Archives for February 2013

Ron Sheetz Interview

February 6, 2013 by

How The Video Marketing Guru Turned A $2,100 Investment Into $348,000 Over 14 years…

 


After successfully working in video production for large corporates such as Good Year, Harley Davidson and Eveready Battery, Ron Sheetz became fed up with the bureaucracy, scope changes to projects and finally everything taking way longer than it had to. He was seduced by the lure of working hands on with independent entrepreneurs who valued speed and results.

As Ron transitioned to this new market it became obvious to him that he needed to achieve three things. He needed to “be somebody, be somewhere and do something.” Ron realised that his somebody was The Video Marketing Guru, his somewhere was in front of his past present and potential clients and doing something meant at least one contact per month. He chose to do a newsletter – so he has a reason to show up, month in, month out to all of his clients.

First Comes an eZine Then Comes The Physical Newsletter.

Like many business owners trying to minimise costs Ron first tried to use an email newsletter in order to stay front of mind with his clients. However, he wasn’t entirely happy with the results. It kept his business going. And because of gentle prodding to switch to print from his mentor Dan Cricks, Ron ‘finally’ made the transition in 2010. This was when his business really took off.

The transition to a print newsletter saw a major shift in content. Ron focused on what was happening in his life outside of business. He showcased the work he was doing with his clients rather than just presenting content rich ‘how to’ about video marketing.

Ron accepted a maxim from his first boss (who had taught him how to sell face-to-face) “Your clients need to buy you before they buy what you sell.”

This advice has become strongly reinforced with Ron. After interviewing hundreds of dental patients as part of his work for clients Ron realised that the most likely reason a patient will select their dentist is on ‘whether or not they like the dentist.’

When You Provide Professional Services Retention Is King

The simple act of ‘showing up’ month in, month out has yielded big rewards for Ron over the years. Recently he had a client contact him a year after he last worked with them. The client presented a potential project to Ron and since it was a good idea – Ron undertook the project with them.

It turned out that Ron’s client was pitched an idea by a local competitor. After the pitch the client took the idea to Ron and did the project with him.

The client later confided in Ron that they liked the idea but “weren’t entirely comfortable working with the competitor.” After the meeting with the competitor Ron’s client was in their office and noticed the most recent edition of Ron’s print newsletter sitting on their desk. So they called Ron and the rest is history.

14 Years and $2,100 Invested, Turns Into $348,000

One client who been the recipient of his newsletter for 14 years has spent $348,000 on Ron’s services in that time. Half a dozen key decision makers receive no other marketing from Ron, just the newsletter month in, month out. The client loves Ron’s work and because they each receive a newsletter every month, they feel they have no reason to look around.

At most, Ron believes he has spent $2,100 sending newsletters to key people in that organisation.

Creating a Culture of Referrals

In the world of high value, high price professional services, there is a trick to continually earning referrals. The person making the referral can easily tarnish their relationship with the person they refer. This happens when the supplier they are being referred to (in this case Ron) is unable to meet the new client’s expectations.

Although Ron is very competent it is still a risk in the minds of his customers every time they think about referring. To overcome this, Ron has consistently created a culture that “it is okay to refer.” He does this by showing how his little web of referrals is growing and by thanking people who do refer and acknowledging who is referred to him.

The Launch Pad for Ron’s Turnkey Services…

Ron is always productising his services into turnkey solutions for his clients. He is then able to promote them and get potential clients receiving his newsletter to raise their hand and express interest in them by featuring a client using the solution already.

Ron believes this is much more efficient than ‘cold prospecting’ his own list and that way he gets his customers to come to him.

This way he is able to get clients who have only used him for one type of project to engage him in other types of projects he commonly does for his other clients.

The Switch Pays Off Big Time

Despite the higher cost than email, Ron is knows switching to a printed and mailed newsletter has paid off big time. He is able to maintain clients for years at a time, he is able for a very modest investment relative to the return promote additional products and services to his existing clients and in a business where only a relatively small number of referrals makes a big difference to his revenues.

 

 

Could You Do The Same?

