Why Good Prospects Don’t Return Your Phone Call

Issue #2361

• WEALTHY: 5 ways to weatherproof your portfolio (Andrew Gordon)
• HEALTHY: How to burn belly fat… 30 seconds at a time (Craig Ballantyne)
• WISE: Kate Chopin on making impressions

ALSO IN THIS ISSUE:

• The 3-part "Triple Play" Follow-Up System for closing deals (Bob Bly)
• How to get your articles published (Michael Masterson)
• It’s Good to Know… about biomimetics
• Add "congeries" to your vocabulary

== Highly Recommended ==

Looking For a “Rat-Race Escape Plan”?

Millions of U.S.A. commuters are paying through the nose just to get to work and back. And paying, and paying…

Sick of spending upwards of $50 to fill the tank? Tired of life passing you by from behind the steering wheel?

Maybe it’s time to think about your “Plan B.”

Maybe it’s time to vow you’re getting out of the rat race, and you’re going to do something about it RIGHT NOW.

Interested? Well here’s your personal Rat Race Express Escape Plan.

- Charlie Byrne

[Breaking News: The 5 Days in July conference is now TOTALLY SOLD OUT. However, we MAY be able to squeeze in a few additional spaces. Check the website to find out if any remain.]

All-Weather Investing

By Andrew Gordon

Guess what? What with the recession… the subprime crisis… foreclosures… inflation… and more, your portfolio is very likely flying into uncharted weather. And you need to make sure it does well no matter how cold or hot the wind blows. So here are five things you can do to weatherproof your portfolio.

1. Invest in companies that do fine in the good times and don’t fall apart when the economy does. You don’t have to look any further than Warren Buffett to see how it’s done.

His Berkshire Hathaway bought a utility in 2006. It bought American Express 30 years ago. It also bought a beer company and owns GEICO (insurance) and General Re (re-insurance). These types of companies provide a substantial measure of protection against a slowing economy.

2. Invest in dividend-paying companies. They don’t have to be slow-growth companies, though many of them are. Look for those that give great dividends and move up in stock price. These companies are some of the most resilient stocks around when the economy and/or the market begins to slip.

3. Invest in sectors that have peaked in the U.S. but are finding new life overseas. Tobacco is just one example where you can find surprising growth and low risk by looking beyond the U.S.

4. Keep a few of your high-upside investments (but for no more than 4 percent of your portfolio and with a 25 percent stop-loss point), even if some of them could falter in a sliding economy. Go ahead and invest in a hot retail chain, mining junior, or upcoming energy company that looks real promising.

5. Invest 10-15 percent of your portfolio in gold or silver, because this part of your portfolio really gets going when things go south.

There are no guarantees in investing. There are only possibilities. But your portfolio should be able to do well no matter what comes to pass. It only takes a little thinking ahead.

[Ed. Note: ETR's Investment Director, Andrew Gordon, is the editor of INCOME, a monthly financial advisory service that uncovers income-generating stocks that promise safety (first and foremost), along with much-higher-than-average profit potential.]

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"There are some people who leave impressions not so lasting as the imprint of an oar upon the water."

Kate Chopin

Why Good Prospects Don’t Return Your Phone Call

By Bob Bly

It happens to everyone in the service industry, all the time.

You get a phone call from a great prospect.

He’s a perfect fit for your service - and he seems ready to buy.

So you send him the information he requested.

And then you hear nothing more from him - despite your repeated attempts to get him on the phone.

"What happened?" you ask yourself, agonizing over this seemingly lost opportunity. "What did I do wrong?"

Relax. You didn’t do anything wrong.

"I don’t understand," you think. "He seemed so eager and interested when he first called. Did something happen?"

Yes, something happened. And here, more likely than not, is what that something is…

The day he called to inquire about your service, he had a pressing problem that he wanted to solve fast. But priorities can change in a week, overnight, even in a minute. And suddenly, the problem he called you about is at the bottom of his priority list instead of the top.

However, you don’t know this. And so getting the prospect on the phone is still at the top of your priority list. And that’s where the disconnect is: Closing the deal is now much more important to you than it is to him.

