HOW DID YOU FIND OUT ABOUT ME?

(I write my stories in first person. The episodes are from regular interactions!).

I was stuck.

I launched my business 1.5 years ago; the first year, it was cruising.

I could not keep up with the pace of inquiries coming in, translating into sales.

Some of them had decided they wanted to buy my product based on another customer's recommendation.

The "busyness" made me happy, and I continued servicing my customers.

Until one day, somebody turned off the "Tap".

It was as if there was some cataclysmic event had happened.

Inquiries trickled down.

I had free time on my hands now. I picked up the phone and spoke to some of my earlier customers.

"Long time no see" were their words before I could ask them anything!

Some had loved my service and then got a bit disgruntled when my response rates lowered.

Some continued to love me but had other items on their mind.

My (former) lovers still recommend it, but only when specifically prompted.

In my quest for growth, I fell into the fallacy that good things will go on.

They don't!

I should have invested more time talking and interacting with my customers.

Most importantly, I should have known more about them and their needs.

Better late than never.

BOB ISNER is very clear. He says:

"Ask many open-ended questions - AND LISTEN!"

Here's a list of questions I promise to ask and keep asking. You should too!

"Hey, so how did you find out about my company/service?"

"What is your need?"

"In what context did my name or service come up?"

How many times have we asked these questions?

Where are the requests coming in from?

Do we really know?

Have we invested enough time in analyzing the sources of referrals?

As Stacey Randall says:

"The source needs to TRUST you for referrals to happen."

We need to know who they are, what appeals to them, and how much more value I can add to their life/business.

IDENTIFY your referral sources.

LEARN what they need, and add value.

SCALE this learning with others like the referrers.

REPEAT

Listen to the full interview with Stacey Brown Randall here:

The Outlier Marketer recommends:

"ONE + ONE = THREE" by Dave Trott

Summary:

A different approach to creativity and writing. Quite some learning and a book to re-read several times.

Key punchlines:

• The strategy makes the advertising right. The execution makes it great.
• Forget what you haven’t done. It’s what you have done that matters.
• You can have what you want. Or you can have your reasons for not having it.
• The product creates the experience. The experience creates the reputation. The reputation creates the brand.
• “Don’t tell me you are a comedian. Make me laugh!”

Rating:

Clarity of thought - 4.5 | Writing style - 5 | Connect - 5 | Author credibility - 5 | Uniqueness of Topic - 4 | Book cover - 4 | Outcome - 4.5 | Title of the book - 5 | Research - 4 | Author website/resources - 4

I am part of “The Bookies”, a weekly book review meet-up. If you’d like to join, please reach out.

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