If I showed you a way to make a dollar, would you give me back a quarter?
 

In one of his many books, Jay Abraham asks this question. The idea behind it is quite simple. Most business owners and professionals know a great deal about their industry and their business in particular - but very little re. marketing that business.

Abraham's premise is that he can develop profitable leads (for almost any business) and then share in the profits. That way he assumes all the risk. After all, what business owner wouldn't give you a quarter if you made him a dollar?

So, here is the challenge. Pick any business and explain how you could make them a 'dollar'. Could you do it for a dentist, chiropractor, furniture store etc?
Are you up for the challenge?

Jim

Should be: If I gave you a dollar, would you give me back a quarter?
 

Should be phrased to portray that the "J.A." in the equation will be doing all the work!

The 'challenge' you describe isn't much of a challenge.

It's almost too easy.

Click here to see an example of WHY it's too easy...

http://www.marketingbestpractices.co....cgi?read=2373

Cheers!

-- TW

PS: Here's something (below) I posted on another board a few years ago (please excuse the all caps + ranting) -- but it DOES illustrate why this 'challenge' isn't really a challenge at all...

When I go out on marketing consultations, I get frustrated seeing so many small biz owners saying "We need maketing help, we need marketing help, we need marketing help!!!"

Then, when you examine the situation by SIMPLY seeing if they are FIRST doing the VERY BASICS -- it turns out, they're not even doing 'DA BASICS!!!'

They're on the (desperate) look out for some new, trendy, slick, instant, hip, happnin', snappy REINVENTION of the "marketing wheel." But, they are attempting to REINVENT the wheel, without having ANY CLUE what that (original, simple, boring, EFFECTIVE) wheel was/is, in the first place!!

It's MIND BOGGLING!

Sample scenario...

Have you done a who-what-where-when-why-how survey of your existing + previous customers to find out WHO they are and how to reach more of them?

Ummm, no we haven't.

Have you done a who-what-where-when-why-how survey of your existing + previous customers to find out to find out ALL the reasons they bought from you - from THEIR perspective -- so you can use those appeals in future marketing?

Ummm, no we haven't.

Have you done a who-what-where-when-why-how survey of your existing + previous NON-customers (the people who DIDN'T buy after all) to find out who THEY are and what THEY have in common?

Ummm, no we haven't.

Have you done a who-what-where-when-why-how survey of your existing + previous NON-customers (the people who DIDN'T buy after all) to find out ALL the reasons they DIDN'T buy -- form their perspective -- so you can eliminate those drawbacks in future marketing?

Ummm, no we haven't.

(Here's my personal favorite) When someone contacts you, do you ask "How did you hear of us?"

Ummm, no we don't. (That one just KILLLLLLLLLS me!!!!)

Have you REcontacted ALL your previous customers?

Ummm, no we haven't.

Have you REcontacted ALL your previous NON-customers?

Ummm, no we haven't.

Can you even ACCESS your list of previous customers fairly easily?

Ummm, no we can't.

Can you even ACCESS your list of previous NON-custoemrs fairly easily.

Ummmm, no we can't 'cause we routinely throw that info away(!)

Do you have a referral generating SYSTEM in place that works the same every time?

Ummm, no we don't.

Do you have a testimonial generating SYSTEM that workd the same every time?

Ummm, no we don't.

What do you *DO* with testimonials when/if you DO get them? -- ANYTHING?

Ummm, no we don't.

Have you tested different benefits + appeals?

Ummm, no we haven't

Have you tested different offers + packages?

Ummm, no we haven't.

Have you tested different headlines?

Ummm, no we haven't

Have you tried direct mail?

Ummm, no we haven't.

Have you tried telemarketing?

Ummm, no we haven't.

Have you tried joint venturing?

Ummm, no we haven't.

Have you tried cross-promotion?

Ummm, no we haven't.


***************************************

....and that's just the FIRST FIVE MINUTES!

The list goes ON + ON + ON + ON!

Meanwhile, I'm smiling weakly ask I ask all these questions through increasingly clenched teeth, as I am secret breaking several pencils under the table.

Can you see how frustrating it is when a client INSISTS the marketing "solution" is to get a new LOGO??????????

... AND YET they HAVE *NOT* covered ANY of these total BASICS first!!!

A new logo (for instance), might be a good marketing asset. But PLEASE, for GOD SAKE... do the very BASICS... FIRST!

Then... AFTER you THOROUGHLY *COVER* "DA BASICS," ... THEN *AND ONLY THEN* -- move on to the snazzy, sexy, experimental, envelope-pushing, wacky, trendy marketing "fads."

