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Communicating with your Fans and Clients

All right, so yeah, we're going to talk about now is so there is the one on one meeting right with someone you want may already know or there might be someone who visits your website and gives you a call but there's sometimes there's opportunity teo be found in someone you don't know right? A big decision maker maybe it's the ceo of a company or maybe it's the hr director of of a company and so you've got no contact information whatsoever none or maybe because you just got their address so I'm gonna I'm gonna share with you a stealth strategy that has worked really well for me and it's very old fashioned and very old school and here it's very inexpensive and it's very effective if you do it right does anyone have an idea of what that might be cool, darling that's what that's when part of it but I don't actually believe in going in completely cold but yeah, a hand written letter, the sales letter or the hello letter we'll call it something else all the sales letter for one's gonna get u...

ptight don't want that alright so there here's what I d'oh and I've had you know? So I wrote this recent ice age four months ago I wrote the ceo of silicon valley bank who's going to get through to the ceo of silicon valley bank I didn't because I wrote this letter you wanted, you wanted to help work, okay? Here's the thing people are inundated with e mails and s o I can't emphasize enough you don't sell through email, you sell with the one on one exchange that vern and I just had, I mean, occasionally you sell through email if they're the ones initiating contact and you're just going back and answering questions, but you really can't initiate a relationship or our cultivate a prospect through email and then goes with social media to social media has a wonderful reaching impact. I've actually a celebratory oil painting through lengthen a ceo in the wine industry wanted to join my linked in network and here's, what do you think I did ceo in the wine industry? Do you think I said to him when he sent me the invitation for lengthen know here's what I said? I said, well, thank you so very much for your invitation appreciate that, please forgive me, but do I know you do? I know you let you in my linked in network just cause you asked. So polite, but guess what happened? He said, no, you don't, but I entire your work and I would like to know you or something like that said great, so we just started this exchange and then I let him in once I knew who he wass and let him again I'm control I got the reins right? You're you know inside yes it's not yet that's a very counter to what we're been told right? But it gave me an opportunity and it's given me an opportunity when I say no politely um I get to actually engage that's the point of social media is actually engaging and actually starting conversations. So anyway, about six months later he came back and I bought an original oil painting sight unseen from my website but if I would have said yes, I think that would've been the end of the conversation all right, so you know, not everyone is allowed in your tribe you're in control of that and, you know, given that they need they need to perform a ceremony or give you an offering or do something given what be relevant in some way don't just let anyone and actually leaked in advice is for you to do that don't let people in who we don't know it's not it's, not a smart strategy. Did you see the spectacular linked in fail from a couple of weeks ago? You know, tell me recruit I'm not sure what state she was in, but she somebody asked if they could become part of the network on instead of just politely declining whatever she gave them the most poison a slap down well that's not right no exactly so this this guy took it viral on this woman was humiliated to three hundred million people around the world wow careful how you handle social media you mean her principal was right it was kind of why would I want you in my network but it was the way she handled it and write it imploded so remember what I said thank you so much for invitation police forgive me but do I know you exactly times actually I did there's one time where I did this person and I had actually met and I forgot because I meet a lot of people but I knew who it wass oh yeah that's right I remember you from whatever now we can actually have a dialogue how you pal you broach it is important thanks for that you don't wanna give him a complete flop down it just means that you have a few barriers to entry into your network and into your world not everyone is member of your tribe all right so I'm going to give you an example of how to write the sales letter so here's the key is people who are hard to reach you get a lot of phone calls and they got a lot of emails what I do is I write a sales letter on a white eight and a half by eleven playing paper I don't use my stationery my anne and ray incorporated stationary. What are you's? My andrey incorporated envelope? I took a plane letter plain paper, type it out and I'm going to show you the exact structure that I use, and I put it in a twelve by nine plain white envelope with a stamp or two, and I hand addressed it to the ceo or whoever that difficult to reach person is, and I don't put a richer her dress, you think they open it? What do you think they're going to open? More likely to open that letter or that email with the same information? Where do you think they'll spend more time in attention, the letter or the email, the letter, the letter? It works, it doesn't work every time, and it depends on your letter, and it depends on the band width of the individual receipt of the letter with thing after keep in mind is people in certain positions have gatekeepers that could be an