B to B results

[Crabcake Johnny]

Everything this year is local marketing and self-generated leads. Part of my new years resolution is I will not pay any company or any person for a lead this year. I'm doing some local advertising, but I obviously control the ad. I'm actually doing a pretty wide variety of stuff but...

did 3 1/2 hrs of B to B at the end of last week, just wrote my second app from it.

App 1: $4,200+ premium
App 2: $2,600+ premium

20% commish for both apps: $6,800 X 20% = $1,360. One deal was a sit, the other online. The sit was 50 minutes "door step to door step" and the online was 30 minutes total.

total time invested: 4 hrs 50 minutes - call it 5.

This is not "here's a flyer" B to B. This is "is the owner in?" B to B, introducing myself and going over how my services will benefit them.

Let's go figure out how many people in the country would work 5 hours to return $1,300. For you ROI guys, it's $260 an hour.

That doesn't mean I'm out B to B every day - just one leg of a "do it myself" marketing program. Today I did some telemarketing and on Thursday I have a chamber event.

Certainly beats calling answering machines for 5 hours.

 

[Golddoor]

Everything this year is local marketing and self-generated leads. Part of my new years resolution is I will not pay any company or any person for a lead this year. I'm doing some local advertising, but I obviously control the ad. I'm actually doing a pretty wide variety of stuff but...

did 3 1/2 hrs of B to B at the end of last week, just wrote my second app from it.

App 1: $4,200+ premium
App 2: $2,600+ premium

20% commish for both apps: $6,800 X 20% = $1,360. One deal was a sit, the other online. The sit was 50 minutes "door step to door step" and the online was 30 minutes total.

total time invested: 4 hrs 50 minutes - call it 5.

This is not "here's a flyer" B to B. This is "is the owner in?" B to B, introducing myself and going over how my services will benefit them.

Let's go figure out how many people in the country would work 5 hours to return $1,300. For you ROI guys, it's $260 an hour.

That doesn't mean I'm out B to B every day - just one leg of a "do it myself" marketing program. Today I did some telemarketing and on Thursday I have a chamber event.

Certainly beats calling answering machines for 5 hours.

Nice Job!! But its to dang cold here to be going B to B. I'm on the telemarketing mode until it warms up. Not as effective but atleast I stay warm.

Also John, Do you only talk to business owners? I have good luck also talking to the receptionist and/or front office people if the owner isnt in or is busy. Most of my apps have been receptionist/front office personnel. And I have a very good retention rate as well with those believe it or not.

 

[Crabcake Johnny]

Telemarketing is more effective than B to B - you can reach more owners calling then going into small businesses unless you're in an extremely dense business area. I simply hate B to B less than I hate telemarketing.

And yes, if the owner's not available I'll leave a flyer with the person behind the counter - sometimes they're interested.

And I'm an old B to B guy anyway - 8 years of B to B sales experience - 8 hours a day, rain or shine so it's really no biggie for me. In fact, bad weather days are the best B to B days since most businesses are empty and owners are bored.

 

[BKrocko]

Everything this year is local marketing and self-generated leads. Part of my new years resolution is I will not pay any company or any person for a lead this year. .

Does this mean you are no longer using Vimo Live Transfer?

 

[Crabcake Johnny]

Yes - and it was a tough decision. The end of it for me was they're not business owners and I simply want the vast majority of my business to be biz owners. I also don't want to build on any marketing that can and will change at any time.

Aside from the B to B what I'm really looking forward to is the spring - I'll gonna be at all local events with a booth/table.

 

[Guest]

The end of it for me was they're not business owners and I simply want the vast majority of my business to be biz owners. I also don't want to build on any marketing that can and will change at any time.

Do you still have your telemarketing employees? You were really "up" on that concept a while ago... hiring your own marketing people. Is that still operative or have you gone back to your 'roots' so to speak?

Al

 

[Crabcake Johnny]

Yes - gone back to the roots. Telemarketers work but it's turn and burn all the time. Also, I want to be local and build up a local reputation. Over a period of months marketers have to make calls further and further away from my locality. When they made their last series of calls they were calling about a hour's drive from me.

My theory is simple; there's enough business in my area to support my career. People simply need to know I exist. As telemarketers are making calls is someone who lives a street over looking for an agent?

I really like the chamber of commerce - great people and it's really nice to be around business owners. All of them generate business from their community and all of them are active marketers. I haven't met a single owner who telemarkets for business and that includes 4 agency owners I now know. All of them do well and generate community business.

 

[J.R.]

Yes - gone back to the roots. Telemarketers work but it's turn and burn all the time. Also, I want to be local and build up a local reputation. Over a period of months marketers have to make calls further and further away from my locality. When they made their last series of calls they were calling about a hour's drive from me.

My theory is simple; there's enough business in my area to support my career. People simply need to know I exist. As telemarketers are making calls is someone who lives a street over looking for an agent?

I really like the chamber of commerce - great people and it's really nice to be around business owners. All of them generate business from their community and all of them are active marketers. I haven't met a single owner who telemarkets for business and that includes 4 agency owners I now know. All of them do well and generate community business.

Find out how long each of them has been in business, how they generated business initially and what groups they are most active in. I still think a health combination of telemarketing and local presence is the way to go if somebody has the time and money.

 

[MHart]

John how about Gary's system are you using that or just old school smiling and dialing?

 

[Crabcake Johnny]

Far less telemarketing and way more out and about.