Sorry to rant so much... it's just frustrating... 'cause all this stuff is soooooo obvious.

EVEN IF you don't KNOW the basics... in my mind, that's no excuse! -- If you don't know the basics ... and you go about the task of improving your marketing, WOULDN'T/SHOULDN'T your FIRST question be "OK, I don't really know what I'm doing, so let's see what THE BASICS ARE first???"

You'd THINK so, wouldn't you!

And, conversely, if you *DO* know what DA BASICS are, and you're STILL not doing 'em -- all I can say is "AAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!"

I am PASSIONATE about marketing!

If you're gonna do it -- I say EAT YOUR MARKETING VEGETABLES FIRST, BEFORE TRYING TO "PLAY" WITH DESSERT!!!

Please don't get me wrong...

I am NOT assuming that all of you reading this have not covered all the basics -- but I'm pretty sure that SOME of you are not covering SOME of the basics! (Remember, the above list is INCOMPLETE.)

If you are reading this, please be aware that you can "see" me, but I can't "see" you -- so I admit, I have NO IDEA what YOUR individual, current, marketing situation is.

I'm just tellin' you why I get soooo frustrated sometimes and start to rant.

Not excusin' it -- just explainin' it.

Re: If I showed you a way to make a dollar, would you give me back a quarter?
 

I tried that with an old employer that owned a school. I wanted to give him some ads etc to improve his business. I only wanted 10% of what I brought in. He said I wanted to own the business. He had tunnel vision. Because he is so dishonest he still runs a school but it is dying every day. He does institutional ads which are killing him.

People won't do it for the most part. And when it works they will start not wanting to pay when all the money starts coming in.

People are strange.

If someone what 50% of selling my products I would gladly give them that.

I love affiliates that give that much away. I am an affiliate for Jim Straws great stuff.

TW - Thanks for the rant, but . . .
 

you aren't getting it. The answer to the challenge is not breaking pencils under a desk or "who-what-where-when-why-how".

Let me clarify the question, "What specific actions would you take to increase the sales of any business so that you could get a share in the firms' additional profits?"

For example: Take a jeweller, and describe exactly what you would do for him to build his business. Remember, you are working on a contingency basis - no additional profits - no pay for you!

Your turn,
Jim

What about this hurdle?
 

Hello,

The report of actual profits can be easily manipulated.

Let's say I add $1,000 to the owner's profits, and then
the owner decides to change the
lease of HIS company car from $500 to $1,500 per month,
That would reduce the net profits in $1,000.

My share of the additional profit? Zero.

Years ago I tried taking a share from the top, gross revenues.
And even that is risky. This guy was hiding $40K
in increased revenues until I did a major research of his books.
It is not worth the hassle.

Best,

Frank Pansini

The answers were hidden in my post...
 

1) Agreement/terms... I'd sign an agreement.

2) Tag/funnel incoming biz so it's obvious which new biz is coming from my efforts.

3) I'd do a who-what-where-when-why-how survey of their existing + previous customers to find out WHO they are and how to reach more of them.

I'd do a who-what-where-when-why-how survey of their existing + previous customers to find out to find out ALL the reasons they bought - from THEIR perspective -- so I could use those appeals in future marketing.

I'd do a who-what-where-when-why-how survey of thier existing + previous NON-customers (the people who DIDN'T buy after all) to find out who THEY are and what THEY have in common.

I'd do a who-what-where-when-why-how survey of thier existing + previous NON-customers (the people who DIDN'T buy after all) to find out ALL the reasons they DIDN'T buy -- from their perspective -- so I could eliminate those drawbacks in future marketing.

I'd reseach what was and was not working in their existing mrktng efforts.

I'd REcontact ALL their previous customers with a SPECIFIC offer.

I'd REcontact ALL their previous NON-customers with a SPECIFIC offer.

I'd institute a referral generating SYSTEM that works the same every time.

I'd institute a testimonial generating SYSTEM that works the same every time.

I'd MASSIVELY *USE* the resulting testimonials.

I'd test different benefits + appeals.

I'd test different offers + packages.

I'd test different headlines.

I'd try direct mail.

I'd try telemarketing.

I'd try joint venturing.

I'd try cross-promotion.

And... I would try all that -- but not necessarily in that order.

The main/first thing I'd do is REcontact ALL previous customers with a SPECIFIC offer. That, and joint venturing.

Cheers!

-- TW

By the way...
 

