When you walk into a store, how do you go from a casual browser who is “just looking”, to handing over your credit card?
Phrased another way… how do you turn prospects into customers? This is a question business owners face every day.
In the online business world, you might hear about converting prospects into clients.
“Convert” is fancy marketing speak for getting a result you want, like when someone clicks on an ad that takes them to your website.
Your home page might have a “lead magnet” — like a report, challenge, or other freebie you offer in exchange for someone’s email address. When someone decides to download your lead magnet, that’s another conversion.
Getting someone on your email list is huge, because YOU own your email list (rather than relying on social media and ads to bring you prospects.)
Once someone has given you access to their inbox, you now have the ability to proactively reach out and offer them something they might want to pay you money for.
Of course, they’re still only a prospect until they buy. So how do you convert them?
If you’re uncomfortable with the idea of selling, you’re going to love this.
The most important factor in turning prospects into customers does not rely on selling at all. Instead, you want to ease into the sale by offering value, building the relationship, and making your prospect feel part of the creation process.
It starts with knowing your audience first:
IT’S ABOUT THEM, NOT YOU
Ever met someone who only wanted to talk about themselves?
You probably didn’t feel listened to or valued, nor had any desire to engage in the “conversation.”
It’s no different in business.
As counterintuitive as it may seem, people want you to talk about them, not your product or business.
I know, you have this offer you’ve poured your heart into, and you think you need to tell people about how great it is. You might also think you need to convince people that you have the credentials to sell it to them.
But that’s not how you turn a prospect into a customer, at least not at first.
To be heard when you tell someone you have something they should buy, you need to show them you understand what they need. This starts with getting a clear picture of who they are.
How do you do that? By hanging out in places your prospect spends time. If you create meal prep planners for busy moms, visit online forums where they trade ideas.
Often, people create a product or service out of personal experience. There’s a lot of benefit to doing this, but you have to remember you are not your prospect. You’ve “graduated” from the days when you needed the solution you are offering. So make sure you get to know the problems, fears, and worries your prospect is likely having — as well as their hopes and dreams.
SPEAK THEIR LANGUAGE
When you can show your prospect you understand what they need, you’re on your way to gaining their trust. And one of the most effective ways to do that is to use their own words…
As you’re gathering your findings, take note of the words they use — and use them as well in your marketing!
I'm a big fan of old-school direct marketing and copywriting, because the folks who did it figured out a lot of stuff many many decades ago. One of those people was Robert Collier, and he has one of the best quotes when it comes to marketing and speaking to your prospects:
“Enter into the conversation already taking place in the customer's mind.”
This is brilliant in its simplicity and effectiveness. Instead of trying to guess what your prospect is thinking, and wasting time coming up with the right thing to say, you just need to listen!
Human psychology can be fairly predictable, and there are certain objections many prospects face before deciding to make an investment.
No matter what you’re selling, your prospect is likely thinking that you’re a scam, or that your product won’t work for them, or that their family won’t be supportive if they spend X amount of money on your solution.
During your research, listen to exactly how your prospect phrases these objections. Then use their language to address those objections in your marketing and sales message.
GIVE, GIVE, GIVE
Now that you know all about your prospect’s desires and objections, how do you get them to trust you?
By publishing content that provides them valuable information.
This starts the moment a new subscriber joins your email list and you send them the freebie you promised.
By the time a new subscriber joins your list, you should have created a “nurture sequence”. This is a series of emails they’ll receive from you over the next few weeks.
These messages can contain text or video, but they all have one thing in common: you’re going to be sending them awesome content that makes their life better. You’re essentially “nurturing” the new relationship with your prospects.
At this point, you’re not selling anything to your prospects. You’re just showing them you know your stuff and love to share it with them. Think of it like dating. Would you marry someone who proposed to you the first time you went out to dinner? You need to “woo” your prospect and show them you’re a good catch, without asking for anything in return.
The more you give without asking, the more they’ll appreciate finding you in their inbox, and the more likely they’ll be to want to “commit” when you do make an offer.
At this point, the conversation in their mind shifts from objections to, “Wow, if I’m getting all this for free, imagine what I’ll get if I buy something!”
MAKE THEM PART OF THE PROCESS
One of the coolest parts of my Product Launch Formula is the Seed Launch.
Whether you’ve never sold a thing in your life or you have an established business, the Seed Launch will change the way you think about product creation.
Most people feel overwhelmed by the thought of creating a new product from scratch. This is the genius of the Seed Launch: your prospects help you create your product — while they pay you for it!
Will Hamilton has been in our community for years and is in my elite Platinum Plus Mastermind. Will has a wildly successful online business teaching people how to play tennis.
He wanted to offer a new product for people who play tennis doubles. At first he thought he would teach mostly about technique. But Will also knows that he’s not a mind reader, and that many entrepreneurs spend a ton of time creating a new product that seems amazing yet fails to sell.
So instead, he sent out a survey. The results surprised even him. Instead of pointers on how to serve during a doubles match, he discovered that the number one problem recreational players face is that they are always playing with new partners, so they wanted to know how to develop rapport, chemistry, and teamwork!
Through the survey, Will discovered that experts have blind spots, and the only way to know if your product will sell is to ask.
“I'm not pulling stuff out of a hat now, I actually know very clearly and specifically what people want.”
And that’s how Will turns prospects into customers, launch after launch.
FOCUS ON THE TRANSFORMATION
If you've got a product or service that's going to help people in a significant way, then it's your sacred duty to make a great offer.
And when I say “offer”, you have to make the complete argument for why someone should pull out their wallet and give you their hard earned money for whatever you're going to give to them.
How do you do that? By making your marketing about the kind of results your prospects will get when they become customers.
Will they find the love of their life? Quit smoking? Stop fighting with their kids? Get in shape? Run their own business?
What will their life look like when they buy into what you’re selling?
Paint a very clear picture of the transformation. Make them feel it in their bones. And then, don’t forget to ask for the sale!
One of the biggest mistakes I see people make is they rush the offer. Almost everyone does when they're first starting out.
Let people know how you are going to change their lives — how you're going to make their lives better — and then ask for the order.
If you do all the steps above, the right people will respond, and you’ll know how to turn those prospects into customers, again and again.
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