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Dealing with rejection

Anything considered a "hustle" and not necessarily a CENTS-based Fastlane

spirit

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So, I've stopped action faking (reading countless unnecessary books) and ended my analysis paralysis.

I mustered up the courage and visited a few local businesses without websites, despite being a very introverted person. I chose coffee shops and restaurants where I've been a customer, because I hoped they would trust me. (I know trust is very important from the start, as mentioned by @Fox).

And... I got shot down in flames.

I must admit, this really sucks!

I tried approaching these businesses in a very casual and honest way. I asked them how they were doing, and introduced myself as a freelance web designer, to see if they'd be interested in a website. All I got was "no" and not even a smile.

Naturally, because I'm always analyzing things, I have a few things rocking in my brain.

Did I word things correctly? Did they not trust me enough? Or, is this just a natural part of the process?

And for my big question:

Am I even picking good clients? As I said, they were specifically chosen because I hoped there would be a level of trust. I'm not sure if a website would even get viable results with coffee shops and restaurants. Should I aim somewhere else? I don't really have anyone else that trusts me.

Hopefully someone could weigh in. :clench:
 
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BlackSuperman

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So, I've stopped action faking (reading countless unnecessary books) and ended my analysis paralysis.

I mustered up the courage and visited a few local businesses without websites, despite being a very introverted person. I chose coffee shops and restaurants where I've been a customer, because I hoped they would trust me. (I know trust is very important from the start, as mentioned by @Fox).

And... I got shot down in flames.

I must admit, this really sucks!

I tried approaching these businesses in a very casual and honest way. I asked them how they were doing, and introduced myself as a freelance web designer, to see if they'd be interested in a website. All I got was "no" and not even a smile.

Naturally, because I'm always analyzing things, I have a few things rocking in my brain.

Did I word things correctly? Did they not trust me enough? Or, is this just a natural part of the process?

And for my big question:

Am I even picking good clients? As I said, they were specifically chosen because I hoped there would be a level of trust. I'm not sure if a website would even get viable results with coffee shops and restaurants. Should I aim somewhere else? I don't really have anyone else that trusts me.

Hopefully someone could weigh in. :clench:
This is @Fox 's specialty but why not approach businesses with websites ALREADY that could use a major renovation/improvement.

Start warm, then once you have some projects under your belt you can move on to the harder clientele aka selling them the idea of the website AND the website.
 

Kevin88660

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So, I've stopped action faking (reading countless unnecessary books) and ended my analysis paralysis.

I mustered up the courage and visited a few local businesses without websites, despite being a very introverted person. I chose coffee shops and restaurants where I've been a customer, because I hoped they would trust me. (I know trust is very important from the start, as mentioned by @Fox).

And... I got shot down in flames.

I must admit, this really sucks!

I tried approaching these businesses in a very casual and honest way. I asked them how they were doing, and introduced myself as a freelance web designer, to see if they'd be interested in a website. All I got was "no" and not even a smile.

Naturally, because I'm always analyzing things, I have a few things rocking in my brain.

Did I word things correctly? Did they not trust me enough? Or, is this just a natural part of the process?

And for my big question:

Am I even picking good clients? As I said, they were specifically chosen because I hoped there would be a level of trust. I'm not sure if a website would even get viable results with coffee shops and restaurants. Should I aim somewhere else? I don't really have anyone else that trusts me.

Hopefully someone could weigh in. :clench:
They are not rejecting you personally. It is just not on their agenda right now.

Imagine someone calling you now and saying they are offering xyz, what is the chance that you are going to say "Ya I need this."?

Highly likely you are going to say "Thanks but I am not interested."

There are several way to go about this.

1)Get in contact with large number of people until you meet some do. (Traditional way)

2)Building marketing community/funnel that people will buy from your service in the future. If you approach 1000 people probably less than 5 will trust from you to buy from you now. 50-100 prospects might buy you in the future, provided they trust you and the website service is not a pain point now until sometimes later, for instance sales number from traditional channel going down. The rest will never buy from you. A marketing channel or community is trying to capture this 50-100 prospects and build relationship with them.

