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My List Of 10 Deadly Sins

by Jay Abraham

...And How Avoiding Them Can Make Your Business Almost Divinely Profitable

Sin #1: Failing to Test

If you don't test prices, headlines, advertising copy, radio/TV spots and verbal sales messages, you won't know what the market wants, or what it will pay. You're just guessing—which can be disastrous. Tomorrow, I urge you to have your salespeople try different pitches and differently priced offers, then review how they do, one test against the other. If you find a new twist that outcloses an old one by 25% - 50%, have all your reps use that approach until you can test and compare even more—and potentially better—possibilities!

Sin #2: Running Institutional Ads

Institutional ads are a sheer waste of money, because they don't direct the reader, viewer or listener to any intelligent action or buying decision. Direct response advertising, on the other hand, makes a complete case for the company, product or service. It overcomes sales objections. It answers all major questions. And it promises results, backing up the promise with a risk-free warranty or money-back guarantee.

Sin #3: Not Stressing Uniqueness

Most successful businesses and professional practices are built around a single USP, or "Unique Selling Proposition." It might be reliable post-purchase service, super fast delivery, convenient hours—or something else. Think about what it is that sets you apart from your competitors, and then make that "USP" the engine that drives all of your marketing and advertising efforts.

Sin #4: Not Having Back-End Sales

The backend is vital to any business. If you can induce new customers/clients/patients to buy a similar product or service from you within 45 days, you double the value of the customer. All of a sudden you're far into profi t, instead of what initially was probably a net loss.

Sin #5: Failing to Address Customer Needs

By communicating with your customers (and making sure that your employees do the same thing), fi nd out what it is that people need/want most—and then make sure you satisfy that need. If it's the lowest possible price, give them that. If you don't genuinely fill the needs you purport to fill, your customers will soon abandon you.

Sin #6: Failing to Educate

Your customers and prospects won't understand or appreciate a bargain, service or benefit unless you point it out to them. Example: If you're overstocked with widgets, advertise that fact (admitting your mistake) and then explain why the widgets are valuable, how they can be used, and how you are willing to let them go at a major market discount to

1) either your best customers, or
2) first-time customers, or
3) people who are willing to make an additional purchase.

Sin #7: Making Customers Work Too Hard

How easy is it to find things in your store? How helpful are your telephone operators when a customer, client or patient calls with a question? How easy is it to order from your business by mail?

Sin #8: Failing to Explain Why

Whenever you make an offer, ask for a sale, run an ad, or offer a product or service for sale at a specific price, always explain why. For example, why can your salespeople handle my purchase better than someone else? Why can you beat your competitors on price? The more believable and plausible your reasons, the more compelled I will be to favor you with my patronage.

Sin #9: Giving Up Too Soon on What Works

I find that business people get tired of their advertising and marketing campaigns long before the marketplace tires of them. If you fell into this business "sin", you might call off an advertising campaign that was working and replace it with something that hadn't proved itself and, in fact, might flop. Test different concepts and approaches, but never abandon your "control" (i.e. best performer) until you find something that pulls better.

Sin #10: Forgetting Who Your Customer Is

Always send your sales messages to the people who are your primary prospects. If you want to reach people over 45, for example, your ad's headline should say, "If you are 45 or over...etc." Scrupulously avoid headlines and ads that are non-specific or abstract.

As the founder and CEO of Abraham Group, Inc. in Los Angeles, California, Jay, considered "America's #1 Marketing Genius", has spent the last 25 years solving problems and significantly increasing the bottom lines of over 10,000 clients in more than 400 industries worldwide. Jay has seen and dealt with every type of business you can imagine. And he’s studied and solved every kind of business question, problem, challenge and opportunity.

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