Find out if you can achieve similar results to Nobby Kleinman in your business with a 60 minute no obligation newsletter suitability audit – Get Started Today

Filed Under: Case Study

Nobby Kleinman Interview

February 5, 2013 by

‘Renegade’ Financial Planner Grows Thriving Practice Where 90% of Business Comes From Referrals


Over a period spanning more than 2 decades, Nobby Kleinman turned himself into a successful financial planner largely on the back of his unconventional approach to sales and marketing. He managed more than $25 million in client funds and facilitated the implementation of millions of dollars of insurance for many nationally recognized organizations.

The Telephone Ain’t Going To Cut It

What Nobby realised soon after becoming a financial planner was that once he had attained a sizable number of good clients, all of his time went into managing them and that there was no way that he could stay in touch with all of his clients regularly.

If he never stayed in touch with those clients, they would eventually leave him – wasting all the hard work he had done getting them in the first place.

Nobby quickly recognised that he needed to stay ‘in-touch’ with his clients regularly without sitting on the telephone 60 to 80 hours a week (and not really working). Nobby believed regular phone calls from financial planners are about as welcome as a telemarketer calling during dinner. Not the best way to stay in touch.

He also realised that the ‘hit and run’ financial planner model of selling one type of product was out. He needed to be customer focused.

The problem with his lower value clients was they didn’t spend enough money with him to warrant regular personal service – so how could he maintain contact with them often enough to be there when it was time for them to spend more?

He needed to think outside the financial planning industry sales and marketing box in order to be successful.

A Fast Simple Way To Create A Cadre of Raving Fans – And it’s pretty cheap compared to the alternatives…

In light of this problem, Nobby banded together a handful of renegade thinkers who realised that marketing – specifically marketing designed to build a lifelong relationship between financial planners and their clients was needed. They devised a simple plan.

They were going to provide high quality services with face-to-face client meetings, and in between were engaging in leveraged relationship building activities. Nobby created a newsletter for the other Financial Planners to use.

Separate to the rest of the group Nobby also used to send review and anniversary letters, regular greeting cards for major events and gifts such as sending out fresh hot cross buns to clients at Easter.

The planners and advisers realised that they needed to stay in touch on a regular basis with their customers and the easiest way to do that was by mailing them all a regular printed newsletter. Nobby reasoned that if a ‘D’ level client was worth $500 in income a year then it was reasonable to invest $60 or so in keeping that $500 a year for the rest of his life.

$60 is far cheaper than the cost to go and find a new client to pay him the same $500 a year… Secondly some of those ‘C and D’ level clients eventually became A level clients when they were ready and comfortable to make the change.

90% Of His New Business Comes From Referral and Life Long Customer Loyalty

Nobby’s printed newsletters and the rest of his customer retention program yielded some truly spectacular results.

Once it was up and running 90% of his new business came by way of referral – when you are top of mind with your customers and they love your service they are going to tell friends, family and co-workers about all the help you provide them.

Clients who were ready to buy additional products and services raised their hand to meet with Nobby. And he was able to easily provide them with what they needed. This greatly increased the value of his clients compared to the ‘hit and run’ financial planners who sell one product and then ignore the customers completely while they go and look for another ‘mark.’ Over their lifetime customers regularly increased the amount of money they spent with Nobby.

After a lifetime of building iron clad relationships with his customers, Nobby was able to sell his register in 2006 for more than the ‘going rate’ in the industry. And he was able to cut the transition time down to three months rather than the customary 12 months.

The amazing thing about the strength of his relationship is, that to this day, since retiring in 2006 Nobby still has clients calling him to ask his advice rather than the buyer of his register. Nobby believes part of the reason for the post sale contact is his development of his money management programs which you can see more of at www.moneyrules.com.au

For a fraction of the cost of face-to-face and telephone meetings Nobby was able to build a stable business that allowed him to devote his time regularly to his highest value clients and was there for them when they were ready to buy. He didn’t need to waste his time chasing new clients, cold calling or anything else – he was able to grow his business almost entirely on referrals.

 

 

 

Could You Do The Same?

