Today we’re talking about marketing and on the operating table I’ve placed a squeeze page (or lead capture page) for us to dissect. You must have heard the old internet marketing mantra that “the money is in the list” and the main role of a squeeze page is to build your list.

Here at Shift we prefer to call the list our ‘community’ because essentially it’s all about building a relationship between me and you. You may have joined our community via this blog, from one of my speaking engagements, or you may have opted-in to one of my squeeze pages.

Here are 2 examples of squeeze pages I use:

http://www.shiftspeakertraining.com/blueprint – This page offers a free chapter from our speaker blueprint and grows our Shift Speaker Training Community

http://www.shiftlifestyle.com/laws – This free gift is 7 video tips on lifestyle design and is designed to grow our Shift Lifestyle Community

Note they are entirely different communities, both with separate needs, frustrations, desires and wants and so have 2 completely different gifts.

Tip: Take the time to check them out yourself and if you haven’t already got your free gift, why not opt in so you can dissect the email sequences we use too!

Should You Use A Squeeze Page?

Squeeze pages are used by internet savvy business owners, solo-entrepreneurs and anyone with a free online product they want to give away in return for building a list. This online community then represents a readymade and targeted audience for your paid products and courses so it’s a must-have if you are serious about creating financial success.

Tip: As a speaker, I 100% recommend a squeeze page because when you build your community you can then promote your speaking gigs to them. Did you know most of our speaking gigs are filled by our own community? You see when you create a good relationship with your community, a relationship based on value, they will love the opportunity to see you live.

The Anatomy Of A Squeeze Page

There are three components every squeeze page should possess:

1. An powerful and alluring headline that gets the prospects attention, promises great benefit and forms a connection with the target audience;

2. The benefits are outlined in a bulleted-list with a strong and compelling description which incites the reader to complete the opt-in form

3. A call to action where the reader provides their contact data in response to your initial promise and the relationship building process can commence.

Tip: When you are creating your own squeeze page, the more targeted the audience the better your conversion rate will be. As a giveaway, you might choose a free report, an ebook, a series of video tips, an interview with an expert etc. All too often I see people giving away free products that have NOTHING to do with their ongoing products! Make sure there is a connection between your free giveaway and your paid products.

How You Create A Squeeze Page

Even though the general structure of a squeeze page is quite simple, the copy-writing to prepare the headline, benefit bullets and even the call to action can have a huge influence on the conversion rate. Therefore before actually making a squeeze page, stop and consider:

1. Who are your target audience

2. What problem are you attempting to solve for them and how you can reflect this in your headline

3. Create at least four benefits to be offered via the bullet points

4. The nature of your offer when creating the call to action.

Finally . . .

Two final points to consider as you create your first lead capture page:

• Though many early lead capture pages were “text-oriented” there is a growing trend to use a video (usually between the headline and last two sections) with the author adding a personal message that is often far more compelling. Video lead capture pages usually have higher conversion rates. As a speaker you should be experts at this!

In Shift we pride ourselves on  providing excellent customer service.  Our motto is simple but effective – we want to leave the customer in a better mood than how we found them.

But . ..

But sometimes as humans we make mistakes and sometimes as humans we like to complain.  And this can cause some emotional ripples in your team if you are not careful.  You see, one of the commonest problems I see in my team is the not the actual complaint itself . . . but the feelings the complaint induces.

If one of the team members has made a mistake this can cause them to waste emotional energy on beating themselves up about it.  Also if someone complains against us – and it’s obviously a totally irrational complaint -  we can still feel hurt and upset.  We have a tendency to take the complaint personally, as if ‘we have done something wrong’.  Our feelings around the complaint range from anger, frustration, anxiety, tears and panic.  Believing as I do that the world is the perfect mirror for our projections, often the complaint taps into our buried insecurities from childhood – we’re not good enough, we’ve been caught out etc etc.

So with this in mind, I thought I would share our 7 point plan for handling customer complaints:

1.  Separate Yourself From The Complaint

It’s hard not to take it personally but often the complaint says more about the client more than it does about you!

 

2. Figure Out What The Complaint Is

If you receive pages and pages of information from your customers about why they are not happy with you and what you have done wrong, read through them and try to get to the heart of their problem.

 

3.  Don’t Answer Straight Away!

When you do receive a long-winded tirade from a customer, remember to take a step back and realize it’s not all about you! Sometimes their demands are overly emotional or blatantly excessive.  These are the times you should advise your team to sit on the response for a day or two before replying.  This way you take the heat out of your response.