3) Focus on providing the service right now. Andy Black has been writing about this. Explore facebook groups to find out people who need help and help them for free first. From there you build testimonial and opportunity to charge. This is useful when you are just starting out and still trying to improve your website designing skill and getting feedback from user.

4) Loss Leader Approach- Offer some service that you an do for free (not costing you too much money and time) once relationship established you can upsell your website service later. You are still going to approach like method 1, but you change your pitch. When you said you are a freelance web designer and ask if they are interested, they are interpreting it as " I am selling my website design service for a charge and are you interested?". Saying that you are offering something for free change the situation drastically. When the prospect has nothing to lose, they become more easily agreeable to whatever you are offering.
 
Last edited:

Itizn

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Good job on approaching people in person, especially since you describe yourself as introverted.

It's likely you
#1) didn't even talk to the relevant people at these businesses
#2) didn't control the conversation

regardless of what you are pitching, in sales and prospecting those two points are key to getting what you want.

keep going.
 
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spirit

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That's some good advice.

I think it was a combination of lack of sales skills, and them just not being interested. I read Way of the Wolf awhile ago, and he made it clear not everyone will be interested in a sale.

My big question, though:

Am I targeting the right businesses?

The only reason I chose coffee shops and restaurants is because I thought they would trust me more. It doesn't seem like this is the case. I'm not even sure if I could greatly benefit these businesses with a website. Is there another type of business I should be targeting? I want to create the most value I can, especially for my portfolio.
 

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I tried approaching these businesses in a very casual and honest way. I asked them how they were doing, and introduced myself as a freelance web designer, to see if they'd be interested in a website. All I got was "no" and not even a smile.

Hey man.

You shouldn't be selling websites - you should be helping someone's business make more money VIA a website.

By doing the former you're literally telling them "I'm here to make money, wanna give me money?"

By doing the latter, however, you're essentially selling them the prospect of THEM making more money.

The truth is, you can't just go in guns blazing and tell them "Hey, want a website? It's going to make you a lot of money!" nor "Yeah, you're losing a lot of money and you need a website. It's gonna convert like crazy!"

A better approach would be something like this:

"How's business?"

- "It's been good, blah, blah, blah"

"Oh, COVID didn't slow you down at all?"

- "It did but blah, blah, blah. Plus we're doing X and then Y happened, and.."

*5 minutes later*

"Yeah, it looks like you're doing well. Would you be interested in having/Do you have the manpower/Do you have the inventory to take on more clients/make more sales?"

- "What did you have in mind?"

" You told me you're getting clients from referrals. But how many clients/sales have you had from your website? Has it brought you good results? Did any of your current clients find you from your website?"

- "Nah, not really"

"Yeah, that's a lot of missed potential in my opinion. Let me give you an example: I recently worked with X business a few months ago that had some traffic flowing to their website but just like you had zero conversions to show for it. We added a contact form, made the site a bit easier to use from a user standpoint i.e basics stuff but most importantly we created a funnel that actually redirects the traffic to their business and inspires them the confidence to book a call/buy their product/etc.

- "I see. And did it work?"

"Yes, they're on course to make 30% more than they did last year and are on the verge of signing a huge client that will potentially net them millions in the long run. And all that from some basic implementations!"

- "Hmm. Can we do this for my business"

"That's why I'm here. After we talked about X and Y and the helpful info you added about Z, I'm sure we can. *explain the process"

- "Awesome. How much would this cost me?"

At this point, it's time for value-based pricing which I've told you about in your previous threads.

I hope this helps you out some to understand what the flow of a meeting should be like.

Good luck!
 

spirit

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Thanks @Simon Angel.

I was following a document from @Fox (called 30 Exact Steps to Selling Web Design), and it advises to first work with a client who trusts you. This is even before implementing sales.

I suppose sales strategies are important even from the very beginning.

Do you know what type of businesses would be best to find? As I mentioned, I only chose local coffee shops because I thought they would trust me. Now I know this isn't the case, I'm doubting I could get great results for them with a website.
 
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woken

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You want to offer value. You’re not selling miraculous drinks that makes their biceps grow overnight.

Once you realize that, you understand that it’s really their loss.

As for you, it’s easy to keep going when you think like I described above.
 

