Why You're Not Making Any Sales
Hey there. Tim here.
Mad Men is the greatest show in the history of television. The Wire is a close second. This is not up for debate.
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How to Generate More Sales
Warning: your business will probably fail.
I hate to be the one to tell you, but statistically speaking, it's not looking good.
Here's your problem: you suck at sales and you're too scared to get good at sales because getting good at sales requires you to be rejected over and over again.
I got lucky. When I was first getting sober, the only place that would hire me was a call center that sold medical supplies. I had to sit in a soul sucking phone room, make 120 calls a day, and get hung up while trying to convince strangers to buy back braces, diabetic supplies, and catheters.
But something strange happened ... I began to love it. Eventually, I started teaching myself different sales techniques and I started to realize that sales was a skill that could be learned. I'll never forget the first time I made $5000 in one week. It was the richest I've ever felt. I've been hooked ever since.
One of the most important lessons I learned is how to meet people where they are. When the average person thinks of selling, they think of mastering a pitch and of trying to portray confidence. But the nuance of successful sales has nothing to do with you and your confidence, it has everything to do with the person you're talking to and where they are in the buyers journey.
There are three types of leads.
- hot leads
- warm leads
- cold leads
A hot lead is someone who already knows about your product and is aware that it could potentially solve their problem.
A warm lead is someone who has a desire to solve their problem, but doesn't yet know about your product.
A cold lead is someone who has a problem, but doesn't even know that a solution to their problem exists.
You still with me? Okay great, now pay attention.
The first step is to recognize where your prospect is, and the second step is to talk to them using the most appropriate tactic.
Here's how it looks.
When you come across a hot lead, the focus on your conversation should be all about the product you offer and how your product will solve their problem. (Benefits, not features).
When you come across a warm lead, the last thing you want to do is talk to them about your product. Instead, the focus of your conversation should be all about their desire to fix their problem. Once you have crossed what I call the desire threshold, you have then converted that lead into a hot lead, at which point you can talk about the product.
Lastly, when you talk to a cold lead, you focus the conversation on the problem. Let the prospect tell you all about the problem and don't you dare even think about talking about yourself. You literally should not even say the word "I."
After the prospect tells you about their problem, you can then transition to speak about their desire to solve the problem. Finally, after some time spent in the warm stage, you can transition the prospect to a hot lead, and that's when you mention how your product or service could solve their problem.
Here's an example:
If someone tells you "the plants in my house keep dying and I don't know what to do about it" (this is a cold lead), you would never reply to them by saying "Frank's fertilizer is the best fertilizer in the world."
But that's what most of you do with your sales copy.
You immediately want to tell people about your products and services, while the small minority of the people who see your sales pages are actually considered hot leads.
You're much better off creating sales pages that align with different stages in the buyers journey, the same is true for when you talk to your prospects face to face.
If you can train yourself to immediately get in the habit of recognizing where your prospects are in the buyers journey, you can then frame the conversation (whether it's a verbal conversation, a sales page, a Tweet, or a back and forth conversation through email) and literally 10X your conversion rate and your sales.
Learn this. Don't be scared.
2. Unconventional Business Tips that Made Millions
This week, Ethan surprised me by bringing up a Twitter thread. In the thread, I wrote about unconventional business tips that have helped me grow my companies.
In this episode, we went through the tips I mentioned and we went into more detail as to why each tip helped me so much.
I enjoyed the episode ... looks like it will be our most downloaded episode ever!
Click here to listen to the full episode.
3. It's Time to Promote Your Brand
Guess what? You're reading promotional content in a newsletter. Sponsoring influencer newsletters, like this one, is a great way to reach engaged and targeted audiences. It will build your brand — whether that is your personal brand or your business.
So here is the deal. This newsletter is part of the ConvertKit Sponsor Network (CKSN), representing more than 100 individual newsletter creators. Sponsor my newsletter and gain access to many more.
Sponsor this Newsletter ❤️ CKSN
4. How I Invest My Money (And Generate Great Returns)
Disclaimer: This is not investment advice. I have no idea what I'm doing, you shouldn't listen to me, investing involves risk, and you might lose all your money.
With that disclaimer out of the way, let me tell you about how I've become a successful investor.
Do you want to know my secret?
The funny part is that my returns are better than most of my investor friends who day trade. It cracks me up.
5. Final Thought - "Thank You."
Yes, you. Thank you!
I love writing this newsletter. Every time someone replies to my newsletter with a kind word, it absolutely fills me with gratitude.
Last week, I got so many replies that I couldn't even respond to them all. This week, I will respond to every reply. Every. Single. One.
When I was first starting out, I looked up to Brian Clark and Seth Godin as heroes. I was a nobody but when I read their work, I felt like I could be a somebody.
Now, it's shocking to be in the position where I am that person that other people are looking up to.
I do not take it lightly, and I don't take it for granted. I promise to be here every Friday, no matter what.
Even if all my work results in helping one person, it is worth it.
Because you are helping me, so much more than you know.
Thank you, from the bottom of my heart.
I love you guys. I'll talk to you next week.
Tim
P.S. - Hit reply and let me know what your all time favorite show is and I'll tell you why the right answer is actually Mad Men.