Get two people on your team to review the response before sending so it doesn’t contain anything inflammatory.  Remember, you do not want to inflame this conversation by defending why you are right and they are wrong.  Like a bouncer at a night club, you want to calmly diffuse the situation and strip it of all emotion.  Give them nothing to fight back with and respond purely to the problem alone.

 

4.  What Does The Customer Need?

Before you respond, brainstorm ways of how you can respond to their needs.  If you know you’re in the wrong, i,e, messed up their payments or not send them their product on time, think about what you can offer them to make up for it.

It’s surprising though because often times a person just needs to feel listened to so they can let go of what they think was a problem.  So either call them yourself or find the most patient person on your team who can call them and simply listen to where they’re at and send them lots of love. You can transform complaints into miracles this way!

 

5.  Write Down What You Want To Say Before Calling

It’s much easier to make those difficult phone calls when you’re prepared for them.  If you’re making the call yourself write down everything you want to say. If one of your team members is making the call, make sure they are confident and have all the information they need.  Remember to tell them to stay calm and listen with love.

 

6.  Put It In Writing

After a phone call it’s always advisable to put a record of what happened either in their client file (if you have a client management system) and /or send them an email of what you covered.  This way if the client ever raises the issue again you are properly covered.  Overall at this point, you want to put something in writing to indicate the customer is happy with the solution and again this is another opportunity to send them lots of love.

 

7.  Don’t Waste Your Energy

A complaint is not there to get riled up over, to take personally or to spend hours trying to prove why they are wrong and you are right.  Similarly if you know you have made a mistake, don’t waste time beating yourself up about it.  Apologise, make up for it and move on.

Overall, complaints are all learning experiences. But they’re also opportunities to review your customer relationships, give someone some much needed love and provide you or your team member with the opportunity to grow.  Make it a challenge to transform complaints into miracles and you’ll be surprised at how your biggest enemies become your greatest fans.

 

I bet you’ve heard the old saying . . .your network is your net worth.  In other words, who you hang out is a reflection of where you are right now in terms of career and finance.

Are your friends and colleagues high achievers, entrepreneurs, millionaires and massively successful people with a vision and a purpose?  In short, are they the people you aspire to be?

If not, never fear. . . . it doesn’t mean you have to ditch all your poor friends! But maybe it is time to widen your circle of influence.

Expand Your Business
Whatever stage of business you’re at, you can never stop learning.  I get so much out of my time in my mastermind group.  I might discover new tricks or techniques that can save me thousands of dollars or I make a mindset shift that takes me to the next financial level.  And I always meet key contacts who I can JV with later down the line.  If you’re wondering how to meet these people, then it’s easy:

Never waste a single opportunity.

Talk To People And Tell People Your Purpose
That’s right, every opportunity with people is a chance to communicate your purpose on earth.  That person might be able to help you facilitate this goal or they might know someone else who can help you.  In my years of training events, I’ve seen countless moments where people were synchronistically connected to the right person at the right time – just because they shared their purpose.

How To Network
Networking is like dating.  You don’t want to get too heavy too soon, not unless you want to scare them off.  The key point to remember, it’s not all about you and what you want.  It’s about forming a natural friendship where both of you can offer value to each other.  A great way to make a long term contact is to find out what value you can offer them first.  Think long term trust not short term grab.

Where To Meet New People
It’s never been easier in this day and age so here’s some suggestions you can follow right now:

• Social Media – Facebook is not just about playing games and chatting to friends, it’s about meeting new people and forming friendships with them online.  Just like when you meet someone at an event, don’t bombard them with what you want, offer something to them first.
• Networking Events – a chance to face to face meet new clients.  They even do speed networking now so the structure is there in place for you to meet as many people as you can.
• Seminars and Trainings – always take a business card and make the effort to meet new people, not just stay within your comfort circle.  Often they have networking boards, so post your business card on this.
• Random – networking is not a setting you have to switch on or off. You always can be networking, in a queue, on an airplane, in the supermarket, on a bus, round a swimming pool.  You name it!

Network It, Baby!
So networking has never been easier and the benefits are priceless.  This week, make the commitment to go to at least one networking event and see what rewards you can reap just by rubbing shoulders with people who can help you raise your game.

 

This week it’s all about image.

You Can’t Judge A Book By Its Cover

When it comes to speaking, we like to think that what we say and how we say it is more important than what we look like and how people see us. . .

But the truth is that people do judge us by our appearance and by our offstage behavior.

When you are portraying an image that fits in with your brand, you will have the audience in a place where they’re going to be very receptive to what it is that you’re talking about.

