Testimonials are GOLD.

Rule number one: get testimonials that are real and honest.

I'm personally feeling very humbled.
Today I just received this email from one of my clients:

"Hi Paul,
I need to tell you that I am taking your advice.
I leave this afternoon for Greece.
I will be back in 4 weeks.
I value your advice , support & knowledge.

You have inspired me to stop & live a little more than I used to before I met you.
You have changed my way of thinking in family & business.

Santorini here I come.
Regards,

Nick Kotsifas
Sydney Professional Plumbing"

Rule number two: get their permission to add their contact details and to publish the testimonial.

I have a way to get awesome testimonials that doesn't sound all flowery and sugar sweet. 

Please click here to email me for the info.

Welcome to your new business tool - your smartphone!

Free business advertising using your phone.

 Let's assume you get 100 calls from potential new clients every month. What happens to those expensive calls?

If you are like 25% of the hundreds of businesses I've surveyed, you will let some calls go to your voice message. Lets say 10.

Of the 90 left, you talk to the caller and find out another 20 were just 'bloody tyre kickers' and you just answered their question and hang up. (Guess what - tyre kickers will buy from somebody, sometime - why not you?) There's a way to turn some of them into paying customers. Read on.

Of the 70 left, you decided 20 were too far away, you don't like doing 'that sort of work anyway' or you didn't like their attitude.

Of the 50 left, you gave 30 an approximate price over the phone and made an appointment to attend to an onsite quote for 20 of them.

For brand new prospects, you know you only get 3-4 jobs out of every 10 quotes you do. So the final 50 turn into say 15 paying jobs.

So, out of the 100 calls that probably cost you $12 each (total cost of advertising divided by number of calls), you got 15 paying customers.

How could you double the amount of work

you get out of those 100 calls?

LinkedIn Marketing Success

 I made $4,000[now $8,000 !]  from LinkedIn .  How?

Eight months ago, as a newbie, I set out to get involved.

Join
I joined 20 LinkedIn groups associated with the 'tradies' and the small
business community. I figured that 'getting involved' was to join in conversations, encourage others to contribute and bring interesting posts to the table for discussion. I did just that.

Engage
People responded, that they liked the way I always replied to everybody who
commented on any of my posts - they felt heard.

How to promote your business

without making these 6 mistakes. . .

1.  Not knowing who your ‘target market’ is. What part of the populous do you want to call you? The 18 – 25yr olds; the women aged 35-55yrs, the ‘empty nesters’. There is little point advertising a new nursing home on the rock music radio station Triple M . . . you would be better of spending your money on 'Easy Listening' 2CH! If your target audience is families with children then sponsoring a few sporting teams in your area (and get an ad on their web site + uniforms). If it's the 'Baby Boomers' then a stand at the 'Retirement Expo' or if it's the home owners, try the 'Home Improvement' events.

2.   Not knowing what it is that people buy from (of) you. Everybody makes buying decisions based on emotional reasons as well as the ‘facts’ about what you can do for them. Most businesses just tell the market the facts, and ignore the important emotional triggers people have for doing business.

How to advertise my business without turning people away.

5 guaranteed ways to drive local customers away.

"Drive customers away!" you say. "Why would I want to drive people away?"

Well, you probably don't. But could you be doing it without knowing it?

Here are 5 ways you may be sending prospects to your competition:

1. Not listing your local address in your local advertisements. No I don't mean you have to disclose your private home address - just your street and suburb.

Why?

Because local people prefer to do business with local people. There is a sense that they feel they can trust somebody who lives nearby. They know they can contact you easily and quickly if you are 'just around the corner', if something goes wrong. They want to give the 'Local Family Business' a fair go and support them, rather than a big impersonal 'multi-national'.

2. Not using a local phone number in local ads. I know you opperate your business using your mobile (cell phone), but people know, if they do not recognise a local phone number, they question if you are 'a local'.

Yes, it does cost more to have your calls diverted from a land line, but the increased business a local number brings in, far outweighs the cost.

3. Using mostly capital letters in your ad.

Job estimate. Quoting for work, when people won't say 'yes' straight away.

New 3 session course 

Bloody tire kickers! How to turn them into paying customers.

Frustrating isn't it.

There are fewer calls these days than there used to be - so fewer quotes to do - and more competitors across 5 times as many media - all quoting against you.

You spend lots of money, advertising to get people to call you for a 'free quote', but it's not free at all. It's costing YOU a lot of time, petrol and money.

Is this how it feels for you?

You do the right thing and answer your phone; you agree on an appointment time; you show up (on time); you listen to their needs (or what they think they need) then you assemble your quote and you email or hand it to them for their consideration.

Now, your quote can take from half an hour to days to complete, depending on the industry you're in.

The FREE QUOTE costs you a lot.

If you've been doing this for a while, you begin to sense the prospects that are going to waste your time. Argh! Bloody tire kickers!

The ones who are getting 6 quotes and you are number 3.

The ones who don't have a clue what they want and only wanted you to pick your brains for ideas.

Then there are the ones that are getting a quote to see how much they will need to save up, before they can get the job done.

In fact there are 13 steps a new client goes through from having a need that something's got to change, through to becoming a 'Raving Fan' of your business:

Some signs have to be seen to be believed.

 A promotional masterpiece

 "A moment on the lips . . . . a lifetime on the hips!"

They knew this was the end of the saying

but still called their lolly shop this?!?

 Just what I've been looking for

. . . 

genuine ant eaten!

 No-one could miss this sign!

Oh good, I'll come back tomorrow!

Then why shut the gate?

I want to work here!

Is this like being

'half pregnant'?

 Lavatree

Speces: Pissina Flushturdum

There is no doubt

what you are getting

for your money!

How to get new clients.

How can you tell, if somebody is wasting your time? 

How to get new clients - not 'Tyre Kickers'.

Bloody tyre kickers!