The Marketing Mix | official blog of the Marketing Mentor community

Find your marketing style: This Wednesday in N.Y.C.

There is a formula for finding steady clients that keep the money streaming in. You just need to learn right the tools and how to use them, in a way that works for you.

Ready to find some steady clients? Banish “feast or famine”?

It takes some strategic thinking and discipline, but you can find the clients who have budgets and ongoing needs for your services.

To find out how, join me — live and in person — in New York for my Freelancers Union seminar, Steady Marketing = Steady Clients.

When: Wednesday, Jan 19, 2011, 6:30 – 8:30PM
Where: Empire Building, Brooklyn
Details and sign up here. (Attendees get $10 off the 2011 Marketing Plan + Calendar with eCalendar).

Who doesn’t love bingo?

If you don’t love cold-calling, you might now…

Tom Tumbusch has taken the idea of “making cold-calling into a game” to the next level. He has created: Cold-Calling Bingo! And it goes without saying that everybody loves bingo.

Tom says:

Here's how the game works: grab your calling list and your Bingo card and start dialing. Each time you get stuck, mark or cover the square that matches the situation. For example, if the person who answers won't connect you to a decision maker, cover the square that says "Can't get past receptionist."  

Play continues until you have a straight line in any direction: vertically, horizontally, or diagonally. I leave it up to you whether or not you shout "BINGO!" to the prospect on the other end of the phone line. (Who knows...it may revive the conversation.) 

Use it on your own or challenge another freelancer to see who can get a row first. Better yet, see who can cover a full card! Just don't get so involved in the game that you're disappointed when the person you're calling is actually interested in hiring you. That, after all, is the prize you're really playing for, and this is a fun way to help you stay positive and get the results you want faster.

 

Download your Cold-Calling Bingo card here: http://www.marketing-mentor.com/pdf/cold_calling_bingo.pdf
 
But watch out… this might happen to you too!

An update from Tom shows strange results:

So after I created the Bingo card yesterday morning, I put it to work for myself. I got the "Voice Mail" square on my first call, but on my second call I ran into a snag: the prospect I was calling was totally interested! The company needs writers all the time, the prospect requested samples and signed up for my E-Newsletter. Not being attached to the outcome produced the desired result!

Give Cold-Calling Bingo a try, and let us know what happens!

Cold-Calling Bingo was created by Tom N. Tumbusch of WordStreamCopy, specializing in crisp, memorable copy for green businesses and the creative agencies that serve them. When you need copy that creates action, visit http://www.wordstreamcopy.com.
 

How can you be a conference speaker?

We have been following Pam Saxon’s journey as she finds new prospects and tries to position herself as an expert by going after speaking gigs. (She is using thought leadership marketing tools, which will be focused on in the Advanced Marketing Group starting the week of November 15th).

Last week, her persistence paid off when she finally got in touch with the organizer of a conference she had been going after for a while to no avail. She didn’t give up, and ultimately got a call with him!

Here’s what happened:

I spoke with the head honcho who hires the speakers for the new organization I'm going after... FINALLY. We have some very important contacts in common (he had gone to the trouble of googling me and finding my bio somewhere out there on the web, probably on my website).
 
He asked me what my ideas are for workshops/seminars, and I briefly told him. He wants me to send a title and blurb for each one, kind of like a mini-proposal, and then they are going to look at everything they have and make the decision about who fits for next year's conference early in January. He told me exactly what they pay, what is covered, there were absolutely no questions. It was great!
 
I was a little nervous talking to him, just because I'm not accustomed to trying to sell myself as a speaker. But I think it went pretty well. My feeling is that once I am able to get one of these things, I'll be able to get more…
 
Thanks to Pam for sharing her story. We will keep you posted on the outcome.

How can you make something big happen for your business? By setting a goal – and not giving up until you get there. If you need accountability, take a look at the Beginner and Advanced Marketing Groups (starting the week of November 15th) to keep you on track.

