Many people hear things like “if you want to get your prospect’s attention, then talk about the things they are talking about right now.”

This goes way back to Robert Collier’s comments on “entering the conversation your prospect is currently having inside their heads.”

The problem is, most people do this all wrong.

So for example, the most obvious thing people are talking about nowadays is how the recession is impacting your business or how the recession is preventing you from making your house payments or whatever.

But merely saying this alone is like running an ad that says you’re a veterinarian and you take care of pets. It’s not going to make anyone do anything.

See, when you’re towing the current event party line, what you really want to talk about is how you’re solving your prospect’s problems that’ve developed as a result of whatever current event you’re mentioning.

So you want to talk about the frustrations they’re having because things are getting tight… you want to talk about how sad it is Americans across the country are living in fear over not being able to pay their bills and stay current on things… about how uncertain things are and not knowing what to do based on what the government’s telling us.

Tap into your prospects fears and into what’s keeping them lying in bed awake at night. Talk about things that touch their heart and soul — not things that just skim the surface of their skin.

It’ll make a big difference to your prospects — and to your sales.

Now go sell something, Craig

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With little exception, no one “needs” any of the crap you or me or anyone else is selling.

I don’t need the next pair of Nike’s I’m going to buy this week, I want them. In fact, I could just as easy spend one-fourth and get a pair of old Chuck Connors Converse trainers, but I WANT the Nike’s.

All too often, you forget why your prospects are really buying whatever it is you got. (nice English, I know)

See, people buy things because they want them, not because they need them. No one NEEDS Mickey D’s, and you don’t need to be a rocket scientist to know this. And no one NEEDS to eat chicken wings at Hooters, either.

And so on.

Get my point?

People buy things they want to buy, and usually they want things because of some kind of momentary or long-term emotional thrills it gives them to own whatever it is you’re selling.

For instance, wearing sneakers that feel comfortable and look good makes me feel a sense of pride about myself when I’m wearing them. It also sends out a signal that tells people I am concerned how I look and maybe even in the kind of (perceived) shape I’m in — which is a vanity emotional pull.

And see, this is why most inventors are broke. They fall in love with an invention because of what the invention can do for humanity, when they should be thinking “Gee, is this what my prospects want?”

Portable machines that remove grease from hamburgers and fast food… tanning lotion that minimizes the amount of the sun’s damage to your skin, but also reduces the intensity of your tan… no one wants these things.

People want sloppy greasy burgers that taste good, and they want to lay out under the sun and become bronze Gods and Goddesses.

It all starts with what your prospect wants. Keep that in mind the next time you’re looking to sell or market something. How you feel about what you’re selling is as irrelevant as the price of phlegm on the open market.

How your prospects feel is everything.

Now go sell something, Craig

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I think e-bay is one of the most brilliant ideas ever developed.

And I know they do lots of testing on their marketing, which is one of the reasons why they continuously come up with new ways of promoting themselves to their users, and how they get you to buy more and more.

Now don’t get me wrong — I’m not sure I’d want to run a business on e-bay because I don’t like businesses that involve physical inventory, but I think e-bay is a wonderful way of doing business for many people who’d otherwise be locked out of doing business.

In fact, one of the nicest things about e-bay is that if you don’t know anything about marketing, it doesn’t even matter, since it’s such a centralized marketplace where buyers come looking for you.

Of course, knowing what you’re doing marketing-wise only helps you, but you get my drift, right?

Good.

Now one of the most compelling e-mails you’ll get from e-bay is the one that says, “You have been outbid.”

Right?

Ever wonder why they say it just like that?

See, when someone puts the burden of something squarely on your shoulders, especially in such a definitive manner, it compels you to do something about it. And it compels you to do something about it very quickly.

This is something trial lawyers know and it’s how they get people to make such dramatic efforts at doing things like clearing their name or defending their honor.

It’s a very powerful tactic.

And in this case, it’s no different. Your immediate reaction to these e-mails is to go and bid more, even if you really aren’t so hot for whatever the item is — simply to defend your honor.

After you get that e-mail you almost feel like you failed at something, so your gut reaction is to “succeed,” and in this case, you succeed by bidding higher and higher.

These are the little things that make e-bay so successful. And they all revolve around understanding human nature and knowing what makes people “tick.”

And this, ultimately, is the difference between great and incredible, when it comes to your selling success.

Or not.

Now go sell something, Craig

P.S. Make ‘em say “Yes!” with MAGIC words that push YOUR prospects emotional buy-buttons and get them buying, NOW! at http://www.kingofcopy.com/seductive

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To make your advertising effective, you must, somehow or some way, outdo or outbid the next guy.

You must have some kinds of leverage that makes buying from YOU seem like a better deal than buying from your competition.

