Up until the last couple of years, I used to give my time away freely. In fact, I would spend up to an hour on the phone with people who had not even paid me a cent. It was frustrating and it was annoying - because while a certain percentage of those people did move forward, there was a lot of time wasted dealing with those who wanted to pick my brain at no charge. That was when I got smart. And I started charging for those initial strategy sessions. At first I was a little concerned of the change - would people stop contacting me? Would they stop dealing with me, etc? But I was quickly proven wrong. Here's what happened? I saved at least a few hours a week. I doubled my conversion rate. Plus I made a few dollars even if people didn't go ahead. At the end of the day, I stopped being a cheap date and started demanding those I deal with respected me and my time. That means I get to deal with better people... people who are pre-disposed to dealing with me. And believe me, there is so much more respect in the process when you make your prospects jump through a few hoops to get to you. To prove my point, I violated this principle a few months ago when I had a prospect I thought could have big potential. So I didn't charge him for that initial conversation.
Article Source: http://www.articlecontentprovider.com/articlesubmit
Up until the last couple of years, I used to give my time away freely. In fact, I would spend up to an hour on the phone with people who had not even paid me a cent. It was frustrating and it was annoying - because while a certain percentage of those people did move forward, there was a lot of time wasted dealing with those who wanted to pick my brain at no charge. That was when I got smart.
Scott Bywater is a direct response copywriter with extensive experience in B2B and B2C writing. Mr Bywater is the author of Cash-Flow Advertising and More Customers Made Easy. You can gain access to his copywriting and marketing tips via his entertaining and eye opening "Copywriting Selling Secrets" newsletter available at http://www.copywritingthatsells.com.au/
Please Rate this Article
5 out of 5 4 out of 5 3 out of 5 2 out of 5 1 out of 5
