basic website if the site returned two average jobs/sales.

I just happened to be on Google and did a search of local plumbers.
We talked about her competition.

I just asked her a question that if the site could return two customers and paid for itself with two jobs, is that be something she would be interested in.

After talking with her for a while, we realized our kids went to the same school. (click)

And they played little league together a few years ago (click).

I'll be meeting with her and her husband this week.


I contacted a local attorney who said he had no use for a website.
I thanked him for his time and hung up. (Lori's Rule #3.)

I contacted an hvac company.
I asked him if he had a website.
He said yes, but he was interested in my services, could I send him a price list. I did and will be calling him again this week. He sounded like he was in a hurry and I don't want to push (that's why I sent him the pricing first and will call him later).

I called a propane distributor.
I asked for the owner.
The receptionist asked if this was a sales call.
I said yes.

She said "we're not interested."
I said: I understand. I'll only take a few minutes of the owner's time. I just wanted to ask him if y'all (this is Texas) have a website.

She said, ahhhh, hold on a minute.

She came back and said: "he's on another line right now, can he give you a call back?"

I said sure. What's his name?
She told me.
I said I'll just give him a call next week.
Now, I have his name. When I call again (and I will call again), I'll ask for him by name.


I'm no expert. I don't claim to be.

As I said before, I have the mindset that I have a vested interest in this community - to make it grow and help business owners by increasing their business.

So if a business owner doesn't want my help, that's fine. I'll find the ones who do.



PS - Thank you all for your kind words.
Make a game plan.
Stick to it.
Never give up.

Stunning news Lori

I am thrilled and delighted for you.

Di

Woooooo whooooo. Just got a call from the plumber gal I talked to on Friday.

Her mother in law is looking for a website designer for her storage business.

There you go Lori....you got it working!!!! Congrats....

Congrats Lori. I completely agree to always create a relationship, and educate your clients/prospects just like you're doing. I wrote a post about it right here http://www.warriorforum.com/offline-...r-clients.html
Selling thank-you notes is something most businesses don't do, and it is something that works. Good job!

Congrats Lori, that is so inspirational for those struggling to get offline clients

Building a rapport and establishing a relationship is the MOST important thing you can ever do without a doubt.

Cheers,
Trish

Congrats on your success! Thanks for the story!

Nice work Lori. Hopefully plenty more to come.

Bravo Lori! Stories like this are always good to see. Keep up the great work !

That's AWESOME! Congratulations on your new client!

Congrats Lori from one Southern Belle to another.

Your success continues to inspire me.

All the best,

Mojo

I'll echo the chorus of cngratulations. Well done. Now on the next one

Now that's powerful right there. Am definitely going to use this piece of advice for this situation.

Just day, I stopped by the post office to send out some direct mail postcards. In the same lot as the post office is a restaurant. Right outside was an employee smoking. I asked him when the owner usually showed up. He told me the owner was in right that moment. So I went in, asked him about what he does to promote his restaurant, showed him how his site looked on a mobile phone and a demo site for a mobile optimized page. He'll have to talk to his business partner.

For me, that was a great milestone. I started out trying to cold call but gave up after the 2nd call; that's when I decided I was going back to the direct mail route. For me to have been able to get his attention on an unannounced visit, that was a plus.

Even if I don't get his business, I will definitely be getting a than you card tomorrow.

Lori....congrats on your success by the way.

Kevin