Does your sales process match your customer’s buying process?

From the desk of Roy Furr, October 9th, 2008

Good sales approaches are rooted in psychology. Specifically, the psychology of the buyer.

Not, “How can we manipulate them to make them buy?”

But, “How can we map our sales process to our customer’s buying process?”

If you get this right, the sales process is simplified. You don’t have to work hard. And the customer doesn’t feel like they’ve been “sold to.” (A huge taboo for today’s savvy consumer.)

So…

Here’s an inside look into your customer’s mind, as they buy from you (or your competitor)…

And how you can map your sales process to your customer’s buying process… and…

Make more sales with less effort!

Step 1 of the buying process: Recognizing the need/want. Neither you or I will be happy about buying something (or even shopping for it) until we know we either need or want it. Neither will our customers. So, if your customer doesn’t know they need or want what you’re offering, the first step is to inform them of the benefits of what you offer. (Or, better yet, find a hungry mob who needs/wants what you’re offering and is ready to pay for it.) Then, once they’ve decided for themselves that this is a need/want they have, they can move into…

Step 2 of the buying process: Getting motivated to buy. Getting motivated to buy happens before buying happens. It’s when you hop in your car to go to the store. It’s when you actually start reading most of the copy in that long sales letter or advertisement. It’s when you look for the order form. But getting motivated doesn’t mean you’ll buy. It just means you’re going to start taking action leading toward the sale, which leads to…

Step 3 of the buying process: The “Do It” Decision. Now you’re in the store, item in hand, heading for the cash register. You’re filling out the order form. You’re calling the sales line. But you haven’t ordered yet. And a sale is a fickle thing. So getting here is no guarantee the sale will be closed, unless things proceed to…

Step 4 of the buying process: The Convincer. Even once you’ve made the “Do It” decision, you haven’t bought yet. You’re just trying the purchase on for size. You’re seeing if it fits you. If it does, the sale is made. If the purchase doesn’t fit you — even though you’ve already made a decision — you could easily back out. Even a mind that’s made up can be changed. But once you’ve been convinced, the sale is final as long as everything happens correctly in…

Step 5 of the buying process: Reassurance. So you recognized a need/want. You became motivated to shop. You found the right product. You convinced yourself (and others may have helped) that this is the right product for you. The decision is final. Maybe. As long as you can be reassured it was the right decision. At this point you may have already bought the item. But… The store does have a return policy. The mail order company does have a 60 day guarantee. So you have to know it was the right decision. You can be reassured by yourself. You can be reassured by the sales person. You can be reassured by your spouse, your friends, your family. But you have to be reassured or the sale isn’t final. Once you are reassured though, the sale is a done deal. You’ve concluded your buying process. The business has completed their sales process. And everything is good.

An important point to consider here is that cash can change hands at any point in this cycle. But the sale isn’t final until the customer has gone through the entire buying process.

And in any selling/buying situation any one of the steps may bleed into the next, or happen so quickly you think it got skipped. Not true. This process happens in every process where someone has to “buy into” an idea, or ownership.

It’s worth paying attention to. It’s worth knowing. It’s worth trying for yourself by integrating into your sales process. And then when you see the results you can send me a thank you card, reassured that this was the right strategy for you.

To your success,

Roy

Posted in Copywriting, Marketing, Persuasion, Sales | No Comments »

How to read your customer’s mind (and make a fortune doing it)

From the desk of Roy Furr, August 9th, 2008

Have you ever wondered what the big difference is between advertising copywriters who write highly-effective ad after highly-effective ad, and those that can’t?

I obsess about these things — always trying to hone my craft.

From the language used… To the structure of persuasive communication… To design and formatting… I’m always looking for proven strategies and tactics to increase the response to my advertising.

And something dawned on me a few months back — something that you don’t find in most (if any) books and courses on copywriting and advertising.

In fact, as soon as I discovered this “X-Factor Secret” A-List copywriters use to create bigger winners, more often, I wanted to shout it from the rooftops — or at least create an information product that would show you how to use this simple (but often overlooked) method to boost the response from your advertisements.

