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Aug
22

Marketing stickiness

By | advertising, Copywriting, Direct Mail, Entrepreneur, Marketing on the web, Neighborhood Marketing

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marketing-clutter

Does your marketing look like it's buried in the clutter?

11  important rules you need to stick to if you want to succeed in your marketing:

1)      The purpose of your marketing is NOT to showcase your brand, your logo, (it does not need

to be for them to buy something, as it can be for them to take some kind of action like visiting a web page to get something for free)

2)      You MUST learn how to create compelling offers that get them to take those actions.

3)      Each of the marketing campaigns you launch will consist of a minimum of 3 steps.  In other words, when communicating with your clients and prospects, you must send at least 3 different pieces to them in order to call it a properly designed campaign (and one that will actually work and help you achieve goal #1 from above)

4)      No more cutesy sayings and vague one-liners that say and do nothing that take you closer to goal #1. Again, a cute radio ad is useless if it doesn’t generate you leads or make you money.

5)      You will learn how to become a more natural writer, and use those skills to further build on goal #1

6)      Your personality in your marketing is your greatest asset. Don’t hide the fact that you are a real live person, like most business owners do. They try and mask the size of their company… pretending to be a big company.  Putting your face and personality front and center in all your marketing will do more for your sales than anything else you do.

7) Effective advertising rarely looks like advertising.

8)      Effective advertising stops your ideal customer in their tracks and literally forces them to start reading your ad.

9)      Effective advertising always has some form of tracking mechanism in place so you know exactly if it is working, or not.

My first few years into copywriting, I had logged 2,000 hours of writing and studying from the masters (I tracked my hours).

Since discovering this thing called copywriting, I have a whole new world in front of me.  I see why most businesses struggle.  I see why people think marketing doesn’t work. I see why most people think advertising is a waste of money. And I see why some companies go on and accomplish amazing things in record time.

I have had the privilege to work with some incredible people, from all over the world. Movie stars. Bestselling authors. Public speakers. Inventors.  Real estate investors and developers.  Information publishers.  All said and done, there are probably 35+ industries I have helped now.  And have made them millions and millions of dollars in short periods of time.

 

Why do I share this with you? Because just 7 years ago I had no idea what marketing was or how it worked.  Today, I am an internationally-known entrepreneur who has helped thousands of people turn their businesses around.  Every week, my articles go out to thousands of entrepreneurs and small business owners spanning the globe.  And I absolutely love seeing the look in a client’s eye when they hit their first grand slam in marketing. The pay doesn’t hurt either.

If I can do it, so can you.  I failed English in high school and university.  But I quickly discovered that real marketing doesn’t care about proper grammar.  As you will see in this article, real marketing breaks many of the rules of proper English.

Yet it works… and the results speak for themselves.

 

 

I LOVE your comments… good and bad.  Let me know what I can do to help you grow your business faster and more profitably.

Troy

 

Jun
14

Canada Post’s Secret… Uncovered and Exploited by the USPS

By | calgary, Copywriting, Direct Mail, Direct Marketing, Email Marketing, Leads Generation, Marketing on the web, Neighborhood Marketing, Twitter, Wacky marketing ideas

17 Comments

I have long been preaching the power of using direct mail to complement your online marketing efforts.

Why?

Because ‘everyone’ is NOT online.

Because ‘everyone’ do NOT prefer email to print mail.

Because ‘everyone’ is not on Facebook and Twitter.

There is a huge opportunity to leverage the dinosaurs we call our postal service into your marketing.

And the United States Postal System just figured out one of Canada Post’s little secrets.

Yes, for many years now, astute marketers were using Unaddressed Admail in Canada. Direct to the door mail for 11.9 cents per household.

Fantastic for lead generation!

But until recently, the USPS didn’t have a service that would work like Canada Posts Unaddressed Direct Mail tools.

…Until now…


What it means to everyone is that there are now more options south of the 49th parallel.

And it also means it is TIME to get serious about using this tool.

If you need help – let me know.

If you want a webinar around this – let me know.

This is a fantastic tool for geo targeting of your prospects and clients.

Hope you are using it!!

Let me know your thoughts.

(I also have a product called Direct Mail Detox
that you will find helpful for generating QUALIFIED leads)

Troy

PS: I should also share the fact that I have seen some incredible results using this next-to-free direct mail tool. One client in a very competitive, commodity type business used a flier I did up and we used Unaddressed Admail to businesses – and got an incredible 12:1 return on their investment. Another sold a number of high end home products (average price of each piece if $800) for a whopping $300 investment in mailing and postal services.

This is a great way to find leads and make sales. Definitely worth your time to test.

Jun
06

Thoughts on Groupon and all the clones

By | Direct Marketing, Email Marketing, Leads Generation, Main Content, Success

1 Comment

I had a client of mine email this question.

There are some solid lessons in my reply – whether or not you plan on using this type of service – the answer applies for ALL leads.