Can you change that?

Some sales trainers would say yes, and give you a bunch of techniques for making the prospect’s need more urgent. But those techniques are largely useless. Prospects move according to their timetable, not yours - and there is nothing you can do to change it.

So how do you save the sale?

Remember, the prospect still has the problem he called you about. And he still needs a solution.

Your challenge is to gain "top of mind" awareness - to implant your service in his mind and link it to the nature of the problems you solve. Then, when the problem pops up and becomes a priority again in a week or a month or a year from now - and it will - he will think of you.

And the way to make that happen is through good old-fashioned follow-up.

If you sell a professional, creative, consultative, or technical service, the following "Triple Play" Follow-Up System can help you increase your closing rate of leads to sales by 50 percent or more.

There are three components to the system: managed contact, automated contact, and random contact.

Let’s take a look at each one. They’re all simple, and anyone can do them.

1. "Managed contact" means you use contact-management software - such as Goldmine or Act - to instruct your PC to automatically remind you when it’s time to touch base with any given prospect.

If you’ve never gotten any feedback from the prospect on the best time to contact him again, schedule regular phone calls or e-mails at an interval that makes sense to you. Perhaps monthly or quarterly. On the other hand, if the prospect has told you the best time to contact him ("Call me after Labor Day"), program your contact-management software to remind you accordingly.

2. "Automated contact" requires you to publish a monthly online newsletter that you distribute free to your clients and prospects.

When you get an inquiry or meet a potential client, you always ask, "May I sign you up for a free subscription to our online newsletter?" Nine out of 10 will say yes, allowing you to add their e-mail address to your subscriber list.

Now, a reminder of you and your service - your e-zine - appears in the prospect’s inbox every month. Which means you’ve got automated monthly follow-up for new leads.

3. "Random contact" means the follow-up isn’t planned. You just do it when the mood or opportunity arises.

The way I do this is to clip articles from the magazines and newspapers I read that would be of interest to particular clients or prospects. I scribble a brief note on each clipping (often nothing more than "John - FYI - Bob Bly"), put it in an envelope, and mail it.

And that’s the Triple Play Follow-Up System in a nutshell: managed contact… automated contact via an e-newsletter… and random follow-up via the mailing of clippings.

Any one of these follow-up methods can help make you stand out in a prospect’s mind - and separate you from your competitors. But the 1-2-3 Triple Play Follow-Up is an unbeatable combination for imprinting your name indelibly on the prospect’s memory… so when a need for your service does arise, he calls you first.

[Ed. Note: Bob Bly is a freelance copywriter and the author of more than 70 books. Together with Michael Masterson, Bob has put together a comprehensive program that reveals insider secrets of direct marketing. Keep in mind that you can use direct marketing to help you grow any business - whether it's a brick-and-mortar store or an online company. Learn the details here.

Sign up for Bob's free monthly e-zine, Direct Response Letter, and get more than $100 in free bonuses.]

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== Highly Recommended ==

Your gut started telling you something wasn’t right, didn’t it?

You did your part. You tried out some of the Internet programs, maybe even put up a website or two, but it didn’t happen as expected did it?

And yet, you KNOW a few are getting rich off the Internet by pushing a button. You see them in coffee shops with their backs to the wall, smiling at their laptops. I should know, I’m one of them…

I was about to take the rest of the week off as usual, but something compelled me to grab another coffee and write you this letter. They say writing all your frustrations down eases them. Maybe so, but I just want to be able to sleep soundly tonight… Click to continue.

Dear ETR: "What is the best way to approach a publisher about a piece you want to write?"

"Michael, what is the best way to approach a publisher about a piece you want to write? I have in mind writing a paper on the benefits of renovation, including the use of ‘green’ technology, as opposed to selling an existing home and buying a new one in today’s mortgage/credit climate.

"Would it be better to write it and then try to shop it around? Or ask first and write later?

"I have gotten much out of your pieces in ETR, and hopefully will for years to come."