I may still write that product — but I’m going to reveal a huge chunk of the secret right here, and show you where you can get even more information on this unique skill for a mere pittance. (And without slaving over books trying to discover “hidden knowledge” that very few teachers of copywriting want to — or even know to — bring to the forefront.)

You see — before client projects and the wonderful busyness of summer made this project a temporary non-starter — I’d created a name for this unique skill…

I don’t know how much you know about “Method Acting” but a quick Wikipedia description of it may help:

Method acting is an acting technique in which actors try to replicate real life emotional conditions under which the character operates, in an effort to create a life-like, realistic performance. This is contrasted with a more abstracted, less involved style of acting in which the actor himself or herself remains an outside observer of the character he or she is portraying…

“The Method” was first popularized by the Group Theatre in New York City in the 1930s, and subsequently advanced by Lee Strasberg at the Actors Studio in the 1940s and 50s. It was derived from Stanislavski’s ‘system’, created by Konstantin Stanislavski, who pioneered similar ideas in his quest for “theatrical truth.” …

Strasberg’s students included many of America’s most famous actors of the latter half of the 20th century, including Montgomery Clift, Meryl Streep, Vic Morrow, Paul Newman, Al Pacino, James Dean, Dustin Hoffman, Marilyn Monroe, Jane Fonda, and many others.

In Stanislavski’s ‘system’ the actor analyzes deeply the motivations and emotions of the character in order to personify him or her with psychological realism and emotional authenticity. Using the Method, an actor recalls emotions or reactions from his or her own life and uses them to identify with the character being portrayed.

These methods for getting inside the head of the character being portrayed lead to some of the most convincing, moving, and exciting portrayals in theater and film.

If only…

If only these methods could be applied to marketing and advertising — to write copy that leads to truckloads of checks being dropped off after you write and send out your ads.

What I discovered — and later proved through using it in my advertising — was that if you intentionally and methodically put yourself inside the head of your prospect before you write your advertisement, you can sell to them more effectively.

Duh! … But how?

It’s actually more simple than you may think.

Before I tell you exactly how to do it, I want to point you to a book I found (after I’d convinced myself my idea was completely original) that investigates how some of the world’s top direct response geniuses use the “Method” to get inside the heads of their customers (before they even write a single word of copy) and get incredible response.

This exciting — vastly overlooked — book even breaks down ads and shows how this technique has been applied to create a number of different multi-million dollar businesses. It has 15 examples of companies that did this right and succeeded — and 3 that did it wrong with much less success.

The book? It’s called Method Marketing by Denny Hatch — of “Target Marketing Magazine,” “Who’s Mailing What?,” and Million Dollar Mailing$ fame.

Hatch has a unique perspective into the industry — his company gets and looks at hundreds of pieces of direct mail every day. He has insight into how long a company keeps running a tracked, coded mailing (which is a good indicator of what’s profitable). He knows when companies are testing different mailings for a product or service. He analyzes what techniques the companies are using.

And he knows who knows direct mail, based on the longevity of their sales pitches, and of their company.

He’s used this knowledge — as well as the connections it’s fostered — to do case studies on a number of different direct response companies. A lot like Harvard’s “Case Method.”

It tells you what companies have done right and wrong, and lets you look at the results. You have a lot to learn about the way direct mail works, from looking inside these businesses. And from looking inside Hatch’s head.

In Hatch’s research, he found 7 factors prospects continually use in their buying decisions. These factors were originally identified by direct marketing greats Bob Hacker and Axel Andersson — Hatch takes it to the next level and shows how some of the world’s best direct marketers have created a foundation for their company based on selling using one or two of these factors.

You can find similar success by identifying which of these factors influence your prospect’s decision making process — then getting into that state of mind through drawing on your past experiences — and writing a sales message targeted to that dominant factor.

