Why Irrisistable Offers Don't Work

9 years ago

Originally Posted by ewenmack

Imagine a grumpy older man leaning back in his swivel office chair,
hands behind his head and feet crossed on his table.

And he's having a bad day.

He comes across a message saying
something like...

-------------------------------
"More Customers...Guaranteed!"
-------------------------------

He is either going to say to himself...

B.S.

or

Oh fantastic, just what I need.

Now seriously, which one of those two things will he be saying to himself?

We don't have to have a degree in human sciences to figure this out.
He's going to be thinking, "B.S. who do these clowns think I am...
some wet behind the ears kid new to business, geez give me a break!

You are not dealing with a serial refunder of business opportunity programs.

A whiff of bloated claims and you are toast.
A whiff of commercial intent and you are gone.

So how do you get through to this hard-ass person?

Well you offer some information that can help
him in his business. Something that he thinks
doesn't have any catches and waste his time and money.

What's working right at this moment is what we call case studies.
What a business like his did to get x. And this is in industries where
they have been bombarded by companies that offer the same core service.

The owners are responding back within minutes in many cases.
And they take your call. And they buy on the call.

Just round up case studies of how a business improved
something which was clearly measured. Make it a point to
know case studies off the top of your head. Go round them up.
They are truly the ticket to the promised land.

Not irrisistable offers.

Best,
Ewen

Ewen, I've read exactly two of your posts and I am a fan. This is great advice. I cold-called business owners and CEOs of companies up to $1B (revenue) in size for years to sell consulting services. My first phone call was never about what we did--I used the method you describe. It revolutionized my firm's sales approach. ...Not that I was a genius--I stole the idea from somewhere. I was just smart enough to use it, and it worked.

Cheers!

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ewenmack

9 years ago

Originally Posted by MNord

My first phone call was never about what we did--I used the method you describe. It revolutionized my firm's sales approach. ...

Do you recall where the firm learnt to lead with case studies?

Best,
Ewen

Thanks
2 replies

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buddy7

9 years ago

Chet Holmes The Ultimate Sales Machine is a really good read on that idea. He talks about offering reports with studies on the things that are impacting a specific industry and offering it to potential clients with no strings. The book is a really good read.

There is a great six page summary here.
http://www.donphin.com/text/DP-UltSalesMchn.pdf

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ewenmack

9 years ago

Originally Posted by buddy7

Chet Holmes The Ultimate Sales Machine is a really good read on that idea. He talks about offering reports with studies on the things that are impacting a specific industry and offering it to potential clients with no strings. The book is a really good read.

There is a great six page summary here.
http://www.donphin.com/text/DP-UltSalesMchn.pdf

Slight variation to what Chet taught is working now.

He taught to do research to dig up pain points in
the industry which your target clients are in.

For example the Beauty Spa industry
would dig up how many more have come on the scene
and how this has created unprecidented competition,
higher cost to get a customer and thinner margins.

All that takes a lot of research.

What we are doing is keeping it very simple and
about a business that got great results from their marketing.

And you dopn't even have to be the person who created those results.
However you don't imply that you are the one who created those results.

You can be up and running so much faster and achieve
the same end result.

Best,
Ewen

Thanks
1 reply

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ronr

9 years ago

Hey Ewen

Good point. To the uninformed, an offer like

-------------------------------
"More Customers...Guaranteed!"
-------------------------------

may seem like an irresistible offer.

I think it's a lazy offer.

An offer like you suggest, giving them a case study showing how a business like theirs did x by doing Z is much closer to an irresistible offer.

Ron

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1 reply

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dmaster555

9 years ago

Originally Posted by ronr

Hey Ewen

Good point. To the uninformed, an offer like

-------------------------------
"More Customers...Guaranteed!"
-------------------------------

may seem like an irresistible offer.

I think it's a lazy offer.

An offer like you suggest, giving them a case study showing how a business like theirs did x by doing Z is much closer to an irresistible offer.

Ron

I agree. Irresistible offers do work. Just not in the context he put it

Thanks

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MNord 9 years ago

Originally Posted by ewenmack

Do you recall where the firm learnt to lead with case studies?

Best,
Ewen

No, this was probably 10 years ago, and I read a lot. Could have been any number of sources.
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Marty S

9 years ago

[DELETED]

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ewenmack

9 years ago

Originally Posted by Marty S

Excellent advice Ewen. Thanks so much.

The only thing I don't agree with here is this -

because HE is not necessarily being a hard-ass. He is just being inundated with so many claims and emails and phone calls with similar BS that he has learned to dismiss such nonsense as a matter of productivity. So too have most people with their own personal incomings. We see this everyday, and react the same way. No he is not a hard-ass, he is normal.

Marty, you are right and a great observation.
For most people viewing the situation,
he seems like you just can't get through to him.

Well, with what he has been exposed to, as you mentioned,
yes he has this wall put up to defend himself.

Thanks,
Ewen

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misterme

9 years ago

Originally Posted by ewenmack

A whiff of bloated claims and you are toast.
A whiff of commercial intent and you are gone.

So how do you get through to this hard-ass person?