Before you discount my assertion about the who-what, etc. survey/research aspect... please keep in mind that, imo, it is IMPOSSIBLE to 'increase' the incoming business without FIRST doing the research needed --- like:

A who-what-where-when-why-how survey of their existing + previous customers to find out WHO they are and how to reach more of them.

A who-what-where-when-why-how survey of their existing + previous customers to find out to find out ALL the reasons they bought - from THEIR perspective -- so I could use those appeals in future marketing.

A who-what-where-when-why-how survey of thier existing + previous NON-customers (the people who DIDN'T buy after all) to find out who THEY are and what THEY have in common.

A who-what-where-when-why-how survey of thier existing + previous NON-customers (the people who DIDN'T buy after all) to find out ALL the reasons they DIDN'T buy -- from their perspective -- so I could eliminate those drawbacks in future marketing.

And: reseach what was and was not working in their existing mrktng efforts.

Otherwise you are floundering around in the dark!

A re-post, but still unbelievable
 

I originally posted this on the "previous" SOWPUB, but it's so appropriate for this thread, since it's a true story!


In light of the recent thread about businesses in small towns, I feel this story of one in a larger city may shed some light on the marketing and promotional gap that?s so common with most businesses.


Part 1

The extraordinary details of this are perfect to overly emphasize a common mindset of small business owners.

In addition to promoting a variety of products and services, I?ve owned restaurants and an appliance business. I?ve learned what works, what doesn?t and why and know what customers respond to and why.

It was October 2003 when I stopped into a gas station for gas. While there, I noticed that their service repair area, that had been closed, had some people there.
Since one of my trucks needed some repair work, I inquired about if they were open now for auto repair.

I was met by ?Pete? and ?John? ? two friendly guys who showed all the enthusiasm and excitement of new business owners with high expectations. They had over 30 years combined experience and had just recently left a large auto dealership, where they had been mechanics.

They wanted to go into business for themselves, since they were well qualified in auto repair. They were given a great opportunity by the station owner to work for themselves with little financial investment, if they would agree to pay a percentage of their business take.

They had just opened for business that day. I asked them what types of vehicles they worked on and was told ?almost anything?.

I told them about a problem with my truck and they said: ?Bring it in? and I did.

They diagnosed the problem that required some engine work and gave me a written estimate. I told them to go ahead. I got a call the next day and was told that since they were replacing the timing gear and belt, that if I wanted to buy a new water pump and bring it to them, they would install that instead of the old one that had been removed in the repair process. The idea was to have a new water pump installed without any additional labor charge, since the old one would be replaced as part of the job anyway. I bought a new water pump at an auto parts store and brought it to them.



The next day I got a call to come and pick up my truck, since it was fixed. They did a great job and when I was presented with the bill, I was surprised to see that the final cost was over $50 LESS than what I had been quoted!!! Apparently, something quoted was not necessary. Needless to say, I was amazed! Auto mechanics who knew what they were doing, suggested a future moneysaving idea and charged me less than what was quoted.

Could this really be true? Yes, it was! I have several vehicles and to have honest, competent mechanics, conveniently located for service was very exiting to me. I could see several possibilities for their business promotion and had a little meeting with them.

I explained that they were in a unique situation and that I knew about business promotion and told them about some of my ideas. They were wide-eyed and excited with the possibilities. I really wanted them to stay around for my own repair work and I wanted to see them thrive. I even suggested that they build their business and have something that could be sold in a few years for quite a lot of money.

They had so many things going for them, but only I could see what they were.

The first thing in their favor was that they were located on one of the busiest corners in the city ? maybe even the busiest. It is a big, light controlled intersection where stopped traffic sits for minutes waiting for the light change cycle. The service station is very visible and very popular since it offers the lowest gas prices in town. Even though the gas station is highly visible from the street, the repair shop is not.

Part 2
 

Part 2

I created flyer for them that emphasized honest, friendly repair and on the reverse side there was information about how to increase a car's gas mileage. I showed it to the guys and they loved it! I told them that I would have 1000 printed for them and offered to pass out 500 to the neighborhood, while leaving the remainder for them to hand out at the shop. This, in exchange for some simple maintenance work on another vehicle of mine - they agreed.

From time to time, I would stop in to see how the guys were doing. They said that things were slow, but they knew it would take time to develop a clientele. The gas station was constantly busy with people buying gas. I noticed their stack of fliers on the counter was not any shorter than the last time I was there. I ask about that and was told that "no one was taking them."

