Where to find new prospects online

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Over the years, I’ve launched numerous 7-figure businesses, written multiple bestsellers, and landed on the Inc. 500 list multiple times.

But it hasn’t always been that way.

While the success and accolades are great, what’s not often seen is the struggle to get there.

I wasn’t an ‘overnight success.’?

As a small business owner, I’m not far removed from the struggles many face to keep their doors open.

I used to spend a lot of time focusing on where my next lead or opportunity would come from. Like many of you might, I was dealing with:

• Unpredictability in my sales pipeline
• Waiting (or hoping!) that referrals or leads would come in organically
• Trying to stand out among a growing list of competitors
• Pressure to find new sales or risk having to close it all down and go find a ‘job’

Why Do 90% of Businesses Fail?

Sure. There’s not simply one reason.

You have to provide a service or product people are willing to pay for.

But let’s assume you’ve got that.

What separates the successful from those doomed to fail?

The successful have systems in place to bring in leads and opportunities consistently. And they are proactive in taking control.?

That’s why 12% of businesses that don’t report cashflow issues have systems in place to reliably generate leads.

The other 88% of businesses that report cashflow issues LACK systems to generate leads.

When I first got started, I tried what everyone was saying I should. You’ve probably thought of all this as well…

• Attended Networking Events
• Went to Chamber of Commerce meetings
• Spent time and money creating ‘lead magnets’ (reports, etc)
• Cold calling?
• Direct mail
• Spent money on ads even

I faced a huge learning curve and spent a lot of time and money to figure things out. But I didn’t have to and you don’t either.

If you’d like to learn how, my team and I are hosting a 3-hour workshop next week, to help you set up my secret system for getting qualified leads with email outreach and social media.?

This is a pay-what-you-can event.?

So while it’s not free, I’m letting you choose what you can afford to pay to attend. That can be $1… $10… $1000… or whatever you feel is right for you.??

The cool part? 100% of the proceeds go to the Wounded Warrior Project to help veterans deal with PTSD and live their best, most productive, lives after their years of service.

Get your ticket here now

Power of Being Proactive

I got tired of all the guesswork and of throwing money after more strategies I felt I had little control over and that weren’t getting me results. Just eating up my time and money.

So, after sitting through another local business owner presentation on marketing strategies...I had a crazy idea:

What if I simplified?

What if I took back control?

If I stopped waiting for these funnels to work, and instead did something proactive.

I started making direct outreach to people that looked like good prospects for me online...and something funny happened.

I closed a new client that I reached out to on LinkedIn within weeks.

Now that I had some momentum and a little money in my pocket, I had to see if I could replicate that success.

So I reached out to more prospective clients. More deals came through.

Looking back, now I understand why. Especially when I saw stats like this -

The first viable vendor to reach a decision-maker and set the buying vision has an average 74% close ratio. - Forester

And this -

You have a 56% greater chance to attain quota (goals) if you engage buyers before they contact a seller. - Sales Benchmark Index

Cut Out the Noise and Focus on What Works

The simplest path from point A to B is a straight line.

“Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.” - Leonardo Da Vinci

Splash pages, landing pages, optin funnels, lead magnets, and on and on have their place, but if you really want to get in front of prospects, you’ve got to get personal.?

You’ve got to avoid information overload (what we like to call ‘Death by Funnel’).?

That’s not to say marketing funnels can’t work.

They certainly can.

But there’s a lot of time, energy, and money that goes into making them effective.

If you need results NOW, you need a simple route to generate appointments and opportunities.

One that is proactive. One that gets results.

Where Do They Hang Out?

First, you’ve got to have some idea of where they hang out and what influences them.

Think about the difference between driving down the freeway and seeing a generic billboard for law services vs opening an industry magazine and seeing an advertisement for law services for businesses like yours.?

If you need law services, you’d probably lean to someone who specializes in exactly what you need, rather than someone who provides generic law services. A billboard on the freeway is hoping that someone it can help will call. An industry magazine ad targets a specific subset of people.?

That’s what you want to do. Be specific. Go where they are.

So besides industry publications and events that your prospects might be interested in, let’s talk about how you can use this same idea online.

When we want to enter a new market, we always focus on two specific channels first:

1. Email
2. LinkedIn & social media channels

The Inbox Myth

I saw on LinkedIn someone the other day who asked for opinions from online marketers on what his 18-year-old son said about email - that nobody today checks email. That they’re on other channels instead.

