The MAIN "Secret" to my Sales Success
Howdy...I've been selling "advertising" and "promotion" stuff for MAAANY Years. I've been pretty successful at it. Here recently, WebSites and Mobile Sites....and I'd like to share the MAIN thing I do that helps me the MOST to Close Sales! Maybe this will help someone here.
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Way back in 1978 I found myself in Aspen, CO (after a "hard" divorce from my 1st wife) I didn't know a soul and after seeing the beauty of the mountains and the "small town" atmosphere....I decided to stay.
However...I needed a way to earn money. In the Chgo Suburb I was previously living....I remembered seeing "PlaceMats" in some of the restaurants.
These were usually 8 1/2 by 14wide sheets of paper with an Ad for the Restaurant in the middle and 12 to 16 ads around the edges.
I decided to make up a Mock-Up and sell ads to local businesses. This was in the "Pre-PC" days. I had to go to a small Quick-Printer and have them make up a "Type-Set" sheet on their Type-Setter (which was a machine that printed out text on a special paper. I then had to Cut&Paste the text, along with any photos or Graphics and....GLUE them to a base sheet....which could then be run thru a copy machine.
So...I designed a "Mock-Up" with a Black Outline around the Ad Spaces. I then took this to some local restaurants and asked the owners if they'd allow me to provide them with FREE Placemats.
NONE of the "fancy" restaurants wanted these BUT...I got 3 of the "locals" restaurants to agree to use them.
I then pasted an Ad for the restaurants in the middle space, using their business cards, letthead and ads they used in the newspaper.
Now...I remembered something an "old-time" Direct Sales guy told me. A phrase that has stuck with me forever;
"NOBODY WANTS TO BE FIRST!"
To me...this meant, if I were to go knocking on doors of local businesses and showed them a "BLANK" sheet...the chances of them wanting an Ad on my Placemats was....Slim and None! Again because, Nobody Wants To Be First!
They'd wonder WHY aren't there any OTHER businesses on the sheet?... maybe No One WANTS an Ad? "Doubts" would be in their minds!
So....I had 16 spaces on my "Mat"....I went to a few local businesses and collected business cards (including one from the printer who was doing the Type-Setting for me)
I made up 3 "Demo Ads" and put them on my Sheet, made some copies and proceeded to call on businesses.....showing my Sheet with the THREE Ads on it! Ads that I placed there! Ads that the business people did NOT pay for or...even had any knowledge I was using them to "help sell Ads" on MY Mats.
Now....I did NOT tell any of the prospects that the Ads they saw were NOT paid for...that I had placed them on my Mats to "Help ME" sell ads.
If someone would've asked, "Are those Ads PAID FOR?"....I would've told them these are just "Demo-Sample"! BUT...nobody ever asked! They LIKED the idea of having their Ad on Placemats and...when I sold all 13 ad spaces....I then removed the 3 "Freebies" I had started with and went to those businesses and asked them if they'd like to have an Ad on my Mat.
Most did.
Now...some of you might consider this "Black-Hat"! That I was "using a LIE"....that I was showing ads that were "Phoney"!...just to get others to join!
Hogwash! Nobody was being "hurt"! And some of you might consider this "subterfuge" or "underhanded". Be that as it may. This "technique" brought me MANY SALES and DOLLARS!
In fact....I'm STILL using this to help me sell WebSites and Mobile Sites.
Again....NoBody Wants To Be First!
So....rather than calling on businesses to sell them a regular or mobile site with a "Blank" Sales Sheet....I made some "Mock-Ups" that were not paid for and....in fact....the businesses DID NOT KNOW I was using THEIR businesses as Samples of "what I could do"!
I have read MANY MANY posts here where the poster said....he was "waiting to get his 1st sale, so he could show other prospects what he could do!"
I'd read those posts and ask, "What if the guy NEVER makes a sale?" OR..."What if it takes forever to get the 1st sale"?
Why not make up a couple (or 3) Samples of what you can do....to use as DEMOS to show others! Prospects don't have to know you made these samples ...WITHOUT THE BUSINESSES KNOWING YOU ARE USING THEM AS "GUINEA PIGS"! (As some have called this)
So....you can make it extremely HARD to get your first sales by being "OVERLY HONEST" and wait...and wait....and wait....for your 1st Sale..... or....EASY!
Now....some people have asked me (when I told them this Technique) "Why can't I make up "FICTICIOUS" Samples or Demos!"
Well...you can HOWEVER....it will take LONGER to get Sales. Showing REAL Businesses acts as "motivation" to have YOU do the job!
Now....look at this technique THIS WAY; YOU are the OWNER, Chief Cook and Bottle Washer of YOUR business! You can give anyone a FREEBIE! It's YOUR BUSINESS!
So....NEVER show prospects an "Empty Slate"! To get your business going INSTANTLY....make up some Samples of Real businesses. And....you don't have to offer Freebies to your first few prospects! It's a waste of time!
