How can something that feels so great be so risky?

We do it every chance we get, and we feel great afterward.  It’s actually really good for us, and is completely free.  However, it’s on the “taboo” list for smart direct response marketers.

I speak, of course, about laughing.

• Last Saturday we played a card game that had my family laughing until the tears were streaming down.
• David Sedaris is one of my favorite authors because I find myself laughing out loud when I read his books.
• “Laughter is the Best Medicine” was one of the most popular features of Readers’ Digest, and is now available in book form (http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/237952.Laughter_the_Best_Medicine )
• My mom put Erma Bombeck clippings in with every letter I received from her for decades.
• I remember the first joke I ever told:  “Where does the dog go when he loses his tail?  To the RE-tail store!”

Laughter is cathartic.  Laughter is contagious.  Laughter keeps comedians employed.  Laughter transcends age and economic boundaries.

But laughter, and by extension humor, is toxic to marketers.

We use humor (successfully) as public speakers and parents and columnists and authors.  But direct response marketers know that including a joke in a letter or a landing page is a bad idea.

Amy Doll

One of the most delightful, witty, guaranteed-to-make-you-laugh creators we know is the wonderful Amy Doll.  But Amy is a serious, effective, and as a result, humorless writer.

We asked Amy her thoughts on the subject, and what she does to muzzle her infectious sense of humor when she sits down to write a winning direct response campaign:

Fortunately (unfortunately?) the products I market usually aren’t natural laugh riots.

Health and life insurance? Ugh. Financial products? Nothing to joke about there … particularly these days. Software for healthcare professionals? I’m not going to be the one to make light of their practice/profession.

The way I start any project is determining what I really want the reader to feel and what I want them to do. The WIIFM. And—in most cases—it’s a solution to a pain point in his or her life. No laughing matter.

I just read a quote in John Forde’s latest issue of “The Copywriter’s Roundtable” that seems to sum it up pretty well:

“Copy that calls attention to itself and not the product is what a lot of expensive advertising does, but it’s not nearly as effective as something that can make you want to buy the product alone.”

 I couldn’t have said it better myself. (And how often do you hear a copywriter say THAT?)

Laughter might be contagious, but what we find funny or witty can be highly personal, and the potential of derailing the prospect from the desired result is a risk that is no laughing matter …

But don’t hesitate to send a good joke our way!  I promise to laugh!

“Because I said so!” The Ultimate Testimonial

One of my favorite arrows in the quiver of persuasion is a good testimonial.  Someone else in your community already bought/joined/enrolled/took the plunge, so you should, too.

Doris Kamstra (our VP of Marketing Services) likes them, too.  She says:  “I like testimonials because the comments are in the voice of others and make “It” real – whether we are selling membership, insurance, or a continuity product, an authentic testimonial reinforces that buying is a positive experience and/or good decision.”

Robert Cialdini, in one of my favorite go-to books (Influence, The Psychology of Persuasion) writes about this lemming-like behavior in his chapter on Social Proof.  “We will use the actions of others to decide on proper behavior for ourselves, especially when we view those others as similar to ourselves.”

While testimonials can be a great tool, wield them with care.

“Would you jump off that bridge if all your friends were doing it?”  Obviously, testimonials can be used to influence someone to take an action that might not be so good for them.

Or the testimonial can ring false and undermine your entire proposition.  Sue McKenna, MCA’s Creative Director, says this:

Testimonials enhance credibility. In today’s world, where anyone can be anything on the Internet (or in the mail), testimonials help prove you are real.

But what gets overlooked too often about testimonials is what they truly are: mini-stories. Each testimonial tells a story of how your product or service mattered to that person. Suddenly, your message becomes compelling and memorable.

How powerful are stories? Consider all three of the great religions use stories. Studies show lawyers who use them in their closing arguments have a better chance of winning their case. We even put our kids to bed with stories.

So when you’re looking for testimonials, yes, by all means, use them to enhance credibility. But also look at what stories are hidden in those testimonials. This is how you communicate real benefits. These “storymonials” can even suggest new niche markets (lists, in our world), because people often use your product or service for reasons you might never suspect.

