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Learning Direct Response Marketing (Strategies/Book Summaries/Case Studies)

Black_Dragon43

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There is value in the book though after the first 20% he makes the process too robotic and very "here's the only way you can do it or you'll fail" kind of style. But I understand why ("your new opportunity has to be the only way").
So you mean that his new opportunity being the only way isn't credible? I agree, it isn't. At least not if you're a non-newbie. Most of his audience are newbies. Clickfunnels isn't the only way, or even the best way, to build funnels imo.

But as an ideal... I think that's true. If you COULD make it such that your new opportunity really was the only way... that would be ideal. But it's very hard to get there imo.
 
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MTF

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My favourite line from Jay Abraham is “Who already has your customers?”

I seem to do well building relationships and creating win-wins with people who already have an audience. Case in point, I’ve helped a guy out with his Google Ads and a couple of years later he invited me onto his podcast last night.

I think it's also his favorite way to build or scale a business. I remember him saying something like why bother having a customer support department/R&D/marketing/warehousing etc. when you can simply be a matchmaker and get paid handsomely for it.

So you mean that his new opportunity being the only way isn't credible? I agree, it isn't. At least not if you're a non-newbie. Most of his audience are newbies. Clickfunnels isn't the only way, or even the best way, to build funnels imo.

But as an ideal... I think that's true. If you COULD make it such that your new opportunity really was the only way... that would be ideal. But it's very hard to get there imo.

I feel like most of the time it's impossible to get there because life isn't black and white. People are different, circumstances are different, and there are almost always other options. So in a way I think that you know deep down that your way isn't the only way, which kind of makes it dishonest when you portray it as such. Now, communicating that it may be the best way for a specific person in specific circumstances... That makes more sense.

Speaking of ClickFunnels, their style of sales page actually puts me off more than it encourages me to try it. It just feels scammy. Compare it to Gumroad's website (okay, their recent redesign is horrible) or their more recent sleek competitor Sell digital products and downloads the easy peasy way with Lemon Squeezy.

Perhaps I'm not their target market but it may also show that no, his way isn't the only way you can sell (because his style of selling doesn't work on people like me).
 

VivaciousVipin

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Issue #1: Alex Hormozi's $100M Offers

I stumbled upon Alex Hormozi recently. He was repeatedly recommended by different experienced entrepreneurs, mentioning how legit he is and how valuable his stuff is.

At first I was skeptical but then I decided to watch his free course on his website and then read his book $100M Offers: How To Make Offers So Good People Feel Stupid Saying No (the course is a companion to the book but in itself it covers a lot of stuff from the book).

Here are my key takeaways from this book:

1. Make people an offer so good they would feel stupid saying no

This is the entire premise of the book (Alex calls these offers Grand Slam Offers). Creating an offer that's impossible to refuse is the key to stand out and succeed.

Compare A to B:

A: Pay an SEO agency $1000 a month to maybe make more from the traffic they'll hopefully drive to your website.

B: Pay an SEO agency NOTHING until they generate traffic for you that converts. You only pay for real customers they help you acquire. So if you say no to their offer, you're essentially saying no to risk-free money.

Assuming the B agency has credentials, you'd feel like a fool if you refused their offer. Learning how to craft such offers is the secret that has changed Alex's life.

2. Sell your product based on value, not on price

The worst business you can be in is one in which you can't differentiate yourself. It's a race to the bottom with no hope of lasting success.

To avoid being commoditized, an offer you present to the marketplace can't be compared to any other product or service available.

It has to combine an attractive promotion, an unmatchable value proposition, a premium price (super important, as a high price signals more value), and an unbeatable guarantee with a money model (payment terms) that allows you to get paid to get new customers. This makes you a category of one in which the prospect decides between your product and nothing (because there's no competition).

3. The right market is a starving crowd

If there's a ton of demand for a solution, you can be mediocre at business, have a terrible offer, and have no ability to persuade people, and you can still make money.

You never try to create demand. Your objective is to channel existing demand. It has to be in a market that is growing at least at the same rate as the marketplace and falls into improved health, increased wealth, or improved relationships.

When picking markets, focus on these four things:
  • The degree of the pain is proportional to the price you'll be able to charge.
  • Your audience needs to have money needed to buy your services at the prices you require to make it worth your time.
  • You need an easy way to find people who belong to your market. If targeting them is difficult, it'll be difficult to get your offer in front of them.
  • The market needs to be growing. It doesn't have to grow super fast and be sexy but it can't be a declining market (like newspapers).
The order of importance between markets, offers, and persuasion skills:

Starving Crowd (market) > Offer Strength > Persuasion Skills

In other words, a starving crowd beats everything else. If you're in a "normal" market, your offer strength will help you win. Lastly, if you offer strength isn't great, you'll have to rely on your persuasion skills (worst case scenario to be avoided).

