Why ‘Asking’ For A Sale Will Leave You Penniless

The other day on LinkedIn (the last ‘social’ place you’ll find me hanging out) a conversation thread arose about email marketing and some email marketing tips. 

As you would guess with all things social media… some of the advice was terrible. That’s a big part of why I nuked my Farcebook some moons back. I could no longer stand the high-horsing, humblebragging, sabre-rattling wannabes spewing bile-soaked advice like a sorrority girl on her 21st birthday. 

So LinkedIn is on my shortlist and if it’s not careful, I’ll push the ‘red button’ and nuke it too. 

But what came up in that thread is something I’ve heard other people talk about far too often. And it’s this idea that you must ‘give’ before ‘asking’. The idea being that you have to give ‘value’ to your list before ‘asking’ for a sale. 

This “I’m 16 and that’s deep” advice may sound cutsie and sweet… but it has nothing to do with business, sales, marketing, or email. 

Because selling is definitely not an ‘ask’. If you think making a sale is an ‘ask’, you’re doing it wrong. 

Selling is about identifying and diagnosing problems then coming up with solutions. 
Sales is giving your prospect the opportunity to buy. 
If you think of it as an ‘ask’, as if them buying your product or service is them doing you a favor, you’re completely dead in the water. 

Instead you should find out what they want… and show them how to get it. 

Nothing new here. That’s just sales 101. And if you find that your list complains about getting sales pitches from you, you’re likely building your list with unqualified leads, freebie seekers, and low-life bums. 

Plus, if you have a quality product or service, one that genuinely solves your market’s problems, then giving your list the chance to buy is a gift. Truly. 

Imagine you got lost in the dessert. You’ve been walking for hours. It’s hot. The dust is infiltrating. Your lips are dry and cracked and you’re about to die of thirst. Finally you stumble upon a little shop in the middle of nowhere. At first you think it’s a mirage until you step inside and the air conditioning hits your face. 

“Water” you croak. But the store clerk sits there smiling. “Sorry pal,” he says, “We can’t sell you no water today. We don’t want you to think we’re just out to get your money. So this is a ‘value-add’ day. Here, have some free pamphlets about water. Come back next week and I’ll sell you all the water you can drink.”

See how silly that sounds? Well it’s no different with any other form of sales. Including email. So do your market a favor and sell them stuff that genuinely helps their life. 

If you’re not sure how to do that, my book details my entire email system, including ways to find out exactly what your market most desires. 

You can get a free copy of my book and unlock my daily email tips here:

www.copybymccune.com

Tyler McCune

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