One last thought: You can not create a testimonial. It must come from the heart of a real person. It must use his language. It must be in his voice. It must contain warts as well as flowers. Conflict, tension, character, point of view—all the tools we use in novels are in the best testimonials.

Yes, this takes a lot of work. It takes time. It takes trust between client and vendor. However, nothing worth having is gained without old-fashioned sweat equity. Good response rates included!

Thanks to Sue for our new word for today:  “Storymonials.”

Do you have a storymonial to share? Pass it on!

gteskey@membershipcorp.com

As Easy as A-B-C, 1-2-3, Do-Ri-Mi – Our Collective Fascination With The Rule of Three

What do good copywriters, public speakers and mathematicians have in common?

• The same thing that economics, wilderness survival and aviation share.
• Add divers, poets, and of course, membership organizations.

What is it?  It’s the rule of three.

Wave to the camera.

My daughter just graduated from college, and the commencement speaker said he was actually quite nervous until his wife reminded him that no one remembers their commencement speech anyway.  She advised him to be entertaining and brief (thankfully, he was both).  He very overtly said that his speech would have three points, he spelled out the points, explained the points, summarized the points, and then left the podium to enthusiastic applause.  (I won’t bother you with the points because you wouldn’t remember them anyway).

• Perfect parallel parking involves three smooth maneuvers.
• White light is perceived as the mixture of the three additive primary hues: red, green, and blue.
• Here’s a potentially explosive one — Atoms consist of three constituents: protons, neutrons, and electrons.

Friends with three children say the arrival of the third child threw their family dynamics into chaos because they no longer outnumbered their offspring (try walking through an amusement park with three), but came to realize that their family was vastly enhanced by the third and inevitably more laid-back addition.

Did I mention I have three brothers?   “Goldilocks and the Three Bears.”

Wikipedia lists lots of “Rules of Three”: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rule_of_Three  (side bar – several are also referred to as a “Rule of Thumb” which may have its origin as a woodworkers’ measurement, or, if you prefer, the maximum thickness of a stick with which to beat your spouse.  Well ok, the entry says “wife” but that was in 1782 and we’ve come a long way, baby.).

Don’t forget religion (the three Abrahamic religions in particular) and every joke you’ve ever heard:   Ole, Sven and Lena.  A priest, a rabbi and a minister walk into a bar… 

The three Billy Goats Gruff.  Designers, artists, playwrights.  Breakfast, lunch and dinner (except Hobbits, who don’t subscribe to the Rule of Three).

Today’s MCA GEM of an Idea is our rule of three:

1 – Gather (Acquisition)

2 – Expand (Retention)

3 – Monetize (Ancillary revenues)

We need all three.  Just as the priest and rabbi would never get to the punch line without the minister, we need to GATHER with the mindset that we will EXPAND and MONETIZE the customer; we EXPAND based on how we GATHERED and lay the groundwork for MONETIZING.  And the punch line – MONETIZING – can’t happen if we have failed to acquire and expand the relationship in an on-brand, authentic style.

Unfortunately, it’s easy to forget the interdependency.  Organizations that “silo” their acquisition, retention and ancillary marketing fail to be adequately dependent on one another.  I was once in a meeting with a large organization discussing retention efforts.  I mentioned the person I knew in their ancillary marketing department and they eagerly asked me for an introduction – to their own colleague!  Yes, large organization.  Yes, spread out geographically.  But that’s no excuse for the institution failing to understand the important of the three-legged stool.  Maybe they thought they were too big to fail …

What’s your favorite “Rule of Three?”  Post it here, or email me at gteskey@membershipcorp.com. 

Unrequited Community

Twitter follower explosion. Now what?

It’s hard to imagine how Sohaib Athar will sustain his community (@reallyvirtual).  He’s the night-owl IT consultant who unwittingly tweeted the attack on Osama Bin Laden and watched his Twitter universe explode from 751 followers to 97,971.

His most recent tweet was in response to a request for information on a local restaurant.  Hardly the stuff to sustain the interests of the global community.

