Read On ~ Book Review: The Contrarian Effect by Michael Port and Elizabeth Marshall
Why It Pays (BIG) to Take Typical Sales Advice and Do the Opposite
by Lisa Manyon: www.lisamanyon.com
Personally I think this book should be required reading for anyone remotely involved in sales.
Face it, we all sell to some extent and I’ve always felt the key to being successful in sales is to NOT sell out. My convictions on this matter didn’t always settle well especially when I was asked to do “dog and pony shows” back in the print, radio and ad agency days. It’s true, my foray in advertising and marketing started in sales. But I could never embrace the worn out, salesy approach. That just wasn’t me. I choose to connect with my clients and treat them as real people. Guess what? It worked and it still does today.
Little did I know, doing what I believed to be the right thing was actually not the norm. I’m glad and I’m proud to be a contrarian. Are you?
Michael Port and Elizabeth Marshall team up to share insights into typical sales tactics and they skillfully illustrate why the old school ways are not necessarily the best approach.
Consumers are savvier than ever. They demand more. They expect more and they deserve more than a stale sales pitch and antiquated, canned attempts at “the close”.
The new marketing model is all about relationships and meeting the ever demanding expectations of today’s consumer.
Two of the most important tips I hope readers take to heart are:
1. Identify and target specific groups of individuals rather than the mass market.
This may seem like a no-brainer to most contrarians but I am amazed to hear people today say “I want to speak to those who are even remotely interested in my product or service.” This broad approach to marketing, advertising and sales is not cost effective. With this approach the messages created are often watered down and don’t connect with people who may actually want what you’re selling. Why don’t more people understand the narrower the target the more qualified the consumer and coincidentally the more likely people are to buy from you?
2. Collaborate with strategic partners who share the same target market.
Collaboration is the key to your success on the new business playing field. Gone are the days of bitter competition, back biting sales strategies and unauthentic attempts to make the sale. These out of date techniques hinder rather than help both sales and the economy. Odd as it may seem there is more than enough business to go around. In fact, I regularly collaborate with other professional copywriters. We have a referral network and we send business to each other based on our specialties and who we like to work with. It’s a win-win situation.
Another vital component to being a contrarian is following the Contrarian Primer. Port and Marshall created a list of 9 fundamental contrarian traits (this chapter alone is well worth the small investment in the book). I’ll list them here but please note the book elaborates in the importance of each.
1. Build relationships and make connections
2. Respect your customers and honor their wishes
3. Target specific groups of individuals and the people with whom you do your best work
4. Make relevant and timely offers
5. Increase your likability factor
6. Practice radical transparency
7. Establish yourself as a trusted advisor
8. Collaborate with strategic partners to leverage your efforts
9. Think bigger about who you are and what you offer your clients
I dare you to invest in a copy of the book today. Read it, apply the principles and be contrarian! By being your authentic best the rest will follow – and yes, that does mean increased sales for you.
I’m ready to be a contrarian – take me to Amazon now!
[Tags] The Contrarian Effect, Michael Port, Elizabeth Marshall, Lisa Manyon, www.writeoncreattive.com, copywriting, sales, [/Tags]
