EP38: How to Turn Your List into a Profit-Generating Asset!

Thanks for making it back.

Last week we talked about strategic decision making.

I did the talking and you listened.

But…

Today, I want you to do more than just listen.

Listening is the easy part.

It is my hope you will take something out of the message today.

I hope that it transforms, not only your thinking, but also your way of communicating with your readers, customers, prospects, and friends. This is important.

Let me ask you a question!

When you are in a conversation with someone whether you know them or not, which do you prefer, to be talked to, or a two-way dialogue with this person?

When we are communicating with our lists (our people) via email or through a blog post, landing page, or even a sales page, we should want our information [our written words] to communicate in a way that promotes a conversation in the mind of the reader.

The reader must take the information they are reading in, and it should be immediately meaningful.

You want to almost hear them thinking, “yeah, I know exactly what you mean”.

“That is how I feel too.”

“I have been struggling with that as well!”

“I really wish I could fix that”.

“I need to know more”.

Yes, we must grab their attention and motivate them to keep reading, learning, and absorbing the information.

We should never want to alienate them, speak down to them, or belittle them in any way.

We should speak to them as if they were our best friends. As if the information you are sharing with them is vital to their well-being, their safety, their understanding, their business.

Let me ask you, how do you feel when you walk into a store and immediately you are confronted by a sales professional?

Do you feel a bit intimidated?

If you’re like me, you want a salesperson when you have questions, but not before. Unless you’ve already decided what you want and just need to know where it is and possibly some other related information.

Am I right?

No one wants to be ambushed! That’s what it feels like when they approach you, right?

I understand.

The fact is that they have approached you at the wrong time.

Sure they think it is the right time for them, but it’s not ALL about them. They forget it’s about YOU, the potential customer.

And of course, when you do want answers, you don’t want to have to hunt down someone all the time. You need to be able to get real answers, really fast.

It seems like more and more when YOU’RE ready to do business, no one is around to facilitate that.

So far this feels more like a conversation about a trip to Home Depot, Walmart, Lowe’s, or countless other stores.

Right? So…

How do we use this information to communicate with our email list?

And…

Turn them into a profit-generating asset?

It’s easy!

The best advice I can share, I think you already know.
Treat others as you wish to be treated.

What do you want from an email?

How do you want to be treated?

Through my mentors, I have had so many clues that the attention I gave them was appreciated.

Their messages within their emails provide not just value, but it is something that I could immediately use in my business.

What they shared with me made a difference in my personal and business life.

They are great guys; not because I have stood toe to toe with them, looking at them eye-to-eye, nothing like that, instead; their stories and their communication style reached out and pulled me towards them.

They truly care about their prospects, customers, and readers and want to do what they can to help them.

At the same time, they do not hold back in letting everyone know that what they believe to be the best way to operate a successful business, is not right for everyone.

They let everyone know that it’s OK to not get it.

They encourage everyone not to purchase their products if the price is more than they can afford, or if the time is not right.

They DO NOT want anyone’s money if it would cause a hardship.

They would rather lose them as a [paid] customer TODAY, hoping that one day down the road, the time would be right and then, and only then, they could welcome them as a [paid] customer.

Kindness, empathy, compassion…

These are the traits they demonstrate through their writing.

These are the traits any compassionate business person should strive to possess to earn their current and future prospects and customers' attention.

This world is strapped for time.

Marketers everywhere are competing to have some of yours, mine, and your customers' precious time.

I’ve mentioned it before.

As business people, we only have a few seconds to capture someone’s attention. Whether we use an Ad, blog post, or an email, what we say, and how we say it is the difference between being heard or being rejected.

So…

Make what you say, count!

Let your list of customers, subscribers, and interested ones know upfront how you are going to communicate with them.

They need to know how often you will email, and on what days. Then stick to your schedule, so they can grow to depend on you being there when you say you’re going to be.

Continuing with this topic, next week we will talk about the importance of “Foundations”.

See you then!

Until next week, keep safe, stay healthy, and be happy.

Take care and be well.

James "Value-Driven" Brown

P.S. - In the event, you DO find that once an episode has been produced and posted, that YOU really would like more information, just let me know. Use the Podcast Questions link, click on the link here. Or you can just leave a voice message here.