Quid pro quo selling! If you give something, you should make preparations to get something in return. The customer is no fool, despite P.T. Barnum's adage that "there's a sucker born every minute."
The customer knows you want to sell something, he/she knows you are in the business to get his/her money. the customer knows that you make a living by providing your goods and services to solve the customer's problems. So there is no reason to be deceptive. The prospective customer would not be meeting with you if you were not ethical.
An honest customer knows that every transaction involves quid pro quo. After all, nothing is free. To remind you of this here are some pointers in the game of give and get.
- If you give a sample, get an agreement to test.
- If you give a product demonstration, first get an agreement to buy if the demo proves the product works as claimed.
- If you give a brochure, get an appointment.
- If you give a discount, get more volume.
- If you give a free drink, get a next dinner.
- If you give a favor, get a due bill.
- If you give a solution, get paid.
The greatest copywriter in the history of advertising was David Ogilvy. Ogilvy was an amazing marketer. He attracted great clients to his agency. He was a master of give and get. One of his more memorable campaigns was a series of ads he wrote to promote his agency.
Unlike the typical advertising that agencies produce, those predictable ads that egotistically promote their company, Ogilvy "gave" his genius away. Instead of telling prospective customers how good his company was, instead of talking about himself, Ogilvy told them how to do it themselves.
One of his ads bore the headline, "How to Write a Corporate Ad." It gave an accurate, detailed road map on copy points, layout, typeface, and mistakes to avoid. IN another, "How to make a Television Commercial." Ogilvy revelled in approaches and secrets.
You can imagine the internal debate at Ogilvy's agency. Ïf you tell them how we do it, they won't need us!" But Ogilvy knew coffee companies made coffee not ads, and that car manufacturers made cars not commercials. He knew that potential clients would not go to the competition and say, "Make me ads the way Ogilvy does it."
He knew that there is a huge difference between being shown how to do something and actually doing it, to say the least of doing it well. If it was that simple, then more people would be able to play Mozart just by hearing the music or make a cake like Buddy Valastro by watching Cake Boss.
Ogilvy "gave away" special knowledge and expertise through his ads. As a result, he got clients. Savvy marketers give to get.
To find out how you can get started giving and getting like Ogilvy, check out the following articles:
/inbound-101-what-the-f-is-inbound-marketing
/inbound-101-what-the-f-is-inbound-marketing-pt.-2
/what-is-inbound-marketing-pt-3
or watch this Inbound 101 Recording:
Your Comments :