The 7 “Method Marketing” buying factors are:

• Fear
• Greed
• Anger
• Guilt
• Exclusivity
• Flattery
• Salvation

Hatch gives an example (pages 11-12) of how each can be used:

The product I am marketing is a book club for very young children. The person who will be reading my copy is the parent of a very young child. If I were that parent, what would make me respond to this offer? What are my concerns? What are my fears? What is it about this offer that would represent salvation in terms of bringing up my child?

What would I respond to most eagerly — a terrific free premium or a great product? Guru Axel Andersson has said, “If you want to dramatically increase your response, dramatically improve your offer.”

Is the premium I am offering the best I can come up with? If one premium works well, won’t two work better?

At the same time, is the offer too good? Will it result in a lot of orders from tire kickers who have no intention of paying — those mail order shoppers consultant Bob Doscher disdainfully refers to as “premium bandits?”

What do I put on the envelope?

What is my lead for the letter?

- Is it flattery (“Because you are a smart parent…”)?

- Is it greed (“Yours Free when you respond…”)?

- Is it exclusivity (“This offer is limited to a very few truly caring parents…”)?

- Is it guilt (“If you don’t help your child acquire good reading skills, you will be party to a failure — in school and in life…”)?

- Is it salvation (“Now, be guaranteed your child will surge to the head of the class because reading is the key to success, and with your free books, your child will start to love reading…”)?

- Is it anger (“Will your child be one of those left to fall through the cracks in terms of reading skills because school systems have too many bureaucrats and not enough teachers…”)?

- Is it fear (“If your child fails to become a good reader, it can mean larger failures later on — in high school, in college, in life; will a failed child be able to take care of you in your old age?”)?

Go through this process. Figure out how these factors affect your prospect’s decision making process (some immensely, some not at all) then use that to create more effective marketing messages.

Do it right, and you’re getting about as close to reading your customer’s mind as possible. And your advertising will work like magic.

What about you? Do you use a process like this when you write your advertising — or any other communications? How has it worked for you? Weigh in below.

And if you’d like Hatch’s book — it’s been in and out of print recently, but you can go to his site at http://www.MethodMarketing.com for more information (including at least one free chapter you can read online).

Posted in Copywriting, Marketing, Persuasion | 5 Comments »

What’s Google’s hidden agenda on ConversionUniversity.com?

From the desk of Roy Furr, February 5th, 2008

The blogosphere has been buzzing with news of ConversionUniversity.com, Google’s recently-launched site on how to make your website perform better — in SEO, SEM, PPC, Analytics, website testing, and more. So what’s the deal?

What’s Google up to?

Why do they want to give all this free information on how to make your website make you more money (even if it’s not an e-commerce site)? Why aren’t they charging for this info?

Here’s my take.

Google — for as long as they’ve been in business — has been all about giving users the best possible experience. It’s been the secret to their success.

Every time Google changes their algorithms — the infamous ‘Google Slap‘ — it always works out in the favor of the website owners who are already giving a superior customer experience, and punishes those who diminish the customer experience.

They really want you to have a good customer experience on your website — and one way for you to do that is to have increased traffic, and increased conversions. Increased traffic means your site is more relevant to visitors — it appears to fill their need when it shows up in the search engine (either paid or organic). If Google shows searchers sites that are more relevant to what they’re searching for, Google’s doing their job, and they’re happy.

Another way to improve your customer experience is actually to sell more — increase your conversion rate. Here’s how this works. If you’re converting more of your website visitors into customers, that means a higher percentage of website visitors actually found what they wanted when they visited your website. If Google directed them to the site where they could find what they wanted, then Google did their job, and they’re happy.

Similar to selling more and getting more traffic, just keeping traffic on your site longer with more and better content keeps Google happy — again, if you’re keeping the people who found your site through Google happy, then Google is happy too.

And finally, the hidden profit motive.

Google knows that if they educate you about how to do better in SEO, SEM, PPC, Analytics, website testing, and everything else they have their fingers in, that you’ll be more likely to use their paid services such as AdWords.

