The Extraordinarily Happy Client Email

Check out this email from a very happy client ...

I have a great job.

Not only do I MAKE my clients enough money to jet off to Cancun at will, but I SAVE them money by continually sharing best practices with them, like the FedEx tip I gave this client. He'll put an extra $1,600 back in his pocket ... enough to buy muy cerveza y vino in Cancun :-)

Funny: Nowhere in my job description does it say, "Find ways for clients to save money." That's not something you would ordinarily expect a marketing strategist and copywriter to do.

But ordinary sucks. It's not extraordinary. Or interesting. And it doesn't pay well.

So, if you want to make the leap from ordinary to extraordinary -- and create income and job security to match -- start finding ways to make or save your clients more money than they pay you.

Meanwhile, if you want to put an end to "feast or famine" syndrome in your business, my free Client Cloning Kit can help. It's not some cheapo download -- this is a real business-building kit you can hold in your hands.

 
Grab your free copy now, while they last.

Life, Death, Family, Work

This week before St. Patrick's Day, it seems only fitting that I tell you about an Irish wake.

My Uncle Louie died last week at 91. A WWII vet, he was a member of the Greatest Generation, my dad's older brother, and the last surviving male among 13 siblings, all born in rural South Dakota.

The photo below is of family and friends after the funeral in Sommer’s Bar, in Miller, SD. Actually, this wasn’t the wake (the photos from that are not appropriate), but more of an “after party.”

The TV was tuned to the Weather Channel, where the talking heads prattled on about Winter Storm Titan. (Apparently, blizzards have names now.) “Titan!?” groused a guy at the bar. “What the $*&% are they talking about? It’s called winter, dammit.”

Miller is such a small town that you could walk up to any farmer in the bar and strike up a friendly conversation. Almost everyone knew my uncle and my dad, who died in 1997.

Anyway, there are two points to this story of life and death on the prairie.

First, family. There’s nothing like a funeral to clarify things, like how important the love and support of your family is. Without family, success at work means nothing. Nothing.

Second, work. On the drive back from South Dakota, recalling conversations with family, friends, and neighbors, I realized how remarkable the typical farmer is.

And it’s clear why Thomas Jefferson wrote, “Those who labour in the earth are the chosen people of God.” Farmers are the hardest working, most resourceful people in America. Most of us can’t imagine laboring half as hard, solving half as many problems, and producing half as much good for the world as those who work the land.

The next time I’m tempted to curse a slow computer or a printer out of ink, I’ll remember my uncle driving a horse-drawn wagon through a blizzard at age 12 … my grandma giving birth to and caring for 13 children … my cousin losing his left arm in a thresher at age 5 … and I will shut up and work.

Meanwhile, if you want to put an end to "feast or famine" syndrome in your business, my free Client Cloning Kit can help. It's not some cheapo download -- this is a real business-building kit you can hold in your hands.

 
Grab your free copy now, while they last.

How To Make Your Marketing Remarkable

One way to stand out in a crowded marketplace is to be remarkable.

Seth Godin writes about this in Purple Cow, of course. The subtitle of the book is Transform Your Business by Being Remarkable.

What does that mean? If your business is remarkable, people are remarking about you -- you are making people talk. It's that simple.

Example: Here's a screen shot of an email from a prospect, Matt, remarking about my marketing. It's a photo he took of the thank-you note I mailed him ...

Hey, that makes me remarkable!

Not to brag, but when's the last time you sent a letter to a prospect and that prospect emailed you a picture of it, along with a nice comment?

Lesson: If your business makes people talk, it's remarkable. And you are farther along the path to success than the legions of businesses that are unremarkable, which go unnoticed and un-patronized.

One way to be remarkable is to deliver service that delights your clients -- faster, better, cheaper than they expected. Another way is to solve problems for clients -- faster, better, cheaper than they expected.

And, of course, you can be remarkable if you say ordinary things in remarkable ways. Like "Thank you" written in a note, mailed with a stamp.

Really, this ain't rocket surgery.

Meanwhile, if you want to put an end to "feast or famine" syndrome in your business, my free Client Cloning Kit can help. It's not some cheapo download -- this is a real business-building kit you can hold in your hands.

Grab your free copy now, while they last.

The Steve Jobs Question

This morning I read a quote from Steve Jobs that hit me harder than a fourth cup of coffee.

It goes like this:

“I have looked in the mirror every morning and asked myself: "If today were the last day of my life, would I want to do what I am about to do today?" And whenever the answer has been "No" for too many days in a row, I know I need to change something.”

Now, I had been having a bad couple of days this week; nothing earth shatteringly awful, just a nagging sense of boredom and frustration at sub-par results in my business.

But here’s the thing: If you're in business for yourself, like me, and you find that you're bored or unmotivated by your work, it's going to kill your business faster than any competitor ever could.

So I looked in the mirror and asked myself the Steve Jobs question: "If today were the last day of my life, would I want to do what I am about to do today?" And ... I knew I needed to change some things -- right away.

So I did.

First, I put on some different background music in my office and promptly wrote a really good promotion for a client that I know he’s going to love. Oh, and, I finished two hours early.