Your Brand: What Everything You Do Says About You

The most important thing in terms of making the right first impression is brand.  How do you decide what your personal brand is going to be?  Well, it takes a bit of research and it takes a bit of digging.

But here are  some simple things that you can do first:

Personal Research

Research the brands that you are attracted to is the first step in recognizing your brand. What brands do you like, what brands do you resonate with?  What brands will accurately represent the image that you want to have?

When you start to get clearer in that, you can get some clarity around how you’re going to position yourself.

Magazine Research

Grab all different kinds of magazines: lifestyle, beauty, business. Go through and tear out images that speak to your values and your brand. Create a “Brand Board” around what look and feel you want to project into the marketplace based on images. Then create a list of value words around those images.

Words that Define Your Brand

So for us, that is Shift Lifestyle, and the words that define our brand are fun, anything is possible, looking for the bigger pie, contribution, lifestyle, freedom, and a myriad of other words.  And around these words that’s the brand we created.

Your Dress and Image

What you wear is going to be influenced by your brand.  You rarely see Richard Branson wearing anything other than a sweater, a pullover, a jumper and looking unshaven with unkempt hair. He’s got that relaxed look around him at all times. That’s his style.

On the flip side, you never see the royal family, for instance, wearing anything other than expensive tailored suits.  There’s a certain look and feel to what you wear if you’re a royal.

It’s the same for a speaker. When you start your speaking career you need to choose your brand. And then everything you wear onstage and off needs to reflect your brand.  So you need to get really clear about that.

Your clothes = Your Brand

Get Stylish!

So this week, have a think about your personal brand.  Who is it you would like to model?  Create a ‘brand board’ and look at the words which describe your brand.  Also look at what it is you are wearing onstage and make sure that your clothing backs up your brand.  And remember, have fun!

 

How to market your seminars is one of the greatest obstacles I find with people starting out in the public speaking business. But once you overcome this, you’ll be increasing your bottom line profits as you run full to the rafter events and seminars.

But first here are some questions commonly asked about marketing your seminars:

Who on earth am I going to present to?

Where are they?

And how do I get them into a room?

The first step is to locate your target audience. Because once you know who your ideal prospects are, it’s just a matter of marketing your seminar to them effectively.

So, let’s looks at 2 easy strategies to find your target audience

1. Pre-existing groups.
   This is by far and away the simplest strategy for effective seminar marketing. Once you have determined your ideal audience, the next logical step is to ask yourself:  

   “Where are groups of these people already gathering?”

   Your target market, more often than not, are already meeting together in groups somewhere:

   • clubs
   • associations
   • seminars
   • workshops
   • social groups
   • companies
   • small businesses

   All these organisations are having regular events or meetings looking for someone to come and add value and inspiration to their members or employees. Why not try marketing your seminars to them?

2. Create your own group
   If you already have a business or a client list – even if there are only 8 people on it- this is a great way to market your seminar. You market to the people already interested in you and your services and because they are already engaged, you increase the percentage of them buying again from you. 

   One of the simplest marketing things you can do is have a “Client Appreciation Night”.

   Invite your clients to bring a guest along to an evening. Put on a drink or two and share with them some ground breaking information in your industry. At the evening you then do your awesome presentation and make some sales right there on the night to people who already know and love you, and their friends.

   Of course if your database is 1000 people- the numbers get more fun more quickly, but I want to stress on you that you can start marketing your seminars on a small scale.

Now that you have 2 easy strategies to find to your target market and then market your seminars to that audience, why not plan your own client appreciation night or even approach an organization to book yourself a public speaking slot!

There are 7 Key Elements to a Profitable Sales Presentation.

These 7 Keys are spelled out here assuming you will make a sale at the end of your presentation. But these same 7 Key Elements are will work even if you are not closing a sale.

You can use these same 7 steps with a little creativity to inspire someone to book in for a one on one consultation or to get your prospects contact details to add to your database.

All the principles are the same.

But right here I focus on sales presentations – because once you can do that- you can do anything!

Before I share these 7 steps the first thing you need to do however is be really clear what action you want your audience to take at the end. This is not about getting you a round of applause remember – this is about getting you more business. So what do you want them to do?

Do you want them to:

• Buy your product or service on the spot?
• Book in a consultation with you or one of your sales people?
• Join your mailing list?

