Get Clients Now! (tm) E-Letter ~ C.J. Hayden, MCC
~ May 2008 ~
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In This Issue
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- Feature Article: Did You Get My Message?
- Become a Get Clients Now! Facilitator - Free Preview
- Audiotape Clearance Sale
- Where in the World is C.J.?
- Get Clients Now! Virtual University Programs
- Get Clients Now! News from Around the Globe
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Did You Get My Message?
C.J. Hayden, MCC
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Does it seem like you spend much of your marketing time sending
out messages that never get received? You call a prospective
client to follow up on an email or letter you sent, and they say
they never got it. You leave someone a voice mail message you're
sure will get their attention, but they never call you back. You
publish a special offer in your ezine, print newsletter, or
postcard mailing, and a tiny fraction of your prospect list
responds. What's a marketer to do?
First, it can help to recognize that some of your messages are
not reaching their destination in the first place. Email, in
particular, is routinely lost in transmission or blocked by
filters. Just because you sent an email and it didn't bounce
back to you doesn't mean the people you sent it to ever got it.
Your email may be sitting in the bulk mail folder they never
check, their ISP may have blocked it, their mail server (or
yours) may have been on the blink that day, or a computer crash
could have wiped it out. You may have typed their email address
incorrectly, it may have changed, or they may have given you the
wrong address. When prospects reply by email, their messages to
you can get lost, too, for all the same reasons.
Leaving a voice mail message is not necessarily any more
reliable. Busy professionals often receive many more voice mails
than they can respond to, even if they want to. They may delete
messages without listening to them, or let them pile up until
they expire. If you're calling a cell phone, recognize that some
people never listen to their cell phone's voice mail messages at
all; instead they call back only the numbers they recognize.
With ezines, print newsletters, and postcard mailings, even if
they reach their destination, there is no guarantee they'll be
read. Most people just don't have the time to read all the mail
they get, and your marketing mail may be their lowest priority.
Your mail may be screened out by a gatekeeper or put into a
bottomless "reading pile."
Or perhaps your prospects really mean to take action on your
offer, but then it winds up in their equally bottomless "to-do"
pile and you never hear from them.
These are the realities of marketing in a world filled with busy
people already overloaded with communications. But don't
despair -- here are five ways to increase your chances of
getting your message across.
1. Never assume that a prospect received, saw, or heard your
marketing message. When prospects don't respond, instead of
feeling rejected or wondering what you did wrong, it's much more
productive to ask yourself, "What should I try next?" Don't let
your self-doubt get the best of you. A prospect's lack of
response has no meaning unless you give it one. There's no way
for you to know why you didn't get a reply; it may have nothing
to do with you at all.
2. Deliver every message on multiple channels, and follow up at
regular intervals. You'll always have a better chance of
reaching your prospects if you use more than one delivery
method. Follow up an email with a phone call, send an email to
follow up on a letter, mail postcards to people on your ezine
list. Reach out to every potential client at least five times
before you consider dropping them from your prospect list. And
don't let too much time go by in between attempts. Three times
within 30 days is a good rule of thumb, and then every 30 days
after that.
3. Don't ask, "did you get my message?" Instead, deliver it
again. Remember rule #1 -- they may have never gotten the
earlier messages, so you need to repeat your offer every time
you contact them. Even if they did get your message, reminding
prospects of your offer will reinforce it and help them to
remember you. When speaking with someone live, a much better
query is, "what questions can I answer for you?"
4. Make sure your reception channels are open, too. Your
outgoing voice mail message or email autoreply should welcome
inquiries, not put people off by telling them you're too busy to
return calls or emails promptly. Check your bulk mail folder
regularly to make sure you're not missing emails from prospects.
Avoid using mail filters that require senders to jump through an
authorization hoop in order to send you email.
5. When a message works, figure out why and repeat your success.
Rather than trying to determine why people aren't responding,
notice what seems to make the difference when they do. Ask every
prospect how they heard about you, what made them contact you,
or what element of your offer got their attention. Notice any
patterns -- did a postcard make the phone ring, have they been
subscribing to your newsletter for months, was it something you
said in your voice mail -- and see if you can do more of
whatever is working.
Finally, keep in mind that your message is always more likely to
be delivered when the recipient already knows you. Prospects
who recognize your name are significantly more likely to read
your mail, take your calls, and open your newsletter. Making
personal connections through networking and referrals, and
building your visibility through public speaking and publishing
articles, can make prospects receptive to email and phone
calls. Calling and mailing cold, with no prior connection,
always makes it harder to get through.
Marketing messages that never reach your prospects are one more
reason it's critical for your success to tell people what you
can do for them over and over, instead of expecting a single
communication to do the trick. In all your marketing efforts,
plan from the outset to reach out to each prospect multiple
times, using more than one method. It's safer, and ultimately
more productive, to assume that -- until and unless your
prospect responds -- your marketing message didn't get through.
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Become a Get Clients Now! Facilitator - Free Preview
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Thursday, May 8, 2008
11 AM-12 PM PDT, 2-3 PM EDT, 7-8 PM BST
Q and A Teleforum with Joan Friedlander
Director of Get Clients Now! Licensing
If you already coach, teach, or consult with self-employed
professionals, business owners, or salespeople, add the Get
Clients Now! program to your professional toolbox. With our
Facilitator's License and Kit, you get all the materials to
deliver this powerful program to anyone who sells or markets a
service business. Training is included!
