Category: Digital Marketing

Lead Generation Made Easy

Posted on by Don Vanpool

Generating leads is a vital component for any business. Unfortunately, it’s often the most difficult and expensive part of owning and operating a business. Let me provide you with the framework you need to begin generating leads for your clients so you can help them make more sales. To begin, consider how professional publications generate leads.

Ask yourself what type of article tends to attract reader attention, bringing more traffic and more eyeballs to their page? Which articles convert, bringing them more customers and more sales? And what’s the secret formula that maximizes the twin impact of attraction and conversion?

Want an easy answer? Just head to your local newsstand. The best attraction and conversion techniques are hidden between the pages of two very different magazines: Cosmopolitan and The New Yorker.

Cosmopolitan articles attract attention. Look at these recent headlines.

75 Crazy-Hot Dance Moves
10 Cheap Fun Date Ideas
117 Style Ideas Already in Your Wardrobe

Seriously? 75 crazy hot dance moves? I’m lucky if I can pull off three in an entire night. But that isn’t what’s actually attracting readers. We find it impossible to walk past anything that gives us seven, seventeen, or seven hundred ways to do or achieve something. As human beings, we’re greedy, and we’re attracted to articles that feed our lust for excess, even excess information.

Most of the articles in Cosmopolitan are just bullet points stacked up against each other that go on forever. Sometimes there’s some meat to the bullet points, but often, especially in Cosmo, it’s just bullet points. This gives you the feeling that you’re learning something, but there’s no depth to the knowledge. Cosmo-type articles are light reading… and we like light reading. Gossip magazines sell like hotcakes for a reason. And just in case you’re thinking attraction is strictly a women’s interest magazine strategy, you’ll find men’s magazines do it too.

Men’s Health and Money always include light-reading articles on their covers like “How to Get Rock-Hard Abs” and “7 Secrets to a Richer Retirement.” In fact, for years, Men’s Health ran essentially the same four covers repeatedly. They figured out the headlines and formats that were the most effective and they just kept running the same ones. Add light reading and a huge list together and what do you get? The promise of a lot of information without putting much work in to get it.

No wonder we find them so attractive. Cosmo-style content gets retweeted, shared on Facebook, and sent around all the other social media channels more often because everyone knows other people are attracted to this kind of format. And by sending it on, it makes the person who posted it seem more attractive by association.

If you create content that offers Cosmopolitan-style headlines and light, easy-reading body copy, you will get the same results that Cosmo has gotten for decades. And those results are very good indeed.

But it’s the New Yorker articles that convert leads into actual sales. The New Yorker produces in-depth, well-written articles that drive home a specific point. When you write content in that

same style, you impress the heck out of your reader. They see that you’re smart. They see that you know what’s going on. And they see that you can tell them something they don’t already know. That impression is so powerful that the reader is compelled to investigate further to see what else you can tell them.

The more in-depth content they find, the more they think you’re a smart person to check in with often, and the harder it is for them to resist your “subscribe” or “buy” offer. This doesn’t just apply to text, but to video and audio as well. An in-depth piece in text, audio, or video drags you in. The more time you spend reading, listening, or watching something, the more likely you are to follow up with the source.

Those of you who have read the back-of-the-magazine articles at The New Yorker might be worried this means you have to write incredibly long articles. You don’t. Being interesting is far more important than going on and on about a topic and even The New Yorker has plenty of short pieces that still offer great insight.

For New Yorker-type content, you need depth, detail, and analysis. Those three things empower your reader a lot more than Cosmo-style fluff. Put more in-depth detail and analysis in your writing and you’ll see your conversion rates skyrocket.

So, which of these is the best strategy?

It depends on your business, of course. Perhaps your free offers or your website, just like some print publications, are driven almost entirely by Cosmopolitan-style headlines and copy. Others are driven by the New Yorker style. But you don’t actually have to choose.

You’ll notice that even Cosmo includes at least one in-depth article per issue. And The New Yorker always has a couple of short, lighter items upfront.

You can use both of these strategies at the same time. And you should. A strategic mixture of both types of content will not only attract a larger number of clients but also get you a much greater conversion. You can also interlink content so that Cosmo-style content leads to more in-depth New Yorker-type content. Or a Cosmo-influenced headline can pull the reader into a piece with more depth than Cosmopolitan ever dreamed of.

In print, magazines normally separate the two styles. The front of the magazine has mostly short, light pieces; the back has longer, more in-depth pieces. Online, you get to be more flexible. You can drive them from light material to deeper, more detailed content so they get a brilliant mix of both kinds of pieces not to mention that you’ll get great SEO benefits as well. They’ll be more attracted to you at the same time they’re inclined to convert and check in with you daily.

If you want to attract more attention, more traffic, more readers, and more social media sharing, go with Cosmo-style articles. At a minimum, make sure you’ve crafted a drop-dead, attention-grabbing headline. If you want conversion, meaning more subscribers and paying customers, lean toward New Yorker-influenced articles with plenty of depth, detail, and thoughtful analysis. And if you want both, give your readers both. Why settle for just one approach?

P.S. Also remember, to determine how likely your marketing is to convert, simply fill out my Conversion Equation Evaluator.

This evaluator has the unprecedented ability to predict the future success of any marketing collateral you develop… as well as predict whether that marketing will be profitable or not. And, it’s 100% free to use!

After calculating your marketing conversion level, I can show you exactly what to do with your website and marketing collateral that could double or triple the number of prospects who respond to your marketing.

Just schedule a complimentary meeting with me

 

How you can create dynamic content that will generate all the leads your business will ever need

Posted on by Don Vanpool

There is a simple way to develop great content, and then use it to create a multitude of products and services that will add additional support and revenue for your business. Your first job is to write out a series of 20 questions, along with the answers to those questions.