Then there’s that cobra-turned-escape artist (who really didn’t get very far).    @BronxZoosCobra has a wry sense of humor (Mother’s day tweet: “Some snakes eat their own young.  #happymothersday”).  Perhaps that will be enough to keep some of the 239,635 followers hanging on until the snake escapes again, or at least until the twitter-poster leaves the Bronx Zoo for other employment and the job of tweeting falls to someone less enthusiastic.

Delinquent blogger. But nice jewelry.

Let’s look a little closer to home:  me.  I enthusiastically jumped into the blogging world, thinking “how tough can it be to write a blog post for Community Park every month.”  Ahem.  Check the last post.  It’s about Thanksgiving Jell-o.  Guilty as charged.

Feeding a community is hard work.  It starts with a very important mantra:  deliver on the promise made at acquisition.

If you promise a newsletter on a specific frequency – Get on (and stay on) a publishing schedule.  Do reader satisfaction surveys post publication to make sure you’re speaking in the right voice and (say it with me) delivering on the promise made at acquisition.  (we have a favorite survey style – ask me if you want to know more – gteskey@membershipcorp.com).

Same with enewsletters, benefits, tips, branding and everything else that goes into making your community appealing enough to try out in the first place – and sticky enough to hang around.

Everyone’s costs and estimates vary, but most people find it costs between 10 and 20 TIMES more to acquire a member (customer) than to keep one.  Puts a fine point on the importance of onboarding, doesn’t it?

Welcome kits are NOT an obligation – they are an opportunity.  (Shameless commercial plug:  they are one of our favorite things to do, and something we modestly think we’re really, really good at).

New member communication strategies are a lot of work, but worth it.  I liken it to joining a church/synagogue/mosque/health club, etc:  you join, and then no one shows you where to put your stuff or how to find the fellowship hall or how to access the good stuff.  You need indoctrination into the insider’s club.  If you feel left out or abandoned, your attendance slips and when it’s time to renew, you dodge the renewal notices and hope no one calls you.

It’s everyone’s job to keep members “feeling the love.”  Call centers, payment processing, communications management – everyone needs to know what promises they are responsible for keeping.

By the way, I’ve started following @SteveMartinToGo.  Along with 1,160,000 other people.   I like his style, and he certainly fulfills on his brand (of humor).

Until next time …

Gayle

Forget the Turkey. This Holiday is about Jell-O.

A favorite at our Thanksgiving

Everywhere you turn this week you see a list of turkey survival tips.  Brine, don’t brine.  Fry.  High temperature versus low.  Fresh/frozen/organic/free-range.

 

Whew.  There’s almost as many opinions as how to “make social media work for you.”

I’m thankful that this is my Jell-O holiday.  Not just any Jell-O.  Mine involves layers of strawberry Jell-O, whipped cream/cream cheese /powdered sugar, finished off with a crunchy crust of carmelized pretzels.  Nutritious?  Hardly.  Tradition at our table? Absolutely.

Why?  Because it’s always been done that way. Recognize that phrase?  It’s often said with a sort of hopelessness: “We can’t change that <insert clunky process> because it’s always been done that way.”  Or “I don’t know why we do <insert awkward member administrative practice>, but it’s always been done that way.”

Sometimes traditions are a good thing.  We don’t know who started the practice of sending welcome kits to new members, but thank goodness they did.  It’s an “it’s always been done that way” practice that pays big dividends in member engagement (if done right).

Take a look around you today, and be thankful for the traditions that bind our communities.  It’s what sets continuity marketers apart from single product sales, and what keeps families coming back to a table full of green bean casserole, sweet potato soufflé, my sister-in-law’s fabulous cranberry pie, my Jell-O, and of course, the big old star of the it’s-always-been-done-that-way show, the turkey.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Let Me In, Let Me In

Charmin Sterbenz is not a wolf, about to blow the house down.  In fact, she’s a delightful, wonderfully talented and highly successful direct response writer.

But there are times, she says, when she feels like an outsider, left to figure out how to scale the walls of her client’s community to get inside where the good stuff is.  The stuff like voice, perceived need, and the contemporary issues that will make the campaign her clients are paying her to create resonate with authenticity.

