Carol Bentley

Is there a difference between corporate businesses and SMEs or entrepreneurs? Three questions asked in my recent survey raised this issue. My answer; Yes… and No!

Am I hedging my bets here? ;¬) Maybe… but let’s look into it a bit further.

First here are the three questions posed about dealing with big companies:

Q1: How to generate more interest in my business from larger organisations.

Q2: How do you adapt your copy if your targets are senior executives and buyers in major corporates? Most of what I read about copywriting proposes big, bold headlines with “huge” specific benefits. And I must admit that when buying myself, these offers can be very seductive. Yet I know from over a decade working with senior executives in major companies that this sort of hyperbolic language and copy tends to go straight in the bin - it’s just not credible.

Corporate executives (in my experience) tend to react better to more conservative approaches. Is my experience out of touch? Obviously these people are human too - and have the same underlying psychology. Yet their experience and background (in my view) means they don’t react well to over-strong selling messages.

Q3: How to find out who makes all the purchasing decisions in a large organisation.

Don’t expect to do a bulk mailing to corporate businesses and get a great response. It’s unlikely to happen. You have to work a little harder for those lucrative contracts.

I advise selecting 10 companies to target and work on, adding others as a rolling prospect line as and when you are able to deal with them properly.

Decide and Research

• Decide which companies you want to do business with. Define exactly what you are offering and which companies benefit most from your solutions. When you contact them talk about a specific ‘niche’ area. Don’t give a smorgasbord of products and services that confuse your prospect and - in their eyes - dilutes your perceived level of expertise and ability to deliver a focused result.

• Do your research. Research the company; the department or division your product or service applies to; discover the challenges the company or that division are currently facing. Check news releases (they are often shown on the company website); is something they have announced likely to give them logistic or ‘knock-on’ effect problems you can resolve?

• Find your target buyer. Don’t go to the HR or purchasing department (unless your offer is for them); aim for the person who heads up the area you are targeting. Read the corporate website; some do give contact names in their ‘about us’ section, although this practice is dwindling. Use the phone; call and ask “who takes care of …. in the company?” (you fill in the blank).

  Careful! You are in information-gathering mode NOT selling mode. One whiff of a sales pitch and the person you are speaking to is likely to clam up.

  In her book, Selling to Big Companies, Jill Konrath describes how to make those important fact-gathering calls so you reach your prime target within the company. Steve Brewer also gives pertinent and easy to follow advice in his CD programme High Impact Cold Calling.

A Slightly Different Approach

• Write individual letters. I’d advise against using extremely large, bold headlines - it doesn’t give the right impression for corporate correspondence. But that’s the only change I would suggest to the structure of your letter. You are still writing to an individual who has challenges within his/her work life and wants a solution. So you do have to grab attention immediately.

  Start your first paragraph with a compelling statement of what you discovered about the company or department’s challenges. Then ask a question that is geared towards the problem he has - the one you identified in your research. Explain the value your offer could bring to his company; quoting case studies from other organisations rather than a general self-serving statement.

  For example, instead of writing “our QR2 system saves production costs” say “Xyz company discovered that 3 months after implementing the QR2 system, production costs had reduced by 2.8% which gave them a projected annual savings of £4.37million.“Be wary of creating a general ’sales pitch’ - it’s unlikely to work unless you are extremely lucky.

• In her book Jill strongly recommends avoiding subservient language such as ‘delighted’, ‘pleased’ or ‘honoured’ and I agree with her. All of your contact (whether letter, email or phone call) should be from a position of equality and strength. Talk as a peer-to-peer. Treat your prospect with respect but expect respect from him too. After all, you are the expert that has a solution to the problem he wants resolved.

Realistic Expectations

• Don’t expect to get an appointment with your first letter or phone call. Have a campaign of actions you will take to secure your appointment to meet. But make sure you deliver valuable information at each contact point; don’t make a self-serving push to get through the door.
  • Let your prospect know about case studies from other companies.
  • Articles from trade publications.
  • Informative reports you can supply (make sure they are informative not just a sales brochure).
  • Gift a copy of a good book you’ve read that gave some good insights to their industry or business or helps address issues they are likely to come up against. (Of course, if that book happens to be one you’ve written and published it gives you an even bigger boost in your prospect’s eyes because you are perceived as knowledgeable; assuming you’ve written good content in your book).