Question: > What is your opinion on Swarmjam, Groupon, and sites like that? I have been approached by some of them and (competitor #1), (competitor #2), and (competitor #3), have run campaigns with them. Thank you.

My answer…

Hi Ghislaine, I think they are good for one thing only (which is why they will never work for most businesses).

Leads.

You won’t make money (doubtfully anyhow) off the promotion with them.

You may get hundreds of people in the door – but they will usually be at break even or a loss for you.

BUT, if you have a system in place to get them back… then it can work.

Most people assume that buyers from all these Groupon type deals will come back to buy more after the initial discount deal.

But Groupon type buyers typically go on looking for the next great deal.

And they never hear back from the last company they bought from anyhow… so time to move on to the next 80% off deal.

But if you have a system in place to get them back at a smaller discount the next time.

Then a system in place to get them buying again – at regular price. THEN you can make money.

But you know as well as I do – most businesses have ZERO system in place for this.

If you have yours in place – then you will be ok (as long as you get in front of them regularly to get them back).

You can make money with these – but only when you get them back to buy more and more often, without the huge discount you gave them in the first place).

My thoughts anyhow.

Troy

So, the questions for you are…

…what are you you willing to PAY for a lead (this type of lead generation is usually at break even or a loss).

…what SYSTEMS do you have in place to guarantee a certain percentage comes back to buy more from you?

If you don’t know those, don’t bother with Groupon and the clones. You WILL lose money and never get it back.

In my own opinion, Troy

PS: Don’t believe me?

Lets say typical purchase if $50 at list price. $25 is margin.

Groupon and clones want you to discount by at LEAST 50%.

Now you are at break even.

BUT, you still haven’t PAID Groupon and clones – they will want at LEAST 10% of sales.

So you sell 1,000 ‘deals’

$25,000 revenues – alright!
Minus $2,500 to Groupon clones.
Leftover = $22,500

BUT it cost you $25,000 to create the products you are selling.

It cost you $2,500 to bring in 1,000 new potential repeat buyers. Which is $2.50 per ‘lead’ – which is actually quite reasonable IF you know how to get them back to buy more, at higher margins next time.

Make sense?

So what is your system to get them back to buy more, at higher margins?

Jan
07

Do 500 men love their wives?

By | Leads Generation, Marketing Calendar, Marketing Plan

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In 1934 a florist (B. Altman) ran an advertisement that went like this:

“We believe there are 500 men in New York who love
their wives… and want to give them flowers for
Easter

So… we’ve provided 500 old-fashioned bouquets…
ready now and packed in beautiful boxes. They’re
just inside the Fifth Avenue entrance… all at one
price and that one price very easily to afford”
($2.50)

Simple?

Yes.

Successful?

500 bouquets sold in 3 hours = 170 PER HOUR!

So, yes.

The reason why this is mentioned here?

Could YOU not find a way to make this work?

You are appealing to an upcoming holiday — one typically not thought of by men that often as a reason to give flowers.
[hint: Valentine's Day coming up - a GOOD reason to have a promotion]

You are appealing to the simple nature of men… make is EASY to buy (packaging done – right inside the door – one price – not expensive… all of these make it EASY to buy).

How could you run a special bundle promotion for one of the following events that happen next Monday (Jan 10th):

Oil 1st discovered in Texas (1901) / Peculiar People Day / Volunteer Fireman’s Day /
National Cut Your Energy Cost Day / Where’s the Beef? Day

Not hard to figure out is it?

“Thanks for being a great customer – - here is a special offer just for you. Offer good until midnight on Thanksgiving day.”

Think it through – and get your promotions going!

The Cash Flow Calendar is designed to be a simple marketing plan for the entire year.

Complete with at least 3-5 ideas every single day of the year for a promotion, plus templates and ready to steal letters, as well as an actual 12 month spreadsheet you can use for planning and tracking your promotions.

One client just upgraded his 2010 version to the 2011 version VERY quickly.

Why?

Because he made an additional $11,000 in January last year by using the ideas in this marketing calendar! Simple… and very cost effective.

Here’s to a GREAT year ahead!

Troy
(PS: The ad above was written by Ruth Packard – one of the great copywriters who understood the power of simplicity and ease of order).

Nov
23

From College Student to Millionaire in under 3 years

By | advertising, Affluent buyers, Autoresponders, Copywriting, Email Marketing, Entrepreneur

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One of the biggest problems entrepreneurs have is fear.

Fear of doing something they are not ‘comfortable’ with.

Fear of trying something new.

Fear of looking less-than-professional.

But those fears are what hold people back from breakthroughs.

Like Chris V.

He came to an event of mine a couple years ago. He was living a good lifestyle in a business that was doing well…

…but there was a nagging feeling that something better was waiting for him.

And he did what few others do – he took the plunge and faced his fear head on.

I’ll let him say the rest:

“Troy, I cannot thank you enough for the 2007
Wild West Millionaire Summit you put on. My membership
business grew from $2300 per month to over $96,000 per
month and still growing at a ridiculous rate… all from
your marketing calendar, copy writing and you helping me
tell my story with the world.