I explained that no body would and they needed to be pro-active about handing them out. I then took a handful and went to the gas islands. I handed them out to the gas patrons and simply said: "Hi, just want to let you know that we're open now for expert auto service and repair". I did this for about 30 minutes and the response I got was very favorable with smiles and "thanks for letting them know". Most of those people didn?t even know the repair shop was there!

The first week of December, I stopped in again to say "hi". I was told that things were still slow and I noticed the stack of fliers was the same as the last time I was in there, a couple of week's prior. "John" was in the service bay working on a car, while "Pete" was in the front office. I took some fliers and invited him to join me in passing them out. He smiled, but declined. I again went out to the gas islands and handed them out with the same response of "thanks for letting us know".

I then mentioned to the guys that if they would take some fliers to other near-by non-competing auto service like body shops, window tinting, transmission, auto stereo, etc. and offer a flier or business card exchange their business info handed out in exchange for the others, that good exposure could be gained.

I got smiles and nods, but no other response.

There was a large, free standing sign at the edge of their lot that squarely faced stopped traffic waiting for the green light. This sign was from previous auto repair. It was 4 feet wide and 8 feet long with usable sign space on both sides. It was old, ugly and looked very worn, but it was there. This was early December. I suggested to the guys that this was a great opportunity for exposure and that I would look into having some vinyl slip-over panels made.

I called around and found a sign company that would make a very nice looking slip over panel with whatever ad copy we wanted for only $85. I excitedly reported back what I found (that was a great price for something of that size) and also suggested to string that sign with flashing Christmas lights to gain attention.

The copy I suggested was:

"Merry Christmas from your new auto service center

NOW OPEN for friendly, honest auto service, Always at a Nice Savings!

Stop in to say hi and received a FREE tire rotation as our Christmas gift to you!"

Their response was: "Gee, $85", I don't think we can afford that right now, since things are kind of slow!!!?

By March, 2004 they were still struggling.

Just behind them and 2 miles up the hill, was a large developing neighborhood. It was about 3 years old consisting of over 1000 homes and condos. The population was about 2500 at that time and the development was only 40% complete with building constantly going on. That's 2500 people - most with cars.

What made this development such a local business owner's dream is the association newspaper. It isn't the typical homeowner association newsletter it is a bonafide newspaper. It is the size of a newspaper, with many pages of what's going on, articles and display ads of local businesses. The cost for a 4 X 6 inch display ad, in full color, is only $60 a month and they are very professional in appearance. Smaller and larger ads are also available - even for just $35 for a 2 X 3 inch display ad.

There's a variety of businesses in there, but NO AUTO REPAIR!

I had placed ads for peephole viewer installations and that led to contracts with builders.

I showed the guys a copy of the paper and explained that this was a gold mine for them, just waiting to be tapped! I told them that I would do the ad for them for free and could get it submitted after the deadline, since I knew some of the administrative people. I also explained how viable it is to get the word out to new homeowners about local services - ESPECIALLY AUTO SERVICE. They said they would think it over. But, that's as far as it went.

I also suggested to take their flyers and distribute them door to door to all those new and constantly new moving-in-residents who would love to know about local auto service, just down the hill.

BLANK STARE!


(the most unbelieveable part)

Christmas came and went in 2004 with that same ugly sign there, going to waste.

A few weeks ago, I went to the shop for some work on one of my cars and noticed a sign on the front door that said: "No payment of gas here - see outside attendant".

The repair shop is separate from the gas station, but purchasers of gas think that's where they go to pay, instead of the little booth outside.

I asked about the sign and was told that people were "constantly coming in" - in an attempt to pay for gas. They were coming in all day long and were "disturbing them."

I even witnessed that while I was there. I suggested they give out flyers to all those potential customers and let them know that there was expert auto service there now. Also, to offer some get acquainted specials.

But by now, they were pretty disgusted with this whole thing of slow business and were more concerned with an effective sign that would keep a steady stream of potential customers away!!!

Last Monday, I stopped to buy gas and noticed that only "Pete" was there. I went to say "hi" and asked about where "John" was. "Oh, John is no longer here - he got a job at a dealer, since things were so slow for us. But, now, without him here, I'll make more money!"

What a shame, but this is not so uncommon other than these guys had so much going for them, but ignored it all.

Two friendly, likeable, honest, competent mechanics who committed business suicide for lack of the most essential skill of bringing them in and bringing them back.

Michael Gerber's, "The E-Myth Revisited" was right.

Lawrence

Deadliest mrktng myth of all (what I call the 3 B's)...
 