administrative assistant, for example, it's really good to find out what his or her name is, because you're gonna include it at the bottom of this letter that I'm going to show you the outline to okay this so to give credit where credit is due, this particular outline is based on the sandler sale systems this isn't like you know I didn't invent all this on my own I was inspired by other people who know a lot more about sales than ideo I'm still I'm still learning all this stuff myself so um okay so the outline is this so there's a big idea what does that mean basically that's that's the one that's one of your value proposition but why this is relevant what value you offer to that particular person the tie in paragraph is for example in this letter art consultant who I know in montana knows me and knows someone else and so that is actually our tie in and then bullet points you know that you're going to talk about the benefits of your value proposition to this person put in about bullet points they don't have time to read I didn't have time so make make the body of the letter bullet points the ending paragraph ties things together and the ps the p s so let me just talk about the purpose of the letter progress of the letter is not to make a sale you don't want to do not first of all it's not gonna happen the purpose of the letter is to secure a meeting either on the phone or in person that's the purpose of the letter and this works so actually this did work with this organization I think they stripped the name off no they didn't okay that's all right um so now you all know that I'm courting the yellowstone club all right? So the yellowstone club is a what's where bill gates has a house and those types okay and they fell homes and my value proposition is something that would actually be of service to them I know it would be because I've also worked with a montage if you know what the montages montages sort of like a fall it's a very smaller number of properties but like the ritz carlton it's actually few steps up and they have a hotel peace and they have a resident's piece so I worked with them on their utah there dear they're deer valley property so I mention that because I know these two have a relationship the marketing I know the president of montage and I know the president knows someone at the yellowstone club so I want a contest I'm time just so suit sorry that's similar they're there in the similar tribe they know each other and so I start with that and but above that here's the big idea like the point of the whole letter the point of the whole value proposition is those marketing illustrious real estate now have a new innovative artistic tool to tell a story of each property I'm not talking about my color here which I'm known for who do you think they care here's what they care about can I help them sell real estate so they care about and I can't help themselves real estate I've done it with montage so I'm just gonna get right to the point up here in big, bold letters so if you don't even have to read the rest right there that's what I'm doing okay here's his directed to here's how we know each other her so I came to find came to find you came to write this letter and you know, here's basically the value proposition I'm giving you just a bullet you know the outline here bullet points so here's my argument bullet points and sincerely and ray artist and ceo of an reincorporated now here's the key this p s right now in this case I didn't have a administrative assistants name, so I couldn't mention him or her. But if I did have their name, I would say p s I offer a limited number of experiences of art to select clients each year. I will phone you on wednesday, january eight that ten o'clock this number to schedule a brief time to determine if this program is a good fit. What am I doing in that? What kind of what am I communicating? I'm in control, right? My answer might they might not answer my call, but I have been very clear and specific about what I'm gonna do you think I'm gonna call it ten o five minute call at nine fifty five? I'm calling it ten on the dot and I'm gonna prove to them from the get go that I do what I say, I'm going to dio when I'm going to do it, it sets it up and it really is like I literally wait for my phone to go ten o'clock group and then I pressed the button so it's more it would be ideal if it was like let's say, john smith was the administrative assistant, I'll phone john smith on this time to schedule a time to meet with you by phone, and I go through the proper channels and I go through that gate keeper you want to make friends with the gate keeper because the gatekeeper will either indoor for you or shut you down. So, um, is so you may not feel the need for this at the moment, depending on where you are and your enterprise. But tara, if you want teo, do, if you want to start seeing if you could cultivate a strategic partnership with a adoption organization, you know you may not know the ceo of that organization you might have anything is, but this is one way you could get your foot in the door again the purpose is just to get a meeting and then we would do it for you and I did too see if this is really a fit to see if there's report to see if our values align and to see how we might be able to help each other and does this make sense to everyone said emanated questions about a sales letter they're incredibly effective because no one uses them you can skip the torrent of communication that's coming in through email and phones by doing in text like so much so much is competing for our attention if you see something that's on a white envelope that's hand written you can't tell where it's come from you're gonna open that thing I'm at least going to get you to open it I don't know you may not do anything with it