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Make them an offer so good that they will feel stupid saying no to you.

example:
- I’ll build you a website for free.
- I guarantee traffic of X
- you pay me 20% of all sales we bring in the next 6 - 12 months that come through the website I built and marketing I did.
- if I don’t bring at least $30k of extra sales, you pay me nothing

etc etc etc.

brainstorm what’s the real value you add, build your pitch around that!
 

spirit

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I found the ideal list of prospects:

- Construction
- Industrial Services
- Engineering
- Oil
- Legal
- Medical
- Real Estate

I'm going to complete a short sales course on Udemy, as I seem to be very ignorant about approaching businesses.

After that, it's back to prospecting.
 
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Kevin88660

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That's some good advice.

I think it was a combination of lack of sales skills, and them just not being interested. I read Way of the Wolf awhile ago, and he made it clear not everyone will be interested in a sale.

My big question, though:

Am I targeting the right businesses?

The only reason I chose coffee shops and restaurants is because I thought they would trust me more. It doesn't seem like this is the case. I'm not even sure if I could greatly benefit these businesses with a website. Is there another type of business I should be targeting? I want to create the most value I can, especially for my portfolio.
You have to provide something to earn the trust. Biggest hurdles for sales from customer’s pov is almost certain cost for uncertain result/outcome. They need time for relationship development before they give you their first dollar.

You can find customer who happens to be looking for a website designer at the same time. That is uncommon but it can happen. Then you have to contact a large number of people.

Whatever you sell there is no escape around that. Most people will never buy from you. Some people might buy from you in the future. Very few people will buy from you right now when you contacted them.
 
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Simon Angel

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I found the ideal list of prospects:

- Construction
- Industrial Services
- Engineering
- Oil
- Legal
- Medical
- Real Estate

I'm going to complete a short sales course on Udemy, as I seem to be very ignorant about approaching businesses.

After that, it's back to prospecting.

Yeah, that's a good list!

I don't know about the Udemy course, though, I think if you'd just pondered over the example meeting I wrote and really got the gist of it you should be good to go.

Even if all of it doesn't make sense right now, just fake it till you make it.

And yeah, you're totally right, you can't do this stuff with coffee shops and restaurants. There's no value in it for them. Your aim should be to implement easy yet high value solutions for the big boys.
 

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Hey man.

You shouldn't be selling websites - you should be helping someone's business make more money VIA a website.

By doing the former you're literally telling them "I'm here to make money, wanna give me money?"

By doing the latter, however, you're essentially selling them the prospect of THEM making more money.

The truth is, you can't just go in guns blazing and tell them "Hey, want a website? It's going to make you a lot of money!" nor "Yeah, you're losing a lot of money and you need a website. It's gonna convert like crazy!"

A better approach would be something like this:

"How's business?"

- "It's been good, blah, blah, blah"

"Oh, C0VlD didn't slow you down at all?"

- "It did but blah, blah, blah. Plus we're doing X and then Y happened, and.."

*5 minutes later*

"Yeah, it looks like you're doing well. Would you be interested in having/Do you have the manpower/Do you have the inventory to take on more clients/make more sales?"

- "What did you have in mind?"

" You told me you're getting clients from referrals. But how many clients/sales have you had from your website? Has it brought you good results? Did any of your current clients find you from your website?"

- "Nah, not really"

"Yeah, that's a lot of missed potential in my opinion. Let me give you an example: I recently worked with X business a few months ago that had some traffic flowing to their website but just like you had zero conversions to show for it. We added a contact form, made the site a bit easier to use from a user standpoint i.e basics stuff but most importantly we created a funnel that actually redirects the traffic to their business and inspires them the confidence to book a call/buy their product/etc.

- "I see. And did it work?"

"Yes, they're on course to make 30% more than they did last year and are on the verge of signing a huge client that will potentially net them millions in the long run. And all that from some basic implementations!"

- "Hmm. Can we do this for my business"

"That's why I'm here. After we talked about X and Y and the helpful info you added about Z, I'm sure we can. *explain the process"

- "Awesome. How much would this cost me?"

At this point, it's time for value-based pricing which I've told you about in your previous threads.

I hope this helps you out some to understand what the flow of a meeting should be like.

Good luck!
This is good advice, follow this.

I think the main issue here for OP is the angle of selling people money. People are EXTREMELY skeptical now of selling them money.

