Another classic example of stupid lead generation.

This showed up in my inbox this morning (should have been filtered to Spam or junk but wasn’t)

Hi Sir

Are you interested in morden abstract oil paintings? We mainly wholesale, also retail.

100% handmade oil paintings on canvas, could be used for home / hotel / office decoration.

picasaweb.google.com/paint4deco

Our price is low.

If you’re interested, please tell us the item number and the size you want.

Thank you and best regards,

Hedy
Painting factory in China

Maybe this is legit – I would never click on the link to find out though.

Let’s assume this IS legit.

Could this actually GET any worse?

First, what is  “morden abstract oil paintings”. A quick search on Google shows me it is a town in Manitoba, or the last name of a guy in Calgary.  Nothing I can find says it has anything to do with art.

If they meant “modern” they should try this thing called a spell check machine!  Especially (!) if you are writing marketing materials in a language you are not familiar with.

If this is how they actually generate business, and it works, imagine what would be possible if they actually had it proof read by someone who does speak English. Imagine if they actually took some initiative and learned a couple things about writing sales copy.  With all the free articles on sales letter writing and copywriting out there, it would cost them nothing and have a significant impact on their sales.

Next…

“We mainly wholesale, also retail.” – need I say more?  Yeesh.

By the looks of this email it is a spam email sent to millions in hope someone would buy from them… and maybe they do.

Imagine if they had written something like this instead (took me 3 minutes to draft – and could be dramatically improved with more work):

Fellow entrepreneur. (first name is better)

I won’t take much of your time, but I do have something for you that could dramatically impact your customer relationships.

First,  the reason I am contacting you is that I found you online and realize that you run a marketing company.

Marketers like you and I know that customer retention is critical for our long term survival.

And we both know that yet another golf shirt or ball cap won’t build the good will in your client base that you want.

What will?

Something different.

Something dramatically different.

What better than a client gift that costs you very little, yet they will proudly display on their walls for many years to come!

That’s right… we have a specialty program for Marketing companies like yours.  Smart Art is our flagship program for building customer relationships and sales.

How does it work?

Instead of giving away shirts or ball caps this golf season… why not give them a beautiful piece of art they can proudly display in their home or office?

The cost is similar… the impact dramatically different.

Go to our Smart Art page to see the impact this has had for other Marketing companies like yours www.url.com

Pay close attention to the feedback other entrepreneurs have given.

Look through the gallery section to see what we can offer you.

Most importantly… sign up for our Smart Art Membership for FREE.

Sign up and you will get your first piece of art for free.

As a member in our community, you also get first rights on our newest art work, and (this will be important to you), you also receive one free customer print (framed) for every 4 pieces you buy.

Invest in 4 customer relationships and we help build the 5th.

Not only that, we also supply you with custom engraved name plates for each print (at less than a dollar a piece).

One last thing, we also will supply you with a greeting card (complete with art work on the cover) you can use when you proudly hand these out to your clients.

There is no risk or catch to claim your first print.

go to www.url.com and look through our Smart Art section.

Choose which art work you want in your home or office.

Become a member and let us look after you.

No catch or hook.

Free help to build stronger ties with your customers.

Last, if you want to speak directly with me, please reply back and let me know the best time to contact you.

Thank you.

First name and last name

Actual company name

phone #

email

PS: There is no catch to this offer.  You can claim your Free Smart Art Customer Retention membership by visiting this site now www.url.com.  Once you sign up, we will send you a free oil painting for your home or office.  Not only that, we will also provide you with all these bonuses (list) and tools to help you build a rock solid relationshgip with your customers this year.   Customers absolutely love these hand made works of art.

[testimonial of actual customer]

Don’t delay… this can make a dramatic difference in your business and there is no risk or cost involved for you to get started.

See all of our customer comments here www.url.com

See what a difference that makes!

Again, with more thought and preparation, I could make this shine much more.

But the point is this…

…invest the time in learning how to do PROPER lead generation.

Learn how to write simple sales letters. Learn how to do lead generation campaigns.

And make your marketing efforts pay off for once and for all!

Yes, it takes work – but any real business I know of was built with actual elbow grease… not magic pills and little shiny internet marketing objects.

To your lead generation success!

Troy