Find out if you can achieve similar results to Nobby Kleinman in your business with a 60 minute no obligation newsletter suitability audit – Get Started Today

Filed Under: Case Study

Get The Gloves that fit the job

February 5, 2013 by

Good gloves are essential for keeping hands safe in many work situations. Losing a hand or a finger can be a career-ending injury, so choose your work gloves with care. Consider these options:

  •  Canvas. These are useful for any kind of general yard work, or tasks that call for use of long-handled tools for extensive periods of time, preventing blisters and chafing.
  •  Cotton/fabric. Good for painting, gardening, and light yard work, these allow the skin to breathe and offer a good grip.
  •  Leather. Best for construction, woodworking, and electrical work (with an insulated liner). Leather is tough and durable, and it offers some protection against punctures and cuts, as well as sparks from electrical equipment.
  •  Latex. These can be used for painting, food processing, and handling some chemicals. They are disposable, protect against mild skin irritants, and provide good dexterity.
  •  Aluminized. Advisable for welding and any kind of furnace work, they’ll protect your hands against heat.
Filed Under: ezine

Healthy Tips for Holiday Travelers

February 5, 2013 by

There are expected to be more people traveling during this year’s holiday season than at any other time in recent years. Holiday periods are often stressful and bad for your health, but the good news is that there are a few simple travel tips that will help you maintain your fitness and nutrition goals even while on holiday.

 One good tip is to pack smart prior to flying. Before you leave the house, make sure that you put a few hunger-curbing and tasty foods in your carry-on bag, such as easy-to-eat fruits like apples, grapes and tangerines as well as a whole grain bagel. If you do forget to pack healthy food, try to get something healthy at the airport, with many terminals today offering a variety of food that you can buy while you are actually on your way to the gate. Look for fruit, nonfat yogurt and salads.

Another good tip is to keep eating healthy even at the in-laws. Maintain your healthy routine while you are on holiday by checking with your in-laws and having a corner of their pantry and fridge that is just for your healthy foods such as beans, tuna, salmon, oatmeal and cans of low-sodium soup.

Filed Under: ezine

3 Simple Words To Grow Your Business:

February 5, 2013 by

What Else Do You Need To Get Customers To Buy?

Sales is a baffling art to most people. And it should be – everyone on the planet is more complex than they get credit for. Getting face-to-face with a qualified prospect is a challenge. Getting a person sufficiently motivated to give you money is incredibly difficult.

Customers need to be given credit – they are continually evolving. What used to work no longer works and needs to be reinvented.

Anyway, before you can even begin sell your wares there are three questions your prospect will ask themselves. Ignore them before you’ll ever be success at selling and by extension marketing. Here are the three questions:

How Well Do I Know You? – Your prospect asks themself this about any seller. It is their way of gauging how trustworthy you are.

If they feel they know you really well they will be easier to sell to them than if they don’t know you from a bar of soap. This is why many guru’s go to great lengths to be in the media – media breeds familiarity. Do you reckon David Koch has too much trouble getting business owners to follow his business advice?

No. Cos they see him on TV all the time – he is well known to his audience.

Do I like You?

At the same time your potential customers wonder about how well they know you. They are also deciding if they like you. This happens really quickly – first impressions matter. (As a few of us no doubt remember from our days doing direct sales.) Even if it was to get a date – you were still being judged based on first impressions.

The same thing happens when you send a direct mail piece – first impression of the piece and what you say, either will help you or hinder you.

Obviously it is much easier to sell to someone who already likes you.

Can I trust you?

These are less than trusting times. The late Stephen Covey (7 Habits Of Highly Effective People) spent a great deal of his later years looking at the effect trust on business relationships. Covey devised his own ways to measure trust.

When he found that trust was high – the speed and ease of doing business was much higher than if trust is low.

Trust is also a barrier to getting the first sale in the door. So be sure to do everything you can to engender trust before you ever ask for the order – and don’t do anything to jeopardise trust because it is hard to get back once it is lost.

I can tell you from experience that when a client knows, likes and trusts you – there is a much better client relationship to be had.

Filed Under: Blog

Smile to Beat Stress

February 5, 2013 by

Everyone experiences stress, but the good news is that there are lots of little things we can do to reduce it – and most of them are rather fun too!