That’s why they send you off with a kick in the butt. Most people have the ingrained assumption in their minds that making money is hard, otherwise everyone would be making a whole lot more of it. So they don’t trust a 20 year old coming in their family owned coffee shop they’ve run for 20-30 years telling them he’ll get them more sales. They actually find it downright insulting.

So go for a different angle. How about pursue businesses who already have websites, and their websites are doing badly - they don’t represent their image and reputation well enough. Forget money, go after ego. Nobody buys money. If you tell Bill Gates, Billy, let me help you make 10 more billion, he’ll kick you in the a$$ (that is unless his friend Warren recommends you to him). So tell him, Billy, let me help you spread the good work of your foundation trhough out the world.

I’ve tried hundreads of angles selling digital assets and marketing. The money one is the one everyone touts, but from my research it’s the WORST performing one, by MILES. People hate others selling them money. If someone pitches me on “making me money”, I take that as an insult. What, you think I need YOUR help to make more money?!
 
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Black_Dragon43

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Here’s a good example, right on the fastlane forum:

76B82225-12B1-48CE-801F-6C2EF235DC4E.jpeg
Nobody is buying “money”, except fools.

Of course people are buying reputation, credibility, etc. because they already believe this will make them more money. But money? You’ve got to be a fool…
 
D

Deleted85763

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So, I've stopped action faking (reading countless unnecessary books) and ended my analysis paralysis.

I mustered up the courage and visited a few local businesses without websites, despite being a very introverted person. I chose coffee shops and restaurants where I've been a customer, because I hoped they would trust me. (I know trust is very important from the start, as mentioned by @Fox).

And... I got shot down in flames.

I must admit, this really sucks!

I tried approaching these businesses in a very casual and honest way. I asked them how they were doing, and introduced myself as a freelance web designer, to see if they'd be interested in a website. All I got was "no" and not even a smile.

Naturally, because I'm always analyzing things, I have a few things rocking in my brain.

Did I word things correctly? Did they not trust me enough? Or, is this just a natural part of the process?

And for my big question:

Am I even picking good clients? As I said, they were specifically chosen because I hoped there would be a level of trust. I'm not sure if a website would even get viable results with coffee shops and restaurants. Should I aim somewhere else? I don't really have anyone else that trusts me.

Hopefully someone could weigh in. :clench:
I was looking for someone to build a simple website for me. I got some quotes, both local and online and I was floored - the average cost was about $3000.00! So I did my website myself and with very good results. Here it is:


You may want to try to get customers online, those looking for that particular service and then do two things:

1. Tell then the price and be very competitive, like "All websites flat rate fee of $500.00". Or "We'll beat anyone else by 50%!".
2. Show them your work.

With that you can probably get work. I imagine though the field is crowed but still at the average of $3000,00 for a site website I think someone could make a fortune doing it at a discount, provided they offer quality and prompt service.
 

woken

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I was looking for someone to build a simple website for me. I got some quotes, both local and online and I was floored - the average cost was about $3000.00! So I did my website myself and with very good results. Here it is:


You may want to try to get customers online, those looking for that particular service and then do two things:

1. Tell then the price and be very competitive, like "All websites flat rate fee of $500.00". Or "We'll beat anyone else by 50%!".
2. Show them your work.

With that you can probably get work. I imagine though the field is crowed but still at the average of $3000,00 for a site website I think someone could make a fortune doing it at a discount, provided they offer quality and prompt service.
Hey man..


Again, not trying to be rude here.

Did the portfolios/ examples of websites you were seeing looked like yours?


I’ve seen websites for $50 looking better. And that’s on a simple theme.

If the $3000 websites were similar, let me know. I’m starting tonight.
 
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Devampre

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So, I've stopped action faking (reading countless unnecessary books) and ended my analysis paralysis.

I mustered up the courage and visited a few local businesses without websites, despite being a very introverted person. I chose coffee shops and restaurants where I've been a customer, because I hoped they would trust me. (I know trust is very important from the start, as mentioned by @Fox).

And... I got shot down in flames.

I must admit, this really sucks!