Community Park asked Charmin to take a turn in the Featured Guest Blogger seat.  Welcome, Charmin, and thanks for joining us …

Charmin and her friend Barb hanging out in their "Clubhouse"

Some days I wonder if clients think I don’t brush my teeth.  Or if maybe I sound really scary when I answer the phone.  Because when I’m working on a marketing project, people often seem to want to hold writers at arm’s length.

But I want just the opposite.  I REALLY want to be your friend.  I want to be your target audience’s friend.  I want to talk to real, live, actual users of your products.  I’d love to go to your members’ meetings.  Or even better, hang out with them after the meeting to see what they talk about when the “official” business is done and they’re kicking back with a few drinks.

Does this look like a good place to write?

But too often … especially with new clients … a contact sends a project brief and then expects me to “go to the mountaintop” where I’ll magically think up some fantastic break-through.

But to be honest, I don’t do my best work all alone on a mountaintop.  It’s distracting up there.  Butterflies float by.  Does the client like butter flies?

I don’t know but that one was sure pretty.  The sun shines in my eyes.  Funny-looking clouds float by.  Occasionally lightning strikes … but it’s amazingly hard work to wander around waiting for cosmic intervention.

Instead, let writers like me stay down in your neighborhood.  Let me play in your treehouse … wander around your web forums … check out your group’s friend postings on Facebook or even post questions for your members on your Facebook page.  Let’s dig in the dirt of your past analysis together until there’s crud under our fingernails and I understand what’s worked in the past for you (and what definitely hasn’t).  Share your toys with me and I’ll happily share some really cool toys I’ve picked up along the way, too.

Why am I so hung up on wanting to be “friends” with my target audience?  Because when I started out as a copywriter, I was fortunate enough to work for a company that strongly believed its writers should really “know” their clients:

• We went to association meetings.
• Joined local chapters of organizations (where one of us was even conned into becoming “secretary” of the local group).
• Hung out with real-life members at conventions and meetings.
• Read the group’s monthly magazines.
• Called members who used our products.
• Listened to hours and hours of customer service calls.
• Dug through mountains of claim files.

In short, each of us became ingrained in the “hot buttons” for our clients.  We knew the fears that kept them up in the middle of the night.  Understood the little things that made them as excited as a kid on Christmas morning.  We “got” how they thought.  And we could write like they talked.

The result was direct marketing that resonated with our clients.  While I can’t say that every test always won, the company did have an exceptional win rate … due in no small part to how “in tune” the marketing was to the clients’ needs.

But as a freelance copywriter, I don’t have that advantage with all of my clients.  And too often I find myself wishing that I did.

Because if you’re not a “friend” of your client’s audience, you may not know where the gaps in your knowledge are … how deep those holes may be … what’s lurking under the surface that may just sneak up to bite you on the backside.  And those blind spots can definitely impact projects:

• Are members of your organization REQUIRED to join? That one fact will strongly color their opinion of your organization and your products.  But if I don’t know that detail, I may write a package that assumes members strongly agree with your association because they’ve taken the step to join.  The result would be an awkward tone that perhaps sounds great to people at headquarters but instantly rings false to members in the trenches.

• Are the vast majority of your members located in a certain area of the country?  Do better buyers live in certain regions? Armed with that information, I can better target a project.  But if all I know is that you’re a nationwide organization, my copy won’t reflect the interests of those important subgroups.  And that could definitely impact results.

• Are your clients buying a certain product as a sort of substitute for a more expensive product they feel they need but can’t afford? Without knowing that distinction, I might create copy that sells the base product … rather than taking the path of a potentially bigger “win” by focusing on how the product is really a cost-effective solution for a different need instead.

Now I have to admit that I have the luxury of having some clients where I’ve built up that “friend” status.  Where I know enough about their business and their prospective clients to understand when I’m missing an important piece of information.  Where I’m lucky enough to be able to listen to customer service calls.  Or see their client presentations.  Or go hang out with prospective customers to get a better feel for what makes them tick – beyond the broad brushstrokes of a client description that appear in a typical project brief.

