We all love stories - and we all know that we all love stories.
So why do we so often forget to use them in our marketing? A good story grabs attention, keeps your reader or listener engaged and curious, and is a fantastic way to demonstrate how your product or service can help someone.
Stories are also fine teachers. I remember going to real estate school and how much the lessons came alive when our instructor told about the things that happened to real live people when someone bent the rules we were learning.
Things like the crook who talked about 50 people into buying the same vacant lot and NOT recording the sale for 60 days. By the time the 60 days were up and all those people realized they'd bought the same lot, he was long gone. It must have been a hot market back then - or else the lot was priced so low that people were jumping to grab it.
Anyway - If he had merely told us that we needed to insist that our buyer's transactions were recorded immediately because bad things can happen, it wouldn't have made such an impression. Just think - I heard that story over 20 years ago!
So what kind of story can you tell that will somehow relate back to what you offer?
Can you tell a story that will teach your audience that they need what you offer?
Can you tell a story that will show how much you care about your customer's best interests?
Can you tell a story that shows how many ways your product can be used?
If you think about it, you probably have some true stories that would interest your readers. So... think about it!
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
Sunday, February 22, 2009
Is Your website safe?
If your web host suddenly disappeared, would you be able to quickly re-create your site with a different host?
Or would you be like a friend of mine - sitting there completely stumped over how to start over from scratch?
For starters, your domain name should belong to you - with you listed as the administrator. If it isn't, get it changed as fast as you can - while the person whose name is there is still available to authorize the change. Otherwise, you could be in for months of proving who you are - honest.
This happened to me when I bought my first domain name - and had no clue at all about how it all worked. When it was time to renew we almost lost the name because the "administrator" had moved away. It took 4 years before I had that domain name in my own name, because we had to go through the whole proof process every 2 years until it "stuck."
Another friend of mine had an employee set up her website, and he was listed as administrator. That was fine - they were friends and he wouldn't have done anything to hurt her. But - he died. She had to go through proving that he was positively unavailable, and then proving that she had a right to the domain which was her company name. I think in her case it took about 3 months.
So start out right - put that domain in your own name.
Next, make sure that all of your web files are backed up on your own computer. Then back them up further on an external hard drive or even a disk.
My friend had someone else build her site because she knew nothing about how to do it. So when that person decided he no longer wanted to do it, she was stuck.
So be assertive - make sure you have a copy of everything. If you have to hire a high school student to come and help you understand it all, then do it.
Remember that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure - and in this case, I think it's worth about a ton of cure.
Or would you be like a friend of mine - sitting there completely stumped over how to start over from scratch?
For starters, your domain name should belong to you - with you listed as the administrator. If it isn't, get it changed as fast as you can - while the person whose name is there is still available to authorize the change. Otherwise, you could be in for months of proving who you are - honest.
This happened to me when I bought my first domain name - and had no clue at all about how it all worked. When it was time to renew we almost lost the name because the "administrator" had moved away. It took 4 years before I had that domain name in my own name, because we had to go through the whole proof process every 2 years until it "stuck."
Another friend of mine had an employee set up her website, and he was listed as administrator. That was fine - they were friends and he wouldn't have done anything to hurt her. But - he died. She had to go through proving that he was positively unavailable, and then proving that she had a right to the domain which was her company name. I think in her case it took about 3 months.
So start out right - put that domain in your own name.
Next, make sure that all of your web files are backed up on your own computer. Then back them up further on an external hard drive or even a disk.
My friend had someone else build her site because she knew nothing about how to do it. So when that person decided he no longer wanted to do it, she was stuck.
So be assertive - make sure you have a copy of everything. If you have to hire a high school student to come and help you understand it all, then do it.
Remember that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure - and in this case, I think it's worth about a ton of cure.
Friday, February 13, 2009
A tale of excellent service
The other night my neighbor said he was thinking about buying a car, but this was the wrong time of year to drive to Montana.
Since there are plenty of car dealerships a lot closer than Montana, we asked him what Montana had to do with it. And he told us the story about the Montana salesman...
Many years ago he bought a pickup. Being a person who is careful with his money, he had shopped around and so knew that the price he paid for that pickup was more than fair. By the time he wanted another new pickup he had moved to a new town, about 6 or 8 hour's drive away, so he went shopping close to home.
But he kept thinking about that salesman in Montana who sent him a birthday card every year. And so, knowing exactly what he wanted and the going price for that make with those features, he called Montana.
The salesman was glad to hear from him, and listened to his list of make, model, features, etc. Then he gave our friend a price, which was in the same ballpark with the others. But, he added, since you have a long drive to get here, I'll give you back $200 for gasoline, put you up in a nice motel, and buy your dinner.
Of course he said yes.
The salesman had assured him that the pickup would be ready when he arrived - and it was. The extra features had been installed, the truck was washed and waxed, and the tank was full of gas. The paperwork was even completed, so taking delivery of his new pickup took minutes, rather than the hours most dealerships impose on customers.
And so, our friend will probably shop around and learn what is or isn't available on the car he wants. He'll find out the going price, too. And then he'll call Montana, because that salesman did two important things:
He gave unforgettable service, AND he stayed in touch, year after year, in spite of the fact that his customer had moved away.
Do YOU stay in touch with customers if they leave your neighborhood?
Since there are plenty of car dealerships a lot closer than Montana, we asked him what Montana had to do with it. And he told us the story about the Montana salesman...
Many years ago he bought a pickup. Being a person who is careful with his money, he had shopped around and so knew that the price he paid for that pickup was more than fair. By the time he wanted another new pickup he had moved to a new town, about 6 or 8 hour's drive away, so he went shopping close to home.
But he kept thinking about that salesman in Montana who sent him a birthday card every year. And so, knowing exactly what he wanted and the going price for that make with those features, he called Montana.
The salesman was glad to hear from him, and listened to his list of make, model, features, etc. Then he gave our friend a price, which was in the same ballpark with the others. But, he added, since you have a long drive to get here, I'll give you back $200 for gasoline, put you up in a nice motel, and buy your dinner.
Of course he said yes.
The salesman had assured him that the pickup would be ready when he arrived - and it was. The extra features had been installed, the truck was washed and waxed, and the tank was full of gas. The paperwork was even completed, so taking delivery of his new pickup took minutes, rather than the hours most dealerships impose on customers.
And so, our friend will probably shop around and learn what is or isn't available on the car he wants. He'll find out the going price, too. And then he'll call Montana, because that salesman did two important things:
He gave unforgettable service, AND he stayed in touch, year after year, in spite of the fact that his customer had moved away.
Do YOU stay in touch with customers if they leave your neighborhood?
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