but I will get you to open it more than likely right if it arrived at your house would you open it okay what would you suggest for somebody who doesn't have those context to link them just yet? Is that phil? Is that the way you suggest doing it waiting till you have those contacts? Well in this case I didn't have the contact I had a head like a someone I knew in common but she she wasn't introducing me I was introducing me so this is perfect for when you don't have any contacts perfect you don't know anyone you don't know the ceo of silicon valley bank um but he's going to hear your name soon right that's how you do it and who knows he may mention he may not thieves are great and it's cost nuts next to nothing cost your stamp um I mean I am list like finding a sport like can I no wonder I'm going to get these people to do it they're going to meet with me this is so cool this is so fun it's really fun and you could make it you make a game out of it and especially if you do this with a friend or friends you know you could say I'm going to do I'm going to write these ten letters and we'll see how many people get to respond you know just have fun with it it's really satisfying when they actually dio oh damn network that's great all right so we're not competing we're creating value right now you're killing us who wants to swim with the sharks any notion blood anybody no no create unique value who's going to compete with vernon even grammy dan you can't you're not in competition right? Two vocalists he's a vocalist you're not in competition because you have unique value right lot of jewelry designers how many are going to really be in direct competition with cheryl now direct competition indirect yeah was always in direct competition might need a new engine that's in direct competition all right, so let's go into the next section because I know this is the part that throws people off of having those guided conversations and sails lets talk about objections what what what happens when people say no or they don't understand what you're offering it's like you have to have have to build to respond to them right? All right, what's most would like to ask the studio audience to help me out here and just give me one of your most common objective objections objections means that they're there saying no to your offering or their you know uh not making up their mind okay, two hands all right, okay, so one of mine when I'm going through the commission process, I have some collectors who are interested, but if their first time collectors it can be an intimidating process or they've never done it before, their biggest objection with that process is what if they don't like it at the end where they're not sure what to expect or and they might not have the guts to say, oh, I don't really like that our whole, you know, okay? And what if they do have the ability to say, I don't like that? Then what happens next? So what did they actually say to you? Like, what would they what would a collector who has reservations, what are the words that actually fly out of their mouth well, I've had one say just that and what if I don't like it? What if I don't like so now what do you how do you know? So that's an objection that son of a it's going it could impede the sale. How do you answer that? Objection. So what? What I did in this particular case was I walked them through again step by step on what my process is. I have a little bit about it on my website but in more detail so to alleviate that fear, I told them we before we start, we have a consultation. We sit down and discuss in depth what they like about my work. We look at other examples of my work. They tell me what they like, what they don't like, what they envision for their particular painting and we talk about that together and then throw the process. I provide them with photographs of the painting as it's being created so they feel like they're a part of it and get their does that make them more invested in the morning? Yes, and kind of like if you get that yes, it from my perspective, if you get that yes two, three, four times down the road, it's much more I love it so you get yes, you reinforce the yes yeah that's brilliant but I'm just wondering, is there I plan on doing video down the road for collectors who aren't in my city? Or I can send them clips of their video and it gets, um, to fall in love with their painting before they actually receive it, right? But are there any thing is there anything else that I can do to make people feel more comfortable going through this? So, I mean, what do you guys think? What do you guys think? What else could she d'oh? I want you guys to give answers, this's, someone that you met, a person or someone that you're talking teo usually usually know or it's usually somebody, somebody that I don't know that is found we online to the guy for them or anything so that they can have a little bit of a sense of your com solid carrying personality. I would say that that's, good queen, because you you come, you come across this confident professional, and I think that would put the middies and I'll tell you collectors, I'm talking about art collector specifically, they're a little unfortunately, we've some of us have earned this reputation and some of us have not earned this reputation. But on the whole, I spent a lot of time putting my clients at ease that I'm not a flaky artist, so I'm going to do what I say I'm going to do when I'm going to do it it's going to be on time is going to be within budget they're really afraid a lot of them are very afraid that you're gonna flake so you don't read that way, so I think it's a great idea to just put them at ease up front by saying, like, like like it's again, it's a deserved an undeserved reputation, but we do have it, so what you have to