• If it’s practical, be prepared to secure a small contract initially. Once you are delivering great results and the company is pleased with your service you can start negotiating the larger deals.

Share Your Thoughts…

Have experience with larger companies? Either as a provider or perhaps you work (or have worked) within one of these behemoths? Use the comments link below to add your views.

~ Carol Bentley

Add to: | del.cio.us | digg

If you are one of the many people who managed to spare me 5 minutes for the survey last week - thank you - I really appreciate your feedback. In fact I was really chuffed with the number of completed forms we got in - far more that I’d expected. I do hope the e-book you got in appreciation is proving handy.

A number of people asked some very interesting questions; many about topics I intend to explore with you in future postings on this blog. The exercise of carrying out this survey gave me some valuable insights, which you might find interesting as well:

It’s no surprise the highest score for what you’d like to see in these posts is copywriting; after all, that’s what this blog is mainly about. But asking the question meant I found out what else interests people who visit this website so I can add variety to the content.

It is so easy when we are in the thick of our day-to-day business to lose sight of what is important to our customers and prospects. Holding a survey like this is a valuable way to discover what your customers think about you and your products or services.

Have you asked your customers recently?

You may be surprised at what they’ll tell you and you may even discover something new they’d really value that you could provide, thus giving you a new revenue/profit stream. Worth asking, don’t you think?

On a blog site like this it’s a fine line between overburdening visitors and satisfying a thirst for knowledge. Of course that ties in strongly with the actual content too. As you can see the overwhelming majority felt that 3 blogs per week is sufficient, with the remainder fairly evenly split between random and every weekday.

Why did I start by posting every weekday?

A few people asked why I posted so often… I promise it’s not because I like the ’sound of my own voice’ ;¬D - there is a strategy behind this.

I’ve mentioned previously starting a blog is a great way of keeping in touch with existing customers and prospects. It’s also a great way of finding new prospects… but only if they find your blog first.

To do that they need to become aware of it; search engines, other blogger’s posts and ‘word-of-mouth’ recommendations are some of the ways to get a website known and encourage people to visit.

But…

• A stale website doesn’t show up on search engines; they like dynamic sites with constantly changing content.

• Other bloggers only talk about someone’s blog if there is something interesting to mention - that can’t happen if the posts are infrequent.

• And why would anyone recommend a blog if very little useful content is delivered?

So it was a deliberate decision to make my posts as frequent as possible with the intention of delivering interesting content to everyone in my prospective and actual audience. If you’ve followed this blog for a while you’ll know that I do try to cover a variety of topics to make sure there is something to suit every reader at some point and keep the blog as vibrant as possible.

I will continue to make regular posts - sometimes it will only be 3 during a week. But on other occasions, if there’s something to tell you that I believe is important, I may slip a few extra posts in. ;¬D

I hope that satisfies what you’d like to see.

Other Website Promotional Activities

I’m currently exploring other methods of getting visitors to this website. I’ll let you know how successful those are once I start seeing results.

Thank you once again for sharing your views and helping me to make sure I deliver what you want to read.

~ Carol Bentley

P.S. If you want to run a survey there are a lot of websites offering different solutions. The one I used for my survey, which automatically created the graphs above, is SurveyGizmo [Affiliate link] which offers a free account.

Will you help? Will you answer just 7 questions and in exchange I’ll gift you an e-book giving you a wide scope of off-line marketing activities you can use to drive visitors to your website - actually you can even use these for generating your business sales off-line as well.

Why do I need your help?

Keeping the posts on this blog fresh, pertinent to what you want to read and offering valuable advice is both interesting… and challenging. Most of the time I’m asking myself “What would I be looking for?” “What useful advice would help me achieve my goals?” “What have I seen or experienced that has impressed me or created a measurable result I can share with you, my reader?”

And then I remember that only your ‘customer’ knows what’s right for him and you only get to find out when they respond to your offer.

And that’s where you come in… because only you can tell me…

1. Are these posts useful?
2. Have you taken any of this advice and put it into practice?
3. Have you got results from implementing these tips?
4. Am I delivering what you really, really want?

So now I’m asking you. Please give me your feedback in a short, 7-question survey (there is a question 8 but that’s optional). copywriting4b2b survey

And in return - as a ‘Thank you’ for your time, support and insights you get a great little e-book called Offline Marketing Strategies for Online Businesses; 24 pages packed with crucial tips on how to use ‘real-world’ marketing to effectively promote your website (valued at $47, aprox £25).