It’s an old law of persuasion and selling — the law of reciprocity. When someone gives something to us without an obvious motive of getting something in return, we feel obligated deep down to actually return the favor. It’s the secret behind all educational marketing (and it’s something you can use too).

Google’s flooding us with information on how to profit more by using their services. This, in turn, encourages us to use their services. And they profit more.

Anything wrong with this?

I don’t think so. They’re using these persuasion principles in an honest and ethical manner. And if you ask, they’re pretty open about why they provide so much education.

Maybe there’s something we can all learn from this…

More info:

http://www.ConversionUniversity.com

Enjoy!

- R

P.S. — Here’s another great resource: How to Use Google Website Optimizer.

Tags: ConversionUniversity.com, how to make your website perform better, SEO, SEM, PPC, Analytics, website testing, free information, how to make your website make you more money, e-commerce, Google Slap, website owners, customer experience, increased traffic, increased conversions, sell more, conversion rate, website visitors, content, AdWords, persuasion, law of reciprocity, educational marketing, persuasion principles

Posted in Google Website Optimizer, Marketing, Marketing Testing, Persuasion, Website Design | No Comments »

Which strategy do you use in designing web pages?

From the desk of Roy Furr, January 18th, 2008

From what I’ve seen, there’s only two strategies to use when you design web pages.

1. Design for looks.
2. Design for function.

When you create web pages, you probably choose one or the other. The strategy you don’t choose may follow… but only limping along.

Unfortunately (in my opinion) the first choice of many businesses is to design their website and web pages to look good, and they often sacrifice the function of persuading customers to take action.

If you want your website to function well — to get customers to take action, to make sales, to generate leads, to educate — you have to plan that from the beginning. You define the goal for the page or website, then design it to fulfill that function.

After you’ve developed the website or web page to fulfill the function you have planned for it, you can clean it up and make sure that it looks good.

When it comes to web design, form follows function. That’s how you create effective web pages.

What do you think?

- R

Tags: design web pages, create web pages, website, web pages, persuading customers, make sales, generate leads, web design, effective web pages

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The secrets of persuasion revealed in 27 words

From the desk of Roy Furr, January 4th, 2008

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Download this free report by registering on the right.
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I’m back again after the holidays and have discovered something very interesting.

I don’t know if you’re into understanding persuasion — it’s a little hobby of mine. I suppose it comes from being a Psychology major in college… being fascinated by human motivation… the workings of the mind… how language impacts our thoughts… (a little fascination with magic and hypnosis, too)… and then ending up in the world of advertising and marketing.

I don’t suggest using persuasion to lie, cheat, or steal — but if you bring value to the lives of your customers it’s nice to understand how to say it effectively. That’s how I approach using the powerful — and sometimes scary — principles of persuasion in your marketing and advertising.

But here’s a problem — something you may have noticed too.

There’s so much gibber-jabber surrounding persuasion that it’s hard to understand what the true secrets of persuasion are. What really works. What core principles are used in effective persuasion.

Fortunately, Blair Warren has broken through the clutter — and summarized the secrets of effective persuasion in just 27 words (and, of course, surrounded those 27 words with 13 pages that help you understand them fully).

His special report, titled “The One-Sentence Persuasion Course: 27 Words to Make the World Do Your Bidding” is extremely valuable — and to the point — and will give you incredible fire-power for writing effective advertisements into the future.

If you’d like to read this report, I’ve set it up so you can get it for free — just register on the right, and you’ll get a link to my Special Reports page. It’s on there under the headline “27 words to make the world do your bidding.” You can also get it from his website, linked above.

Enjoy!

- R

Tags: free report, persuasion, Psychology, human motivation, workings of the mind, language, magic, hypnosis, advertising, marketing, value, principles of persuasion, secrets of persuasion, effective persuasion, Blair Warren, The One-Sentence Persuasion Course, 27 Words to Make the World Do Your Bidding, effective advertisements, Special Reports

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