Will she get the gig?

We’ve been keeping you updated on Pam Saxon’s direct outreach efforts – and here’s the latest! (The big phone call is today! We’ll let you know what happens…) From Pam:

Remember how I had been going after (organization) to do workshops and present, and how once I said I wanted to be paid, they suddenly changed their tune? Well, I took that experience and parlayed it into something even better. There is a well-known summer conference called (conference name), and I've been trying to reach the head of that conference for some time, to no avail. He hasn't returned emails, and he hasn't returned phone calls. I almost gave up.

Then, after you interviewed me, I decided to try to contact him one more time via email with a link to the interview, along with a mention that I am going to be featured in the next HOW Magazine... just a little news blurb. My email stated that I would love to take the results that I have experienced in the interview and channel them into workshops for his teachers so they can experience the same kinds of results. And then I offered to prepare a proposal for him.

HE EMAILED ME THE SAME DAY. He apologized for not getting back to me sooner, and set up an appointment for next Wednesday morning to talk. How 'bout 'DEM apples?!

I am averaging about 1 new job a day now, and 3 new contacts per day…

I love the fact that Pam was ready to give up on this guy but didn’t. What did she do differently that got her the response?

Want to have a full pipeline like Pam? Then you’ve got to do your marketing. And if you need help staying on track, we’ve got the perfect tool: The 2011 Marketing Mentor eCalendar. If you download it by November 1st, you get the bonus, My Monthly Recap Worksheet.

Don’t forget! Sign up for the FREE webcast on November 1st, Start NOW: Your 2011 Marketing Plan, to find out which daily, weekly, and monthly tasks you should be doing for the year ahead.

Exactly What to Say on the Phone: Part 2

Yesterday, I talked about exactly what I say when reaching out to prospects during “prospecting hour.”

Today, I would like to share a few important tips I’ve learned along the way:

1: Your script doesn't have to be perfect the first time. Try out the initial version you come up with, call ten prospects, and see how it feels. If something sounds awkward when you say it, tweak the script before your next call or phone session.

2: You're not married to the script. If the call is going in a different direction from your carefully-structured pattern, go with it. It's also okay for you to change a word or two as you go...I find that my script sounds a little bit different each time. You can always work your way back to the talking points in your script later in the call. The script is just a tool to help you start the conversation.

3: Take a tip from the voice-over industry: try not to sound like you're reading a script. Imagine that you're having a casual conversation with a friend who has a need that you can provide the answer to (because if you're doing it right, that's what your relationship with this person will eventually be). I struggle with sounding natural...a lot of the time I feel like "Mr. Announcer" once I've launched into my spiel. You can train yourself to sound more natural by practicing with a friend, or by recording your voice as you test-drive the script. If you sound stilted or fake when you play the recording back, make adjustments so that you sound more like your natural self.

If you want to get back on the marketing "wagon" in a big way, I hear the new Marketing Mentor eCalendar is going to knock your socks off, laying out your marketing tasks (like prospecting hour) and integrating them right into your electronic calendar. I’ve been using the "Start Anytime" which I can highly recommend. (And no, Ilise didn't pay me to mention it.)

Here's one final resource for you--an online "cold calling tool" that has responses for nearly every objection you're likely to encounter. Use it as designed or as inspiration for writing your script: http://www.bnet.com/blog/salesmachine/the-ultimate-cold-calling-tool/2449?pg=1

Special thanks to Tom N. Tumbusch, who writes copy for green businesses and creative agencies. Learn more about him at http://www.wordstreamcopy.com/.

And be sure to sign up for the free webcast on November 1st, Start NOW: Your 2011 Marketing Plan.

Exactly What to Say on the Phone: Part 1

On Monday, October 25th, we are going to introduce the new 2011 Marketing Mentor eCalendar, which will merge with your calendar software to keep you on track with your marketing tasks. If you were following it today, it would remind you of these daily tasks:

• Prospecting Hour
• Social Networking

Today, Tom Tumbusch is going to share exactly what he says during prospecting hour, and tomorrow, he is going to share some helpful tips for making it your own. Ready?