do is show up even more, as even you have to be even more deliberate about how professional and responsible you're going to be to put them at ease. Yeah, okay, question along the same lines I sometimes yet well, if I really don't like in the end, can I have my money back? Okay, so how do you handle that? I don't know how to handle it, okay, good, totally the feel of it and I just some like, oh, I don't know what to say. Well, have you had it where you've had that no, but it's kind of it's good to deal with it now, yeah, kind of creeps in the back of my head like what if somebody really what we want it back or they don't like it they got a bunch of yeses anyway and you don't like it in the end what do you do? I've never had that happen because I feel like once I get them to agree to the process the process works so well that you know I feel I'm confident in the fact that once I can get them to say yes and trusted me than going through the process is so fun and meaningful for both of us that there isn't really that dote in my at the end that they won't like it but if that I mean stranger things have happened and you're right it's good to think about now you want to think about how you want to commit to writing now what your policy is yeah, you could wind up in a fight what I have is fifty percent is non refundable and I guess in that situation that whatever the deposit you choose would be non refundable but that we would either it depends what you're creating if it's something that you can fix if it's something where they I don't know they don't like there's not enough blue or something ridiculous like that then maybe it's something you can fix but if it's I think the only reason somebody would say no I don't like it was maybe if they just decided like a financial decision for financial situations have changed and maybe they just want to back out right that's just there so I'm not giving you the answer to this because the rules that I want to play by are different from the rules that you want to play by and that you want to play by, right? So it's no sense and you know you can examine other people's policies and see which resonate with you but ultimately it's your decision you know you could have a note if you could have a no money back that's it that's it but make sure you put in writing because other ways you can get an argument if they want their money back and you haven't had an artist, I'll give you a recent example I coach artists one on one in the coaching program you pay for it up front because you I only do this on mondays and specific time slots and it's non refundable. So if you decide that you want a flake or if you show up late to your phone consultation, you're not getting your money back it's a booking fee and had an artist whose financial situation changed and she wanted all our money back and she put in a dispute with papal papal said no, the policy's clear isabel we're not going to do that and she went to her credit card company who she paid papal with and they said the same thing no, the policy is clear as a bell you can't have your money back and in fairness to every other artist that I hold to those terms I can't give her her money back and then what if something else has something coming up it's not fair he's air just so I would encourage you to think of your terms and the rules that you're playing by to maintain a level of fairness and consideration for yourself and for your customers and for everyone else that does business with you he started changing the rules for this person or that person I'm going to charge you this price I'm gonna charge you that price you can show us you can show up late to your coaching call and I'll just extend the time you I'm going tio actually not hold that true that's not fair and you're going toe initial under not only undermine you financially, it'll wipe your reputation down, your confidence will go down you put the stuff in writing it's much easier to have a conversation about it we're not even have a conversation about you say you're the rules here are my terms and conditions you must agree to them before we proceed if you go shopping for a painting or print on andrey dot com you want to buy something there you have it it's like it indicates that you've read terms and conditions or unchecked that box than it won't accept payment so that process is automated online that's just make you go who have raise your hand if you have your terms in writing okay, so these are going to be a lot of the objections what their sales objection so we've got can I return it? We handled the discount one earlier on I know none of you're going to discount now, right? We're not gonna do that anymore if you were doing it, what are their common objections? Jane think about it. I need time to think about it. Okay, so great. Now remember that sales process right? We get the upfront contract so at the end of this discussion, right? So here's how it goes so you so I just wanted you know, thanks for your time I'd like to take I'd like to take this opportunity to ask you a few questions to see if this is a good fit and give you the opportunity to ask me any questions that you have but at the end of this meeting, if we both determined that it's a good fit um that we agree to decide with the next best step in if you can remember that catch that intake scenario you described earlier where you will quite often people say I need to talk to my wife about this or whatever are you better off then asking that question first so you can say then you know what before we even talk let's bring your wife into this conversation better strategies you think I think you gotta build report before you say who holds the purse strings here so you have to do that and um yeah I think the earlier you could bring it up the better um but