And more often than not, my work delivers better results for these clients.  Not because I try harder for them.  Or because some bolt of lightning struck while I was typing at my computer.  I have to attribute it to knowing the “hot buttons” and being able to write like I’m having an authentic conversation with their prospects.

So please … be my friend.  I promise not to bite.

Community Park: Thanks, Charmin!  We couldn’t agree more.  Follow Charmin on Twitter for more insights into maximizing the power of Community:  Twitter.com/CharminSterb

What did YOU learn today?

PDMA (#PDMAIN), our favorite annual marketing event just concluded, and the attendees have gone back to attack the piles that built up while we were off enjoying the lovely West Baden Springs Resort (and eating maybe just a little too much).

So what did we learn?

• We learned that 81% of the 250 BILLION emails sent a day are spam.  Sigh
• We learned that despite what we want to believe, the vast majority of email recipients really don’t see images
• We learned a new word:  Folksonomy
• We learned that email isn’t dead, direct mail still works, telemarketing is a highly effective tool, and that it is possible to beat a postcard by an index of 3775.
• And of course we learned that there is no such thing as the correct temperature in a meeting room.   Turn the air up; turn the air down (and wear socks to keep your feet warm).

We learned much, much more of course.  That’s one of the reasons we turn on our out-of-office message, pack our bags, and head for professional gatherings.

Professional communities are rejuvenating.  They can be fun.  And they are oh-so-critical to our careers and our mental health.

It’s about conversations. We have them every day – on the phone, with our co-workers, on airplanes – but there’s no substitute for the value of conversing with our professional colleagues in stimulating, idea-producing environments.

Mindy, Amy and Chris enjoying dinner

Meet Chris Rea. Chris (@Chrisrea01) is Manager of Creative Development at AGIA in Santa Barbara, and one of my favorite “conversation colleagues.”  He attended the same conference, and we’ve continued our dialog here.  Feel free to eavesdrop and chime in with comments:

Community Park (CP): That was a great conference, wasn’t it?  What was your biggest take-away?

Chris Rea (CR): PDMA never disappoints!  We were in a great venue, surrounded by great people discussing issues that we are all collectively grappling with.  My biggest take-aways from the conference definitely had to do with the “digital balance”:

• Rebecca (@lieblink), Stefan (@MarketingStefan) and Tim (@MerkleCRM) spoke about the challenge all marketers face when considering how to optimize marketing spend and balance the new and ever-changing technologies in the digital space including Facebook, Twitter and mobile, while not neglecting the tried, true and effective traditional marketing channels including direct mail and print ads.   It is readily apparent that we’re all learning the lay of this landscape.

Most importantly, I was pleased to hear so many of the conversations center around people. For all of us it will be the people we employ, retain and partner with that will have the biggest impact in achieving success in this new and rapidly changing era. We are confronted with some core questions:

• As we look 3-5 years out, what skill sets and abilities are we going to need on our marketing teams?
• What strategies will we put in place to retain our top talent?
• How do we provide our staffs with the on-going training they will need to keep pace in this dynamic environment?
• What will we need from our senior managers and visionaries to help set the course for the future?
• How do we avoid becoming (as shown in the video Tim Berry shared), Andy Rooney, someone stuck in a bygone age?

CP: You’re right – the faster things change, the more pressure we put on our team to use the new tools at our disposal.  But whether it’s a chef’s knife or an email deployment, tools are dangerous when the user isn’t trained!

The proper tool in the right hands!

You’ve got a great team of relatively young (dare I say Millennials?) working for you.  Do you have a formal training regimen for new employees?

What’s the most impactful part of the training program?  Do you have a list of books you encourage them to read (available on a Kindle or a Nook?) Do you pair them up with a seasoned veteran to “learn while you earn?”

And will you change the regimen based on anything you picked up at PDMA?

CR: Yes, we do have a team that consists largely of Millennials and Gen Xers; the short answer would be that we use a combination of all the elements you’ve mentioned to bring our folks onboard and to continually expand their knowledge base.

We have a formal training curriculum for all new hires that come into the organization.  Additionally, we use supplemental reading, lectures and consulting resources to help support the traditional training methods and keep the team up to speed on trending within the industry.