All of these tragedies are CAUSED by the most common and deadliest marketing myth of all...

Build it and they will come
Build a better mousetrap and the world will beat a path to your door.
Be a magnet.

What I call The Three B's.

That sneaky little marketing myth is hiding in the brains of 90% or all biz owners.

They may not know it's there, but it IS there!

I call it sneaky because it comes DISGUISED in many forms.

The disguise we're talking about here is...

"If my product/service is good, it will sell --- If my product/service is NOT good, it will NOT sell."

It's just another version of The Three B's.

If you let The Three B's invade your mind -- or if you ALLOW them to remain in your mind (they are probably already there to begin with), you will absolutely KILL your biz's chances for survival!!!

But it's tricky because that myth will SNEAK in there, diguised in many different forms.

Cheers!

-- TW

Jim, here is my action steps.
 

Greetings Jim,

Here is some action I would take.

When I think of jewelry, I think of my wife and 4 daughters. They love to look at it, wear it and show it off. So my target market is women and teenage girls.

I would ask the jeweller to give me 10 steps to proper jewelry cleaning. Then I would put together a 10 steps jewelry hotsheet, on the care and cleaning of jewelry, whether costume or genuine.

I would probably call it "10 STEPS TO FANTASTIC LOOKING JEWELRY!"

At the bottom or back of the hotsheet I would have a coupon for a free lesson, at the store, on cleaning jewelry properly or a 10% discount on the purchase of jewelry over $250. Of course address and phone number of the store would be printed on the hotsheet.

Next, I would open the yellow pages, and start looking at the different catagory titles. I would make note of those titles that cater primarily to women and teenage girls. In those particular catagories I would write down their physical addresses.

Once I exhausted the phone book, I would print out my hotsheets, and then one by one I would stop at each location. I would introduce myself and the business I represent.

Then I would ask them if I could leave a stack of my hotsheets on "10 STEPS TO FANTASTIC LOOKING JEWELRY!" and in turn I would offer to give them a free lesson, by cleaning one of their rings and demostrating the 10 steps.

When one of their customers picks up one of my hotsheets, then the person I gave a free lesson to, can give a first hand account of what I do and what to expect when they come to the jeweller for their free lesson.

To make sure there is a valuable incentive in place, for the contact person to want to tell others, I would let each contact person I spoke with and did a free cleaning for, that if they were to refer someone to us, and it resulted in giving a free in store lesson or purchase of jewelry, they would be given a 20% discount on their next purchase of jewelry over $500. That's a $100 savings on their next purchase.

Woody Quiñones
ImpactYourArea.com
PS. At the link below, I have a Seeds of Wisdom New Forum special going on.

Woody, here's what I did . . .
 

I got the store owner to give me the names of 3 of his most influential clients. The first one I contacted was a lawyer and I explained to him that his friend in the jewellery store wanted to offer his clients a great gift. I then showed the lawyer a letter that I had written to 'his' clients that expressed his 'Thanks' for their past patronage. The letter further went on to say that the lawyer was expressing his 'Thanks' with a special $50.00 gift certificate at ABC Jewels.

The lawyer wins because he is actually thanking his clients by sending out the gift certificates. The jeweller wins because he gets an endorsement from an influential third party and gets access to many new customers.

Given the large markup in the jewellery business, the jeweller was only spending between $15 and $20 to acquire a new customer and the majority of the purchases were considerably larger than $50 - often resulting in a profitable sale! The jeweller understands the 'lifetime value of a customer' concept and he knows that these new clients will spend thousands of dollars in his store in the next few years. He is building his mailing list and plans on selling to these customers again and again.

This first promotion was just a test and it was very sucessful. We are working with the jewellers accountant now.

Jim

Re: Woody, here's what I did . . .
 

Wow!
Another of many great ideas that can be only found here.
So many times I come here and find, besides all the great ideas, something that is so timely to my own situation.
I have a situation that I came here to ask about and this thread is so related.
I won't hijack this one but will post a new one.
Thank you.
Larry Foster

Re: If I showed you a way to make a dollar, would you give me back a quarter?
 

You could do a mailing for any business. Start a part of direct mail for the business.

Re: Woody, here's what I did . . .
 

This is similar to the Mike Enlow jv information here:

http://www.enlow.com/jv.html

Re: If I showed you a way to make a dollar, would you give me back a quarter?
 

what I was going to give my employer, the school owner. An ad and booklet to give free, "Forging Ahead in Business" I did not give him all the information. But gave him a report in beautiful note book that the bastard kept. When he dies I think the business will die. He is not the biggest school in the area but rather the smallest. I could have made him number #1 or at least #2. But he had tunnel vision. Most people just don't get it. I forgot how it was said in Joe and the Vacano.