• 9 proven ways to advertise that do NOT involve the Internet.
• 8 ways to evaluate if your website is ready for offline promotions.
• Why print publications (like newspapers) aren’t going to disappear anytime soon.
• 3 tips for placing an ad in the classifieds.
• The secret to getting ads into newspapers and magazines for free.
• The number one rule you must follow if you’re going to invest anything in TV or Radio.
• How to launch your website’s presence with direct mail advertising.
• An easy way to add direct response (and direct profits) to your business plan.
• How to determine if your response and conversion rate is high enough.
• 6 places in your town you can likely advertise for free.

But it’s not just good for promoting your online website… all this important advice applies just as much to your ‘real-world’ business promotions.

You have 6 Days… but it only takes 10 minutes

The survey closes on Friday 14th March at 12p.m. (GMT) and, because there are only 7 easy questions, it only takes about 10 minutes to complete.

I wonder… are you like me?

If I don’t act on something straight away; if I put it to one side there’s a pretty good chance I’ll forget about it until it’s too late. If that’s a trait you recognise then, do me a favour, take a few minutes now to answer these 7 questions (they’re mainly multi-choice so you only have to click to choose your answer). Click here to go to the copywriting4b2b survey

I look forward to getting your feedback - have a good weekend,

~ Carol Bentley

technorati tags: copywriting marketing strategies survey

Add to: | del.cio.us | digg

Applying the Pareto Principle to your activities is the way to truly achieve more in the time (or even less time) than you currently have is the claim from some experts.

Although not an exact science, many studies frequently seem to show 20% ( or thereabouts) of effort generates 80% of the results achieved.

OK - hands up (mine are already waving high in the air) how much of your time is not as productive as you’d like it to be?

Gary Bencivenga (have you heard of him?) gives a great description in his Bencivenga Bullets newsletter of how this principle applies to copywriters and marketers; how he discovered it for himself many years ago and what action he took to turn it around so he didn’t continue to waste 80% of his time.

If you have ever looked back over your day and thought “Where the heck did the time go today? What have I got to show for it - nothing!” then some of the insights Gary shares in this bulletin (and his next one) may give you back a feeling of being in control. Read it here: Bencivenga Bullets

And talking of being in control… tomorrow’s post is an important one for making sure you get what you want from these snippets - don’t miss it.

~ Carol Bentley

technorati tags: copywriting Pareto Principle Bencivenga Less time more productivity

Add to: | del.cio.us | digg

When a well respected UK business coach decides to share his knowledge and experience then taking advantage makes sound sense.

Brian James is just such a person… you may already know him. Brian has recently started his business coaching blog and I know, because I get his regular e-newsletters, his posts will be packed full of useful business tips.

If you don’t know Brian then I strongly recommend you pop over to his blog at http://www.business-coachinguk.com/ and browse his site. You can start by getting 3 chapters from his book for free; he’s gifting them just for letting him send you a notification email whenever he makes a post. Talk about something for nothing!

I’m looking forward to getting great ideas from Brian… you can too if you subscribe.

~ Carol Bentley

technorati tags: business coaching brian james marketing business advice

I’m getting withdrawal symptoms - not having written my daily blog post for a few weeks. I’m getting back into it gradually (time still being taken up sorting my Father’s estate) and I’m starting with an extract from my book that may be a reminder (if you have a copy) or a useful insight if you haven’t.

It’s taken from chapter 10 and is my unique way of looking at how to structure your sales letter. But… I’m starting to get to grips with hubpages so I’ve put the whole article on this hubpage: Outline of a Winning Sales Letter

Take a look and, would you do me a favour, give me a thumbs up rating? Cheers!

~ Carol Bentley

technorati tags: sales letters copywriting hubpages

Whilst doing my usual browsing of other people’s blogs a post on Ed Rivis’ called ‘Write Press Releases That Sizzle’ caught my eye. He described how to boost your company’s visibility, with both on and offline PR… so I followed the link he included and found an interesting article on Terry Dean’s blog offering some inspiring ideas at http://www.terrydean.org/21-ideas-for-hot-press-releases-part-1/

PR is a great way to get some free publicity. But you have to stand out from all the other businesses trying to get noticed. And news editors are looking for something that is interesting for their readers; something a little different from the ‘norm’.

Some of Terry’s ideas may seem a bit wacky - but they’ve all got merit. I particularly like number 20 - it made me smile.

