comments

Thanks, Doug + Demetrius! :)

Just checking in to see if everyone is still going. =)

I love the response this post has received so far.

We are huge animal lovers here at the Pierce Residence and aShadow, so it makes my heart sing to learn the support this community shows on a daily basis.

THANK YOU ALL!

Each of you makes a HUGE difference.. from the smallest nut to a squirrel to donating your resources and time to active groups.

Much Warmth and Cheers! =)

Keep the comments coming for all of April. I want to hear all of your stories. I will add some of my own soon, as well.

I would also throw in that it is also how you sell it, who you sell it to, and how binding the contractual agreement is.

There are a lot of factors for why people are successful. Not every method works for everyone.

Would love to hear other members stories about what is and isn't working for them. Do you have a story you'd like to share?

Sounds great. Please keep us up to date on your success with this method. =)

Maybe state it like:

We know you are a hard worker and will be successful with our program. That is why we want to make absolutely certain that you are reaping the rewards of our services. As a show of good faith, we are only asking for a $3,000 deposit to start this program today. The remaining balance of $7,000 will be due once you start grossing $100,000 or more in annual sales.

-- For something like this, I would also suggest NOT offering a payment plan on the $3k. You want clients that have the money to front that fee all at once, because they will be devoted, driven individuals able to commit themselves to your program and reach their potential.

Just from a business perspective, are you certain you want to hinge your income based on how hard or little your clients work? You are setting yourself up to lose a good deal of cash flow with such a flexible claim to the final payment.

Basically, if a client buys in and decides they don't really want to follow through, you are leaving them open for not having to pay you in a timely fashion (if ever). Or maybe I am not understanding this clear enough?

Hi Richard! Thanks for putting yourself front and center. I have some critique that I think will greatly improve your response. I'm also going to move away from the original theme and focus more on you promoting this online with a teaser.

I would boil everything down to the basics. The average American has less than 20 seconds of attention to devote to any one thing not on the agenda during their busy day. Ads get less time!

I would focus more on the exceptional benefits and less on the details/cost. You are requesting a large chunk of money for your service. It's not big for most successful businesses, but for the audience you are pitching to: small businesses just barely getting by and who are terrified to put themselves out there financially at this point in the game.

Your words say this is a rare, elite opportunity, but your writing style says that is just to get attention since your buy in is so high. [Side note: make sure everything is spelled correctly and worded for the easiest read possible]

For $10k, prospects will expect excellence and nothing less -- especially the market you are pitching to.

Often times, the answer lies in pitching to yourself. Would your finances currently allow a $10k buy in with what you just pitched? Would you take the seller seriously and sign up right away -- or would you have to consider it long and hard? If someone has to really think about something, they will likely talk themselves out of it.

Example rewrite with explanations:

START PITCH

Are you tired of the bills piling up? Frustrated by the feeling of going nowhere?

(YES answers give prospects something to relate to and gets them into an agreeable mood : Yes, I’m tired of bills piling up! Yes, I’m frustrated by the feeling like I’m going nowhere! This writer really knows how I feel. )

THEN YOU ARE READY TO MAKE $100k!

(This is a very positive action statement. It enables the prospect to believe that they are indeed ready like the message suggests. By shortening the $100,000 to $100k the amount appears more feasible and not so large, or out of reach. )

This isn’t a miracle cure or a loan.

(Lowers their “scam alert” by addressing some natural concerns. )

This is your chance to get out of debt and start enjoying what you love doing!

You are ready to make a change!

(Positive reinforcement, in case they were wavering.)

The first step is to give us a call: 206.000.5555. Or simply log on to: www.easylink.com/easyoffer

(Easy, pick up a phone. Easier, go to a website landing page specifically for this offer!)

END PITCH

You want people to qualify themselves as your target audience. Then when they take the first step in contacting you, you are able to sell them on all the features, the amazing benefits, and the cost (broken down into an easy payment structure of some kind that doesn’t scare them off).

Hope this helps get the creative fires burning!

Great response, Dan! I know the feeling. Newspaper's aren't the only target here -- but when most of the clients I've spoken with think of "pitching" themselves, they think publications, television, reporters, etc.

I feel that if you have high expectations (like a newspaper that won't give you the time of day) you can usually create some amazing content that will generally win over everyone else that you hadn't been focused on in the first place [with a little tweaking].

So, in posing the request to have our members pitch themselves to the "reporter," my hope was to draw out something to work with that they can pitch to everyone else -- like bloggers, clients, colleagues, et al.

Does that make sense? Where's your pitch, by the way? Would love to see it!