The “Tootsie Pop” Technique
With every interaction you make, you need to give your prospect two things,
1. A sugar-coated emotional candy treat on the outside, and…
2. A proposition on the inside that logical, rational person can chew on. More »
Build Your Elevator Pitch
My buddy — and yours — Pres Master Reed Hanson, sent this to me. This is one killer tool from Harvard Business School. A great way to design your pitch/presentation. I know it will seem a bit counter intuitive at first but stick with it… and you’ll get really clear on what you want to say and how.
Are You Swamped With Emotion?
Mary Jaimeson wants to know… “How can I motivate my group — and how can I motivate new people to want to join the business?”
Tough question. Many answers. Complicated to say the least.
The long answer is too complex unless I knew more about Mary and her business.
For now, one of my favorite quotes from Winston Churchill is the best short answer I could give her.
“Before you can inspire with emotion, you must be swamped with it yourself. Before you can move their tears, your own must flow. To convince them … you must yourself believe.”
There is no doubt Sir Winston had a great understanding of human nature. He understood motivation is all about emotion and that your personal belief is far more important than your knowledge of the facts you have about the business.
The Limits of Evidence-Based Marketing
That’s what most of us do. We present facts and proof and expect a rational consumer/voter/follower/peer to make an intelligent decision on what’s better.
That’s how science works. Thesis, test, evidence, conclusion. All testable and rational. [...] More »
Why Intent Counts More Than Technique!
The more important it is for you to reach your goals, the more important it is for you to help other people reach their goals.
It’s amazing to me that new business builders get all hung-up on the details and never get around to building the business. I guess it’s human nature to want great technique but honestly … that’s not the answer. More »
“I’ll Sell You What You Want Today…”
Joe Gandolpho was an insurance sales superstar. His sales philosophy boiled down to this…
“I’ll sell you what you want today. After you love me, I’ll come back and sell you what you need.”
Seth Godin says it this way…
Sell to people who are willing to hear about what you have to sell.
Tell a story that matches their worldview.
Don’t try to teach non-customers a lesson or persuade them that they are wrong or that they just have to have what you have to sell.
Make it easy for your happy customers to understand the value of the product in a way that makes it easy to share it with others.
Adopt a caring and sharing attitude.
It’s not about you. If you’re having trouble persuading people to buy what you sell, perhaps you should talk about what you sell in a different way.
The core of my argument is that someone’s worldview — how they feel about what you have to offer — is beyond your ability to change in the short run.
Sell people something they’re interesting in buying. If you can’t leverage the worldview they already have, you are essentially invisible.
29 brilliant words!
Dale Carnegie (How to Win Friends and Influence People) once famously said, perhaps all you need to know to get ahead, in 29 brilliant words:
“You can make more friends in two months by becoming interested in other people than you can in two years by trying to get other people interested in you.”
“Tell Me a Story”
Don Hewitt, the Executive Producer of 60 Minutes for 37 years died last week.
Here is the one BIG thing we can all learn from one of the most successful TV producers of all time…
Don’s Motto was “Tell me a story.”
60 Minutes has always been, and continues to be, about – stories. The more successful you want to be in your Shaklee business, the better you need to be at telling a story.
First, you need to be good at telling your own personal story. People want to know why your are so in love with Shaklee products and the opportunity. How did you get here from where you were?
Then you need to be good at telling the Shaklee story. Keep it simple. Make every effort to avoid the hype—the truth about Shaklee is impressive.
Let me ask you a question I’ve asked before on this blog…
When you tuck your kids in at night, do you tell them bedtime facts or bedtime stories?
Don Hewett said during an interview…
“Why don’t others get this? The reason for my success was that all I did was tell stories every Sunday night. There is nothing magical about it.”
Great Product and Faster Horses
Gary Bensavenga is one of the worlds top copywriters and marketers. He recently retired and is now teaching the world the tricks of his trade. When I read this article from Gary, I couldn’t resist drawing analogies to our business.
I have taken the liberty to add the word opportunity to the lines in which he talks about product. Otherwise, it’s pretty much exactly as he wrote it.
Even though it was written to read by copywriters, I think there is a lot to learn here. I hope you will make the connection.
By Gary Bensavenga
If I were on my deathbed about to wheeze my last breath, and you asked me to sum up in a single sentence the most important marketing secret I could bequeath to you before I kick the bucket (or bedpan), here is what I would whisper in your ear, hopefully without giving you anything contagious. More »
Why Stories Are Powerful
If you’ve read much on this blog … you know I believe your ability to tell the Shaklee Story in a compelling way will determine your fate in our business.
You know I also believe being good at telling stories is the ultimate communication skill!
There are real, researched and proven reasons why Story Telling is so powerful. Here is a list of reasons from Jamie Smart. More »