Help Your News Editor Make Your PR An Attention-Grabber

When I first released my book I sent a press release to my local paper’s Business Editor describing some of the tips it contained and how they help business people get a good result. I wanted to make sure I had the highest chance of the news release being printed so I sent a bit of an odd picture to catch his attention:

The editor asked if the money I was holding was real - it was!

He published the picture, and a long article about the book , on the first page of the business news section. Great result!

In fact he used the picture again when a local Ottakar’s bookstore hosted my book-signing event a few months later.

So what can you do to promote your business? Perhaps Terry’s tips have given you an idea or two?

If you have never included PR in your marketing toolkit maybe now is the time to try. See which of his 21 ideas appeals to you and give it a go. Then come back here and share your results.

~ Carol Bentley

Add to: | del.cio.us | digg

technorati tags: press releases Terry Dean free publicity

I constantly advise that when writing a sales letter one of the most effective ingredients is a good testimonial. Not just one that says “Great job, would recommend”, but one that is more specific about what was happening before, what solution you provided and the result your customer enjoyed.

An even better structure for your testimonial is what Alex Mandossian refers to as a heart-centred testimonial using the Before/After/After template. This is particularly powerful when coming from your long term customers. Check Alex’s post here and go down to the visitor’s comments because the one from Gail Doby is rather useful.

And when you’ve done that consider your existing customers.

• Which of these gained a great result from you?
• Which of these make you feel proud of what you’ve done for them?
• Have you asked for their testimonial?  If not, perhaps now is a good time to ask.

Use this question structure, not only does it produce a good testimonial for you, it also makes it easier for your customer to think of what to write or say.And one final point, the testimonial is no good if you can’t share it with your prospects.  So make sure you get permission to use it - along with your contact’s name, company name (if appropriate) and location - in your marketing material.

~ Carol Bentley

Add to: | del.cio.us | digg

technorati tags: testimonials business tips copywriting

I mentioned at the beginning of January I would be creating a video programme to show the easiest way to get a book written and published. And, because of that, I decided to talk to other business authors to get their views on why they decided to write a book and how they went about it. I figured the more approaches I revealed the better chance there was that you’d find something that hit the mark for you.

Last week I spoke to Jill Konrath, who wrote ‘Selling to Big Companies’. We were discussing the reasons for writing a business book; one I’ve already shared with you is to position yourself as the expert in your field.

Jill told me that after publishing her book she was curious why there were very few business women authors. And she talked to successful business women, trying to encourage them to join her as an author. Their response surprised her…

You might be relieved to find you have the same thoughts.

I recorded my telephone conversation with Jill and I’ll be sharing the full content with you at a later date, but for the moment, I thought you might like to listen to this short clip - only a few minutes - in which she shares the revelation those astute business women gave her and explains why some of them changed their mind. Click on the audio bar below to listen-in.

So - has this short audio given you some food for thought?

~ Carol Bentley

Add to: | del.cio.us | digg

technorati tags: business author marketing writing

Well the result is in. Ed, who acted as my independent judge, has now chosen the question he felt was the one that best matched his judging criteria, although all the questions submitted gave us food for thought.

Was it your question? Or was it one that makes you think “That’s a good question - I’d like to know the answer to that as well!”

Ed’s judging criteria was:

• Does the question appeal to a wide business audience?
• Is it a question many people are probably asking? If not, is it something they should be asking?
• Is it a question he might have asked?

Here’s the entry that Ed chose:

Many small businesses are started by someone technically good at what they do, but not that hot on running a business. When are they better off writing “DIY” copy, and when should they outsource with an expert? As a rider to that, how should they (in your opinion) select a copy writer to work with?

This was Ed’s comment:

“Great question – and a tick in all the boxes of my judging criteria. THIS IS MY FAVOURITE because so many businesses need to know when to DIY or outsource, (How WHO and where) outsourcing, when to pay a little or a lot, split testing different copywriters’ material versus your own etc etc. GREAT question.”

It was sent in by John Holder from Ruskin Information Services. Congratulations John, here’s what you’ve won…

The unabridged audio programme of my book on 3 high-quality CDs, plus a bonus Data CD containing additional document examples, checklists, a searchable PDF version of the book and more.

You also get an A5 workbook, with the PDF on the bonus CD so you can print out another workbook to help you with each of your writing projects.

I’m sure it will prove to be a valuable tool in your business.