You’ve got to have a better guarantee… or better service or faster delivery or more appealing payment terms… or some way of demonstrating stronger quality.

And if you don’t have any of these things then you have to “create” a perceived benefit by revealing facts or figures about yourself or your service, or the benefits or results, that your competition’s overlooked and fails to talk about.

Slamming your competition or pleading or urging your prospects to buy from you is as useless and meaningless as your 9-year old asking you to stay up past her bed time during the school week.

Until you’re able to create this leverage — or the perception of leverage or some kind of an advantage, you’re going to be in trouble.

If you’re going to underestimate the discretion of your buyers, like everyone else does… you’re going to get the same results everyone else gets.

And that… is scary, isn’t it?

Now go sell something, Craig

P.S. This month’s newsletter rolls hot off the presses today! Discover a LIVE ad showing you “Hybrid Lead Generation,” which is in-between conventional two-step lead generation and direct-selling. Find out when to use it and how to make it MOST effective for you. And now try it free and get 18 Free DVD’s, CD’s, Audio Recordings, bonus back-issues and other marketing goodies, all yours at http://www.kingofcopy.com/ssnl

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Hope you had a great weekend. I got some really cool pictures while I was away last week and I’ll try and post a few of them up over the next few days for you to see.

Today I want to share an interesting tid-bit about human psychology and behavior, that I recently stumbled across.

In a survey by Robert Half management Resources, 31% of all CFO’s (Chief Financial Officers) said integrity is the most important quality in a business leader. 27% said it’s experience, and 27% say it’s communication skills.

This is interesting in light of all the financial scandals that have dominated the headlines over the last decade. On the one hand you’d think if someone didn’t have integrity they couldn’t be a good leader, right? But on the other hand, if someone’s as honest as the day is long, but they can’t communicate anything… then what good is it?

Tougher question than it appears to be, isn’t it?

This is why questions like this aren’t as revealing as we often think they are. Because what happens in a situation like this is, when you’re presented with options, the only way you can possibly answer this question, is to compare each of these options to one another, not as absolute answers in and of themselves.

This works the same way when you’re selling something. Which is why you’re usually well-served to offer your prospects two choices. Because if left to their own devices and you only give them one choice, they may not compare the value of that one item, to something that is truly comparable.

But if you give them the comparable, you control the situation. And that usually means more money in your pockets.

Make sense?

Good…

Now go sell something, Craig

P.S. THREE Days left to get your hands on this month’s Seductive Selling Newsletter and the 18 FREE bonus gifts that come along with it! It’s waiting to ship out right now. All you pay is $5.95 shipping and handling at http://www.kingofcopy.com/ssnl

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I’m out of town oh holiday today but I still wanted to stay in touch with you.

You know it is only little subtleties that separate wise men from fools. One of them has to do with what the wise man deems important, and the other has to do with how he uses his time.

So here are a couple of stories passed on to me from my good friend Christian Godefroy, that illustrate both. He’s not only one of the sharpest guys I know, but he’s also the most successful.

If you like this story, make sure you check out his website and sign up for more of them on a regular basis. They cut through all the stress of your day and make you smile.

And in today’s day and age, what more can you ask for?

You’ll find him at http://www.positive-club.com

Here you go – have a great weekend.

In ancient Greece, Socrates was reputed to hold knowledge in high esteem. One day an acquaintance met the great philosopher and said, “Do you know what I just heard about your friend?”

“Hold on a minute,” Socrates replied. “Before telling me anything, I’d like you to pass a little test. It’s called the Triple Filter Test.”

“Triple filter?”

“That’s right,” Socrates continued. “Before you talk to me about my friend, it might be a good idea to take a moment and filter what you’re going to say. That’s why I call it the triple filter test.

The first filter is Truth. Have you made absolutely sure that what you are about to tell me is true?”

“No,” the man said, “Actually I just heard about it and…”

“All right,” said Socrates. “So you don’t really know if it’s true or not. Now let’s try the second filter, the filter of goodness. Is what you are about to tell me about my friend something good?”

“No, on the contrary…”

“So,” Socrates continued, “You want to tell me something bad about him, but you’re not certain it’s true. You may still pass the test though, because there’s one filter left: the filter of usefulness. Is what you want to tell me about my friend going to be useful to me?”

“No, not really.”

“Well,” concluded Socrates, “If what you want to tell me is neither true nor good nor even useful, then why tell it to me at all?”

……………………………………………………..

The value of time:

To understand the value of a year, talk to a student who has failed an important exam.

To understand the value of a month, talk to a mother who has given birth to a baby a month prematurely.

To understand the value of a week, talk to the publisher of a weekly newspaper.

To understand the value of an hour, talk to a couple in love who are separated and want only to be together again.