unfortunately your short cuts the other parts that process if you asked it up front right that makes sense so I'd like to ask it up front I like to be the first thing I asked what's your credit card limit anyone but I can't try it just never mind anything I said that you should do all right any other objections that you encounter that you don't know howto handle or you don't have a comeback for if you put your terms in writing you're you're probably it's probably going to help alleviate a lot of this and if you use that upfront contract it's going to alleviate a lot of this remember you want to get to know sooner rather than later because if it's a no that's cool next love that slide some will some won't so what yes that's right you let's attach the outcome with that attitude right it's okay to say no it's okay it's okay if it's not a good fit it's ok you know sometimes when it's not a good fit you can get a referral out of it often you can oh you know it doesn't seem like good does thing that's in your budget gerald that's cool and you know anywhere you can you think of one or two people who might actually enjoy the experience of our two absolutely okay see wasn't I sold her a five thousand dollar painting and I got two referrals out of it even though she didn't book an experience of art she will later after she sells more jewelry that's right comment come in in regards to objections that people are facing furioso said objection your artwork doesn't fit our corporate look is that is that an instance where we're just going to say well okay that doesn't know yet can't make it fit their corporate look whatever that means can't that's an interesting point though if you're in that starving martus mentality no we're not talking no notion but thiss exactly my point have people falling into that trap thinking I'm so desperate to make a sale maybe I should try and paint something in their corporate that's a terrible root to go yeah exactly well I would think of their you know, that's ultimate compromises yeah I think you should think of if you go back to if you can focus on how you can add value above and beyond the art itself and you really don't have to worry so much about making these aesthetic contract compromises tarr is not selling photography anymore she's done with that tired business right? You don't have to anymore isn't it going to be easier to sell or have a guided conversation about she's just just I just brought her out of that business off of selling photography and that is really freeing it's not hard to do that at all it's not hard to walk away if it's not a good fit well you weren't adopted well you know I guess you probably don't want this you're not really gonna benefit you I can't emphasize that enough don't sell art don't sell art it's a horrible business it's horrible it's swimming with sharks you don't want to sell art I don't sell art I don't want to sell art I'm gonna give you a story I didn't give you one story but this is a good story how come I forgot the story so um who saw the movie too secret you remember bob proctor? Okay bob proctor so I was actually flown to toronto to paint bob proctor's garden for his seventieth birthday present and I was a surprise and so they set it up so his wife picked me up from the airport and he was actually sitting in his home office watching me on hdtv via youtube and timed it so that when he was sitting watching me on tv I actually walked into his home office blew his ever loving my it was so cool and I said I I'm and I'm here to paint your garden for your birthday and he was just dumbstruck or gobsmacked as they say in england so so so we walked around the garden and I got to know him I've seen him in the movie the secret and it was interesting cause I was counsel that he doesn't do small talk he only does big talk so if you start talking about the weather he'll basically ignore you not interested in talking about the weather we hit it off when I was there for a few days painted his garden and one evening we're att dinner at his dining table with this family around and at the time he was coaching ellen de generous and her production team to beat oprah winfrey's ratings and he was not actually on the phone with ellen when I was there and as you know, that is exactly what happened and ellen credits bob for helping make helping her make that happen he's been on the show several times so I when he said you know he said something to me I thought, well I don't I just want to ignore the advice you gave me but since he had been coaching ellen I thought, well, maybe I should probably listen to him but here's what he said and I'm paying a lot of money to do it too so what he said wass he got very quiet and he said an you don't want to sell paintings and I said, yeah, ideo wants a lot of paintings. I know you don't want to sell paintings anymore, he said, you know what it was like to have you show up as a surprise and tio walk through my garden with you and see your charcoal sketches on my kitchen table and peek out the window and watch you painting and seeing that, you know, seeing how you just the whole creative process unfolding, you know, how special that wass and again, I'm not appreciating that its creative processes fascinating, yet so I said, oh, no, and he said, well, do you think of all the art I have in my home? What do you think I'm going to talk about the most and of all the art in my home? What do you think is going to have the most meaning to may? And I said my painting, he said, uh huh that's, what you want to sell, get out of the business of selling art, so to give credit where credit is due, my primary offering the experience of art because about proctor is that conversation you got me out of the business of selling art, which is no good, no good, no good, we don't want to do that