Your prize will soon be rushed out to you for you to enjoy.

I’ll be posting my reply to this thought-provoking question later this week. Look out for the email announcing the post titled When is DIY writing best

Thank you for sending your questions in, even if you didn’t win the prize I trust you found my advice helpful.

~ Carol Bentley

technorati tags: copywriters outsourcing sales letters

Within a business there are frequent occasions when a word of thanks is appropriate - and I’ll be giving you my thanks a little later in this post. But first, I want to tell you about an inspired way of saying ‘thank you’ that makes your company more memorable, whether the thanks are to customers, business colleagues or a member of staff.

Many business owners are astute enough to realise that expressing thanks for business; for referrals and recommendations; for a job well done by a supplier; for an excellent result achieved by an employee is good business practice. It is also a canny marketing activity; showing you appreciate your clients and the support they give by buying from you.

How you express your thanks gives a different perception of your company; it’s where attention to detail counts. So what are the ways you can show your appreciation - and how can you do it successfully without it becoming a burden on your budget or time?

• Send an ordinary email of thanks - this doesn’t take much time and is certainly better than not doing anything; but I don’t think it will really make you stand out

• Organise an impressive e-card (take a look at http://www.jacquielawson.com). These are beautiful animated e-cards, but if the person you are thanking has a spam filtering system in place the notification email may not reach him (or her) or he may not collect the card - it does need some effort on his part.

• Give a small gift of thanks - depending upon what you are expressing appreciation of, that may be appropriate.

• Write a personal letter of thanks. This does take more effort and for some people it can take considerable time, thinking of how to word the letter. Not everyone is comfortable about putting their thoughts into writing.

• Snail-mail a postcard. Although this is a little different, it’s not very private and may not be appropriate in certain circumstances.

• Post a ‘Thank You’ greeting card - this is the inspired method I want to tell you more about. You see, at first glance it may seem as though it takes as much effort, if not more, than some of the suggestions above. But I found a brilliant website that sends a high quality card, complete with your personal message. The cards are sent from the US but, with the current exchange rates, the postage equates to little more than it would cost to send from the UK.

There is an incredible choice of card designs and the whole process takes just a couple of minutes. Take a look at http://www.sendoutcards.com where, for those extra special occasions, they can even add a gift (but before you do that, have a look at my ‘Thank You’ message below). I tested this service myself and can definitely confirm the high quality of the card that is supplied.

Marketing Thought: if you decide to use these cards as an alternative way of delivering your marketing message then the foreign postage frank may act in your favour if you are sending to UK addresses. It may intrigue your prospect enough to open the envelope - which is the first step we are aiming to achieve. It is something that might be worth testing.

My Thanks to You

I have two Thank You’s to say:

First: I’d like to say Thank You for the questions that have been sent in. There have been some very interesting topics brought up. Some of the questions have already been posted with answers, others - that are available for ‘public view’ - will be added over the next week or so.

The questions have now been sent over to Ed for his independent selection of the best one submitted. Whoever sent in the winning question gets the prize I offered in Monday’s post.

If you sent a question in, look out for the judge’s choice in a post later this week.

Second: Even if you didn’t have a question you wanted answering, the support you show by visiting, reading and recommending my blog is really appreciated. Which is why I’m always looking out for more information or resources that will help you in your business. That’s why I suggested visiting the SendOutCards website.

And whilst looking, one of the distinct advantages of interacting on the web is you come across some very nice people. And Martin Russell is one of those (check out his Word of Mouth Magic blog, it’s listed in the blog roll).

Martin has very generously said that visitors from this blog can test out 3 cards from his SendOutCards service at his expense. This gives you the opportunity to experience the service and test the quality for yourself. Simply go to Martin’s Offer (http://www.WordofMouthMagic.com/card)

What other ways of saying ‘Thank You’ have you used or experienced? Will you use the comment (it may show as No Comments to start) link below to share ideas with other readers? Thanks.

~ Carol Bentley

The biggest challenge when sending out a message is getting your reader to respond. That applies to email messages, advertising, direct mail letters and other marketing approaches.

That is the essence of the question Martin Russell from www.wordofmouthmagic.com sent in:

Q: “You send out blog notification emails with a bit of the post in it, so is there any evidence for which is better; title only, part of post, full post?”

A: I got my training on ‘how to create a blog’ from Ed Rivis’ programme on business blogging for profit. And, initially, I followed his email notification style of sending just the title of the post.