To understand the value of a minute, talk to someone who has just missed their train or plane flight.

To understand the value of a second, talk to someone who has lost a loved one in an accident.

And to understand the value of a millisecond, talk to someone who won the silver medal at the Olympic Games.

Time waits for no one. So gather all the time you have left every moment, and it will be of great use to you. Share it with people you value and love and it will become even more precious.

Your friend, Xti@n

Again, check out Christian’s website at http://www.positive-club.com

Now go sell something, Craig

P.S. I have one of the top 7 Google AdWords experts in the world as my guest on this month’s Audio Success CD. Find out what he knows that you don’t at http://www.kingofcopy.com/ssnl

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Many people believe that in an economy like this one – or even when business is just slow, the fastest way to generate more sales is by reducing your prices.

And while running a sale may sometimes get you new customers, there are plenty of other things you can do that have nothing at all to do with pricing.

Let’s talk about three of them.

First thing you can do is offer premiums and bonuses with your items. See, regardless what price you’re selling something for, the primary thing people are concerned about is value.

Give someone more value and they’ll gladly pay for it. Remember that old adage, “Price is only an obstacle in the absence of value.” It’s very true.

Second thing you can do is combine two different things you normally sell separately, and create value packages that allow your customers and clients to have a better experience using whatever product or service you’re selling them.

Again, this is basically a different twist on the last strategy of offering premiums. It’s all about perceived value, nothing more.

And lastly — this one’s going to sound crazy but it works — create another level of the product or service your selling, that’s even higher-priced than the one you’re offering now. Then put the two side by side together.

I don’t care whether you’re selling in person or in print, this works – especially if you present the higher priced item first.

See, human nature is such that when you present two things together, the psychological default way to evaluate things, is to compare them. So for instance, that’s why some restaurants will often throw in an exorbitantly priced item on their menu. NOT to sell it, but to sell the next highest priced item, because compared to the top one, the second highest priced meal looks like a real bargain.

Alright, that’s enough to keep you busy for a while, so have at it.

Now go sell something, Craig Garber

P.S. Copy My Success: Follow These Eye-Opening Lessons And Discover The Hidden Profits Inside Your Own Business! Watch the video at http://www.kingofcopy.com/ssnl

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A long time ago, a very sharp marketer I know told me he loved working with clients right up until the time they paid him. (He got paid ahead of time, like I do.) He said, “From that point on, it’s all downhill.”

At the time I didn’t quite understand what he was talking about or where he was going with, but I do now.

It has to do with the inherent high entrepreneurs get from pursuing new ideas, chasing dreams, and chasing big pay days. Our thrill is in the chase and in the creation, not in the deliverable.

That’s what we live for and that’s what we crave. The thrill of victory that comes from connecting on something your creative juices made out of literally nothing, is hard to explain, and it’s hard to compare to anything else.

It’s kind of like being pregnant. You really can’t “imagine” what it’s like to be pregnant or to deliver a baby, unless you’ve done it.

Right?

The frustrating part is, and frankly the reason why more people don’t get to experience this, is because creating a business is like delivering a baby in a sense. You conceive an idea, and eventually that idea gets birthed.

The problem is the labor. Nobody enjoys going through the labor pains or the 9 months of gestation.

For instance, I recently started another business (which we’ll talk about some other time), and I was talking with my business partner (who we’ll also talk about some other time) last night.

We’re at the stage where we’re going through labor – mine comes now, and his will come later, based on what each of us does.

Anyway, over the last few days I’ve been doing the market research we need to get this thing up-and-running.

Last night was the final push of this, and I was up until 4:30 this morning. Today I have a little more work to do on this, and then it’s on to the next phase, which will be a little easier.

Frankly, this was a miserable experience. I hate walking around the house like a zombie, with my eyes burning through their sockets.

But… it certainly wasn’t the first time I did it, and it certainly won’t be the last time, either. However, I’m fortunate to have the energy and enthusiasm to do this. As my partner, who’s about 9 years younger than me, said to me in a text message yesterday, “I love the rattle ‘n roll. It’s what keeps me breathing. I’ve just never met someone that can outdo me like you!”

Let’s face it, the same way you can’t deliver a baby without going through labor… you can’t birth a business without going through some kind of “labor” there as well.

And while it’s not glamorous, and while no one talks about the labor pains, this is what separates the winners from the losers… the doers from the dreamers.

The good thing is, unlike real labor, which can be scary, and sometimes things happen out of your control… in business labor, you get to control most of the labor process of your business.

So the wonderful question you need to ask yourself, isn’t whether or not you’re gonna have a baby, it’s how beautiful do you want your baby to be?

The choice is yours.