Right now, when I do my prospecting (or research calling), I'm using a script that's based on the one found in Marketing Mentor Marketing Plan + Calendar, plus a bit of personalization. It goes something like this:

"Hi, this is Tom Tumbusch from WordStreamCopy. You don't know me, but I recently saw your work featured (name a specific place: in a book/news story/on their website). Have I caught you at a good time?"

Yes: "I work with creative agencies like yours to write copy for green companies, and I'd love to get on your radar should a need arise. Do you ever have a need for outside copywriters?"

The conversation proceeds from there. At the end of the call, whether or not there's an immediate need, I ask if I can add the contact to my monthly e-mail list. It still surprises me how often they say yes, and I'm finding that makes my follow-up calls go much more smoothly when I call back a few months later. Last week, a prospect who I've been in contact with for a year told me how much he enjoyed my newsletter, and he actually apologized that he hadn't sent me any work yet! (And here I was worried about being a pest.)

I also have a similar version of the script specifically for voice mail messages, which account for a large percentage of the calls you'll make (Martha Retallick says it's about 80%, and I've had much the same experience.) I actually get some response from voicemails, sometimes by email.

Stay tuned tomorrow for my thoughts on perfection, script-marriage, being Mr. Announcer, and how to respond to objections.

Special thanks to Tom N. Tumbusch, who writes copy for green businesses and creative agencies. Learn more about him at http://www.wordstreamcopy.com/.

And be sure to sign up for the free webcast on November 1st, Start NOW: Your 2011 Marketing Plan.

What can prospecting really get you?

Quick plug: If there is one thing you should do this November (besides eat turkey and stuffing), it's this: Sign up for my free webcast on November 1st, to find out what should you be doing daily, weekly and monthly to keep your marketing on track for 2011.

Have you done your prospecting hour today?

If you were following the 2011 Marketing Mentor eCalendar (coming out October 25th), it would remind you of this very important marketing task. The daily prospecting hour is one of the most important tools in the eCalendar – and I’m going to tell you why…

What if an hour a day could result in a 240% increase in your business? Saxon Design saw these results.

Check out my latest Quick Tip to find out why -- and see how she is getting to know CEOs in her target market. (I wrote this tip yesterday, and since then, Pam has already gotten two more projects!)

In my 20-minute interview with Martha Retallick, of Western Sky Communications, she describes her target market, and shares her simple process to find and reach them. She explains how she tracks her calls and actually recites her no-BS phone script.

Today, you can review these resources in case you aren’t sure of the value of prospecting hour.

Tomorrow, Tom Tumbusch will share more details about how, exactly, to do prospecting hour.

Get ready to grow your business!

One more thing… Don’t forget to sign up for my free webcast, November 1, Start NOW: Your 2011 Marketing Plan. Not available on November 1st? The webcast will be recorded -- and as long as you sign up -- you will receive the recording.

The right attitude for marketing...

Every day, I get reinforcement after reinforcement that, no matter what the economy's doing from day to day, the creative professionals who are getting the work and the ones doing their marketing -- come hell or high water -- every day (or at least a few days a week).

In yesterday's Quick Tip from Marketing Mentor, I wrote about Martha Retallick of Western Sky Communications, who is definitely one of those. She told me recently about her daily "Prospecting Hour." 

"I don't know about the rest of this planet, but here in my studio, taking  whatever comes along is a recipe for failure. I can't depend on business coming to me. I have to be a go-getter and go get it. That's why the first hour  of every workday is The Prospecting Hour. That's when I make calls and  send e-mails to cold and warm leads.

"I've  been in the design business for 15 years, and I've never had the luxury  of depending on word of mouth. Instead, I've had to pick up the phone  and ask strangers for their business. And, in my case, cold calling has  led to the most lucrative clients I've ever had."

