SPECIAL CONSULTING REPORT

What Is Mastery Marketing® ?
By Gerry Foster

I once conducted a seminar with a group of entrepreneurs and salespeople on how to develop a marketing plan for a service business that gets prospective clients to buy from you instead of from your competitors.

At the conclusion of the two-day seminar, one of the participants made this comment: “I’m totally convinced that this marketing plan is the vehicle I need to overcome the buying resistance I seem to keep bumping up against.”

Why did he say that? He said it because he was sick and tired of feeling depressed and frustrated. He had grown weary from talking to prospects, in person or on the phone, and not being able to get past all the stuff they were hitting him with – their fear of being disappointed, their concern about wasting money, and so on – objections, statements, and even (let’s be honest) ridiculous comments that we’ve all heard from people who are thinking about hiring someone to provide a service.

But he also understood that it’s normal for most consumers to be skeptical and mistrusting when it comes to dealing with service providers. And that it would be totally inappropriate for him to pressure or badger a prospect to use his services, or otherwise annoy that person.

I mean, using any sort of canned, pushy, “I gotta get an appointment or a check” sales tactic or pre-rehearsed “objection comeback” statement is not the way to come across to nervous and petrified buyers. He discovered that he’d better relate to them as someone they could trust, respect and admire. For that was as important as the quality of his services.

Let’s face it. As a service provider, you’re facing some of the most challenging times you’ve ever seen. It seems like most people are too busy today to hire a service provider to solve a problem they’re dealing with until it becomes a priority. Plus, an over-communicated society where we are bombarded with advertising and an over-crowded marketplace filled to the brim with carbon copy services, me-too talents, and one-size-fits-all products has added another layer of fear and mistrust. Consumers are more confused than ever about whom they should hire.

Now I know I’m sounding like the voice of gloom and doom. But in order to break down the defenses of a fearful, skeptical, and cautious buying public, you have to stand out as someone who is trustworthy – someone who is responsible, accountable, and possesses the highest levels of integrity. If you don’t convey these distinguishing qualities and characteristics and cut through a very thick fog of “sameness,” it’s going to be very difficult to get the success you truly deserve.

Prospects Don’t Trust You

See, I’m totally convinced that a lack of consumer trust is what’s hurting most service organizations today. And that an inability on the part of service providers to attract pre-sold, qualified non-referred prospects – people who trust you, can benefit the most from what you offer, are able to buy, and are likely to buy now - has made an already tough marketing and sales situation nearly impossible.

From almost every corner of the services sector we hear how tough it is to get non-referred business. How hard it is to get your foot in the door of certain companies. How some prospects literally make you beg to have an audience with them, as if it were the Pope. How ineffective and futile it is to make cold calls, send out mailers, and run print advertisements that get little, or no response.

And how you have to settle for depending primarily on referrals for new clients. Not that you don’t want referrals. But what happens when they dry up or slow down? I mean, how are you going to “keep the pipeline filled” and “the apple cart loaded” if you don’t have a method for generating bona fide, interested leads on a steady basis?

In my work with thousands of service providers over the years, one reason that so many of them rely primarily upon referrals for new business is the belief that marketing doesn’t work. Or that marketing costs a lot of money. Or that it means rejection.

Right?

Think about it for a moment.

Is there anything worse than having to present your services to someone who won’t make a decision to use them, because they’re unsure of your abilities, or they’re afraid of being disappointed, or of something going wrong?

Is there anything you hate more than having to listen to someone say “no” over and over again, and they are just dying to get rid of you?

Is there anything more frustrating than trying to close a sale with someone that just isn’t right or ready for the services you offer?

Believe me, I feel your pain. I’ve been there … bought the T-shirt, the cap, the key chain, and the mug!

But your organization may be missing out on hundreds, thousands or perhaps millions in unrealized sales and profits because of an inability to attract pre-sold, qualified non-referred prospects and make them feel upfront they are going to get the service they bargained for. It’s a thorn in the side of every president, CEO, small business owner and marketing/sales director.