However, I noticed that in email notices I received from Dan Kennedy for his marketing newsletters, he always included the start of his article. Sometimes this intrigued me enough to go and have a look, sometimes it didn’t.

And I wondered if giving a bit more of an idea of what a post was about would encourage more of my blog subscribers to visit. Effectively act as a teaser…

So I decided to test this and changed the notification style of my emails (if you’ve been a subscriber for some time you probably noticed the difference). It is still early days yet but the figures are showing an interesting trend. My average number of daily visitors has increased by 31.65% since sending the new style notice.

Now this is not scientific testing because the topics are different so it is not really a fair comparison. I shall check the average again after a few more weeks.

As regards sending the full post in the email, I’m not too keen on that approach. Not because I’ve tested anything - purely a personal thing because:

1. I would have to be more careful about the wording I use in the post to avoid triggering spam filter programs, which could prevent my messages getting through to you.
2. It would make some of the emails extremely long and I prefer to let you decide if you want to visit to read the full content.
3. If you got the full post in the email, you’d have no reason to visit this blog website. It would be more like an ezine newsletter. The idea of the website is to create a relationship, with the chance for you and I to interact. When you visit to read the post you can use the comment link to respond if you want to; effectively continuing the conversation I’m starting.
4. As this blog site grows, I’ll be adding links to useful products I’m developing. If you never have any reason to visit you won’t see the links and could be missing out on something that is important to you and your business.

So, on that basis, I don’t have any plans to test sending the full post message.

What are your thoughts?

Do you prefer to have an email showing just the post title? Or do you like having the introductory text that gives a hint of what the post is about?

I’d like to know your opinion - post your 2p’s worth using the comments link below.

~ Carol Bentley

technorati tags: marketing copywriting web marketing

Breaking into larger organisations can be extremely frustrating as the question sent in by Tony Clarke, Fuel Dynamics Ltd indicated:

“I want to do business with every Housing Association in the UK. I somehow or other have to ‘get to’ their chief purchasing officers.

My experience is that because I’m only a small business they will not work with me. They will, it appears, only deal with ‘big’ companies who they know and have a strong market presence.

Letters do not work even to the right man. Phone calls are never put through. Faxes, which I’ve found effective in some situations, don’t get a response.

Maybe you have some tips for me and some of your other readers on how to deal with these very powerful people. They rule the roost and even their MD’s give them a free hand in terms of control.

It’s an interesting dilemma for me.”

A: Changing the perception your target prospect has of you is key to getting that door open. And it takes more than letters, emails or faxes that introduce your company and the service or products you offer.

Sometimes you have to approach it from a completely different angle. So let me start by asking you some questions; see if they give you any ideas…

• Do you give the impression of being a small company? Check your image, both in terms of presentation - from your business card up - and what happens if anyone does attempt to contact you. Do you have an answer phone or are calls always answered personally?

For example; many years ago when I was the sole representative of my company I made absolutely sure that anyone contacting me got a very favourable impression. I engaged a telephone answering service that offered a good personalised service; they didn’t have a lot of other calls being answered in the background and knew that they must never, under any circumstances let on that they were a telephone answering service.

It worked, because one of my clients who I had worked with for some years, expressed surprise when he discovered that I didn’t have an army of people behind me.

Now, the important thing is I did not deceive my client; he never asked about the size of my company - he just assumed that my company was large because the phone was always answered by a variety of different people whenever he rang; there was no voice mail or answerphone. And of course, he received superb service so had no reason to doubt my company’s ability to look after him.

• Who, in the organisation, uses what you offer? Does the person (or people) who would benefit most from your product or service have any influence on the CPO? Could you recruit them as ambassadors for you and your company?

• What challenges are the CPO’s facing that your product or service could help with?

• Do you have expert knowledge that would help him in his job, without actually selling him anything? Advice freely given makes you more memorable than competitors who are only looking for the sale.

• Do you have a valuable, content-rich report, booklet (or book) you can send as a gift. It would have to deliver exceptional value; not just mundane ‘facts & figures’ he can get from anywhere.

• Have you thought about writing and publishing a book? Doing so positions you as the expert. It adds gravitas to your reputation and when you send it as a gift it raises the barrier for you; makes you stand out from the competition. And crafting a book is not as difficult as it may first seem.