When we spoke in August, Martha had made an amazing 3081 phone calls, 80% of which went to voice mail. Of those, 99 prospects had expressed some level of interest (approximately 3% positive response).

In our 20-minute interview (link below), she describes her target market and her simple process to find and reach them. She explains how she tracks her calls and actually recites her no-BS phone script. (She's just finishing an ebook about her process, which I'll be reviewing here soon.)

But what's most impressive about Martha is her attitude (which you can hear most clearly in the interview).

Listen here or download the mp3 here.

And feel free to comment here on the blog...what do you think of Martha's attitude and her effort?

And if you want to cultivate this attitude and the confidence that is the foundation, I have one spot open in my Beginning Marketing Group that starts next week.

Conquering the dreaded "cold call”

I know it might seem hard to believe, but here is yet another example of how a small change in perspective can make something that once seemed “torturous” a lot more bearable, and possibly even exciting.

One of my Marketing Group members, Janet Mobley has shared a small victory when it comes to direct outreach. She said:

I made several "cold" calls this morning. And guess what....they weren't that bad!!

Right now, I'm not calling on my newly defined target market.  I'm calling on a bunch of leads I've had sitting in my CRM for a while. 

I've used cold calls in the past with some mixed results, but I've always dreaded them. 

This time I approached the calls from Ilise's perspective of a "direct outreach".  It really took the pressure off when I adjusted my expectations & goals for each call.

My two main goals for today were:

1.    Get over terror of "cold calling"

2.    Try to gain some tiny bit of info from each call so I could add that info to my database (decision maker's name, verify address, etc)

Hooray!!  I achieved both goals and it wasn't horrible.

I'm using my existing list as a "warm up" and practice for my new target market. I figured it'd be nice to make mistakes on ice cold leads from my database...before I start calling on my actual target market.

It truly was a matter of adjusting my attitude.  I've now set a goal to make at least 5 calls per day and I'm sort of looking forward to tomorrow's calls.  Crazy, huh?

Need to get over your fear? The next Marketing Group starts Sept 30th. Details here or fill out this form.

What's the worst they can say?

Picking up the phone is one of the best ways to get new prospects in your pipeline, and ultimately get new business. Here is a guest post from freelance writer, Jean Feingold, about overcoming the fear of cold calling, and making it work for her business:

Ilise Benun has cajoled her readers repeatedly to make those marketing cold calls no matter how scary it is. I must admit I had been resistant, but when work got slow, I figured, why not? What was the worst they could say? No! I've heard that before and lived, so I decided to try it.
 
My first call was actually sort of warm. A retired writing friend had been asked about doing a gig he didn't want. I got the contact's name and number from him. This turned out to be someone I had actually met once while in my friend's company, so the fear factor in making the call was reduced. I learned the contact had been inquiring on behalf of his department head and he thought they were still looking for someone to do continuing PR writing. I got that person's name and number and left a voicemail. If there's no return call in the next few days, I'll follow up with an e-mail including writing samples.
 
My second call was based on an item I'd seen in the local paper. A museum that is in its startup phase had hired a program director. I visited the museum's website, got the phone number, waited around a few days to get brave, and finally called this morning. I pointed out that since their staff was still small, they might benefit from hiring outside writing help on as needed basis. The director was nice and receptive to my pitch. We have a meeting scheduled for next week and I have already sent her samples.
 
Whether either of these things will put money in my pocket is still unknown (I'll keep you posted). But I know this for sure - had I not called, my chances of getting work from either of these organizations would have been zero. By calling before they did much to look for help, I'm saving them time and trouble and putting myself first in line for whatever writing work there is. Thanks for the push, Ilise. What we all have to remember is the people on the other end of the phone are just people and most people are ok.

Jean Feingold is a freelance writer whose Gainesville, FL-based company, Business Communicators, is celebrating its 20th anniversary. Her work has appeared in trade publications in varied industries in the U.S. and Canada.