However, if your marketing efforts don’t remove this pain, then you’ll be living through the nightmare of this wound becoming infected, which could lead you to the poor house or cost you your job.

You shouldn’t have to worry like that.

A Whole New Way To Market

Let me share a quick story with you, to illustrate exactly what I’m talking about.

One of my passions is conducting marketing seminars and sales training programs for owners, managers, salespeople, and anyone else who helps bring in business to their organization.

I start off my programs by asking questions and getting audiences to share their responses.

The first question I often ask is, “If I interviewed any potential clients you pursued in the past and asked them, ‘Why didn’t they hire you,’ what responses do you think I’d get?

(Please note that I prefer to always use the word “client” and not “customer.” Why? Because the word customer implies that these are people who simply buy stuff from you, who may or may not ever buy from you again. But the word client implies a close relationship with folks that mean a lot to you. People you really care about. Without a doubt, the more your clients grow, the more your company will.)

I almost always get the same answers. “Prices or fees too high.” “Never heard of us.” “They already use someone else’s services.” “Don’t see us as offering anything different or vastly superior.” “Uncertain about our abilities.” “Insufficient industry experience.” “No need at this time.”

You don’t have to be a rocket scientist to realize that any service provider could have the same answers.

I introduce the next question by saying, “Let me ask another question along the same line. The question now is, ‘What do you think those same prospects would have said had you clearly demonstrated to them that you were the master at what you do – that you’re different than your competitors, with something very unique and valuable to offer?”

Immediately I begin to get responses like “makes sense to work with you,” “I’d be stupid not to use your services,” “you must be an honest company,” “here’s my check,” or “that sounds good, let’s move forward.”

Then I ask the audience, “What characterizes the first set of responses?”

“It’s the objections we hear all the time!” several immediately shout.

“And what characterizes the second set of responses?”

And just as immediately, several say, “It’s the kind of things people say when they decide to do business with us.”

“Exactly,” I reply, “and why was their resistance overcome?’

“Because they saw us as the master,” they answer.

“Precisely. Their resistance was overcome because you knew how to relate to a nervous prospect that is leery about using your services. That is where good marketing must start: positioning yourself as the master in your field. This requires a clear understanding of how to relate to those worried souls by knowing what they really want, and giving that to them.

And, ladies and gentlemen, in my opinion, you’ve been torturing yourselves up until now because of this lack of understanding. There’s a river of blood running through hundreds of service industries today. Many service providers are dying slow, painful deaths or undergoing agonizing pain because they refuse to confess that they don’t know what those wants are, how to market to them, and believe word-of-mouth is all they can do.

And what exactly do prospective clients really want from you?

They want a promise of unique value to them. The unique value your services provide could be a solution to a problem, a desired result, an incredible contribution, or an emotional benefit. It’s just that simple.”

Let me ask you a question.

Have you ever stopped to think about the words that come out of your mouth, or what you put down on paper in letters, brochures, flyers, fact sheets, ads, proposals, etc.?

If you’re like most service providers, you’ve been taught to give prospects all the “logical” reasons why they should hire you. You know the drill. Just tell them how long you’ve been in business, or how dependable you are, or how competent you are, or how you are cheaper, faster, better … or whatever, and supposedly you stand a better chance of landing a client.

Everything is to revolve around YOU – your accomplishments, your experience, your success, and what YOU think prospects should like, should know, or should be interested in about YOU.

Sound familiar?

If it doesn’t, it’s because you’re in denial of “should-ing” all over yourself.

Let’s be honest, candid, and straightforward with each other here.

Do you think that anyone, outside of your parents, or kids, or boss, or mate, or partner, or whomever, responds well when YOU tell them what YOU logically think they should care about?

Do you really feel that people will appreciate hearing you brag about having “the longest this,” or “the biggest that,” or being “the best,” “the fastest,” “the cheapest,” “the greatest,” and so on?