I’ll bet that as a small business owner you constantly get asked the same questions over and over about what you do and about your product and/or service. Sit down and write out your list of the top ten most frequently asked questions you hear from your prospects and clients.

Next, write out the top ten questions that your prospects and clients “should” be asking. These are the questions that they don’t know they don’t know. These are the things that they need to know about your product or service, but don’t.

The reason for writing down these twenty questions simply comes down to the basics of effective marketing. Prospects will buy what they want, not what they need. They want an expert, someone who can help them accomplish their goals and objectives.

These twenty questions position you as the expert. The first ten questions answer all of the questions prospects have about what you do, and the next ten establish credibility, rapport and position you as the expert in their eyes. It’s very important that you take your time and create these questions accurately.

Here’s an example. Let’s assume you have a business helping other businesses attract more clients and close more sales. Here are the top ten most frequently asked questions in that type of business,

  1. How can I generate more leads/ customers?
  2. How can I make more money/profits?
  3. How can I get prospects to visit my website?
  4. How can I make money using my website?
  5. How can I be sure your process helps me build my business?
  6. How can I make my products or services business different from my com- petitors?
  7. How do I get my prospects to actually buy rather than look?
  8. Why isn’t my marketing working like it used to?
  9. What should I say when someone ask me “what I do?”
  10. How can I find the time to do everything I need to get done?

Now let’s examine the ten things people SHOULD ask,

  1. Who is my target client and why is it so important to find them?
  2. How does my target client make a decision to buy what I sell?
  3. How do I create a short message that practically compels prospects to buy what I sell?
  4. What is lifetime value and why is it important for me to know it?
  5. What is a sales process and how can I find out what it should be for my business?
  6. What is the “marketing equation” and where should it be used?
  7. What is the “sales equation” and why does it close so many sales?
  8. What’s the difference between a landing page and a website, and which one do I need in my business?
  9. Be sure you answer each of these 20 questions thoroughly and accurately. Once you do, you now have all the content you need to create additional products and services?
  10. How can social media help me grow my business?
  11. How can I get my clients to give me more referrals?

Be sure you answer each of these 20 questions thoroughly and accurately. Once you do, you now have all the content you need to create additional products and services. And you have great content to write great reports and start building an email list to market your products and services.

P.S. Also remember, to determine how likely your marketing is to convert, simply fill out my Conversion Equation Evaluator.

This evaluator has the unprecedented ability to predict the future success of any marketing collateral you develop… as well as predict whether that marketing will be profitable or not. And, it’s 100% free to use!

After calculating your marketing conversion level, I can show you exactly what to do with your website and marketing collateral that could double or triple the number of prospects who respond to your marketing.

Just schedule a complimentary meeting with me

 

The Six Interconnected Steps to Digital Marketing Success

Posted on by Don Vanpool

Before you can even venture into the digital marketing world, there are six essential steps you need for success. Once you complete them, you are ready to create a plan of action for digital marketing success and see the results happen without worrying about backtracking later in the process.

1.     Define Your Target Market

Ideally, you will have already completed this task. Knowing your target market is essential to saving you time and money in your marketing process. To help define who exactly your target market is, you need to take a look at who your past customers are, the area around your business, and the digital marketing possibilities for this market.

Once you have a list of who your current customers are, you can think of the reason why they are your customers. These reasons and the attributes of these customers will show you a target market and how to approach it.

2.     Write it Down

Take a few moments to write a paragraph or two about who you will be targeting with your digital marketing. Write down which emotional buying behavior triggers them to make a purchase. Also, conduct research and find out what consumers need and expect from your brand. This way, you can focus on the interests and needs of your customers.

3.     Identify Value Proposition

Why do your customers choose your business for the services you provide? This is an important question to answer! You need to know what makes you unique from your competition. Is it the services you offer? Your products? If you have a hard time identifying these factors, ask several customers. Offer a gift card for a brief five-minute survey and you’ll have the answers you need to identify what is working and what isn’t.

4.     Create Key Messages

Your key messages are the messages you convey when you put together a marketing strategy, online or offline. To put together your key messages, you need to make a list of the benefits you offer that your competitors do not. You can make this list with the information you already have and add in further research from your competitive landscape. Once you have this information, you will be able to use it to build your strategies in PPC (Pay Per Click), your blog, or other avenues of digital marketing.

5.     Scope Out the Competition

The more you know about your competition, the more you can put together a better marketing plan. The most obvious list includes what your competitors offer for services and products. You also need to know:

  • Where they advertise?
  • What are their strengths?
  • What are their weaknesses?
  • How do you stack up against them?
  • In what ways do they market that you should?
  • In what areas do they lack that you could ethically take advantage of?

You may also take a look at the advertising platforms they use and in some cases, and with the right software, even see the details of their advertising campaigns the results they produce. Make a note of these resources to check them out later.

6.     Check Out Your Digital Market

Research can feel like a lot of work. Still, it’s essential to understand better marketing opportunities, your competitors, and how you need to put together a successful digital marketing campaign.

Use search engines with keywords for your business and observe the results. One great way to do this is to use the Google Keyword Tool and generate a list of keywords (with their usage numbers) to find what keywords are the most effective. This way, you’ll get information about the most popular search terms around the topic and how other businesses use them. Keywords are invaluable when putting together a digital marketing campaign.

P.S. Also remember, to determine how likely your marketing is to convert, simply fill out my Conversion Equation Evaluator.

This evaluator has the unprecedented ability to predict the future success of any marketing collateral you develop… as well as predict whether that marketing will be profitable or not. And, it’s 100% free to use!

After calculating your marketing conversion level, I can show you exactly what to do with your website and marketing collateral that could double or triple the number of prospects who respond to your marketing.

Just schedule a complimentary meeting with me.