The most valuable part of the training process though is the “shadowing” that occurs when our newer team members sit down with our veterans and look over their shoulders as they navigate through various activities.

Direct marketing is such an empirical discipline that relies so heavily on data combined with experience to make an informed decision that the “learning by doing” in a real context gives our team the skills they need to stand on their own and manage their plans.

PDMA definitely reiterated the need for all of us continually be seeking out and securing research and training on the new technologies that are emerging in the marketplace.

We are in an interesting time in that best practices are still emerging in the new mediums. We’ve been exposing our team to the new research and trends emerging in digital marketing and our focus for training in this area will only increase next year and beyond.

CP: I believe the best question a new employee can ask is “Why?”  It makes us think about our own policies and practices, and articulate why we do the things we do, in the quest to get more/keep more/get more engagement from our constituents.

Because, as you say, we are an empirical discipline, we should be able to answer the question, and if we can’t, we should be willing to test!

• My biggest take-aways?  Get out. Get “open.” Listen.  Absorb.  Filter.

I’ve noticed a couple other bloggers saying similar things lately.  I particularly like a recent post from Copyblogger.com.

But today’s post is a conversation, so here are a few questions for you (the reader):

• Why do you go to professional conferences?
• How do you justify the cost and time away from the accumulating piles and deadlines?
• And who “gets” to go?  The seasoned veteran who has “earned” the trip?  Or the Millennial who shows promise but needs education?

Join the conversation – or start one wherever you are. Set aside the to-do list, and poke your head out of the foxhole.  Reach out to your professional community, and share some ideas today!

No recipe this time, but I do want to share my favorite new food blog:

http://smittenkitchen.com/

Can You Hear Me? I’m Smiling :-)

Not exactly record-setting, but it made me smile!

I noticed a Facebook post recently from a friend and professional colleague whom I particularly admire.  She posted that she was listening to member calls in their call center.

Excellent.  Can you hear me?  I’m smiling.

I took a customer service call last week for a client group.  It was a member calling to renew.  Pretty soon we were laughing together and she was trusting me with her credit card number.  I’m quite sure she could hear me smiling, and her response was immediate reciprocity – she “smiled” back and left the call pleased with her decision to renew.

And why shouldn’t members smile? After all, people don’t join an enthusiast group or other “like-minded” community because they have to.  They join because they want access to information that is authoritative, authentic, and is likely to help them enjoy their particular pursuit more.

• Have you ever heard of anyone who joined a wine club because they hated wine?  Of course not – they join because wine makes an evening with friends more enjoyable.
• People don’t build airplanes because they are forced to; they build them because they are fascinated by flight – and because floating up above the clouds tends to make one smile.
• And outdoor people – while they might sit in a freezing duck blind until their toes fall off, they insist they do it because it’s “fun.”

Fish make people smile. So do sunsets.

Americans are a smiley bunch.  I went to Paris a few years ago and it was very obvious that I wasn’t one of them.  It wasn’t the blond hair and inability to speak French that gave it away – it was my smile.

(If you’re ever traveling to France, read “French or Foe” by Polly Platt before you go.  You’ll have a better understanding of Parisians, and you’ll know why they don’t smile until they have something worth smiling about!)

Noted call center expert Al Phipps agrees:  “In some call centers mirrors are placed in cubicles to encourage reps to smile when talking.  This is especially important for reps in training.

“I describe this as the yawn effect when communicating with agents. We all know that when we see/hear others yawn our unconscious impulse is to yawn.  An agent smiling communicates the proper subconscious signals to push the customer vector in a positive direction resulting in more positive outcomes.”

Much like the emotional effectiveness of a smile, Al says it’s important to get your customer nodding “Yes.”

It’s all in the words we use, and the order in which we use them.

Take the word “application.”  Please.

“Application” implies that someone (the oh-so-vague “they”) could decide you aren’t worthy, and turn you down.  It’s not a word that makes you smile.  “Boy, I can’t wait to fill out that application for membership …” Sheesh.

Contrast that with a smiling word:  “Enroll today …” Sign me up.  Enroll means I’m in, I’m welcome, and I’m in charge of my destiny.