Unless your name is Muhammad Ali, I don’t think so!

So you shouldn’t be surprised to learn why a lot of advertising, promotion, and prospecting techniques don’t work in today’s marketplace.

Fact is, prospects don’t care about what YOU care about … what your logic says they should care about.

They only care about what THEY care about.

Bottom line: Keep the attention off yourself and clients will appreciate you more.

Enrollments Create Sales!

That’s why conventional service marketing – the stuff you find in schools, libraries, on bookstore shelves, and what most other marketing advisors provide – is, for the most part, outdated. It doesn’t teach you how to, what I call, enroll prospects into using your services by marketing to people’s emotions.

You weren’t taught how to show deep, heartfelt emotional connections with strangers. Nor, were you taught how to commiserate with them in a manner that shows that you genuinely care. Instead, you were taught to appeal to a prospect’s sense of logic.

Do you see what I’m getting at here?

Think of it this way. Enrollment is something that’s easy to learn because we do it everyday, to lots of people, and don’t even realize it. Anytime you are trying to warm up a relationship, get connected, or get something you deserve, and so on, you’re always enrolling.

Anytime you are trying to get someone to do something – your mate to take out the garbage, or a co-worker to perform a task, or someone to go out on a date, or whatever - you’re always enrolling.

You’re always trying to get someone to naturally want to do something.

Sure, you could keep after that person, or harass, beg, and use uncomfortable pressure-oriented methods. While those approaches may work with spouses, family, and friends, in business it only creates an adversarial situation.

Or, of course, you certainly could present a compelling logical case as to why that person should do what you want them to do. But when you think about it, isn’t coming across like a lawyer giving a closing argument the main reason why our prospects basically seem to show very little interest in what we have to offer? All this appeal to our logic or intellect often makes us feel a bit pressured.

Look, times have changed. New times require new approaches. It doesn’t matter if you are a rookie in your industry, or if you’re a seasoned veteran, the real trick to forging ahead and succeeding in today’s hyper-competitive marketplace is to enroll prospects in the valuable services you provide, and not sell them.

To sell typically means convincing, persuading, cajoling, or even manipulating someone to buy from you. Or, beating prospects over the head with all the “logical” reasons why they should do business with you (like I said earlier, your technical skills, education, experience, satisfied client list, and so on).

In enrollment, you get to avoid the sales pitch and attract clients because you bond with them on an “emotional” level first.

The fastest, most dependable to way to have very predictable, very profitable results is to demonstrate mastery – that is, enroll prospects in who you are and what is distinct about you, and your ability to do something on their behalf that you and only you can pull off.

Just a simple understanding of what people want – a promise of unique value to them – is the key to unlocking this vault. If people feel that what you offer is certainty, protection, savings, an advantage, accomplishment, and so on, and trust you completely on a “gut” level, that emotional connection will lead to a sale. They will buy.

If they don’t, they won’t.

That way, YOU win because people will give you what you want (a check) since you are showing them how to get what they want through the use of your services. And the client wins because “through you” their unmet wants are fulfilled. It’s a win-win situation!

Does this make sense?

Now, notice how I brought YOU back into the equation. But this time it’s from the client’s point of view (which is the only one that matters) with a focus on enrollment.

For services, who YOU are (your vision and mission) often is more important to your prospects than what you do or how you do what you do. YOU are the only thing they can relate to and people must “buy” you before they will consider hiring you. YOU are the reason why credibility and trust gets established. YOU are the entity they forge a relationship with.

Speaker and author Rick Crandall calls it “bedside manner.” He says “bedside manner” can be more important than your technical skills. And people will judge your “manners” more quickly.

Target The “Unmet”

Also notice that I said “unmet” wants. Why? I emphasize “unmet” because you want to find out “what’s missing” – what problems are not being solved, what concerns are not being met, what desires are not being realized, and so on – amongst targeted groups of prospects that you and only you can “make whole” because nobody else can do it quite the way you can.