John C. Lee
San Diego, CA

Dear John,

First of all, getting an article published depends partly on how long it is and where you want to place it. Every publication has its own guidelines. You can find out what they are simply by calling or e-mailing and asking. That gives you a foot in the door and a name to reference. Follow the protocol the publication requires.

This makes sense for two reasons: (1) Your article (or article idea) won’t be rejected because you have insulted the editor (by not knowing the guidelines). And (2) you will have a much better chance of getting your article in the publication if it is written in the style and expresses the viewpoint that the editor favors. Trying to get an article published without knowing the publication is amateurish and nearly hopeless.

When pitching your article, stress your qualifications. Also explain exactly how the article is going to add to what the publication has already said on the subject. (You won’t be able to do that unless you know the publication.) Finally, indicate why you think the article should be popular with that publication’s readers.

If that sounds like a lot of work, it is. So take a step back and ask yourself why you want to publish the article in the first place. Are you simply trying to get your idea in print? Or do you want to further your career by establishing yourself as an expert in your field (a subject we’ve covered several times in ETR)? If so, you’d better have good credentials to begin with. Otherwise, start a blog. 

- Michael Masterson

[Ed. Note: Send your questions to AskETR@ETRFeedback.com. Include your full name, your hometown and state, and the ETR team may answer you in an upcoming issue.]

The Best Timing for Interval Training

By Craig Ballantyne

If a trainer tells you interval training must be done in 30-second… or one-minute… or five-minute increments, he’s misinformed. Research shows that all types of intervals will help you burn belly fat better than slow cardio - and there’s never been a "head-to-head" study comparing interval workouts of various lengths. But, based on my experience, I have an opinion: I like simple 30-second intervals for fat-loss workouts.

If you do intervals on a cardio machine, it’s easy to stick to the 30-second interval timing, followed by a 60-90 second recovery at a much slower pace. If the intervals were any shorter, it would be tough to change the settings on the machine fast enough.

Any type of interval training for fat loss is going to be better than slow cardio - and it allows for faster workouts.

[Ed. Note: If you are new to exercise but want to lose weight, start with a beginner bodyweight-training program for 2-6 weeks, such as the one in Craig's Turbulence Training manual. You will also get specific step-by-step instructions on how to do intervals at any fitness level. Learn more here.

And to get more articles on how simple lifestyle choices can improve your health, sign up for ETR's natural health newsletter.]

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It’s Good to Know: About Biomimetics

Smooth-flowing airplane wings based on the shapes of raptor feathers and the fins of humpback whales… energy-efficient buildings modeled after termite mounds… less-painful hypodermic needles adapted from a mosquito’s stinger. These are just a few products now being developed with biomimetics.

In this rapidly growing scientific discipline, researchers are drawing inspiration from nature to design breakthrough products, usually in the fields of engineering, materials science, and medicine. Other objects of their interest include toucan bills, which are lightweight yet very strong, and spider silk, which is five times stronger by weight than steel.

(Source: National Geographic)

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== Highly Recommended ==

Take Charge of Your Future

You don’t have much spare time… you’re not exactly rolling in the bucks… and you’re no Bill Gates when it comes to technology.

We’ve heard you… and that’s why we asked Marc Charles to be our “advance scout” for profit opportunities that you can run from a kitchen table, your desktop, or out on the road.

They’ve got to be inexpensive and easy to start, without a lot of red tape or technical know-how, and still have great income potential.

There’s a reason they call this guy “The King of Business Opportunities”…why not take a look at what he’s got for you?

- Charlie Byrne

Word to the Wise: Congeries

"Congeries" (kon-JEER-eez) - from the Latin for "to heap up" - is a collection or assemblage of items or parts.

Example (as used by Jonathan Miles in a New York Times review of Fall of Frost by Brian Hall): "The life of Robert Frost has been autopsied and re-autopsied so many times that, 45 years since his death, the congeries of appraisals can already be measured in layers, like geologic strata."

[Ed. Note: Become a more persuasive writer and speaker ... build your self-confidence and intellect ... increase your attractiveness to others ... just by spending 10 VERY enjoyable minutes a day with ETR's new Words to the Wise CD Library.]

Copyright ETR, LLC, 2008