Now go sell something, Craig Garber

P.S. Watch the video here that shows you all 18 of the free bonuses you get and see what everyone’s talking about!: http://www.kingofcopy.com/ssnl

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First, a quick note to let you know that next week I’ll start answering some of the many “Ask Me, Baby” questions I’ve received.

What’s held things up a bit is that my old hard drive died and it’s just taken me a while to get everything sorted out on my new one. But you have my word that next week I’ll start answering these questions.

Some folks have sent in some good ones, and… ha, ha, others aren’t so clever. But I’ll be entertaining nonetheless.

O.K., we’ve been talking about story-telling lately, so I wanted to get a little more into this.

For instance, if you’re reading this message, it’s probably because you like the subject line.

Yes, I like it, too.

It comes from something called the Rhyme of the Ancient Mariner, which is a very lengthy poem written by an English poet named Samuel Taylor Coleridge, back in the late 1700′s.

The story basically talks about a very long and frustrating sea voyage. The conflict here is that the mariners are out at sea surrounded by water, and yet… there is no (clean) water for the sailors to drink.

And in these few words I’ve given you so far, you have the basic format for what your story needs:

1. It needs to have a human interest hook. Preferably one that teaches a lesson or has a moral, or shows a profound experience that leaves mental footprints on the people in the story, and on the reader. (Bottom line: if you can’t make someone feel something, it’s pretty much a waste of time.)

2. You need to be specific. I was specific about many things, even in this brief conversation. The name of the poem, who wrote it, and when it was written, amongst other things.

Specifics breathe live into the characters in your story.

And three, if you have conflict, that’s good.

Conflict is the basis of every single television show you’ve ever watched. There’s a struggle between two people, or between a person and a thing (in this case, the ocean), and this tension… is what motivates and moves outsiders to follow along.

This all goes back to curiosity and the inherent desire you have, to get things you’re curious about, resolved.

Make sense?

I know, it seems easy when I put it like this, but all it takes is some practice and you’ll get it down. Just make sure you’re including these three strategies, and after a few tries, you’ll start becoming more compelling story-teller.

But if this seems too difficult for you, don’t worry, I have good news. You can always continue boring everyone to death and not get anyone to buy anything from you.

Hey, it’s a free country — the choice is yours.

Now go sell something, Craig Garber

P.S. How to create emotionally compelling stories and sales copy, that gets ‘em to say “Yes!” every time!: http://www.kingofcopy.com/seductive

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Let’s face it, selling is difficult. But selling in print is incredibly difficult, since you’re stripped of all your non-verbal communication. Your prospect’s ability to get a “gut feel” about whether or not they should trust and believe you… isn’t as available as you’d like.

However, there are certain triggers or appeals you want to have, any time you’re communicating anything to your prospects.

Without these critical appeals, you don’t have a snowball’s chance in hell, of selling anything to anyone. Here they are:

1. Self-interest. Your prospect must be thinking to themselves, “I can use something like this…. I can seriously benefit from this product.”

If they’re thinking anything other than that, then see you later. This is why you must understand the difference between features and benefits. Getting bogged down with features may make you feel good — it may make you think like you’re the cat’s meow what with all them bells and whistles… but your prospect could care less.

2. Make things simple.

If your prospect has to work to understand what you’re offering them, then you’re toast. Unless you’re selling water in the desert, no one’s going to work that hard.

Appreciate that this is different from making people qualify, but that’s another topic for another day.

3. Be believable.

Give your prospects reasons why they should believe you. Are their testimonials? Are your claims outlandish or are they within the norm? Are there specific reasons why your prospects should trust you – if so, let ‘em know!

4. Arouse curiosity!

Some people are about as interesting as a small soap dish — don’t be this way! Be compelling, be enthusiastic, be provocative!

Leave one strap hanging off your shoulder and arouse curiosity about what it looks like once the remaining strap comes down.

Don’t sell an orange, sell the loveliest ripe fruit you’ve ever seen… whose dimpled skin covers fleshy pulp filled with the sweetest juice God ever created.

Be exciting and arouse curiosity!

5. Lastly, make an offer that’s worthwhile.

Do you like to get good value?

Of course you do, right?

And yet… “Screw the customer” seems to be the mantra of the day!

Let me tell you something, what’s good for the goose, IS good for the gander, so when it comes time to making your offer, make sure you do unto others and all that good stuff, O.K.?

Listen, without these appeals, you’re depending on luck to sell, so take these things very seriously.

Because “luck”… is not… a good business strategy.

Now go sell something, Craig Garber

P.S. 19-year direct-response marketing veteran spills the beans on this month’s Audio Success CD! Get it, along with 18 free bonus gifts — yes EIGHTEEN — when you test-drive Seductive Selling, at http://www.kingofcopy.com/ssnl

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