That becomes your gift … your precious gift to the world. That way your efforts will generate a very good return because you are putting your time, money and energy where they will do you the most good.

There’s an old expression, “If you want to catch fish, fish where the fish are.” Don’t go fishing in the middle of the ocean. You can catch prime fish (i.e. solid, qualified prospects) if you zero in on prospects in pain – individuals or organizations that are ill because of a full-fledged “virus” they picked up that has caused major complaints, worries, and concerns.

And that “virus” was caused by an outbreak from a number of hurts that was never treated or treated properly (i.e. wants that were not being met or they were being met poorly by the competitive services available to them) which have now festered, oozing out a sort of “pus” that is doing much harm.

See, these prospects are the ones most likely to buy a remedy (i.e. the unique value your services provide). But since they are skeptical, they also need a preponderance of proof or evidence that you can in fact make good on your promises.

Good, solid references, of course, are nice to have. But in today’s distrustful society you need to give prospects something more to make it easy to buy from you. Unbeatable guarantees, mouth-watering testimonials, provocative case studies, and I-can-relate-to success stories are just a few of the ways to make emotional connections and enroll people into using your services.

Look, don’t ever be fooled in thinking that ANYONE in your target market is a candidate for your services.

The secret to getting more prospects and generating enrollments is marketing to a SOMEBODY – people or organizations in pain that are most likely to respond to the promise of value you make and the proof you provide by saying, “It would be totally irrational for me not to buy the remedy YOU offer.”

Then you can do what all masters get paid the big bucks to do – perform a healing miracle.

Give People What They Really Want … Their Wants

Which brings me to the word “wants.” Much has been written about needs and wants. Find out what people NEED and satisfy those needs. Offer help where help is most NEEDED. Find a niche, which has the greatest NEED, and fill it … blah, blah, blah.

But what exactly do any of us really need? Scientists have proven that food, clothing, and shelter is all we really need to survive.

In other words, while we all need to eat for example, you could survive on a diet that consists mainly of water, grain, and fruits. A number of African tribes living in the wilderness have proven that. But if I decide that what I really want (i.e. desire, crave, covet, fancy, etc.) to eat is a hamburger, I can take the three things I have to spend (time, money or energy) and grab a burger at McDonald’s, Burger King, Wendy’s, or Jack In-The-Box.

So, what each fast food chain has to do is enroll me into buying their particular burger by marketing the fulfillment of “unmet wants” (based on market research) their particular burger offers. For instance, McDonald’s doesn’t sell hamburgers. They sell you on the fact that you deserve a break today. Burger King says, “I can have it my way.” Wendy’s promotes old-fashioned burgers that are meatier and juicier. And Jack In-The-Box … well, I’m still not sure what they’re saying.

And, you, my friend, have to do the same thing. Either you offer a prospect a unique set of solutions, desirable results, contributions, or benefits, or you’re headed for struggle and effort. Convenience, reduces effort, saves money, increases productivity, improves efficiency, the best guarantee, etc. You decide. These are just a few of the possible “unmet wants” people want filled that translate into a promise of unique value to them.

Let’s take a deeper cut at this.

For example, if you are marketing to businesses, do your prospects want the comfort of knowing you can prevent schedule delays, or the knowledge that your firm offers a better quality end product, or timelier project completion, or shorter turnaround than any other company, or whatever?

Do they want you to perform technically difficult work for which service providers like yourself are not easy to find? Or, do they want highly personalized, hands-on assistance, attention and advice that result in faster, simpler, cheaper solutions, or whatever?

Perhaps they merely want open lines of communication, prompt response to all their requests, or specialized knowledge in a specific area of concern? Or maybe all they’re really after is someone who will do what he (or she) promises, and always keep his word, and so on?