Go to the businesses you used as Demos AFTER you have some REAL Paying Clients! Then....you can use these clients as Demos to the 1st ones you used as Demos!
Don Alm....Sales Pro
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ ++++
Way back in 1978 I found myself in Aspen, CO (after a "hard" divorce from my 1st wife) I didn't know a soul and after seeing the beauty of the mountains and the "small town" atmosphere....I decided to stay.
However...I needed a way to earn money. In the Chgo Suburb I was previously living....I remembered seeing "PlaceMats" in some of the restaurants.
These were usually 8 1/2 by 14wide sheets of paper with an Ad for the Restaurant in the middle and 12 to 16 ads around the edges.
I decided to make up a Mock-Up and sell ads to local businesses. This was in the "Pre-PC" days. I had to go to a small Quick-Printer and have them make up a "Type-Set" sheet on their Type-Setter (which was a machine that printed out text on a special paper. I then had to Cut&Paste the text, along with any photos or Graphics and....GLUE them to a base sheet....which could then be run thru a copy machine.
So...I designed a "Mock-Up" with a Black Outline around the Ad Spaces. I then took this to some local restaurants and asked the owners if they'd allow me to provide them with FREE Placemats.
NONE of the "fancy" restaurants wanted these BUT...I got 3 of the "locals" restaurants to agree to use them.
I then pasted an Ad for the restaurants in the middle space, using their business cards, letthead and ads they used in the newspaper.
Now...I remembered something an "old-time" Direct Sales guy told me. A phrase that has stuck with me forever;
"NOBODY WANTS TO BE FIRST!"
To me...this meant, if I were to go knocking on doors of local businesses and showed them a "BLANK" sheet...the chances of them wanting an Ad on my Placemats was....Slim and None! Again because, Nobody Wants To Be First!
They'd wonder WHY aren't there any OTHER businesses on the sheet?... maybe No One WANTS an Ad? "Doubts" would be in their minds!
So....I had 16 spaces on my "Mat"....I went to a few local businesses and collected business cards (including one from the printer who was doing the Type-Setting for me)
I made up 3 "Demo Ads" and put them on my Sheet, made some copies and proceeded to call on businesses.....showing my Sheet with the THREE Ads on it! Ads that I placed there! Ads that the business people did NOT pay for or...even had any knowledge I was using them to "help sell Ads" on MY Mats.
Now....I did NOT tell any of the prospects that the Ads they saw were NOT paid for...that I had placed them on my Mats to "Help ME" sell ads.
If someone would've asked, "Are those Ads PAID FOR?"....I would've told them these are just "Demo-Sample"! BUT...nobody ever asked! They LIKED the idea of having their Ad on Placemats and...when I sold all 13 ad spaces....I then removed the 3 "Freebies" I had started with and went to those businesses and asked them if they'd like to have an Ad on my Mat.
Most did.
Now...some of you might consider this "Black-Hat"! That I was "using a LIE"....that I was showing ads that were "Phoney"!...just to get others to join!
Hogwash! Nobody was being "hurt"! And some of you might consider this "subterfuge" or "underhanded". Be that as it may. This "technique" brought me MANY SALES and DOLLARS!
In fact....I'm STILL using this to help me sell WebSites and Mobile Sites.
Again....NoBody Wants To Be First!
So....rather than calling on businesses to sell them a regular or mobile site with a "Blank" Sales Sheet....I made some "Mock-Ups" that were not paid for and....in fact....the businesses DID NOT KNOW I was using THEIR businesses as Samples of "what I could do"!
I have read MANY MANY posts here where the poster said....he was "waiting to get his 1st sale, so he could show other prospects what he could do!"
I'd read those posts and ask, "What if the guy NEVER makes a sale?" OR..."What if it takes forever to get the 1st sale"?
Why not make up a couple (or 3) Samples of what you can do....to use as DEMOS to show others! Prospects don't have to know you made these samples ...WITHOUT THE BUSINESSES KNOWING YOU ARE USING THEM AS "GUINEA PIGS"! (As some have called this)
So....you can make it extremely HARD to get your first sales by being "OVERLY HONEST" and wait...and wait....and wait....for your 1st Sale..... or....EASY!
Now....some people have asked me (when I told them this Technique) "Why can't I make up "FICTICIOUS" Samples or Demos!"
Well...you can HOWEVER....it will take LONGER to get Sales. Showing REAL Businesses acts as "motivation" to have YOU do the job!
Now....look at this technique THIS WAY; YOU are the OWNER, Chief Cook and Bottle Washer of YOUR business! You can give anyone a FREEBIE! It's YOUR BUSINESS!
So....NEVER show prospects an "Empty Slate"! To get your business going INSTANTLY....make up some Samples of Real businesses. And....you don't have to offer Freebies to your first few prospects! It's a waste of time!
Go to the businesses you used as Demos AFTER you have some REAL Paying Clients! Then....you can use these clients as Demos to the 1st ones you used as Demos!
Don Alm....Sales Pro
How i got my first client: FULL CASE STUDY - Click here