How are you getting offline clients? - Methods
- Thread starter goingreen
- Start date
ballerz4life
Junior Member
- Jun 26, 2008
- 101
- 43
There is a big thread here that discusses how dude built his whole business around getting referrals. He pays them 10% of the contract...works great for everyone.
I have just starting doing this as well, I have received 2 referrals so far.
Just tell everyone you know that you will give them $900 - $1500 for getting you a meeting with a business owner that buys your service.
Here is a snippet of an email I sent to all my contacts, it comes directly from Taktical from bhw and his epic post found here!
The commission will be 10% of the first year's ENTIRE contract. So for example, if your referral signs a 6-month contract for $1500 a month, that's a $900 check made out to you! In another example, a client could sign a $2,500 per month contract for one year, that's $1,500 in commission! All you have to do is get me a meeting.
If you are an employee of a firm and you refer your boss, we will STILL pay you a commission (and your commission agreement is kept CONFIDENTIAL!)
Another great method I used to get started was trading my services for their goods or services. This helps for a few reasons:
*Helps you get your feet wet and build confidence
*Gets you examples of work you have done
*Once they see your results, you can start charging them to do more
*Make them give you referrals, using their site as example (These referrals are GOLD)
A recent deal I just did was this:
I traded a 3 month marketing package (value $499) to a local wireless store for the new HTC Sensation (value $500) and another cool phone when it is released in next couple of months (value $600).
The store had setup a google places page but was not ranking for any keywords. I helped them get the first listing for a few of their keywords and they love me know. Once the 3 months is up I will hopefully upgrade them a 6 month marketing package.
I can tell you what was included in the $499 marketing package if you like.
Another great tool for getting local business is putting a skin on your vehicle. A colorful, eye grabbing design will help you get noticed more and make you look legit.
The last advice I have is this:
Answer your phone when it rings...this might sound silly but it is true. Even if it is a marketer, listen to his offer and then flip the script, tell him if he gets you any meetings with a business owner you will give him $900-$1500. He should have an existing client base and might be a great source of referrals for your business!
Good Luck
I have just starting doing this as well, I have received 2 referrals so far.
Just tell everyone you know that you will give them $900 - $1500 for getting you a meeting with a business owner that buys your service.
Here is a snippet of an email I sent to all my contacts, it comes directly from Taktical from bhw and his epic post found here!
The commission will be 10% of the first year's ENTIRE contract. So for example, if your referral signs a 6-month contract for $1500 a month, that's a $900 check made out to you! In another example, a client could sign a $2,500 per month contract for one year, that's $1,500 in commission! All you have to do is get me a meeting.
If you are an employee of a firm and you refer your boss, we will STILL pay you a commission (and your commission agreement is kept CONFIDENTIAL!)
Another great method I used to get started was trading my services for their goods or services. This helps for a few reasons:
*Helps you get your feet wet and build confidence
*Gets you examples of work you have done
*Once they see your results, you can start charging them to do more
*Make them give you referrals, using their site as example (These referrals are GOLD)
A recent deal I just did was this:
I traded a 3 month marketing package (value $499) to a local wireless store for the new HTC Sensation (value $500) and another cool phone when it is released in next couple of months (value $600).
The store had setup a google places page but was not ranking for any keywords. I helped them get the first listing for a few of their keywords and they love me know. Once the 3 months is up I will hopefully upgrade them a 6 month marketing package.
I can tell you what was included in the $499 marketing package if you like.
Another great tool for getting local business is putting a skin on your vehicle. A colorful, eye grabbing design will help you get noticed more and make you look legit.
The last advice I have is this:
Answer your phone when it rings...this might sound silly but it is true. Even if it is a marketer, listen to his offer and then flip the script, tell him if he gets you any meetings with a business owner you will give him $900-$1500. He should have an existing client base and might be a great source of referrals for your business!
Good Luck
goingreen
Regular Member
- May 7, 2010
- 309
- 311
thats an awesome thread. 2 referrals is badass. must be great to get that kind of cash flowing. the referral deal isnt working for me
there has to be other ways of prospecting that is converting for others
It would be awesome if you compiled all of the ideas people list here and bullet them in your main post.