See, I don’t know the singular unmet want or which combination of unmet wants YOUR particular type of client seeks more than anything else. But I do know they’re looking. Once you spot and fill that want, you own your business niche.

Look, if you don’t know what unmet wants your prospects most desire you to fill (again - the wants that are not being met or are being met poorly) so their pain can go away, start by recognizing that the obstacles to a client’s success take on many forms.

If you are marketing to businesses, some of the hurts organizations always want removed are declining revenues and profits, low employee productivity, high labor costs and staff turnover, missed deadlines, and employee grievances, just to name a few.

It’s up to you to uncover the exact buying motive for your specific service.

So, in a nutshell, here are the steps you go through:

Determine the unmet wants your prospects most want filled (the unique value they are seeking).

Identify which ones you can actually fill, consistent with who you are (the vision and mission statement of your organization), the business you’re in, and how you operate.

Next, find targeted prospects in pain – those that have unmet wants they want fulfilled.

Position, package, and promote (frame it, name it, and claim it is how I like to put it) those want-filling advantages. BOLDLY promise unthinkable, unprecedented, unheard of levels of performance that you can deliver on.

Got it?

Let’s make sure you do.

Let’s say you decide that a solution to a problem is the unique value Prospect A is seeking. So, boldly promise the best solution, the safest solution, the most innovative solution, the most complete solution, and so on.

If a desired result is the unique value Prospect B wants, don’t offer mediocre outcomes! Boldly promise timely completion to the hour, of even the most difficult, complex coordination tasks, for instance.

If Prospect C wants his business to be run more efficiently and effectively, focus on the incredible contribution your service makes possible. Boldly promise that you will reduce his overhead, or raw material costs, or product reworks, rejects, and returns by dramatic amounts, or whatever.

If Prospect D wants to feel a certain way after using your services, boldly promise how she will benefit emotionally. Tell her how she will feel more joyful, more important, or how she will gain instant and enormous respect, prestige and credibility. Or, how she will no longer have to feel embarrassed, frustrated, or disappointed, and that she will be able to sleep better at night knowing that the future growth and success of her business is more secure.

And after you make your bold promise (or even a guarantee if you’re really bold), provide proof or evidence that you will deliver what you say you will deliver.

That’s it. The moment you alter the way you see yourself and the difference your service makes in the lives of people and organizations, a wide, wonderful world of possibilities and opportunities open up. You are putting yourself on the path to reaching your true potential. It keeps you ahead of the game.

See, when you embrace the fact that clients don’t buy services, they buy unique value – they buy because they believe your service will help them get out of pain, avoid pain, or prevent the loss of something dear and important to them like their market share, credit rating, reputation, etc. - you are forming a deep bond based on trust with people.

And thus, you are demonstrating mastery at what you do for a living.

You are distinguishing yourself from the crowd.

You are tipping the scales.

In other words, this inspires confidence in prospects and changes the equation from “Whom should we hire?” to “If we don’t hire you, we’re asking for trouble.”

This forms a bond and establishes credibility because prospects will perceive you as being solid, stable and bona fide – in other words, as the master.

This entices prospects to favor you with their business and creates a sense of urgency for your services because you have created pressure in your favor.

Are you with me?

Think about the possibilities for a moment.

Imagine how eager they will be to work with the master.

Imagine how much different your life will be with all the financial blessings that will be poured into it.

Imagine how much more profitable, fun, and satisfying your work will be.

The Opportunity To Have An Explosion In New
Business Is Better Than Ever!

I mean, think about what I’m saying here.

Doesn’t it make sense to tell prospects you have something of unique, precious value to give them – solutions to THEIR pressing problems, desired results THEY seek, incredible contributions to THEIR life or organization, or emotional benefits THEY will receive because that’s your gift to the world?

Wouldn’t it be more fun to meet with prospects that respect you, and want to do business with you?

Isn’t it easier to enroll someone who doesn’t have to be convinced that you have a skill, talent or ability they should be interested in?