I also had a conversation with a business owner who sold paintings. He said he’s stopped email marketing because he doesn’t check his email either - and assumed nobody else does. It just gathers in the inbox.

While we all may suffer from inbox overload in one way or another, and while these anecdotal conversations may suggest that email isn’t working…

The data shows the opposite.

Since the pandemic email sales have risen. People are actually communicating more over email than ever before - even though they also DM, text, etc.

Email is still an incredibly valid (and lucrative) way to get in front of your prospects.?

And it’s growing.?

Statista’s 2021 research found the number of email users worldwide to be at 4.3 billion. This figure is set to grow to 4.6 billion in 2025, making up more than half of the expected world population. This statistic clearly shows that email marketing is an opportunity that brands shouldn’t be missing out on.

So why do people ignore their emails??

Because they don’t care. This is where you need to know how to ENGAGE your prospects and stand out in the inbox.

Join Us On A Half-Day Workshop Where You'll Learn 'The Revolutionary 3-Step System Fast-Growing Small Businesses Are Using To Quickly Find Prospects, Stand Out In Their Marketplace And Get More Leads And Clients On-Demand'

How to Get Results With Email

You need to be personable. Friendly. Human. Think differently from every other person sending emails and stand out.

Mostly, keep it easy on yourself - and on your prospect! Remember these tips when you go to write emails:

• Short sentences.
• Short paragraphs.
• Simple language.
• More casual = more personal.
• Clear next step.

Again, make the email personable and easy to read.?

Here’s an example of an email one of our clients used…

Notice here that the “ask” is easy. You’re keeping it casual and real, and it’s something the person might actually be interested in.

It’s just to get them familiar with you and get some momentum.

Follow-up

Also, remember that it’s not effective if you send an email just once…

Most of the time, people barely remember who you are by the third, fourth, or even fifth email. One of the best ways to stand out is simply to be CONSISTENT and keep showing up.?

This means planning out your emails and keeping track of your follow-up.

Link up with LinkedIn (and other social platforms)

We love LinkedIn… your prospects are there and often in the mindset to look for resources and make connections.

• As of March 2021, 25% of US adults are on LinkedIn
• Over 15.4 billion people visited LinkedIn throughout Q2 2021
• LinkedIn boasts over 57 million companies listed on the site
• Just over 16% of LinkedIn users log in daily via the app, with 48.5% logging in monthly
• 84% of LinkedIn users login to help grow their professional network

The key to success on LinkedIn is similar to email.?

• Keep it easy.?
• Focus on engagement & building trust (NOT immediate sales).
• Keep showing up. Follow-up is key.

Used in conjunction with email, you’ve got a powerful strategy to become a familiar name for your prospects.

Your Online Profiles

A few other things to think about - besides using direct messages, make sure that your online profiles are up to date and that they speak the language of your prospects. In your profiles, tell them upfront who you help and the results you get.

Content

Besides using direct messages consistently, you'll want to make sure that you are seen as “active” online.?

Plan ahead to curate and/or create your own content. Give some commentary if you want, but again, keep it easy and keep it real. Your prospects represent and work for businesses, but they are also people. So be human. Respond. Ask questions. Share personal stories and insight.

Most importantly - be consistent.?

This does take time and planning. But if you batch your social media efforts in one go for the week (or possibly for the month) you can get a lot done in an hour or two.?

Let’s Be Realistic: How to Fit it All In

The hardest thing to do when you are starting to grow and scale your business is prioritizing your time. As a business owner, you’ve got lots of hats to wear. You need to balance the tasks of getting clients (both short term and long term focused tasks) and fulfilling/delivering for your clients.

If you want to really grow, here’s the truth:

You need to know what YOU should do and what you need someone else to do.?

Time is literally our most finite resource.

You can’t create more time. You can’t find more time.?

You CAN work non-stop. But if you do, you WILL burn out.?

How can you effectively run your business if all your time is spent marketing??

You can’t. Either your marketing will slip or your operations will slip.?

I am going to help you fix that.?

Join my team and I for a deep dive workshop on how to get leads with email outreach and social media next.

Get the details here - We want as many small business owners and entrepreneurs to benefit, so we’ve allowed you to simply pay what you can. With 100% of the proceeds going to The Wounded Warrior Project.?

This will be a half-day workshop all about how you can take control of your prospecting and nurture in a systematic way.?

• You’ll know exactly how to identify and build a list of your top prospects,?
• Build trust and open your prospects up to real business conversations,
• While giving you more control over your financial success.

It’s easy. We’ll show you how we do it.

Register here to join us next week!