Well you offer some information that can help
him...

Just round up case studies of how a business improved
something which was clearly measured. Make it a point to
know case studies off the top of your head. Go round them up.
They are truly the ticket to the promised land.

Not irrisistable offers.

It sounds like you're saying case histories should be used instead of irresistible offers to get through to prospects. But the example you gave is about using case histories instead of hype and salesy pitches, not offers.

On behalf of irresistible offers everywhere I need to point that out.

Given that case histories may very well help sell the prospect on the service -
it's the irresistible offer which then makes it a no brainer to go ahead and take the plunge. Because even after breaking through the noise, presenting case studies, driving desire up the wall and getting the prospect to the point of salivating...

...an offer of some kind has to be made - and if that offer's irresistible, that's just gotta help.

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ewenmack

9 years ago

Originally Posted by misterme

It sounds like you're saying case histories should be used instead of irresistible offers to get through to prospects. But the example you gave is about using case histories instead of hype and salesy pitches, not offers.

On behalf of irresistible offers everywhere I need to point that out.

Given that case histories may very well help sell the prospect on the service -
it's the irresistible offer which then makes it a no brainer to go ahead and take the plunge. Because even after breaking through the noise, presenting case studies, driving desire up the wall and getting the prospect to the point of salivating...

...an offer of some kind has to be made - and if that offer's irresistible, that's just gotta help.

Misterme you are right about the irristable offer
and the timing of it to close the sale.

Where most people go wrong is making it too soon
when dealing with more expensive products and services to business owners.

Best,
Ewen

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SomeRandomBadger

9 years ago

Hey Ewen.

Thanks for posting this, it makes a lot of sense and has come at a great time for me.

The reason I say that is that currently I'm working on the Chet Holmes Dream 100 strategy and building my 'core story' which is the industry data and threats you mentioned. It really is one hell of a lot of work doing all the research to get something decent together!

Are you essentially following a similar process to the Dream 100 strategy using direct mail and follow up calls to prospect like Chet did, but instead of industry data and core story you're offering successful case studies for similar companies?

That sounds like it could work pretty well. I have already come across 3 awesome case studies in the niche I'm targeting as part of my research - didn't think of making them front and centre in my prospecting efforts though!

Am I along the right lines here?

Any comments are appreciated.

Thanks again,
Ryan

Thanks
1 reply

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ewenmack

9 years ago

Originally Posted by RyanTurner

Are you essentially following a similar process to the Dream 100 strategy using direct mail and follow up calls to prospect like Chet did, but instead of industry data and core story you're offering successful case studies for similar companies?

That sounds like it could work pretty well. I have already come across 3 awesome case studies in the niche I'm targeting as part of my research - didn't think of making them front and centre in my prospecting efforts though!

Am I along the right lines here?

Any comments are appreciated.

Thanks again,
Ryan

Hey Ryan, the feedback I've got from 2 of my students has been where they are taking success case studies from their client work and offered to send it their way.

One was I helped create where the alternative methods were seen as inferior in a unbiased way. Used third party data to verify numbers and used screenshots to make it look more interesting and put it in a PDF.

He emaile's it when requested.

The other student didn't go to that trouble, however she knew the case study clearly in her head then went and offered it. Those that requested it she hoped straight on the phone to them.

So clearly just the success case studies is what is breaking through the clutter. As you have found out, so much more easier to put together than what Chet and Empire Research propose.

Best,
Ewen

Thanks

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maricelu

9 years ago

Damn, Ewen.

I want to thank you for all your posts, it's so cool that you share all of your expertise and sells knowledge I can't even explain. Sometimes when I read some of your newly created posts I tell myself "Wow, this makes sense so much" and I bookmark the link but it stays there forever and I never take a look back to that. I have dozens of bookmarks and mostly these are from your threads. I really hope someday I will be able to break the ice and start selling and not just knock sites all day long for cheap.

Thank you again

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ewenmack

9 years ago

Originally Posted by maricelu

Damn, Ewen.

I want to thank you for all your posts, it's so cool that you share all of your expertise and sells knowledge I can't even explain. Sometimes when I read some of your newly created posts I tell myself "Wow, this makes sense so much" and I bookmark the link but it stays there forever and I never take a look back to that. I have dozens of bookmarks and mostly these are from your threads. I really hope someday I will be able to break the ice and start selling and not just knock sites all day long for cheap.

Thank you again

I failed at selling when I started.

It was when I learnt how to get people to respond and call me,
was when I started to make sales.

Now I've progressed a bit further and can cold call decision makers
and close sales over the phone or walk in.

I don't see myself as good as Claude Whitacre, Misterme or Ken Michaels
though.

Best,
Ewen

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NewParadigm

9 years ago

A slight twist on this instead of a case study, offer up a survey for a niche you are targeting. Survey participants get a discount on the finished product. 1. you get paid for conducting the survey 2. you learn a lot about a niche vertical 3. you establish rapport/credibility in that niche. Many businesses love to benchmark themselves against peers. Suppliers/vendors to that niche will also want to buy the survey results. I've paid hundreds for a good in depth survey in the past both in my business category and client categories. It's a low pressure high value proposition that isn't offered very often.