 One of the best tips is to act like a teenager again and have a quickie with your nearest and dearest. The tongue, the lips and the tip of the nose have more nerve endings than almost any other part of the body, bar the toes and fingertips, so a good make-out session boosts our immune system, burns as many as ten calories in under two minutes and makes us feel rather nice too, courtesy of a hormone called oxytocin.

Even staring can cut our stress levels. Looking at something we find appealing – such as a beautiful landscape – for just a couple of seconds can make us happy and even improve our overall quality of life. Research suggests that images such as these make us feel more present and expand our sense of time, leading to greater feelings of happiness and contentment.

Filed Under: ezine

Day One: Make a good first impression in a new position

February 5, 2013 by

The first day of a new job can be exciting and nerve-racking at the same time. Even if you never plan to leave your current job, you’ll probably be promoted or switch to a new department at some point, and the experience will be much the same.

Here’s how to make a positive first impression on Day One:

  • Don’t be late. Double-check where you’re supposed to be and what time you’re expected to start. If it’s a new workplace, test your route and give yourself extra time to arrive as scheduled.
  • Learn the layout. Your manager will probably show you around, but make an extra effort to remember what you see so you don’t have to repeat the same questions time and again. You’ll impress people by being a quick study.
  • Master people’s names. Again, you’ll gain a reputation for attention and thoughtfulness by memoriz­ing the names of everyone you meet.
  • Bring your lunch. Maybe the boss will take you out to lunch on your first day (in which case you can save your sandwich for tomorrow), but don’t count on it. Stay in the workplace and eat in the lunchroom so you get a chance to meet more people, and so you don’t waste too much time chowing down on your first day.
  • Smile. Put a pleasant expression on your face. Be friendly. Show that you’re glad to be there. People respond to smiles and sincerity. Ask questions and be interested in your new co-workers. They’ll remember your effort.
Filed Under: ezine

Using Personality in Your Copy

February 5, 2013 by

personality-in-your-copyOne of the most effective ways to make your marketing sizzle, and to make real connections with your customers and clients, is to add your personality. The fact is, customers prefer to do business with people whom they know and like – not nameless and faceless corporations.

Personality works. It will multiply your sales. What is personality? I think it is best described as humanizing your marketing – taking away the sterile corporate approach. Consider the all-too-common approach to many sales letters:

“It has come to our attention that your account is now blah, blah, blah.” You can imagine how fast that letter will hit the circular file! Now try this next sample on for size, and see if you just might hold the attention of the reader for a little while longer. “I was just sitting at my desk writing my next column and my secretary came running in, waving an invoice. She told me that it is highly unusual for …” Get the idea?!

If you would like to add some personality to your marketing, here are four things that you can do to help make you a better writer.

  1. Read as much as you can. You should find time to read every day, even if it is for 10 minutes before turning in!  Read everything from sales letters to e-zines, newsletters, books, ad copy, direct mail, etc. The more you read, the more you’ll learn different ways to express yourself in writing.
  2. Write more. There is just no way to get around it – to become a better writer, you have to write – and often! As with most things, the more you do it, the better you’ll get at it. You might want to consider starting a blog, which will force you to write at least two to three times a week in a way that, while important, is not as critical as a sales letter.
  3. Read out loud. It’s amazing how different your own writing sounds when you read it aloud instead of reading it silently. This is a great way to find your actual “voice,” which you then can transfer to writing.
  4. Mirror your favorite writers. Not only is imitation the sincerest form of flattery, it is a smart way to learn how to become a better writer. In the Glazer-Kennedy world this is known as S&D.

As I mentioned at the beginning of this article, personality works! I was recently hired to help write a client newsletter in which our strategy was to deliver something very different from the typical corporate brochure. We wrote the copy in the voice of an older woman who was a long-term employee of the company (which in this case was actually true!).

When the first issue was mailed, the reaction was phenomenal. The company received well over 100 e-mails praising the newsletter, saying that it was a breath of fresh air and fun to read, and that they looked forward to the next issue. Being in the newsletter business, I can tell you that that is not a typical reaction – personality sells! Even if you incorporate only a few of these tips, you should start to see a shift in your own writing. Before you know it, your personality will start shining through, and with it, you’ll start to see more clients, more sales, and more profits.

Filed Under: Blog