I tried approaching these businesses in a very casual and honest way. I asked them how they were doing, and introduced myself as a freelance web designer, to see if they'd be interested in a website. All I got was "no" and not even a smile.

Naturally, because I'm always analyzing things, I have a few things rocking in my brain.

Did I word things correctly? Did they not trust me enough? Or, is this just a natural part of the process?

And for my big question:

Am I even picking good clients? As I said, they were specifically chosen because I hoped there would be a level of trust. I'm not sure if a website would even get viable results with coffee shops and restaurants. Should I aim somewhere else? I don't really have anyone else that trusts me.

Hopefully someone could weigh in. :clench:

First of all, Good job taking action! A million years of theory means nothing if there is no application. Don't let "rejection" shake you too much. That uneasy feeling is something we will all feel at some point in life, and likely more times than we'd like. I've been yelled at, sworn at, threatened, etc. But, those types of people likely wouldn't have been good to work with had they said yes. And maybe they would have, I don't know for sure. But seeing how they treated me in that circumstance is often a good rule of thumb for who they are as a person.

So my first piece of advice. Is to not worry about it too much. Rejection often makes our primitive brain believe that it is a attack on us personally, when it often isn't about us at all. Yes this mental game and it is easier said than done. But, it does get easier over time. Especially when you have more wins under your belt. And I believe you'll get there if you keep rolling forward.

My second piece of advice. I wouldn't try to sell on initial contact when saying what it is that I do or offer. I'd try be friendly and empathetic and ask them questions that apply to them a little more personally. Pretend they are your good friend who happens to own a business. Ask empathetic, but not too intimate questions. I believe there is a sweet spot to asking good questions. But, I'll give some examples

-Good leading question: "How has business been with these lockdowns?"
asking something like this may give you a lot of insight. This also is some way in which you relate to one another as the effects of the lockdowns are felt by most people on some level.

-Too salesy or business prying question: "What is your marketing budget?"
asking something like this is nosy and only would lead me to believe that a pitch is coming.

-Too intimate question: "When's the last time you pleasured your spouse?"
asking something like this may stop you from being able to enter their business again.

tl:dr; - Don't sweat rejection as it happens to everyone. Don't rush to close too quickly, be empathetic and see if there is a real pain point or need you can solve by asking good questions that aren't too salesy or intimate.
 
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spirit

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Wow, lots of great responses and advice. Thanks guys!

I think there were 2 main problems with my initial approaches:

1. I had no sales strategy. I thought I'd be blunt and honest, and it would work out. This is not the case!

2. They didn't need a website. There's not a lot of value in a website for a simple coffee shop, where people mainly visit after walking by or by word of mouth.

This is a really good short course I'm doing:

It resonates with a lot of advice on this forum.

Keep in mind, I don't want to sink into analysis paralysis, so I'm leaving it at that.
 

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Here’s a good example, right on the fastlane forum:

View attachment 39992
Nobody is buying “money”, except fools.

Of course people are buying reputation, credibility, etc. because they already believe this will make them more money. But money? You’ve got to be a fool…

Well, I think this might be confusing for @spirit and other beginners here. Considering I work with 7 and 8 figure businesses, their prime motivator is STILL definitely money and that's almost all we talk about.

I am assuming you're a step above and potentially working with even bigger businesses where money has stopped being an issue and they're primarily working on their PR. In that case, yeah, I doubt talks of money would phase them unless you're a big name with big promises.

Also, I think it's the other way around. I haven't really found people to be able to connect the dots that reputation and credibility equal more money. But whenever I sell them money, I think they DO connect the dots that I'd have to improve their brand image significantly for that to happen.

Back when I was doing web design, telling prospects that I'll create them a professional website that would represent their business better wasn't exactly fruitful in helping me close the sale, lol.
 
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Black_Dragon43

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Well, I think this might be confusing for @spirit and other beginners here. Considering I work with 7 and 8 figure businesses, their prime motivator is STILL definitely money and that's almost all we talk about.

I am assuming you're a step above and potentially working with even bigger businesses where money has stopped being an issue and they're primarily working on their PR. In that case, yeah, I doubt talks of money would phase them unless you're a big name with big promises.

Also, I think it's the other way around. I haven't really found people to be able to connect the dots that reputation and credibility equal more money. But whenever I sell them money, I think they DO connect the dots that I'd have to improve their brand image significantly for that to happen.

