“What you think -- doesn’t count.”

By Tom “Big Al” Schreiter
http://www.fortunenow.com

Prospects don’t think like we do. If they did, they wouldn’t still be prospects. They would have already joined.

We don’t think the same way as our prospects, so let’s make sure that we make offers that appeal to our prospects, not to us.

Let's see how good you are at understanding your prospects.

As you know, I write a free newsletter called “Big Al’s Recruiting Newsletter.” I send it out weekly to almost 50,000 subscribers.

In most issues I have the following sections:

1.     A great prospecting tip.

2.     Worthless sponsor jokes.

3.     Four great headlines or first sentences to use while prospecting.

4.     The Fat Boy’s Report (a paragraph on my weight-loss efforts).

5.     Resources.

6.     Where are we? (Guess where we are in this photo.)

7.     My seminar and workshop schedule.

Now, I know exactly which section is my favorite section.  However, my preferences don’t match the preferences of my subscribers.

My subscribers overwhelmingly have a favorite section they go to first.

Can you guess which section they go to first?

Go ahead, take a guess.

Want a hint?

What do most people talk about?

Other people. People are interested in other people’s lives.

That’s why soap operas are popular. That’s why tabloids with outlandish stories of celebrities sell millions of copies. That’s why gossip is so much fun.

So here is what happened.

I started getting e-mails from readers telling me how I could start losing more weight. They enjoyed reading about my weight-loss struggles in the “Fat Boy’s Report.”

It seemed that almost all of the e-mails coming to me were comments about the “Fat Boy’s Report.” No one commented about anything else.

And when I gave live workshops, guess what happened?

Attendees came to me and commented on how much they enjoyed reading the “Fat Boy’s Report.” Then they would give me fudge, candy bars, and ice cream. Yes, ice cream.

In Oxnard, California one lady gave me a whole pint of Ben & Jerry’s ice cream 20 minutes before the meeting! There was no place to store it, so I had to eat the entire pint before my workshop started.

So I checked the log files on our server. Sure enough, the “Fat Boy’s Report” was the clear winner. I bet most people scrolled down to the bottom of my newsletter and read the “Fat Boy’s Report” first. (That’s an easy bet because many subscribers wrote and told me that’s exactly what they did each issue.)

Is something wrong here?

Well, I think so.

My favorite section is the terrific prospecting tips I share each week. These tips will actually make the readers more successful in their businesses.

And yet, the readers ignore all of the good money-making sections of my newsletter, and scroll down to read the “Fat Boy’s Report” first.

Ouch.

The subscribers of my newsletter certainly don’t think like I do.

But who is the newsletter for? The subscribers.

So I have to learn to accept that others think and are motivated differently.

So which section came in #2?

Okay. I’ve given you a hint of what motivates the readers of my newsletter. Here is your chance to guess which is the second most popular section of my newsletter.

<pause>

Well, let’s see what you picked.

1.     A great prospecting tip?

No, that’s still my favorite section, but not for the readers.

2.     Worthless sponsor jokes?

No. They are certainly funny and people do enjoy them, but it’s not my readers’ second favorite section.

3.     Four great headlines or first sentences to use while prospecting?

Wow! This is really a great help for my readers to build their business, but it’s not my readers’ second favorite section.

5. Resources?

This is a great section but didn’t rank very high at all.

7. My seminar and workshop schedule?

This is routinely ignored by tens of thousands of readers.

6. Where are we? (Guess where we are in this photo.)

Well, if you picked #6 - Where are we? (Guess where we are in this photo.) – you picked the second most popular section of my newsletter.

I was shocked!

This section was added several months ago against my will. My daughter-in-law suggested that we post pictures from our travels and asked the readers to guess where we were.

“That’s stupid.” Yes, that was my reply to her.

But every couple of weeks, she would make the same suggestion. So to humor her, I put her suggestion into the newsletter.

And boy, is that section popular . . . and I don’t know why.

Wouldn’t readers rather learn some great prospecting tips instead of guessing the location of a picture of my wife and me on vacation?

I would think so.

But it’s not about me. It’s about the readers. This is what they like. (As a side note, some of the readers are very, very geographically-challenged. Their guesses bring quite a few laughs here at the office.)

So why do you think this section is so popular?

Try this.

This section is about people.

Remember what I wrote earlier? People are interested in other people. It’s human nature.

Are we getting it? Do we see the lesson here?

Make your offers and presentations
about people – not facts.

This is a huge lesson for us to use in our business. This should change how we present our opportunity, our service, or our products.

Want some examples?

Which presentation do you find more interesting and effective?

A.     Our opportunity provides you with built-in tax advantages that can reduce your effective tax rate from 31% to 28%.

B.     Let me tell you about the lady from Fairfield, Vermont who now earns an extra $350 a week and can stay home with her children.

Hmmm. Not too tough of a choice, is it? Most people want to hear about the lady from Fairfield.

A.     Our “Super Product” has 15 more milligrams of Omega Fatty Acids than the store brand at Wal-Mart.

B.     Let me tell you how Michelle lost two inches off her waistline by taking our “Super Product” for only three days.

Okay, this one isn’t very hard either. We want to know more about Michelle.

A.     Our long distance calling card can be used anywhere in the world, and it is easy to make calls.

B.     Thank goodness John and Mary had our long distance calling card. When their daughter failed to get on that flight from Portland . . .

Yes, “B” is more interesting because “B” is about people. We are programmed to be interested in people.

So the big lesson is easy. Talk about people . . . and prospects will listen.

If your prospects aren’t listening, maybe you might want to change what you’re talking about. Don’t blame the prospects. Blame the person giving the presentation.

Want “77 FREE Hot Prospecting Ideas!” to build your network marketing business? Go to: http://www.fortunenow.com/77moretips.htm .

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