Re: If I showed you a way to make a dollar, would you give me back a quarter?
 

I think they did not market well. They had a great business but you can build the greatest mouse trap and someone once did but they are not in business because they did not market.

Today I put 4 articles on the net, maybe 6. I am promoting every day now. I know I got to get some money and market offline. That is more effective. Ask any guru.

Re: If I showed you a way to make a dollar, would you give me back a quarter?
 

I am so glad to hear you say that.

I always rant about how limited the web + internet are when it comes to marketing. No one ever believes me... even when I back up my talk with facts that cannot be discounted.

People think the web is the be all + end all of marketing, when in fact, it has crippling limitations that make it PALE in comparison to offline methods!

The quicker people fall OUT of love with the web (as a way to market things), the quicker they will be on a path to REAL riches.

Cheers!

-- TW

Re: If I showed you a way to make a dollar, would you give me back a quarter?
 

TW,

What an interesting perception. I find when people speak of facts, on how and where you should do business, most have either never had an online business or tried and failed and believe their experience proves that you are better off not wasting your time trying or trying again.

I say hogwash to the notion that you can't make real riches on the Internet. The problem with facts is that they never seem to take the human factor into consideration and eventually become disproved.

People do not buy based on facts. They buy based on what they want, what they perceive they need, and whether the price is cheaper online as compared to offline, how fast they can find it and get it.

Remember,

It was a fact that a dos based program, on an IBM computer, with a Graphic User Interface, would never sell.

It was a fact that the Internet was just a fad.

If was a fact that the average person would never purchase anything over the Internet, because they couldn't touch it.

I have found for myself, that selling geniune ideas and products that work, over the Internet, has generated, not just money, but a steady income for my family since 1994 and my income continues to grow as do the items I sell.

For example, the home study course I wrote and sell soley on the Internet, is a money maker for me and has found worldwide interest and acceptance from many of my clients. My server logs have shown a 400% increase in visits to my site, since this time last year as well as my paypal activity.

I couldn't market and get that type of worldwide attention offline. If I tried the marketing costs offline would be astronomical.

Now back in the early 1990's, I tried to sell other peoples info products, widgets and so on and I'd have to agree with you, it is limited.

However, the minute I started creating my own products to sell, or buying chattel to sell, then the money started coming in. The Internet for me, has given me a larger customer base, since I started my first business many years ago.

But the key to selling on the Internet? Sell your own stuff, or be in complete control of a product, so that you can dominate your market. That's not from some Internet guru's book. That's from my own experience.

Also marketing, on the Internet is not as stressful or limited as offline marketing. I know this because I own 2 offline businesses and that marketing is more restrictive and managing it at times can literally exhaust you.

For example, if I run an ad in the yellow pages, then that one ad will stay the same for an entire year and there is no options to make changes, until the following year. So if my phone number is wrong, it will be wrong for an entire year. On the Internet, I can make changes to my advertising, so I can keep it fresh and accurate.

Being an owner of 2 offline businesses and 1 online business I would have to say that marketing is valuable, but what you do in one arena usually cannot be done in another with the same results.

Both offline and online have their place and their marketing methods will be diverse, but both ventures can fail if I am not willing to market them.

The Internet is a great place to do business and have a business.

From the Trouse
Woody Quiñones
ImpactYourArea.com

Re: If I showed you a way to make a dollar, would you give me back a quarter?
 

Hi Joe

I hope you take some unsolicited advice in good spirits...

Not to burst your bubble... but your basic strategy is not right and so my guess is you won't make a killing even if you promote offline.

Why? Because - You're trying to sell every thing to everybody. Self help books, law books, marketing books and business softwares. But the strategy you are using is good for selling only one kind of product. There is no underlying current or idea that matches your four niches together.

What you have to do is either focus on just one category. Or else create a USP that connects all 4 categories (and make a "mega-category").

I don't want to overstep out here and take advantage of your good spirits by giving you more unsolicited advice. But my experience tells that your strategy is not set right and didn't want you to waste a lot of money by testing offline promotion... and thats why I posted.

If you want more help or clarification, ask away.

Re: If I showed you a way to make a dollar, would you give me back a quarter?
 

I never said that.

I said, if you run both online + offline marketing methods to their fullest extent, the offline methods almost always will 'win.'

Of course it's possible to make zillions online. It's done all the time.