4. Pick one niche and focus on it

Half-heartedly trying one offer in one market and failing doesn't mean that you're in a bad market. Don't hop from niche to niche. Keep creating offers for your chosen niche until you find something that works. Alex suggests committing yourself to creating a hundred offers (one will work and make you rich).

5. Riches are in the niches

You can literally charge 100x more for the exact same product as long as you target a very specific niche and present the product as tailored to them.

Compare a generic product on time management which you can sell for $19 and a highly targeted time management product for outbound B2B power tools and gardening sales reps which you can sell for $1997 because of how specific it is.

6. Charge so much it hurts

The consequences of lowering your price instead of raising it (along with offered value) are beautifully described in the book:



7. The only way to be unreasonably successful is to have a big discrepancy between what something costs you and what you charge for it

You should charge far more for your product and services than it costs to fulfill it. Think up to a hundred times more, not just two or three times more. And it should still always be a steal for your client (because of the value you offer).

8. Perception is reality

The Grand Slam Offer becomes valuable only once the prospect perceives the increase in likelihood of achievement, perceives the decrease in time delay, and perceives the decrease in effort and sacrifice.

People pay for certainty (increased likelihood of achievement). How much would you pay to be a plastic surgeon’s 10,000th patient versus their first? You'd pay a lot more.

The faster you can deliver promised benefits, the more valuable your offer is (decrease in time delay).

The less effort and sacrifice is needed, the more appealing your offer is (decrease in effort and sacrifice).

9. Create flow first

With your offer, channel demand first. This means starting with an irresistible, done for you offer that may be hard to fulfill but that's easy to sell.

Compare selling an ebook with marketing advice for owners of massage studios vs physically visiting them and helping them implement all the advice. Alex likes to start by creating cashflow first (by overdelivering) and then fixing your operations and making your business more efficient:



10. Scarcity drives demand

Particularly if you sell high ticket products, have less spots available than you think you can sell. You can offer honest scarcity by simply defining a number of clients you can take on in a given time period and advertising that.

11. Deadlines drive decisions

Have deadlines and run seasonal promotions with a start and a finish. This helps people take action.

12. Stack bonuses

A single offer is less valuable than the same offer broken into its component parts and stacked as bonuses.

The value of the bonuses should eclipse the value of the core offer.

Create checklists, tools, swipe files, scripts, templates. Record every workshop, every webinar, every event, every interview and use them as additional bonuses. Offer exclusive discounts for other non-competing products (ideally get a deal for your customers that they wouldn't be able to get themselves).

13. Offer strong guarantees

An offer can convert 2-4x better by simply changing the quality of the guarantee.

You can offer unconditional guarantees, conditional guarantees, anti-guarantees (all sales are final because of a creative reason why), and implied guarantees (performance-based offers).

An example of a strong guarantee:



14. MAGIC headline formula for naming your offer

1. Make a magnetic reason
2. Announce the avatar.
3. Give them a goal.
4. Indicate a time interval.
5. Complete with a container word

You won't always use all these components. Typically you'll use between three to five.

Examples:
  • Free Six-Week Lean-By-Halloween Challenge
  • Back Sore No More! 90 Day Rapid Healing Intensive (81% off!)
  • 5 Clients in 5 Days Blueprint
--

This is just a short summary. I highly, highly recommend studying his stuff as he offers many cool examples.
This is gold. Thank you for sharing this stuff.
 

MTF

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Relevant to this topic but I thought it was worthy of a separate thread:
 
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MTF

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Black_Dragon43

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I found it very chaotic and not really adding much. The guy probably is a better writer than a public speaker.
It is a bit all over the place, but solid ideas. Drayton Bird is Europe's Gary Halbert... he built the biggest DR agency at the time and got acquired by Ogilvy & Mather.
 
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MetalGear

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Hi @MTF I have been struggling to learn direct sales and marketing myself.

Check out below, Positioning by Ries and Trout was eye opening.

Top Marketing Books:
  1. Positioning: The Battle for Your Mind by Al Ries and Jack Trout
  2. StoryBrand by Donald Miller
  3. Ogilvy on Advertising by David Ogilvy
  4. The Psychology influence of Persuasion by Robert B. Cialdini
  5. The Icarus Deception by Seth Godin
Honorable Mentions:
  1. Made to Stick By Chip Heath & Dan Heath
  2. Hooked: How to Build Habit-Forming Products by Nir Eyal
 

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