Back when I was doing web design, telling prospects that I'll create them a professional website that would represent their business better wasn't exactly fruitful in helping me close the sale, lol.
Interesting. I think this goes to show one thing… more than anything else, people need to be open to testing angles for themselves and figure out what works for them. Not all markets are the same, so size + niche are definitely important criteria here. A dentist will care a lot more about reputation than a plumber for example. A big business more than a small business. But these are general criteria. Ultimately it’s about testing.
 

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So, I've stopped action faking (reading countless unnecessary books) and ended my analysis paralysis.

I mustered up the courage and visited a few local businesses without websites, despite being a very introverted person. I chose coffee shops and restaurants where I've been a customer, because I hoped they would trust me. (I know trust is very important from the start, as mentioned by @Fox).

And... I got shot down in flames.

I must admit, this really sucks!

I tried approaching these businesses in a very casual and honest way. I asked them how they were doing, and introduced myself as a freelance web designer, to see if they'd be interested in a website. All I got was "no" and not even a smile.

Naturally, because I'm always analyzing things, I have a few things rocking in my brain.

Did I word things correctly? Did they not trust me enough? Or, is this just a natural part of the process?

And for my big question:

Am I even picking good clients? As I said, they were specifically chosen because I hoped there would be a level of trust. I'm not sure if a website would even get viable results with coffee shops and restaurants. Should I aim somewhere else? I don't really have anyone else that trusts me.

Hopefully someone could weigh in. :clench:
So, go do it some more. And then some more. Refine your message as you go. Offer to work for free for a couple businesses to create a portfolio. Selling is a show-and-tell activity. You need samples and specific ideas. Could you approach them with a partly worked up idea? They don't want a web site with an attached development bill -- they want a problem solved and they want more business through their cash register. So, how can you help them with THEIR goals?
 

Kevin88660

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Wow, lots of great responses and advice. Thanks guys!

I think there were 2 main problems with my initial approaches:

1. I had no sales strategy. I thought I'd be blunt and honest, and it would work out. This is not the case!

2. They didn't need a website. There's not a lot of value in a website for a simple coffee shop, where people mainly visit after walking by or by word of mouth.

This is a really good short course I'm doing:

It resonates with a lot of advice on this forum.

Keep in mind, I don't want to sink into analysis paralysis, so I'm leaving it at that.
1) Nothing wrong with trying something that didn’t work out. You cannot design something that is going to work by thought exercise alone, without any market feedback. You won’t have a sales strategy until you found something that works for you. Nothing wrong with being blunt and honest. It is just not enough to compensate for lack of value in their eyes. Finding something that works often requires finding eight ways and prove why they will not work first..
 
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Kevin88660

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Well, I think this might be confusing for @spirit and other beginners here. Considering I work with 7 and 8 figure businesses, their prime motivator is STILL definitely money and that's almost all we talk about.

I am assuming you're a step above and potentially working with even bigger businesses where money has stopped being an issue and they're primarily working on their PR. In that case, yeah, I doubt talks of money would phase them unless you're a big name with big promises.

Also, I think it's the other way around. I haven't really found people to be able to connect the dots that reputation and credibility equal more money. But whenever I sell them money, I think they DO connect the dots that I'd have to improve their brand image significantly for that to happen.

Back when I was doing web design, telling prospects that I'll create them a professional website that would represent their business better wasn't exactly fruitful in helping me close the sale, lol.
I do agree that most business are driven by money, particularly ways to drive revenue.

Selling money only gets a skeptical response because so many people who claim to be able to do it are not able to deliver it..Businesses getting burnt by campaigns getting negative roi.

So in my opinion, it is back to the fundamental.
1) Deliver services that work
2) Develop trust in sales cycle using known ways : testimonials, free-trial, pay for leads…
 

Johnny boy

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Two points:

1.

Nearly every good salesman I know is good at getting girls. Because it's the same thing. This is one of my favorite clips of any tv show.