Obviously, the one that no one likes to do but is proven to work....cold calling.
I've spoken to a few guys who throw up weekly ads in the penny savers/printed classifieds to try to generate incoming calls.
Obviously, the one that no one likes to do but is proven to work....cold calling.
I've spoken to a few guys who throw up weekly ads in the penny savers/printed classifieds to try to generate incoming calls.
Here's something that I just started doing. I'm contacting local graphic design companies and asking them if it's okay if I pass their contact info on to my current clients that need graphic design work. Once I hear back from them, they're usually stoked that someone random would send clients to them. I then tell them that I do SEO and they can pitch it to their clients and get 10% of the contract value.
ViperVin
Regular Member
- Apr 21, 2008
- 484
- 255
I joined a professional referral network called BNI (bni.com) that has been okay so far in getting new clients. Most of them are small time clients that don't have much money to spend, but it's a start.
meetup.com is another place where you can pitch your services, but I haven't personally tried it yet.
meetup.com is another place where you can pitch your services, but I haven't personally tried it yet.
teeniegenie
Supreme Member
- Aug 28, 2010
- 1,294
- 666
Yuck! A referral group like BNI would not be my first choice! Oh well, to each his own!
goingreen
Regular Member
- May 7, 2010
- 309
- 311
what would be your first move?
FairyRevenue
Banned - Multiple accounts to game the forum.
- May 7, 2011
- 134
- 33
Maybe flyers, signs in high traffic area classifiends in your area, radio.
goingreen
Regular Member
- May 7, 2010
- 309
- 311
that sounds like alot of guessing. no offense
A good way to promote your self, is any friends or family members that recently were in an accident and got there car repaired at a body shop. They should have some pull due to they did business with them already they should have some contact in the body shop for you to extort your seo business to, to receive them as a client. Body shops are always looking to bring in more customers, and/or improve their business.
JesusBack
BANNED
- Sep 15, 2010
- 1,072
- 1,303
what's wrong with BNI?
hardybents
Power Member
- Aug 11, 2010
- 512
- 373
telemarketing and direct mail. oldies but goodies...
marcus.watts
Junior Member
- Sep 18, 2010
- 141
- 30
Well Its an answer to some of the questions asked in this thread, tired enough to quote them.
1. I have been cold-calling local business'es for a month and then hired 2 guys [college guys] explained them what we're selling and now they call on my company's behalf for 5 hours a day.
2. Make sure you target sectors which are not likely to have SEO's proposal already. For example, jewelery store, hotels , restaurants.
3. Hotels and restaurants are very easy fishes because you can easily explain to them that almost everyone searches on google before they get into any hotel. Even if you have a website, there are no chances that they are gonna search with your name of the hotel. So its a category search that we are going to promote your business for.
4. Compare PPC vs SEO for them. Explain to them that PPC is something where they would have recurring expense every month which would not even guarantee sales. With SEO, its a matter of a few months [or whatever your package is], and then you have a machine generating ultra targeted leads for you every day.
Get you ass up from your fuckin computer desk. There are literally TONS of opportunities out there. No one trust'es an email sender and signs a contract for $2000 a month. Visit their office, meet them personally, which will build the trust factor. The moment someone meets you in person, you have the credibility and "what if this guys just runs off" factor will be eliminated.
So when you cold call, don't sell, just set up a meeting. Because after the meeting, your client would have something to live upto [thats you].
Hope that made sense.
P.S- Get your visiting cards done, have a professional website set up for your services.
1. I have been cold-calling local business'es for a month and then hired 2 guys [college guys] explained them what we're selling and now they call on my company's behalf for 5 hours a day.
2. Make sure you target sectors which are not likely to have SEO's proposal already. For example, jewelery store, hotels , restaurants.
3. Hotels and restaurants are very easy fishes because you can easily explain to them that almost everyone searches on google before they get into any hotel. Even if you have a website, there are no chances that they are gonna search with your name of the hotel. So its a category search that we are going to promote your business for.
4. Compare PPC vs SEO for them. Explain to them that PPC is something where they would have recurring expense every month which would not even guarantee sales. With SEO, its a matter of a few months [or whatever your package is], and then you have a machine generating ultra targeted leads for you every day.
