The Critter Chronicles of… (conclusion)

Narnia.

At least that’s what it felt like…

Actually to be honest?

It felt more like Van Helsing…

Because as I stepped into the dark attic…

On a quest to find the mysterious “Creature in the Attic”…

Armed with nothing but my trusty flashlight and fireplace “harpoon” element…

I’m not gonna lie:

I was scared sh*tless.

But nevertheless?

As a brave husband…

I did what you gotta do in this situation:

Close your eyes…

Tighten your sphincter…

And pull down that attic door…

[—- scene change: inside attic —-]

At first, I saw (and heard) nothing.

But then, about 3 minutes later…

Almost out of nowhere…

There it was.

Now, I couldn’t SEE it (yet)…

But I could HEAR the little bastard.

He was chewing on something…

Or digging a hole out the side of my house…

And this guy?

Was LOUD.

I mean, he did not care at ALL that I was up there with him…

And then, something happened:

The noise stopped.

And then, it started getting closer…

And closer…

And CLOSER…

(Sh*t.)

At this point?

I’m seriously ready to crap my pants.

(No joke.)

Because the only thing going through my head at this point…

Is I’m about to come face to face with this:

http://www.bobinoz.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/24359966_819581de1c_o.jpg

And the only thing that stands between me and rabies?

Is a dull, metal stick in my hand.

So…

Knowing this could be it…

I put my game face on…

And got ready to spear this motherf*cker in the gut…

But then, it happened…

This guy showed up instead:

http://aallanimalcontrol.com/wildlife/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/critter.jpg

Yep.

It was a f*cking squirrel.

A BIG squirrel.

But a squirrel.

So what’s the big marketing lesson in all this?

Well a few things… but let’s pick two:

Lesson #1 – Billy The Exterminator’s Mistake (#1)

This guy did a masterful job of painting (un)pleasing pictures in his prospects’ heads…

Check.

He did a masterful job of walking us through the process of “extraction, removal, and future prevention”

Check.

But his proposal?

Was an all or nothing deal.

No optional “Phase I” to get things started…

Like:

Identify creature ($200 bucks)

Then, once the thing was actually identified…

Outline a Phase 2 removal plan / cost structure.

Instead…

This guy priced his bid like we were 100% definitely dealing with 75 lbs. mass of rabid flesh in our attic.

And that if we did NOTHING?

The possum apocalypse was about to descend on us from up above…

In other words:

He oversold it.

Lesson #2 – Misplaced Risk Reversal (Mistake #1)

Now, when the guy quoted us his service…

To his credit, he DID offer us a guarantee:

Critter will be removed and won’t come back, guaranteed.

Fine.

But what if it turns out NOT to be a possum?

Do we get a partial refund?

Because the live squirrel trap I picked up at Home Depot only cost me $30 bucks…

Helluva lot cheaper than removing an entire “colony” of possums…

(Which is what he suggested.)

And as a result?

We didn’t pull the trigger.

And I’m $1600 richer because of that decision.

The question is this:

Are YOU making similar mistakes in YOUR marketing?

And by the way, those are just TWO things that stand out…

There are at least 3 more lessons here…

Any guesses what they are?

Just *HIT REPLY* to this post to let me know what you think…

Best answer gets a 15 minute consult with me next week…

Peace out!

Ryan :-)

P.S. Wanna know what the guy should’ve done?

Two things:

1. Should’ve had a “Phase I: Identify Creature” for $100 bucks.

Stick a couple cameras up there, figure out what we’re dealing with – show us PROOF, and then hit us with a quote for Phase II.

That’s more of the “micro-commitment” style I like to teach folks…

That’s thing #1.

2. Regarding Risk-Reversal…

I was just having this conversation yesterday with Perry Marshall, when he asked me:

“What’s your risk-reversal for your done-for-you Survey Funnel implementations…”

My answer?

“Simple. First, basically 100% of clients come to me asking if I’ll take them on. Practically all come through client referrals. Meaning the dynamic is such, that I don’t ever need to do much selling. Risk-reversal just doesn’t come up, because they’re selling ME on getting on my calendar…”

(That’s what happens when you get a reputation…)

“Then, for the folks who aren’t sure? Again, simple. I tell them to start working with me in the coaching setup. Starts at $1000 bucks/mo. Low risk. They do the implementation themselves.

Then, what usually happens… Is it takes them longer than they thought.

But they still hit a home run with it nevertheless… Which leads them to say:

“Ryan. Why didn’t we just have you do the whole thing in the first place, and save ourselves 6 months?”

(Exactly.)

They then proceed to have me build their next 3… 4… 5… funnels and do whatever they can to keep me a secret from their competition.

That’s how you do risk-reversal.

And for everybody else who STILL isn’t ready to pull the trigger?

They can keep on doing what they’re doing, and see how that works out.

Too much opportunity and unclaimed cash sitting on the table to deal with folks like that.

That’s it for today…

Peace out!