by Tom Ruwitch
My friend Nora just landed a new client for her financial planning business.
Nora said she got a call “out of the blue” to schedule a meeting. The client signed on during that meeting.
The quickest, easiest sale ever, right!?
Well, here’s the thing…
That “out of the blue” client was someone who joined Nora’s email list 11 years ago and had been receiving weekly emails from Nora ever since.
Eleven years! More than 500 emails without a peep.
And then — BOOM! — that newsletter subscriber calls and says, “I’m ready to hire you.”
Nora told me that has happened to her often over the years. Some subscribers bubble to the surface after 11 years. Many become customers in much less time.
I’m familiar with Nora’s story. I’ve seen the same thing happen for countless other businesses.
I owned an email marketing company for 19 years. I saw businesses like Nora’s land clients “out of the blue.”
But of course, those clients didn’t really arrive out of the blue. They were always hanging around and paying attention — because those savvy businesses built an email list and sent informative, entertaining content on a regular basis.
Those prospects didn’t open every email. Few subscribers do. But they occasionally opened them. They stayed tuned in. They grew to know, like and trust the business leaders who sent those emails.
And then, when the time was right, the prospects picked up the phone and said, “Let’s meet. I’m ready to buy what you’re selling.”
That happened to clients who used my company’s email marketing software. That happened with my email marketing company. That happens with my current business, Story Power Marketing.
I recently advised a business owner to build a list and send emails regularly to subscribers.
He told me he didn’t have the time and patience to play the “long game.” So he paid a consultant a bunch of money to cold call people via LinkedIn direct message. The request: Let’s meet.
That didn’t go well.
We live in an instant gratification world. I understand why business leaders say, “I want more warm leads, and I want them now!”
There’s nothing wrong with trying that approach.
But don’t forget the long game. It works. Just ask Nora.
Tom Ruwitch is the Founder and Chief Story Officer at Story Power Marketing. He’s offering a free, 12-minute micro-training called “The 3 Most Important Storytelling Keys to Captivate Prospects and Inspire Them to Buy -- Without Pitching and Prodding.” Instant access at: StoryPowerMarketing.com/3keys
Submitted 2 years 152 days ago