I am a little fixated on quotes right now. Earlier this week I wrote about how bad they were. (Read it here.) And then I did something really silly. I asked my members to each send me a copy of their latest quote to a client. In return I promised each a free quote overview and upgrade, as part of their membership.
Let me explain.
You spend some money each month on marketing. (Marketing is a polite word describing all the things you do to get people to knock at your door because they have a problem that you can solve.) And you spend more money on selling. (Selling covers all the things you do to turn that door-knocker into a paying client.)
Day in and day out these processes work towards you being able to “quote” the client. That “quote” is like a marriage proposal, after a long (and often arduous) pursuit.
As an aside, I have some experience in marriage proposals. I have proposed just four times. I was accepted three times. In one case I was gently reprimanded for delivering the worst proposal the future Mrs Carruthers had ever heard, and, it appears, she was somewhat of an expert on the matter. She suggested I polish it up a little and come back the next week. I did.
The point of all the expensive activity, this marketing and selling stuff, is to be asked for a “quote”, or, as I prefer to call it, the “proposal”.
As I write this I have 100 such proposals sitting in my inbox. Some are wonderful, easy to read, clear and to the point. Those three work very, very often. The rest are a very mixed bag, some of which redefine one’s level of archaic.
Please bear in mind that these are sales proposals written by folk just like you and me. Wonderful people who make and sell fine products and services. But cannot write for toffee. This means that too many of their business efforts die in the bin when their prospects cannot open their proposals, or see a disconnect between what they see and what is being promised.
In the absence of something to touch, feel, or smell – the little things we see are the only way a buyer can assess your offer. Little things like your proposal. That proposal is the lynchpin of your business.
The best way I can demonstrate this is to ask you to check out the website of my favourite sleeping place in Cape Town: Jambo. I have mentioned it often. The site is elegant and eclectic, like the room I stay in, and like Barry & Mina. Each time is a new experience.
Then look at their old website from earlier this year. (It is here.) The cost of upgrading the website to reflect the experience was minuscule. The establishment is the same. But a prospect now gets a much, much more accurate reflection of the experience.
Most buyers are far more worried about avoiding risk than they are about optimising enjoyment. And the slightest dissonance can send them to the fellow outside with a service that sucks, but a heck of a proposal. (That, by the way, is why many prospects buy from other suppliers.)
Hire me for the next month, for just $21.97, and I will help you upgrade your “quote” to a proposal as well. If you find enough value to stick around for another month, you do not have to do anything. If not, a simple email will cancel. Please join me here.
Whether you use me or not, your proposal is worth a second look. It is the lynchpin connecting your marketing and selling to your bank balance.
(Just to clear the air – I had nothing to do with the new Jambo website, but I think it is gorgeous, just like the place.)
Hello. I am Peter Carruthers. May I re-introduce myself?
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