• Do you have case-studies from other organisations that demonstrate innovative approaches to solving the problems the Housing Associations CPO’s face? Collate them into a report; make sure you get permission to use the stories and check exactly how much detail your customers are happy for you to reveal.

• Do any of your present or past satisfied customers know the people you are trying to reach. Would they be prepared to recommend you, or write a letter of endorsement?

• Are you well known within your industry? If your prospect recognises your name as an industry expert he is more likely to give you time to talk.  Apart from publishing a book you can achieve this by getting articles printed in the trade publications he is likely to read.  Send letters to the editor with interesting ‘industry specific’ points.  Do not make even the slightest attempt to advertise or sell your product or company.  The editor is highly unlikely to print your letter if you do, which defeats the whole purpose of writing.

Enhancing your reputation within your industry works in your favour, even if you don’t own the company you work for.

If any of the writing activities phases you then hire a ghost writer to create the material for you.

Like any large organisation, selling to a Housing Association needs a different approach. Don’t ’sell’ - offer powerful advice that the CPO appreciates and looks forward to receiving. Demonstrate your expertise; demonstrate the higher level of personal contact and customer service he (or she) gets from you compared to a larger organisation where he may not always be able to deal with the same person continuously.

But most of all, remember you are still selling to a person who has his own problems; his own challenges, his own stressful situations. Eliminate some of that stress for him, make life easier and you have a better chance of getting his attention.

I have recommended it before… and it is worth mentioning again because I think it would help you in this situation - Jill Konrath’s book Selling To Big Companies is worth getting. You can take a look at 2 chapters for free if you visit: http://www.sellingtobigcompanies.com

~ Carol Bentley

technorati tags: marketing business tips selling to big companies Jill Konrath

Most of the posts I’ve done so far have been on copywriting, marketing or business insights I wanted to share with you or topics that people have asked me about before.

As a regular visitor to this blog you possibly sit there thinking “I could do with knowing about this…” or “I wonder how I should do such and such?” Some of my visitors have already sent in questions, and you may be one of them. If not, now is your chance to ask your most burning question.

It can be on copywriting, marketing, business strategies or tips, the meaning of life and the universe… well maybe not the last one, I’m not a philosopher!

So ask away, using the comment link below or the blog question link in the right hand panel.

The questions and answers I believe would be the most valuable for you and my other readers will be shown in future postings.

And the best question is…

Oh - and the best question - gets a copy of the unabridged audio of my book I Want To Buy Your Product.. Have You Sent Me A Letter Yet, normal rrp £67.

In this set of 3 audio CDs you hear me sharing an abundance of copywriting and direct marketing insights.

You can listen whilst driving or at any time you want to check something. The audio tracks are split into chapters so you can easily skip to the chapter you want to listen to or continue from where you last left off.

Plus there is an A5 workbook accompanying the set to help you create your first compelling sales letter.

The valuable bonus data CD contains a printable version of the workbook, for your future projects, as well as additional material for you to study and adapt for your business. I’ve also included all my checklists and a searchable electronic version of the book.

Who chooses the best question? Not me! I might be slightly biased , so I’ve asked my good friend and internet marketing expert, Ed Rivis, to do the honours for me.

Any questions received by Friday 18th January will be considered for this prize.

Send in your question or questions now, whilst you think of it - but please keep to one question per submission. Thanks.

~ Carol Bentley

technorati tags: copywriting marketing Q&A

How much do your customers or clients value you and what you do for them? Do they really appreciate all the trouble you take to deliver the best possible service or product?

I saw this letter, talking about the ‘Charlie the Plumber’ test, in an email sent through a Yahoo group I’m a member of. And although it is written to copywriters I think the essence of the letter and how you accept business is applicable to other companies, whether you are providing a service or a product.

It talks about choosing who you are prepared to do business with. Now I know a lot of business people believe they can’t be choosy about who they deal with; they need all the sales they can get!

The only way to get out of this situation is to make sure you position yourself - as Charlie has - as the ‘go to expert’ who is selective about who you will do business with; someone who doesn’t work with just anyone who might want to buy.

Here’s the letter, in it’s entirety, reprinted with permission from Doug D’Anna.

Dear Friend,

Last week, I was pitched three jobs by three different companies and I turned them all down. I don’t say this to be smug or arrogant; they simply didn’t pass my three-rule test.

And I can tell you this with all honesty, they weren’t right for you either, as I’ll explain in a moment.

So why did I turn down these three new assignments?