Get really clear in your mind what the outcome from the sales presentation is and then it’s as simple as these 7 key elements:

1. Create Connection:
   Become a welcome guest and inspire trust and responsiveness in your audience.
2. Get Permission To Do Your Thing:
   Demonstrate credibility and earn the right to be speaking to your audience by illustrating your past results as powerfully as possible.
3. Engage with Your Content:
   Decide on the action you want the audience to take, and craft the backbone of your presentation with this end in mind.
4. Establish a Need:
   Create dissatisfaction in your audience by illustrating where they are vs where they want to be.
5. Reveal the Product and Build Tension:
   Give a benefit driven description of your product.
6. Make a No-Brainer Offer:
   The most important part of your sales presentation – package up your product with bonuses, and ensure you create urgency and take away risk
7. Invite Immediate Action:
   Finish powerfully with a commanding invitation to buy.

For Your Next Sales Presentation, Try This!
If you have products and services you’re passionate about then in your next sales presentation make a commitment to yourself that you will follow these 7 steps. See what a difference it makes to your presentation. Become a speaker who influences action, not just a speaker gets a round of applause.

• Trade shows are tough gigs.
• There are lots of stalls and marketers already there who are competing for the attention of the attendees.
• Go round and build relationships with the other stall holders – they already have lists of people who you can market to in the form of a joint venture.

Here’s 4 top tips to spruce up your business.

1. De-clutter Your Office
   Take some time out of your day to go through your desk and your paperwork and be ruthless!  Get rid of everything which does not support your burgeoning business.
2. Grow a Plant
   Growing something from seed, nurturing the green shoots into life, tending it carefully to make sure it grows up strong and watching it sprout into bloom is no greater metaphor for your own business.
3. Try Something New
   Just as the flowers bloom so beautifully in spring so too does the creation of new ideas in your business, why not try something new?  It could be a fresh marketing campaign, the launch of a new product or an update of your website.



4. Try Someone New
   Reassess what you actually do in your business.   What tasks do you do which you no longer need to? Is it time to hire new staff or find an outsourcer so you can play a bigger game?

Summary

This week put a spring into your step and try out something new for your business.  You never know, it could be the start of a whole new dawn.

 

Marketing your seminars is one of the greatest obstacles I find with people starting out in the public speaking business.

Who on earth am I going to present to?

Where are they all and how do I get them into a room?

Let’s look at 2 easy options for you to find your target market:

1. Pre-existing groups.

   This is by far and away the simplest strategy. Once you have determined your ideal audience, the next logical step is to ask yourself:

   “Where are groups of these people already gathering?”

   Your target market, more often than not, are already meeting together in groups somewhere:
   

   • clubs
   • associations
   • seminars
   • workshops
   • social groups
   • companies
   • small businesses

   All these organisations are having regular events or meetings, just longing for some great inspiring speakers to come and share their wisdom. Don’t discount yourself – every group, organisation or company is looking for someone to come and add value and inspiration to their members or employees.

   Advantages of pre-existing groups:

   • they are already meeting and often looking for speakers
   • they are closely knit and self-defining, so it is obvious if they are your market or not
   • they already have marketing in place so you don’t have to worry about it as much
   • they will pay for room hire and equipment
   • they might have colleagues, associates or other chapters that they will refer you to

   Disadvantages:

   • they have pre-conceived ideas about how speakers present and may be reluctant to let you sell
   • you have no control over the marketing, so its up to them to fill the room
   • it needs a little more organising from a “how do we collect the money and process orders” perspective
2. Create your own group

   If you already have a business or a client list – even if there are only 8 people on it- one of the simplest things you can do is have a “Client Appreciation Night”. Invite your clients to bring a guest along to an evening. Put on a drink or two and share with them some ground breaking information in your industry.

   At the evening you then do your awesome presentation and make some sales right there on the night to people who already know and love you, and their friends.

   Of course if your database is 1000 people- the numbers get more fun more quickly, but I want to stress on you that you can start marketing your seminars on a small scale.

   Advantages of Your Own Crowd:

   • you set the rules and you can sell as hard or soft as you like
   • some may have already bought from you, so they are more pre-disposed to buy from you again. Did you know that over 70% of your sales come from customers with repeat business rather than new clients?
   • you get to control every aspect of their experience: the lighting, the sound, the tea breaks. . .
   • you can manage how “ready to buy” they are by doing good marketing in the lead up to the event

   Disadvantages:

   • you have to do all the marketing, event management, as well as the speaking
   • it’s generally more expensive because room costs, AV etc are footed by you

   Food For Thought

   Now that you have 2 easy strategies to find to your target market, what about going out there this week and either planning a client appreciation night of your own or even approach an organization to book yourself a speaking slot!