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N7FVmeJXwCY&ab_channel=p4nk4k3s


"You got shot down 23 times before you got that number"

"Ain't no thang"

You spit some lines, do your thing, get some no's and move on. It's very normal to overanalyze your first few sales interactions. I did the exact same thing. Here's a tip. Go write down a large number like "50" or "100" and just say "I'm not going to stop until I knock out 50 in person sales pitches. I'm going to do 5 a day for the next 10 days and then I'll analyze how they went. But not until I do 50." I bet you land a client on your 3rd day. "The numbers game" is everywhere in life. Learn how to be numb to rejection and awkward conversations and you'll absolutely kill it.

2.

However, there is such a thing as barking up the wrong tree. Don't waste your tenacity and persistence on something stupid. Work smart AND hard. We want some yes's sprinkled in with those no's, remember.

There's two ways to do business with someone. You find them, or they find you. Brainstorm up all the ways people can find a web designer. And think up all the ways you can find people who need web designers. Be creative. An ideal strategy would be the smallest amount of cost and effort combined with the greatest likelihood of getting a client that is high in value.

You put yourself in the shoes of a business owner or someone who needs a website. Where would you look? Start looking and see who you find. How did that result come up? What makes them attractive as a company? What can you offer that they can't? Becoming a producer involves being able to think like both a producer and a consumer.

My favorite strategy was making craigslist posts. If you post just one in your city it likely won't do very much immediately. But if you post them in every major city in the US, you'll get plenty of clients. They only cost $5 an ad!

I had 50 cities with my ads in them and every day I rotated 5 new posts. $25 a day and I got plenty of clients. I was building websites while traveling around in Thailand and India. It was a bit of a shit show but I ended up coming home from my vacation a profitable digital nomad. This was just 2 years ago so I bet it still works just fine.
 
D

Deleted85763

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Hey man..


Again, not trying to be rude here.

Did the portfolios/ examples of websites you were seeing looked like yours?


I’ve seen websites for $50 looking better. And that’s on a simple theme.

If the $3000 websites were similar, let me know. I’m starting tonight.
Yes! The quotes I got were for even more simple websites than mine but also for more complicated websites as well. It seemed like everyone was crazy priced. I guess many business can afford this. However, I will note that I didn't do a comprehensive search of developers. Just a simple website search, including local providers.

You think my website looks like less than a $50.00 one? What I wanted was a website that was clear, easy to read, and organized. I didn't want anything that interfered with that like graphics or pull downs or even photos that do nothing to impart information. I think my website is one the finest anywhere and there is not too many that are actually better when it comes to information.
 
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woken

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What I wanted was a website that was clear, easy to read, and organized.
Books have multiple pages for a reason. Nobody would read a 25 meter long page.
To me it seems exactly the opposite of what you’re describing.
 

Hai

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Two points:

1.

Nearly every good salesman I know is good at getting girls. Because it's the same thing. This is one of my favorite clips of any tv show.

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N7FVmeJXwCY&ab_channel=p4nk4k3s


"You got shot down 23 times before you got that number"

"Ain't no thang"

You spit some lines, do your thing, get some no's and move on. It's very normal to overanalyze your first few sales interactions. I did the exact same thing. Here's a tip. Go write down a large number like "50" or "100" and just say "I'm not going to stop until I knock out 50 in person sales pitches. I'm going to do 5 a day for the next 10 days and then I'll analyze how they went. But not until I do 50." I bet you land a client on your 3rd day. "The numbers game" is everywhere in life. Learn how to be numb to rejection and awkward conversations and you'll absolutely kill it.

2.

However, there is such a thing as barking up the wrong tree. Don't waste your tenacity and persistence on something stupid. Work smart AND hard. We want some yes's sprinkled in with those no's, remember.

There's two ways to do business with someone. You find them, or they find you. Brainstorm up all the ways people can find a web designer. And think up all the ways you can find people who need web designers. Be creative. An ideal strategy would be the smallest amount of cost and effort combined with the greatest likelihood of getting a client that is high in value.

You put yourself in the shoes of a business owner or someone who needs a website. Where would you look? Start looking and see who you find. How did that result come up? What makes them attractive as a company? What can you offer that they can't? Becoming a producer involves being able to think like both a producer and a consumer.

My favorite strategy was making craigslist posts. If you post just one in your city it likely won't do very much immediately. But if you post them in every major city in the US, you'll get plenty of clients. They only cost $5 an ad!