And that’s how you increase the quantity and quality of new clients, boost your sales and profits, improve your cash flow, reduce stress, and earn more money.

No more rejection, no more desperation, no more hoping for a good referral, and no more frustration because you feel like you don’t have enough people to “sell” to.

Let me tell you in all candor that you would be foolish not to capitalize on the fact that consumers are staying away in droves from service providers that offer no real substantial value, but are drawn like bees to honey to those who clearly demonstrate mastery at fulfilling unmet wants.

That’s why I’ve developed this website – to help you market as the master.

Believe me, if you develop the muscle of enrollment – stimulate prospect’s interest, entice their curiosity, and engage them in the notion that you’re a concerned expert, a trusted advisor, sort of a counselor who makes no effort to sell and doesn’t really need to seek out prospects – prospects will not only contact you, they will be compelled to buy from you!

Sure, you can pick up a client here, or a client there, but you will never get truly get the success you deserve if you keep trying to slice your way through jungles of resistance, turn lousy leads into sales, and try with all your might to convince someone to become interested in the services you offer just because you’re good at what you do.

Nor will you truly have that success if you prefer to seek out prospects that simply want more pleasure (more money, more sales, more this, more that) as opposed to no pain. Not that there is anything wrong with pursuing “pleasure seekers” that want to achieve certain goals. It’s just that, in my opinion, the easiest and cheapest client for any service provider to locate, land, and keep is someone who believes he or she is not well.

Always remember, people buy emotionally. The strongest desire buyers experience emotionally is to move away from pain, more so than to move towards pleasure. But, of course, there are always exceptions.

You’re Not Marketing A Product

See, the hard truth is that marketing a service is a lot harder than marketing a product.

Really. Think about it. As service providers, we don’t get to enjoy the perks that come with being a product manufacturer.

With products (which are tangible), it’s easy to demonstrate proof of satisfaction to a potential customer. It’s achieved when the product is delivered. It’s just that basic.

And, if the product fails you know when it does. The car breaks down, the printer won’t print, the cold and congestion medicine doesn’t get rid of your cough, sore throat, or body aches ... we’ve all been there.

But how do you know when services (which are intangible) fail? Did your accountant save you as much money as possible in taxes? Did your house cleaning service do the best they could do – that is, could someone else have cleaned your house or office better? Beats me?

Therein lies the challenge. We know when a product does or does not deliver, and the manufacturer can offer a warranty to backup any claims about the product. However, the value received from a service is entirely subjective. Its value is based on opinion or comparison against a past experience.

As a result, clients usually don’t know what they are getting until they don’t. Only when they don’t get what they bargained for are they dissatisfied.

And that’s dangerous, because you are asking prospects to take your word for what you promise to do and what value you promise to provide. Therefore, you face prospects that are almost always worried about you doing what you say you will do, and are sensitive to any screw-ups that might upset them.

Consequently, most of them are uncomfortable with hiring a service provider they’ve never worked with before and they tend not to trust anyone or anything that is new.

They prefer to “stay married” to the service provider they’ve been using … that’s more comfortable for them. A divorce is the last thing they want.

This is why some prospects just won’t work with a service provider who didn’t come via a referral. Not that they won’t ever change their mind. But they are not predisposed to work with just anyone. And any kind of pushy, pressure-like advances will only make them more frightened of you.

Sound familiar?

Well, if it does, it’s because scenes like this occur in every type of service field, in every company, all over the place.

Because for as long as I’ve been in business, service providers across the board have pitted themselves against each other in almost an adversarial relationship – the one with the most contacts, or the most clout, or the lowest prices often wins and the other folks lose!

As a result, most service providers are clueless about how to attract and relate to non-referred clients. Not a clue. They’ve talked themselves into believing that “referrals are our best bet,” and rationalize that it’s okay because “all our business comes from word of mouth anyway,” or “relationships are the key,” or “non-billable marketing time is wasted time!”

