fellow small business owners locally. Since I owned a small
business before venturing (and losing) online, this seems to be
where this solo entrepreneur is strongest.
Small business owners are a different breed from your
run-of-the-mill internet opportunity junkie. Most of them have
seen and heard what you are trying to sell them in one form or
another over the years.
Likely back in the day some entrepreneurial guy or gal told them
the hot new thing was e-mail systems, or voice mail, or
self-publishing, or Voip, or e-fax or free ads on late night
cable.
When it comes to the internet, you can bet your last
dollar they have heard about it in one form or another from their
neighbor, their spouse, their kids, their employees ad nauseum.
Yes, there will be some who are brain-dead stupid enough to pay
$5,000 or more for someone to build them a website. There may
even be a few who will think the Yellow Pages is deader than
Elvis - but not all.
The Yellow Pages isn't dead, it's online. And sales reps are
selling online marketing as a bundled service right along with
the regular tree-built version.
One little thing that's interesting about these 'Mom & Pop'
business owners: they are easy to piss off!
With running a business, watching their elected officials vote
for changes that steal their money before they can get it and
employees haul-assing out the back door with the
merchandise. They might not be happy to see you. As far as they
are concerned you are just somebody else with a hand in their
pocket.
Listen up: If you live in East Podunk County just down the
road a-piece from Hoot 'n' Holler junction making thousands
selling a website isn't going to happen. Nice to wish for but
don't bet paying your bills on it.
What does this have to do with you? Simply this:
If you have sold to a small business owner in your town prior to
this run of the bull, you might have something to offer
them because of that relationship.
But if you are chasing what you think is a quick easy sale
because "everybody" needs to be online - get ready to have your
head handed to you. Some of these folks can be really, brutally
blunt.
So what you know a little search engine optimization (or read a
book, watched a video or attended a webinar on it) and you have a
Get Response email list you built giving away a free ebook?
That and $1.25 will get you a large cup of coffee at McDonald's
and will mean diddly-squat to most local small business owners.
They want to know why if you're so good - You don't have
your own business listed on Google Places? I'm not joking here.
I've been in forums where the person that claims to be making
thousands a day doesn't have a website nor do they have their
own Google or Yahoo map.
They want to know why if you do what the yellow pages
can't - You show up with the same Power Point presentation
the last guy/gal had and spewing the same gibberish.
They want to know how you can grow their customer base -
But you don't ask questions about the kinds of customers they
currently have.
See a pattern here? I'm not telling you not to try and
help local business owners with their online efforts. Just
don't be an idiot. Start small by offering a simple service
they can get their minds around with little cash outlay.
Kyle Tully offers a simple system to help you get
started locally and build a relationship with small business
owners. Here's an example of the kind of small business owner
his system is designed for you to offer real help:
Joe the plumber has been in business 15 years in Ashland Ohio.
Recently he put an ad on Angie's List because one of his best
customers told him about it. Once in a while he gets a call from
someone who sees it.
How are you going to convince him you can get him a better
response from more qualified prospects? He's in a city of at
most 25,000 people. Sell him a website?!
Good luck with that. As far as he's concerned he knows
his customers by name from his invoices. And that's free to
boot! He also knows which ones refer him business with a good
likelihood of making some money.
Some of you are going to jump in blind, no matter if I recommend
something or not. Before you do and make an ass of yourself, take
a look at Kyle's Course.
It's not the fanciest, or most expensive service to offer out
there. But it is simple for a solo entrepreneur and opens doors
for you in your local business community.