I had 50 cities with my ads in them and every day I rotated 5 new posts. $25 a day and I got plenty of clients. I was building websites while traveling around in Thailand and India. It was a bit of a shit show but I ended up coming home from my vacation a profitable digital nomad. This was just 2 years ago so I bet it still works just fine.

Redacted
 

Devampre

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Two points:

1.

Nearly every good salesman I know is good at getting girls. Because it's the same thing. This is one of my favorite clips of any tv show.

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N7FVmeJXwCY&ab_channel=p4nk4k3s


"You got shot down 23 times before you got that number"

"Ain't no thang"

You spit some lines, do your thing, get some no's and move on. It's very normal to overanalyze your first few sales interactions. I did the exact same thing. Here's a tip. Go write down a large number like "50" or "100" and just say "I'm not going to stop until I knock out 50 in person sales pitches. I'm going to do 5 a day for the next 10 days and then I'll analyze how they went. But not until I do 50." I bet you land a client on your 3rd day. "The numbers game" is everywhere in life. Learn how to be numb to rejection and awkward conversations and you'll absolutely kill it.

2.

However, there is such a thing as barking up the wrong tree. Don't waste your tenacity and persistence on something stupid. Work smart AND hard. We want some yes's sprinkled in with those no's, remember.

There's two ways to do business with someone. You find them, or they find you. Brainstorm up all the ways people can find a web designer. And think up all the ways you can find people who need web designers. Be creative. An ideal strategy would be the smallest amount of cost and effort combined with the greatest likelihood of getting a client that is high in value.

You put yourself in the shoes of a business owner or someone who needs a website. Where would you look? Start looking and see who you find. How did that result come up? What makes them attractive as a company? What can you offer that they can't? Becoming a producer involves being able to think like both a producer and a consumer.

My favorite strategy was making craigslist posts. If you post just one in your city it likely won't do very much immediately. But if you post them in every major city in the US, you'll get plenty of clients. They only cost $5 an ad!

I had 50 cities with my ads in them and every day I rotated 5 new posts. $25 a day and I got plenty of clients. I was building websites while traveling around in Thailand and India. It was a bit of a shit show but I ended up coming home from my vacation a profitable digital nomad. This was just 2 years ago so I bet it still works just fine.

Love that king of the hill vid; I get a kick outta Boomhauer making Bobby swear on the Bible. :rofl:

But, that is exactly what outbound sales, picking up women in public and anything of that sort (finding them) is like. Rejection is inevitable here.

I'd also argue that when we put out an ad of some sort (letting them find you), we also will get rejected. But, it doesn't feel like it because there is no deeper social communication at play that can weigh on our ego/psyche in the same way.

The 100 or so people who may see your ad, but decide not to buy or contact you; might as well be ghosts.
 
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D

Deleted85763

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Books have multiple pages for a reason. Nobody would read a 25 meter long page.
To me it seems exactly the opposite of what you’re describing.
What you don't understand is that the people who have interest in my information, and will buy my product (music) WILL read all of it. The people who don't aren't my market. The more you tell the more you sell.
 

spirit

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Thanks for those responses! I've never seen that King of the Hill clip before, and I'm a Mike Judge fan.

A couple things on my mind. I'll still continue to prospect regardless, but I thought I'd throw my ideas out there.

Say I do get a client. I then have to make a website that yields high value and results. I do know some copywriting, sales and marketing, but I don't feel well versed in them. I suppose my first few clients will be for free, so there is some room for experimentation... but I have no idea if I'll actually get results.

I've been prospecting through Google searches. I do notice about 80 to 90% seem to have decent websites. These are the "high value" prospects I outlined here before. I suppose there is no way around it, but I have a scarcity mindset. I feel like those great prospects are limited, and I can't just blow through them.

I know about sales strategy now. I know it's about building a relationship with the customer, and discovering pain points and solutions through questioning. Almost like a doctor diagnosing a patient. Maybe I have to think about it more, but I'm unsure of how to transfer the prospect from initial contact to a place of trust, where they'll discuss their business pain points. In person, I could just start a conversation, but if I'm cold emailing or cold calling, I can't exactly do that in the same way.

What are your thoughts?
 
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