Or, how about this classic gem: “Just do lunch.”

This way of thinking, ultimately, will limit the growth of any service organization. Let’s be real here! There are only so many referrals one individual or business can send you!!

And if you think people care about your welfare, well being, and pocket book more than their own, well, I’ve got some shares of Enron stock I’d like to sell you.

There Must Be A Better Way!

In my mind, the problem is clear: This marketing stuff was never taught to you!

This stuff was for the Marketing majors, like myself. Instead, you were instructed to do a good job – that is, do well what your clients are paying you to do – and then, get new business through positive word of mouth. You were too busy honing your technical skills instead of learning how to use emotional-based marketing methods to land clients.

Consequently, you’ve bought into the belief that who you know is far more important than who knows you. From every corner of the country, service providers spend an inordinate amount of time networking, making contacts, building relationships and hoping someone will scratch their back even if they have no intention of returning the favor.

Don’t get me wrong. I strongly believe in the power of networking. And relationship marketing does have its place. Identify your referral sources. Get to know them. Determine the contacts they have, whether they have influence, and whether they will be willing to send business your way. Build in a sense of urgency for referrals … I’m “down” for all that stuff.

But when service providers are placed in an awkward situation where they need business YESTERDAY because referrals have slowed down, dried up, or leading to dead ends, who knows you and how favorably prospects perceive you is what counts. Going after non-referred business within selected target markets is a critical component of effectively marketing yourself, your ideas, and your services.

However, most service providers tend to come across as inauthentic, robotic, and sometimes manipulative when presenting their services in these types of situations because they are not used to being in front of prospects where they must “sell” what they have to offer.

Heck, it’s no wonder that prospects don’t trust a lot of service providers!

Glory, Glory!!

But, my friend, a day of reckoning is now upon us.

In tough times like we’re facing now, buyers are smarter, more discerning, and more demanding. They simply want to make the best choice.

Oh, those sure-thing referrals you live and breathe by each and every day? The ones you are waiting on to make sure your monthly overhead gets covered?

That’s pretty risky. You’re putting yourself way out there on the thin ice! Like they say, the only sure things in life are death and taxes … referrals are not on the list.

I mean it simply amazes me to see how so many service providers (especially the independent professionals – lawyers, architects, consultants, financial planners, etc.) will cling to referrals for new business. You’d think going up and down on a “Cash Flow” roller coaster, taking terrifying turns at rapid speeds over and over would make them realize that people will not hire you simply because of a referral.

Just do the math! Cautious and fearful consumers are reluctant to take chances. Most people prefer to work with service providers they have full confidence in. And simply because the client, associate, friend, etc. who referred you thinks you’re wonderful, doesn’t mean the person being referred will feel the same way, too.

In other words, you will profit a lot more by learning how to upgrade the perceptions of ALL prospects (including your referrers) and enroll them in you being the master in your field.

And that, my friend, is what Mastery Marketing® is all about: upgrading perceptions and enrolling prospects, regardless of the prices you charge.

It’s learning how to penetrate the consciousness of both referred AND non-referred prospects by connecting the right emotional message with them, opening their eyes so they can see what is superior, what is more advantageous about using your service in their life or in their business, and making them feel smart for hiring you.

It’s not resting on your laurels and taking your ability to get clients or your success for granted.

It’s committing yourself to “always sharpen the saw” … especially when it comes to marketing and sales.

The simple truth of the matter is that there is no way to sell more services in a marketplace where the perception is you’re-all-the-same without becoming the master at establishing value … and the master at enrolling people into using your services instead of a competitor’s.

When you practice Mastery Marketing® , your prospects will quickly get the message quickly that you are the “go-to” service provider. Their perception will be that no other service provider will satisfy and fill their wants them like you can.

Period.

Please contact me directly by phone at 949.499.1174 or by email at gerry@masterymarketing.com if you wish to discuss applying any of the concepts, principles, and approaches contained in this article to your business situation.