Then I shaved and put on a clean shirt with a collar (two things I don't do a typical work day) and I recorded two promotional videos for my business. Now I would rather drink paint than shoot a video. But by making the videos, I forced myself to get out of my comfort zone and grow a little bit.

So, anyway here's the point of this piece: I want to challenge you to look at your schedule for today, then look in the mirror, and ask yourself the Steve Jobs question. “If today were the last day of your life, would you want to do what you're about to do today?”

The answer, yes or no, is probably true -- if you listen to your heart.

At the risk of sounding obvious, if the answer is no, make changes to your plan. Even if you don't have 100% control over your schedule, you do have 100% control over your attitude, which controls everything you do. And you can change your attitude by changing your surroundings: the music in your work space, pictures on the wall, conversations you have (or don’t have), the blogs you read (or ignore), the thoughts in your head.

That's my thought for today. It’s made my day today more productive than all of yesterday -- and it’s not even lunch time yet.

What do you think? Please share your thoughts in the comment below.

Meanwhile, if you want to put an end to "feast or famine" syndrome in your business, my free Client Cloning Kit can help. It's not some cheapo download -- this is a real business-building kit you can hold in your hands.

Grab your free copy now, while they last.

Want Competitors to Refer Business to You? Thank Them! How to Grow Your Business With Gratitude (Day 15 of 15)

This final post in this Thank-You Marketing series is a lesson within a lesson on how to get more referrals.

Take a look at my thank-you note below, written to a fellow copywriter here in the Twin Cities ...

Digby is one of about a half dozen copywriters I know pretty well and have referred business to.

What? Send my leads to another copywriter?

Of course. I do it all the time. You should, too.

Because no matter what your business or how versatile you are, there will always be projects you can't or won't want to do. You can either turn those leads out into the cold with a simple rejection, or say something like this: "My expertise doesn't match with your needs, but I know a guy/gal you should talk to ..." Then send your lead to a competitor whom you know and trust.

Your prospect will appreciate your help steering them to another vendor -- and possibly refer a more-suitable person or project to you later.

Your competitor will appreciate your sending them a lead -- and probably refer a person or project to you later.

That's a win-win in any book.

Bonus: If you have a network of super-cool competitors to refer to you, as I do, they might send you thank-you gifts in the mail, as Digby did. He sent me a copy of Gary Vaynerchuk's The Thank You Economy as a thank-you for my latest referral to him ...

... which makes it about 100% likely that I will continue to send referrals his way.

Meanwhile, if you want to put an end to "feast or famine" syndrome in your business, my free Client Cloning Kit can help. It's not some cheapo download -- this is a real business-building kit you can hold in your hands.

Grab your free copy now, while they last.

Want More Vendors to Refer Business to You? Thank Them! How to Grow Your Business With Gratitude (Day 14 of 15)

You could file today's thank-you note under Strategic Gratitude.

That's because I'm writing to thank a potential referral partner for her work on a recent copywriting project. She's manager at one of America's leading printers for direct mail -- a potentially fantastic referral partner for me. She did a great job for my client and me recently. So, I want to make sure she knows how much I appreciate her efforts.

Thus, this note (with my client's name covered up and kooky handwriting around a cutout in the middle) ...

Here's the thing: I'll bet you my next 12 car payments that I'm the only copywriter to mail her a thank-you notes for a job well done. My appreciation is genuine. And, hey, if she remembers me with favor the next time a printing client asks for a referral to a good copywriter, well, that's nice too :-)

Remember: You're not remarkable if nobody is talking about you. Simple little thank-you notes, written and mailed with a stamp, are an easy way to start conversations about you -- for all the right reasons. And that always leads to referrals. 

Meanwhile, if you want to put an end to "feast or famine" syndrome in your business, my free Client Cloning Kit can help. It's not some cheapo download -- this is a real business-building kit you can hold in your hands.

Grab your free copy now, while they last.

You Can Recession-Proof Your Business If You Do This One Thing: How to Grow Your Business With Gratitude (Day 13 of 15)

First, here's WHY I'm writing today's thank-you note to a vendor ...

That incredibly delicious box of chocolates was dropped off on New Year's Eve by my ace printer, Jim Beckman from Full Throttle Print.

Almost every business depends on referrals, but few businesses deserve them to the extent that Jim's does. He's more like a concierge than a printer -- I've never heard him say "No" to a request in the 3 years I've been using him to print business cards, newsletters, flyers, and sales letters for me.

The fact that he delivers at no charge is just icing on the cake. And the nice gift of chocolates? Wow. That's icing on the ... chocolate. Or something.

Anyway, why I will never use another local printer as long as Jim is in business. And I will continue to refer my local clients to him.

That's why I was so happy to write the thank-you note below to Jim ...

Bottom line: You can recession-proof your business (heck, you can Obama-proof it) by delivering service that surprises and delights your clients. They will buy more and refer others to you. It's just that simple.

Because, in a world where nearly everything can be copied or done for $1 an hour in China, there's one thing no competitor can copy: your service. Make sure yours is memorable -- for all the right reasons -- and you will have clients for life. Like Jim does.

Meanwhile, if you want to put an end to "feast or famine" syndrome in your business, my free Client Cloning Kit can help. It's not some cheapo download -- this is a real business-building kit you can hold in your hands.

Grab your free copy now, while they last.