At this special teleforum, Joan Friedlander will share her
experience of being a facilitator and answer all your questions
about becoming licensed (so come prepared with your list). Joan
has been a facilitator for over six years, was a founding
faculty member of Get Clients Now! Virtual University, has
facilitated over 40 Get Clients Now! programs, and trained
dozens of new facilitators.
There is no charge to participate. Register now for the Question
and Answer Teleforum on May 8 and learn about the new
Masterful Facilitator program beginning May 21. Visit
http://www.getclientsnow.com/group_become.htm#preview
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Audiotape Clearance Sale
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We know some of you still listen to audiotapes, but our sales of
them have slowed to a trickle, so we are discontinuing our tape
inventory. You can purchase any of the tapes we have left in
stock at half-price, including the entire Marketing Recipes
series, and Overcoming the Fear of Self-Promotion. If you
purchase a set of eight, we'll even throw in a complimentary
portable tape player! (Only two eight-packs with tape players
are left, so order now.)
Visit our Bargain Bin while supplies last, at
http://www.getclientsnow.com/bargain-bin.htm
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Where in the World is C.J.?
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May 17-31, 2008
I will be traveling in Ecuador, visiting Quito, the Galapagos
Islands, and the Kapawi EcoLodge in the Amazon Basin. If any
readers will be in these same areas at that time, I'd love to
meet up with you for a meal or some sightseeing. Email
info@getclientsnow.com before May 15 if you'd like to connect.
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Get Clients Now! Virtual University Programs
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Get Clients Now! 28-Day Teleclass Program
for Consultants, Professionals & Coaches
with Grace Durfee: May 13 - June 19, 2008
Increase your sales and marketing success by combining the
Get Clients Now! program with the accountability,
perspective, and support provided by a professional coach
and a team of your peers. Learn to create an endless stream
of clients by doing 10 simple things per day!
Here's what you get...
o Two 90-minute seminars by telephone
o Five small group coaching sessions by phone (1 or 2 per week)
o A toolkit of tested sales and marketing techniques
o Your own customized 28-day marketing plan that you can use
over and over
o Coaching, accountability, perspective and support from
your coach and your team
o Clients!
Seminar plus 28-day coaching program $279
To register or for more details, visit
http://www.getclientsnow.com/workshop_2.htm
"I am very pleased with my success in gaining new clients during
the last month! My goal was to get 4 new clients and I now have
gained more than 10 new clients! Prior to beginning the program,
I had averaged 6 clients per week... Since I started the
program, I have seen a minimum of 13 clients per week. This
week, I have 16 scheduled! My private practice income has just
about doubled."
~ Terri Abraham, MS, NCC, Licensed Professional Counselor
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Get Clients Now! News from Around the Globe
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Introducing our newest licensed facilitators for the Get Clients
Now! training and coaching program:
Paul Allegro - Bridgewater, NJ
Julia Bunting - Maldon, Essex, United Kingdom
Karen Baez - Carlsbad, CA
Cynthia Brannon - Brenham, TX
Diane Cunningham - Wichita Falls, TX
David Thompson - Westmount, Quebec, Canada
Joi Turner - Baltimore, MD
Christina Walker - Augusta, KS
Karl Walkinshaw - Heanor, Derbyshire, United Kingdom
Steve Willinger- Bristol, TN
Here are just some of the Get Clients Now! programs
currently being offered by independent licensees:
~ May 7-June 12, 2008: Teleclass with Betty Mahalik, PCC
Kickoff seminar plus 28-day program
http://www.dynamic-coaching.com/whats-new/
~ May 14-June 25, 2008: Teleclass with Loretta Love Huff
Kickoff seminar plus 28-day program
http://www.emeraldharvest.com/getclientsnow
~ May 21-June 25, 2008: Teleclass with Beverly Samuel
Seminar plus 28-day program
mailto: Beverly@PhoenixImageInstitute.com
How about you? If you already coach, teach, or consult with
self-employed people, sales teams, or business owners, add
the Get Clients Now! program to your professional toolbox.
For full details, attend our preview on May 8, or visit
http://www.getclientsnow.com/group_become.htm
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Join the Get Clients Now! online community at
http://www.getclientsnow.com/online_community.htm
Check out the new Get Clients Now! Answer Center at
http://www.getclientsnow.net/become-a-member/
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Copyright 2008, C.J. Hayden. All rights reserved. Articles
from the Get Clients Now! E-Letter may be distributed or
reproduced according to our reprint guidelines at
http://www.getclientsnow.com/newsletter.htm
Please forward a copy to your friends and associates!
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Subscribers: Please "whitelist" us by adding
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or address book so you'll be sure to receive every issue.
To subscribe and receive a free copy of my special report
"Five Secrets to Finding All the Clients You'll Ever Need,"
visit http://www.getclientsnow.com
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Wings Business Coaching, LLC
P.O. Box 225008 | San Francisco, CA 94122
Phone (415) 981-8845 or (877) 946-4722
http://www.getclientsnow.com
http://www.gethirednow.com
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