But when you look behind the curtain of those who make mega-zillions, it's almost always through offline methods (mostly).

Imo, the main reason for this is: The net/web is great at 'snaging' all who are actively looking for something. Problem is, that portion of any given market is (usually) only a tiny % of the overall market. Imo, the first step in truly effective marketing is to GATHER a list of potential customers -- whether the people on that list WANT to be 'gathered,' or not.

To put it another way, 'permission' marketing is the kiss of death.

The web caters to the consumer's IDEA(L): 'Back off marketers! -- If I want something, I'll go out and find it (for myself).' The web has set it up so that one cannot contact someone without advance permission, as well as eliminating most 'intrusive' marketing, like pop-ups, etc.

Great for privacy -- terrible for marketing.

What most people do not realize is (all else being equal), the INITIAL 'spark' that leads to the vast majority of transactions, eminates FROM the marketER *TO* the marketEE. For the most part, the web does not allow that to happen.

On the web marketEEs can search for marketERs all day long. The reverse is generally not true. Thus the crippling limitation(s).

A capitalist society DEPENDS upon intrusive marketing (and I can prove it).

That is why offline methods are better. They can be intrusive -- and therefore more effective.

Cheers!

-- TW

PS: I find it somewhat amusing that you are defending online marketing, but are pushing an offline method (mugs). ;-)

Re: If I showed you a way to make a dollar, would you give me back a quarter?
 

So TW,

It looks like a created a paradox.

I'm glad I made you laugh. It's good to laugh.

Clearly understand, I will defend ALL MARKETING, whether online or off.

After 15 years of having an online business and 2 offline businesses, I have learned that, offline marketing is not better than online marketing, and neither is one more effective than the other. That's not my opinion, it's just been my experience.

But if we're talking cost, online advertising is cheaper than offline.

From the Trouse
Woody Quiñones
ImpactYourArea.com

Re: If I showed you a way to make a dollar, would you give me back a quarter?
 

What do you mean by 'cheaper?'

Are you talking (raw) cost... or value(ROI)?

If you're talking cost, then yes.

Vaulue? No, web mrktng is not 'cheaper.'

Here's a question I ask small biz owners sometimes...

"Which is a better form of marketing:

1) A free or almost free method that produces a profit of $30,000

or

2) A method that costs $50,000 and produces a profit of $900,000?

Hint: the answer is NOT "depends if you have the $50,000 in the first place."

John Reese is an online marketing guru. His most famous product is "Traffic Secrets." He is a BRILLIANT marketer. The product launch for "Traffic Secrets" of LEGENDARY. He did all the marketing ONline. He covered ***ALL*** the bases in terms of ONline mrktng! The product is something that almost ANYONE with a website could benefit from (and that's EVERYone!).

When the 'big' launch day came (and remember he did everything RIGHT + BRILLIANTLY) -- he sold..............

1,000 copies.

Yes, it was $1,000,000 (gross) in one day.

It was considered a legendary success!

Now... bring those figures to anyone at, say, Gunthy-Renker, and they will laugh their heads off!

1,000 orders is the same (statistically) as NO ORDERS AT ALL!

It is chump change.

Cheers!

-- TW

PS: your mugs are a great way of marketing precisely BECAUSE they are an INTRUSIVE form of mrtkng. And.... for every ONE customer you get via ONline methods, I can show you 10,000 truly QUALIFIED potential customers who you will NEVER be able to reach via ONline methods. Why? Because your online methods are not REACHING anyone, in essence. The net/web is not set up to allow you to REACH potential customers. And who reaches whom is the most improtant part of marketing.

Re: If I showed you a way to make a dollar, would you give me back a quarter?
 

:D That just made me laugh. 1,000 sales maybe chump change for Guthy Renker when the product price is $50. Not when the product sells for $1000.

I'm not sure about this - but for statistical analysis - all they need is 40 orders. 1000 orders is definately not insignificant.

Lets make a somewhat relative comparison...

When Gary Halbert sold his big ticket stock exchange product (which I think cost about $900) using offline direct mail - it took him 2 months or so to generate the same number of sales!

And his gross profit was way lower than John Reese's.

Other examples...
 

No, I meant $1,000,000 in sales is chump change.

In the real world (if anyone still remembers that), a $5 mil company is considered tiny-tiny.

What is Gunthy-Renker? A 10-20 mil company? I don't know.

Compare their OFFline ROI with their ONline ROI -- I bet there is NO comparison.

