Filtering Posts by Month: October, 2014

But The Effect It Has On Your Customers Is No Joke.

One Of The Best Ways I’ve Seen To Prove Your Trustworthiness.

By Rich Harshaw

Public speaking is widely considered to be a nerve-wracking experience. The reason has very little to do with the actual speaking; I think it’s the potential negative reaction from the audience we tend to fear. Negative reactions could range from boredom to heckling to cartoonish tomato throwing.

But the most dreaded—and humiliating—negative reaction of all has to be laughing.

Not “you just told a joke or a funny story and I’m laughing with you” laughing. I’m talking about “I’m laughing at you because I can’t believe I showed up here today to listen to somebody spout such garbage” laughing.

Which is the kind I always get in contractor marketing seminars with remodelers when I recommend they offer their customers a 100% money-back guarantee.

(insert your laughter here)

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How To Succeed In Life By Focusing On Super Simple Stuff

By Rich Harshaw

There’s no way it’s that simple.

Actually, the path to success is usually so simple it’s mind-boggling. In fact, the only thing more mind-boggling than how simple the path to success actually is… is how reluctant most people are to acknowledge the simple path and take it—precisely because it is in fact so darn simple.

Don’t believe me? Answer this: if you had a deadly disease and were told you could be completely healed by dipping yourself in a local river, would you do it?

Naaman wouldn’t. At least not at first. Naaman was a commander of the Syrian army in Old Testament times; he contracted leprosy—which was incurable and deadly—so he called on a prophet in Israel, Elisha, who he heard could heal him.

When Naaman showed up at the prophet’s house, instead of greeting him personally, Elisha sent a servant with instructions: Naaman would be cured by dipping himself in the nearby River Jordan seven times. Naaman was furious: he had expected the prophet to meet him personally, call on the Lord on his behalf, and strike the disease out of his body. Besides, the River Jordan was polluted and disgusting—the thought of curing leprosy by bathing in it was absurd. According to the story, Naaman turned and went away in a rage.
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You Don’t Have To Hire And Manage A Van Full Of Sketchy Door Knockers To Have Success With Canvassing.

Just Start (And Finish) With One Guy.

By Rich Harshaw

Read to the end of this article for a challenge. It’s limited to the first three companies… so hurry.

About five years ago I had a client in Washington D.C. that had built his entire business on canvassing. You know what I’m talking about—old school, pavement-pounding, number-crunching, knock-till-your-fingers-bleed canvassing.

His secret weapon was the University of Maryland, which was about five minutes from his office. Back in the days before online message boards, he’d post notices around campus on real life bulletin boards and telephone poles advertising high paying part-time jobs for college students. He’d get a virtually unlimited stream of kids willing to pound doors… and in return, he’d pay them $10 to $20 an hour depending on their production. This was back when minimum wage was in the $3 to $5 range. On the strength of those college kids, he built a solid company that always had an abundant lead flow and healthy sales.

Then when the century changed, a funny thing started to happen—the university students stopped responding to those bulletin board notices. Promises of signing bonuses, spiffs, and higher starting salaries did little to change the tide, so he started looking elsewhere, including Craigslist, miscellaneous job boards, and even street-corner day laborers. Suffice it to say, the quality of the canvassers went down… to the point where he abandoned canvassing altogether and got serious about advertising instead. That’s how and when I met him.
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Here Are 5 Ideas To Turn What Are Normally
The Worst Sales Months Of The Year Into Money Makers…

By Rich Harshaw

Let’s face it: nobody wants to buy new windows during the holiday season. Or remodel their kitchen. Or deal with a new roof. Or anything else that absolutely can’t wait until people’s hectic holiday lives settle down a bit after the New Year.

That’s why most remodeling companies go into reluctant hibernation mode starting about mid-November. They just assume that people can’t/won’t/don’t buy, and they give up trying. Contractors’ marketing budgets are frequently slashed in an effort to stem the red ink. It’s almost a self-fulfilling prophecy.

But it doesn’t have to be.

Here are a few ideas—courtesy of real-life experience—that may work to scare the Grinch away from your holiday this year. I’m presenting these ideas to you now so you have a bit of time to ponder, decide, then implement what you’re seeing here.
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