There's a formula to make lead prospecting work and here it is.
1. Make an offer to your prospect that matches their agenda. Whether you use email, direct mail, newspaper advertising, it doesn't matter. The goal is to put something in front of our prospect that matches their concern and not your concern. Here's an example. If you want to have a prospect respond for your offer for mutual fund selection, you don't send a mailing "Get my mutual fund selection system for only $99." Such an offer is about YOUR agenda. Here's the offer that matches their agenda, "Six Tactics that Financial Institutions Don't Want You to Know About Selecting the Right Mutual Funds on Your Own—Get your free copy now."
2. Once your prospect responds (requests the free booklet or report), you send it. DO NOT contact the prospect until you have delivered the promised item. Print your photo, your name, credentials on the front cover and have your biography (well written to illustrate your expertise) in the back. Make sure you have plenty of unbiased non-sales content in the report. If you send an item that is effectively a sales pitch, the prospect won't want to talk with you. People don't want to talk with sales people. That's why the item must be 100% informative, educational and add value to the prospect's agenda.
3. After you send the item, you contact the prospect (whether it be by phone or a follow up mail piece). Let's say it's by phone and your objective is to sell something on the phone or sell an appointment. For example, you sell mutual funds and you want to meet this prospect. Your call is about their concerns and the only way you will know their concerns is to ask. So the goal of this call is not to state how brilliant you are or how great your mutual fund choices are. The goal is to find the prospect's hot button that will motivate them to action.
4. Once you've identified the prospect's hot button, you ask them how important it would be to solve this issue—what's the payoff. When they tell you, ask them to explain further. In other words, get them to "taste" the payoff. Now here's where mediocre sellers screw this up. They blurt out "well I can help you with that!!!" Now, you're just another sales person, drooling at the thought that you have a motivated prospect. But the master does not volunteer a solution. The master asks "would you like to see how other people like yourself solve this problem?" Because people are addicted voyeurs, they will absolutely want to find out how others solve their financial dilemmas. You can then volunteer to meet and show them examples of other person's solutions.
5. You have now maintained your position as a consultant and not a sales person. You have controlled your urge to talk about what you want to sell and you have remained focused on the prospect's objective. You now have a lead that's a real prospect. You can now see why most lead systems don't work Let's explore what you're probably doing now to generate and follow up on leads.
First, the lead probably did not respond to anything. They are merely a name that supposedly meets some criteria. This is not a lead, it's a suspect. Leads are people that respond to some marketing effort. They raise their hand (i.e. respond) and indicate interest. So if you don't have a strong marketing message up front to get prospects to indicate interest, you're already sunk
Next, you probably call that person to solicit an appointment. But you've got no credibility with them. You have failed to establish your expertise. You must first show them why you're credible. And there is no better credibility than to be an author (or to have printed materials personalized with your name and photo and the prospect assumes you're the author).
Last, you probably contact prospects and tell them about your "stuff." You don't ask them enough questions or even seem to care about them. Since they responded to your marketing, you assume they are a buyer so you jump into your pitch. You immediately establish yourself as another hack they don't want to talk to.
Is it now clear why it takes 200 leads to make one or two sales?
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