How to Make More Sales With the Help of ELO

Launches have been on my mind a lot lately. Not just because of Jeff Walker and his PLF3 release, but because I have been on a crazy launch kick myself with several back to back. I have learned a fair bit about what to do and what doesn’t work so well, especially in the area of email promotions. My main discovery, though, I gleaned from my Shy Networking launch. This launch was a pared-down affair, because of all the other launches taking place all over the world at the same time. I didn’t want to have a showdown with the entire Third Tribe! Funny thing was, out of the blue I discovered the concept of ELO — and that we all need a little more of it in our email marketing. Just add ELO You’ll probably have guessed I do not mean the sweet, sweet musical stylings of the popular 1970’s pop and rock combo Electric Light Orchestra. So what kind of ELO am I talking about? E: Emotion & Empathy If you want your subscribers to connect with you and your offers then you are going to have to demonstrate empathy. Use emotional triggers to evoke feeling, as well as appealing to logic and reason. Between the lines of your communication, through story and metaphor, you need to convey that you are a person just like them, almost like secret messages talking directly to your reader’s subconscious. You don’t need to fabricate a history to fit into some loss and redemption story or a Wild West hero-type template. Draw on your own anecdotes and messages to show your audience that you understand what they’re going through, because you’ve been in their same situation. L: List Leverage You’ve probably heard that your prospects might need to hear about your offer many times before taking action. This seemingly conflicts with the equally oft-touted advice to avoid bombarding your audience with stuff they do not care for . How do you keep communicating when so many people want to reduce email load? The answer is to segment your audience into lists. Ask people to raise their hands if they are interested in a particular kind of product or service, and put them onto a list where they can find out more about that thing and nothing else . You can easily launch two products at the same time without overwhelming either list, because each list will only be receiving the emails that promote the product in which they’ve expressed interest. Another way you can leverage lists is to get your offerings in front of lists belonging to partners and contacts that exactly match your most ideal prospects. Offer valuable content to their subscribers that is tuned to their interests. You’ll get a great response rate and you won’t burn out your own subscriber base. O: Objections The best launches are a conversation rather than a broadcast. Check your assumptions, and listen out for problems as you go through the launch. Ask for feedback constantly so your list will feel encouraged to tell you about problems or resistance. Make sure you communicate clearly to address those objections and fix any points of resistance. You might find out that there are problems you don’t really want to fix. You like using clever wording in your email marketing because you think it makes you one sweet talkin’ woman with a distinctive voice . But you might just be causing confusion and convincing your list that your product really isn’t right for them. Listen carefully to objections and fix them before they derail your launch. Works like strange magic ELO might not put you on your way to setting a new world record. But by implementing these elements, you will gain many more sales and a deeper connection to your subscribers. Give it a try and watch the magic happen. And the next time you’re planning a launch, ask yourself if you need to add more ELO. About the Author: Chris Garrett is a professional blogger and the founder of Shy Networking , a program designed to help introverts connect to anyone with ease and confidence. He blogs at chrisg.com .

3874a960aeelo.jpg 150x149 How to Make More Sales With the Help of ELO

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How to Make More Sales With the Help of ELO

The Copyblogger Guide to Zombie-Free Product Launches

These days, a lot of online product launches are like zombie attacks. One day, everything is fine. The next day, there’s a legion of crazy people banging on your virtual doors and windows, wanting to feed on you. Who the hell are these zombies and how did they get my address? Time to break out the shotgun, or in this case, the Delete All button. And it gets worse. That group of friends you hang out with from time to time? Yeah . . . they’re zombies too. “Wait dude, I thought we were cool . . . why are you . . . Gaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!” You can always tell when the first wave approaches, because your inbox will suddenly fill up with variants of the same message. And the guy who hasn’t talked to you since his last launch is suddenly your best friend again. Now, don’t get me wrong. I’m the last person to hate on someone for trying to make a buck. But let’s face it, some of these guys are doing their reputations an injustice by treating their customers this way. Product quality aside, in some markets we’ve become so immune to these tactics that zombie leaders are forced to gather new stream of recruits each and every time they launch an invasion. So what’s my point? Instead of forcing yourself to do the hard work of constantly capturing fresh flesh to lunch on launch to, why not implement a strategy that takes the best parts of the product launch model and combines them with high-quality content marketing ? That way, you not only build trust and authority with your readers, but you also keep them ready and eager to listen to you. (In other words, you make yourself zombie-proof.) That’s what they do here at Copyblogger, and it’s why so many other bloggers have been able to form six-figure businesses without having giant lists and hundreds of superaffiliates. It works like this: You let your content do the talking and you build your lists the old-fashioned way. That means building an effective blog , providing value, and following up to help your readers be successful in their own right. You take your time to show off some of your best stuff before you ask for any cash. When it’s time to launch your product, you will have already built trust and authority with your readers, so they won’t be wondering why you are emailing them out of the blue. And although you might use a big tribe of affiliates, a long-form sales letter , and variety of techniques to build excitement about the launch, your audience isn’t turned off by what you have to offer. In fact, they can’t wait to come along for the ride. What makes the difference? Well for starters, your audience knows you already, because they’ve been reading your blog for months before the launch. They probably got your name from another satisfied reader, a retweet, or a link from a blogger they trust. So you start out with a good shot of social proof . Second, unlike certain clumsy marketers, you don’t abuse that trust. You treat people as friends, not food. And finally, when you’ve closed the sale and converted your readers into buyers, you follow through on your promises by (over)delivering what you promised. Not only that, but you stay in touch. You aren’t the hit and run marketer that we’re used to The funny thing is, the original Product Launch Formula created by Jeff Walker is totally in sync with this approach. That’s probably why Brian Clark found PLF so useful several years ago when he used Jeff’s ideas to start building Copyblogger into a powerhouse business , not just a powerhouse blog. In fact, lots of Third Tribe -style marketers use the strategies outlined in PLF. Because they work. But we’re using them to build businesses, not just one-shot brain buffets launches. Need some examples? Teaching Sells quickly sells out, launch after launch. (Its most recent launch sold out within a day.) Naomi Dunford creates five-figure paydays without damaging her relationship with her list of fanatically loyal fans. Dave Navarro sold 500 copies of his remarkable product without resembling anyone from the film Shaun of the Dead. As a marketer, consider building an army of fans rather than traveling from town to town in search of fresh victims. The difference might be small, but over time, the benefits are tremendous. Alternately, you can build your own legion of zombies and consume everyone on your list. I don’t know about you, but to me, that sounds like a lot of work . Besides, something tells me that brains don’t actually taste very good. About the Author : Nathan Hangen teaches people how to build digital empires , helps them rock through their workday , and works with small businesses to implement digital marketing campaigns .

zombie thumb The Copyblogger Guide to Zombie Free Product Launches

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The Copyblogger Guide to Zombie-Free Product Launches