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qu4rk

9 years ago

Originally Posted by NewParadigm

A slight twist on this instead of a case study, offer up a survey for a niche you are targeting. Survey participants get a discount on the finished product. 1. you get paid for conducting the survey 2. you learn a lot about a niche vertical 3. you establish rapport/credibility in that niche. Many businesses love to benchmark themselves against peers. Suppliers/vendors to that niche will also want to buy the survey results. I've paid hundreds for a good in depth survey in the past both in my business category and client categories. It's a low pressure high value proposition that isn't offered very often.

So are you suggesting that you would charge them to survey their customers? How much would you charge someone for something like this?

Thanks

Thanks

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JohnRussell

9 years ago

Not to be semantic but the offer for the case studies is an irresistible offer....it's just not asking for any money - yet.

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MNord

9 years ago

Originally Posted by JohnRussell

Not to be semantic but the offer for the case studies is an irresistible offer....it's just not asking for any money - yet.

This is true, but I think it's easy to read between the lines. The gold nugget in the post is about breaking the sales process into small steps rather than going for the slam dunk right away.

Thanks
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Vikuna2009+ 9 years ago

Doing a survey by using Survey Monkey is free and by offering a completed one, you have now built trust/gained a relationship and you can build on that.

Eva
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JohnRussell

9 years ago

Originally Posted by MNord

This is true, but I think it's easy to read between the lines. The gold nugget in the post is about breaking the sales process into small steps rather than going for the slam dunk right away.

True...but it's helpful to know that you can think of your lead generation piece in terms of an irresistible offer as well.

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mojo1 9 years ago

I devoted some time yesterday reading and rereading your two previous
posts on case studies in an attempt to apply it to one of my projects, domain brokering. Companies like Reachlocal and FindLocalCompany are both featuring a nice collection of niche specific case studies on their websites.

As you suggested Ewen, I'm putting together an email which makes an offer for a case study highlighting the benefits a large company received from owning a geo local domain. I know the case study won't be a perfect fit but surely the reports insight will make it stand out among the many domain for sale type emails these businesses are inundated with daily and hopefully make some positive traction with it next week.

Thanks for the share.
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shane_k

9 years ago

Originally Posted by ewenmack

Now seriously, which one of those two things will he be saying to himself?

It really depends

If you are putting it in this context, then we have to assume that what he is reading is probably not an irresistable offer to him. That is not saying it is not an irresistable offer to someone else though.

A whiff of bloated claims and you are toast.
A whiff of commercial intent and you are gone.

Well, technically speaking these things are not irresistable offers are they?

Not only that but lets say that you have the two above things in your sales pitch or sales letter and they turned your prospect off.

Well then I would say it wasn't the irresistable offer that was a problem but the bloated claims or that the prospect didn't want to feel sold to. Different things altogether.

Well you offer some information that can help
him in his business. Something that he thinks
doesn't have any catches and waste his time and money.

Is this not a type of an irresistable offer?

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ewenmack 9 years ago

Originally Posted by shane_k

Is this not a type of an irresistable offer?

Many people think and say, well all they want is more customers
and so you come out and say you'll give it to them.

And in their mind, that's an irresistible offer.

Then they blame the prospect as being too dumb
for not taking them up on it.

However if you work through the belief and decision making
systems in the other person, you'll see it doesn't match it
in many cases.

Best,
Ewen
- Thanks
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qu4rk

9 years ago

Ewen, so what if you don't have any case studies? Meaning, it's a new service that you are providing?

Also, do you think this would work if you send it in a direct mail as the offer?

Thanks

Thanks
1 reply

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ewenmack

9 years ago

Originally Posted by qu4rk

Ewen, so what if you don't have any case studies? Meaning, it's a new service that you are providing?

Also, do you think this would work if you send it in a direct mail as the offer?

Thanks

Yes definitely it can be made to work if you
don't have case studies.

I created them for a start-up web designer.
Found 4 or 5 of them which would match different prospect situations and made them bullet points in a Craigslist ad. That's been making, at the very minimum, $2,000 every month for the last 18 months.

I sourced those case studies from MarketingExperiments and gave the source links to my client.

In direct mail, the offer is to see if they want the case studies,
not send them.

Best,
Ewen

Thanks

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mojo1

9 years ago

Ewen,

I just want to thank you for being so very patient with those of us grasping and following your input. You, Jason and Claude have made this forum a delightful place of learning.

I wish you all the success you can handle this year and beyond.

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popstocks

Banned 9 years ago

Let's face it, so many so called i.mer's only Want "Wet behind the ears" gullible, neWbies to sell outrages dreams to. That's their business module.

Thanks

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LastingLifeSuccess

9 years ago

ewen, good solid informational post that is useful and helpful. It all makes good sense.

LLS

Thanks

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4D

9 years ago

Sounds a lot like Chet Holms 'Ultimate Sales Machine'. Valid advice just the same. I don't compete on price because I market to people who can afford the services at whatever price point I come in on. PROOF with testimonials and a portfolio go a long way though.

Thanks

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