Have you fallen victim to being the sucker in sales and marketing?
There is a great quote from Rounders, which is the best movie about Poker of all time:
“Listen, here’s the thing. If you can’t spot the sucker in your first half hour at the table, then you my friend are the sucker.”
The sucker is the person who gives their money to people without getting anything in return.
This is something that pisses me off so much; people who take money that is unearned. This is happening extensively in the sales and marketing industry today (especially in the Guru/IM niche).
I end up getting quite a few clients who have bought from these other companies because I can speak to exactly what is happening. Though for every client I get there are 10 others who are wasting $5,000+ on these guys.
Hopefully, that won’t happen to you.
Here’s how you spot the “sucker” and save your money:
What The SUCKERS Are Looking FOR
These types of marketers are preying on very specific buyer personas. Prospects who are motivated by serving the market and pleasing clients. Clients who aren’t going to speak up about the lack of service. They’ll say “This is just the way it is”.
What Their Process Looks Like
The buying process is what should tip you off about how they sell. They provide no value up front. They do nothing to build a relationship with you. Because, let’s face it, they are there for the money and not the relationships. You are a check they are hoping to put in the bank account.
It’s very common that right after you give them your email address (usually by a squeeze page) they are trying to sell something to you right away. They do whatever they can to get you on the phone for a so called “strategy session”. Make no mistake about it, this is a hardcore sales pitch where they are going to manipulate you into buying.
If you don’t buy, they are going to use a number of used car sales tricks to tell you that you’re not serious about your business…. That you’ll never get results because you’re unwilling to invest. If you need a minute to think about it, they’ll call you stupid for needing to think.
YOU are just a pawn in their game.
When You Get No Results, They Say “IT’S YOUR FAULT!”
Much like the sales process, once you buy from them they could care less about you. They are off to conquer some other sale and make someone else the sucker.
No results with their products? The default answer is “If you were committed you would get results.” There’s no responsibility on their part to deliver any value.
They say you should have known XYZ before you bought (which by the way, they wouldn’t tell you if you asked).
How To Not Get Robbed
It’s hard to do your homework on the internet because people can write false testimonials or lie in their marketing materials. It’s not ethical, though people do it every day.
The biggest thing is to be aware of the tactics they use to sell. I’ve worked with over 20 companies that were doing over 10 million dollars in revenue. NONE of them had a sales process that was offensive to a prospect on a conscious or subconscious level.
If you are unsure, take some time to make a decision. Many times if you do this, you’ll see the TRUE colors come out.
I hope this article was beneficial for you. I’m passionate about fighting against this because we as business owners work hard for our money. We help people get where they want to go and we expect others to be just as helpful.
Sad thing is, this couldn’t be farther from the truth.
Great post Bryan.
So many ‘sharks’ in this industry which makes it very hard for anyone really giving it a go to actually make something of it.
It is as you say, do your research as best you can but, but in the long-run it’s better to take action and gotten bitten a few times a long the way than to stay stuck at the start and not do anything at all.