Because none of them passed my Charlie the Plumber test!

What, exactly, is my Charlie the Plumber test?

Frankly, it’s a simple test that every potential client I meet must past or I won’t work with that person. I named this test after none other than own plumber, whom I affectionately refer to as Charlie the Plumber.

Charlie, by the way, is a great guy who has been doing work for me for nearly 10 years. He’s an honest guy who charges an honest price for his work and whom I trust 100%. He never overcharges, never tries to sells you something you don’t need, and always bends over backward for me.

What I love most about Charlie (other than that he’s a big talker like me) is the fact that he not only treats me like royalty but also has come to a point in his life where he picks his clients.

You see, unlike most plumbers, who have full Yellow Page ads that scream discount, Charlie doesn’t advertise. He works by referral only, and he’s very choosy about whom he takes on.

As a client, I feel blessed that I have Charlie working for me!

Are Your Clients Lucky to Have You Working for Them?

If not, maybe it’s time to separate the wheat from the chaff. Because having clients who value you for your knowledge and your experience is where you want to be.

And if you don’t start picking your clients on that basis now, you could find yourself working with a demanding group of unappreciative people who see you only as a vendor at a price and not as the business builder that you are.

That’s why before you accept any new work, I highly suggest that you put your prospects through my Charlie the Plumber test.

My Three Rules for Picking Clients Who Will Pay You What You’re Worth

1. Got to Have Fun.

As I learned from Charlie, life’s too short to work with a bunch of demanding jerks. You want to work with people who love their work and love life. When you find these people, as I have, you’ll get up every day inspired to do your best to meet deadlines and exceed expectations, because you’re having too much of a good time to do otherwise.

2. Got to Make Money.

Let’s face it, copywriting is hard work. So there has to be an upside to bleeding all over the page. That upside in our society is known as money. Why bust your butt if the person only wants to pay you peanuts? No — you want to work with people who are fun and who will pay you what you are worth and then some.

3. Got to Be Appreciated.

Believe it or not, this is actually my first rule. I never work for people who are looking for just another copywriter. If the first question they ask is what do I charge, then it is clear to me that they are looking for another copywriter and not for the special something that I bring to the table.

Anyone who wants to hire me has to want me, Doug D’Anna, and have me working on his or her behalf. I say this not to be smug or arrogant, but only to drive home the point that you, too, are a unique individual worthy of the same appreciation.

When you think about it, why would you ever want to work for someone who doesn’t appreciate you?

My Fourth Rule

4. Got to Learn Something.

Over the years, I have found that only half of my successes came from me. The other half came directly from the fine group of publishers, product managers, and business owners that I worked with–individuals whose knowledge was superior to my own and whom I could learn from.

That’s why after a new client passes my first three hurdles, I always put them to this fourth and crucial test - especially when I have two or three projects to choose from at any one time.

You’ll be surprised to know that I’ve chosen projects with far less immediate financial potential, simply because I would be working with an A-list marketer who could take my skills to the next level.

This fourth rule has not only allowed me to work with the top direct marketing talent in the country but also has resulted in much greater financial success as well.

Please Make Them Your Rules Too

When I started the A-list in 2007, I did it with one goal in mind: to bring you the NO BS, wealth-creating copywriting knowledge and marketing strategies you’ve been looking for.

Specifically, the knowledge to create more powerful, effective, and lucrative advertisements, e-mails, and Web pages that could multiply your income exponentially - and without spending a dime.

These rules have worked for me. That’s why I want you to make them your rules as well. I guarantee that if you follow them, you’ll find yourself working with people who not only value and appreciate your knowledge and talent but just as important - pay you for it.

All good wishes for a successful and healthy 2008,

Doug D’Anna

PS If you haven’t yet joined the A-list, go to http://www.dougdanna.com/joinmyalist.html and you’ll receive my best ideas on building your business in 2008 without a bunch of sales pitches or spam.

Doug has also generously offered a free copy of his 7 Proven Profit Triggers for Email Copywriters

Remember, you can position yourself or your company so you can be selective about who you work with. Simply demonstrate your expertise in articles, reports, presentations, audio programmes - oh, and of course - books.

And when you do refuse to do business with someone, for whatever reason, remember it can be done courteously.  And if you can point them in the direction of a company that is a better fit for them, then they are still going to feel happy about their relationship with you.

~ Carol Bentley

technorati tags: business tips marketing Doug D’Anna