I have gone from a College Student to a Millionaire in
under 3 years with my Dream Home on the water being
built as we speak… My wife and new born daughter
thank you even more!.. lol

I think your event, your information, your personality
is incredible!”

Chris Vermeulen
Founder, TheTechnicalTraders.com

When you face your fears and do new things in your business and marketing – major things like this can happen.

Do happen.

Regularly.

So – isn’t it time for you to start sharing your story with others?

The upcoming Story Selling Coaching Club starts December 7th.

= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =
Have a look at my Crazy Canuck
Minus 32 degree guarantee
= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =

http://www.storysellingtips.com/coaching.html

…THAT is how confident I am in this course delivering you the results you want!

Hope you join us – with the busiest buying seasons upon us – you have no time to waste.

To your story selling success,

Troy

PS: I recently shared the Carnegie Mellon stats that showed proof that stories outsell facts by 118%.

Double your sales with stories – and stories are easier to write than fact based copy – when you have the right system in place. I will show you how.

“Troy’s story selling works! In just a few short calls Troy as able to
uncover great story ideas that I didn’t even realize I had. I’ve been sitting on a
gold mine!

Thanks to Troy we did our first Halloween promotion ever, and had a
18 to 1 Return on our investment! We are already working on our next two
campaigns.

Can’t wait to see what you come up with next! Thanks again!”

~~~~ Seth Greene

http://www.storysellingtips.com/coaching.html

Oct
15

Fact selling vs story selling – - Carnegie Mellon research results

By | Copywriting, Direct Marketing, Entrepreneur, Leads Generation, Marketing on the web, Neighborhood Marketing, Story Selling, Wacky marketing ideas

3 Comments

Carnegie Mellon did a fascinating study on the power of story telling vs hard core statistics in your marketing.

You may think you know the results, but I bet you would never guess the results and the implications for marketing.

The results surprised me too.

The first test they ran involved a sales letter promoting a non-profit.

The people involved received 2 versions of the sales letter.

One version told a heart wrenching story about a girl that lived in the 3rd world country…

…the other shared the facts on what dismal living conditions the people lived in, the numbers of them without fresh water, without food, etc.

Then they measured how much each of the test groups donated to each letter.

The letter sold 118% more with the story based letter.

So despite what you may think about people who just want the facts, real life shows a very different outcome.

But it gets even more interesting…

Then they tested an approach that used BOTH story and facts in the same letter.

‘Logic’ would say that using both story and facts in the same letter would appeal to the analytical buyers and more emotional buyers all at once.

You’d think it would improve results…

But it did the opposite.

It did sell more than the pure facts approach (25.4% increase), but it sold 39.9% less than the pure story approach.

So story definitely sells far better than the facts based approach.

It gets better…

They then tested a theory that ‘priming’ the different groups would impact sales ad well.

One group they primed by having them do mathematical calculations before being presented with the analytical approach.

The other was primed with more emotional hot buttons and their reactions to emotional hot buttons… Prepped with the emotional words before seeing the emotional words.

Those primed with analytical exercises before the analytical letter bought 12% LESS than the mixed emotions/facts letter.

Those primed with emotional exercises bought basically the same as without the priming (actually 1.7% less).

The lesson?

Sales and marketing campaigns based on emotional stories will outperform anything else.

This works in business to business. This works in business to consumer

Having a great signature story in your marketing campaigns will improve your results…

…I guarantee it.

The first Story Selling Coaching program started up this week.

You can still join, get the recordings, and be fired up to join the rest of us next Tuesday.

If one great story could improve the sales in the Carnegie Mellon study by 118%…

…imagine what it can do for you this holiday season… The busiest shopping season of the year.

You are guaranteed 2 campaigns written in the 6 week program… Each of them could add some serious sales to your business.

Http://www.storysellingtips.com

Hope you join us… Guaranteed results.

To your story selling success.

Troy

PS: As I was wrapping this article up, I realized this was all facts… with a little bit of story mixed in. Which, according to the study is not a good thing.

So I will end with a quick story. I have written extensively about Kinjo Sushi in Calgary. The fact that they are thriving in an industry that has regular business failures.

The fact that they sell out the seats in their restaurant 5-9 TIMES a day.

Yes, 100% sold out over 5 times a day.

They fill the seats – feed them – entertain them – send them on their way… quickly. The fact that the owner of this place used a great story to build his last empire of 35 franchises.

The fact that they have NEVER done advertising before… every single one of their clients come to them as a result of word of mouth.

Why? It’s cold, dead, fish… right?

Well – they have a secret weapon… Peter Kinjo. Peter gets this. He knows that peopel buy when they are entertained and they are given a great story to share with others. And they do!

They tell their friends about the wacky guy and the big knife.
The free sushi they got.
The free chocolate they got.
The incredible service.

That’s all it takes… a great story for your customers to share.

Get your signature story tuned now – there is no better time!
Http://www.storysellingtips.com

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