As I've said before, the 12-month millionaire made 77 million in 2 years, and (because?) he had the good sense to avoid online marketing altogether!

How? Mainly by plowing through 40,000 names per month, every month -- direct mail.

He stated his case TO the audience *HE* selected -- whether they WANTED to have his case stated to them... or not.

Intrusive marketing.

Not possible and/or illegal online.

I must mention this caveat though...

Online works great in the JV department.

Other than that aspect (JVing), online marketing can safely be ignored + dismissed, imo.

UNLESS (as you know I've said before) you HAPPEN to be in a biz where if-you-need-it-you-need-it-and-if-you-don't-you-don't. Like a plumber or lawyer or tow truck. THEN the web is great -- because 100% of your potential market *IS* actively searching for you.

Cheers!

-- TW

PS: I just advise that one keep one's PERSPECTIVE level-headed about what the web can and CANNOT do, in terms of marketing. Everyone tends to put it at the TOP of the list, when more often than not, it should really be at the BOTTOM of the list.

The problem is, the risk...
 

The only reason (imo) most people are afraid of doing offline mrktng is... the risk.

That is, if you KNEW you'd get 2-3 dollars profit for every 1 dollar you invested, how many dollars would you invest? As many as possible, right?

How often would you do it? All day long, every day, right?

In other words, when the risk is removed, money (+ SPENDING it) no longer is an issue.

Yes, offline mrktng COSTS $$$.

But the ROI can still be waaaay better than online methods.

To remove a lot of the risk, do a lot of testing (first).

At this very moment, mind boggling amounts of $$$$$$$$ are being spent on OFFline marketing.

How can this be?

How could SPENDING money actually bring in MORE money than NOT spending money???

Because the ROI turns out to much more appealing than ONline methods will bring (alone). That is, after enough testing has been done to 'perfect' the "MARKETING MACHINE" first.

Thus eliminating a lot of the risk.

Imo, really good markting machines tend to realize that online methods are limited and can only represent smaller 'cogs' in that overall machine.

Even when you look at ONLINE businesses, most of the biggies use OFFline methods to promote their sites. WHY? Becuase they HAVE to! The ROI is just too attractive. They MUST take their marketing to the HIGHEST LEVEL possible...... by using OFFline methods!

Same applies to most businesses -- even (especially?) small businesses!!

Cheers!

-- TW

Pay before = risk. Pay after = no risk.
 

Talking about that Traffic Sectrets product launch... question is: How much did he spend on marketing to gross that $1 mil?

Was his ONline marketing blitz "free?"

No, actually.

He ended up SPENDING (probably) $500,000 for his marketing!

The difference is -- the risk.

He only had to pay that amount -- in the form of affiliate $$ -- AFTER the sales were ASSURED!

No risk.

It's not FREE mrktng.

It's low/no RISK mrktng.

The difference between the money spent on online mrktng vs. the $$ spent on OFFline mrktng isn't the MONEY -- it's the RISK.

And, as with most things, the HIGHER the risk, the HIGHER the payoff.

OFFline mrktng DOES mean greater risk -- but it also means (usually) greater retrun too. Much greater, in many cases. Thus making OFFline mrktng more effective and more valuable -- and capable of much greater returns than ONline markting (all else being equal).

Cheers!

-- TW

Re: If I showed you a way to make a dollar, would you give me back a quarter?
 

By the way here is an emergency london plumber site provided..Hope it would be an interesting stuff for you...

Excellent example of a "Contractor Directory"
 

Wow! That "Masterfix" site is "inspirational" (to me, anyway)

Even though the Real Estate market is way down, people are still buying houses.

So....why not set up a "Local Contractor's Directory" where you list the same Categories shown in "MasterFix".

You could list 2 Contractors in each Category.

Charge them $500 a month.

Now...here's how you can command that much;
1) Get a list of "Home Buyers" each month
2) Send them a Large PostCard that has a "Welcome To Your New Home" and your "Contractor's Directory URL"....along with a "$50" discount coupon that can be used towards any service from any participating contractor.
3) Set up a Sample website similar to MasterFix.
4) Call local contractors in each category and tell them your program.

You would also place ads in the local newspaper and even send postcards to existing homes.

20 Contractors paying $500/mo = $10,000 PER MONTH!

Feasible?

Can this be done in our Recession? Hey! Some of these people are going out of biz BUT...many are staying in and the ones who KNOW the importance of MARKETING....will participate.

Heck....for a Roofer....just one $20,000 job would keep him happy.

Worth considering.

Don Alm...."idea-guy"