Get you ass up from your fuckin computer desk. There are literally TONS of opportunities out there. No one trust'es an email sender and signs a contract for $2000 a month. Visit their office, meet them personally, which will build the trust factor. The moment someone meets you in person, you have the credibility and "what if this guys just runs off" factor will be eliminated.
So when you cold call, don't sell, just set up a meeting. Because after the meeting, your client would have something to live upto [thats you].
Hope that made sense.
P.S- Get your visiting cards done, have a professional website set up for your services.
Last edited:
ViperVin
Regular Member
- Apr 21, 2008
- 484
- 255
Hotels would seem like massive fish to me. How the heck are you getting in touch with the owners? I would think Hilton, Marriott, etc would have in-house SEO.
Why? Have you ever gone to a meeting? The sole purpose of BNI is to help members grow their businesses through referrals.
goingreen
Regular Member
- May 7, 2010
- 309
- 311
great insight
ballerz4life
Junior Member
- Jun 26, 2008
- 101
- 43
I have been to BNI in the past and I see nothing wrong with it. Like others have mentioned, its sole purpose is to help grow your business through referrals. I am going to join a local chapter soon but first I am going to all the other BNI meetings in town first to promote my company.
I have tried to get many people to get referrals for me and it is a slow process, most people just don't seem interested for some odd reason. I think the biggest reason for them is they don't believe a business would spend $1500 - $2500 or more a month. The only way I am able to get through to them is by breaking down some numbers and showing them how much the business will benefit.
Since someone earlier mentioned hotels, let's go with that. By the way, I wouldn't go after the big hotel chains, GO TO the small mom and pop owned ones.
Take a look:
Keyword: [hotels in kansas city mo]
Searches: 2900 exact searches per month
If Hotel XYZ is not listed on the first page of Google right now then they are missing out about 100 potential customers PER DAY! How many new customers do you think they could get if they had the number 1 listing for Google Places, 1st page listing for their main website and a video or article on the 1st page as well?
If 100 very targeted people a day are seeing your site do you think it is unreasonable to think 1 person will book a room? If just 1 new person booked a stay per day, that would generate around $6750 a month in revenue for the hotel.
This is how I got to those figures:
Cost per night: $75
Average stay in U.S. is 3.5 nights, I will round down: 3
So $75 x 3 = $225 x 30 days in a month = $6750
Now, do you think it would benefit Hotel XYZ to invest $1500 per month to turn it into $6750. Of course you DO! Remember, 95% of businesses fail in the first 5 years, WHY? They don't have enough customers...
I have tried to get many people to get referrals for me and it is a slow process, most people just don't seem interested for some odd reason. I think the biggest reason for them is they don't believe a business would spend $1500 - $2500 or more a month. The only way I am able to get through to them is by breaking down some numbers and showing them how much the business will benefit.
Since someone earlier mentioned hotels, let's go with that. By the way, I wouldn't go after the big hotel chains, GO TO the small mom and pop owned ones.
Take a look:
Keyword: [hotels in kansas city mo]
Searches: 2900 exact searches per month
If Hotel XYZ is not listed on the first page of Google right now then they are missing out about 100 potential customers PER DAY! How many new customers do you think they could get if they had the number 1 listing for Google Places, 1st page listing for their main website and a video or article on the 1st page as well?
If 100 very targeted people a day are seeing your site do you think it is unreasonable to think 1 person will book a room? If just 1 new person booked a stay per day, that would generate around $6750 a month in revenue for the hotel.
This is how I got to those figures:
Cost per night: $75
Average stay in U.S. is 3.5 nights, I will round down: 3
So $75 x 3 = $225 x 30 days in a month = $6750
Now, do you think it would benefit Hotel XYZ to invest $1500 per month to turn it into $6750. Of course you DO! Remember, 95% of businesses fail in the first 5 years, WHY? They don't have enough customers...
goingreen
Regular Member
- May 7, 2010
- 309
- 311
BNI and going after hotels are a good idea but i think your math is alittle off. you multiplied 3 days by 30 days. 3 customers staying 30 days seems alittle bit long but converting more than 3 customers a day would begin to make it worthwhile