Al concurs: “Words are very important.  I have moved away from using ‘sales rate’ as much as possible when discussing with Reps the desired outcome of a call. I now use enrollment. We are enrolling members in the program. This begins to frame the interaction for the Rep as an extension of service as opposed to a sales call.”

Have you actively listened to your members lately, like my smart friend?  It’s a wonderful place to pick up on words members of the community will recognize.  Vernacular.  Insider speak.  Authenticity.  Voice.

But back to Al’s head-nodding, hurdle-setting rules:

1 – In the case of an inbound call, reassure the caller that they landed at the right place.  Branding, branding, branding.  Don’t risk violating customer expectation by failing to use the “voice” of the sponsoring organization, and its brand.  “Thanks for calling the Chocolate Chip Cookie Lovers’ Hotline, where you can never have too many nuts…” is much better than “Cookie hotline, how can I help you?”… Then –>

2 – Build Rapport.  SMILE.  Gain trust.  Then –>

3 – Set up the benefits (not features) of the products. Then –>

4 – MAKE AN OFFER. Then –>

5 – Acquire payment. Then –>

6 – Upsell.  Yes, upsell at birth.  Al says this is the most frequently overlooked opportunity in call centers today.

If you’ve achieved a head nod at each of these steps, congratulations.  You must be smiling now!

Unlike a direct mail package or email campaign, a well-trained call center can control the order of these hurdles.  I said “well-trained.”  If you’re smart, you’ll engage Al in your efforts, and then you’ll really be smiling.

Of course, not all calls are smile-producing.  You’ll hear their fears and frustrations as well.  Apprehension comes through even stronger than a smile.

What’s the most important objective when confronted by an unhappy caller?  Al says, “Bring it under control, and then try to resolve the problem.”

Al advocates a technique he calls LAMA:

• Listen.  Silence is golden.
• Acknowledge.  (Don’t try to minimize their frustration.  They said, “I’m mad.”  Don’t say, “I understand you are unhappy.”  Unhappy is not “mad.”  Acknowledge – but don’t escalate – their emotion, as they describe it.)
• Make a Statement.
• Ask a Question.

To take control of the call, you MUST end with a question.  This frames the conversations and allows you to begin the process of resolution and come to a successful conclusion.

Special thanks to Al Phipps for sharing his expertise with Community Park.  Al will be a presenter at this year’s Perdiew Direct Marketing Affair in French Lick, Indiana.  Can you hear us smiling?  We’re looking forward to it!

Also, thanks to Cindy Halley of Affinity Group for inspiring this post.  She’s a brilliant customer-listener!

And what some of you were waiting for:  Today’s recipe is perfect for producing smiles at your next picnic.

The Epitome of “Community”: July 4th Holiday

Louie knows you should always wear a life jacket when boating!

Family reunions, parades, picnics in the park, a day of fun on the water.  I hope you and your Community have some fun planned for this weekend.

Next week’s post:  “I can hear you smiling.”  In the meantime, enjoy your holiday weekend!

Happy grilling,

The MCA team

Free Gift Enclosed!

Put that one in the “to be opened” pile while you’re sorting the mail.  Someone gave you something – for nothing!  Or did they … 

What they are really doing is initiating reciprocity, hoping that you will do something desirable (open the envelope, make a donation, join, subscribe) in return for the “free” gift.

Reciprocation is a marvelous “weapon of influence” (Robert Cialdini).  It’s how societies evolve and thrive, creating a “web of indebtedness.”

Cultural anthropologists Lionel Tiger and Robin Fox view this web of indebtedness as a unique adaptive mechanism of human beings, allowing for the division of labor, the exchange of diverse forms of goods, the exchange of different services, and the creation of a cluster of interdependencies that bind individuals together into highly efficient units.  (as quoted in Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion)

In laymen’s terms: you do something for me, I’ll do something for you.

So what does this have to do with address labels or that unidentifiable lumpy thing in the envelope on your counter?

And does it matter if you’re a woman or a man?

Women give each other things all the time.  Recipes, books, greeting cards.  My own mother invented “No-Nothing Day” just so she had an excuse to leave little things in my room as gifts from time to time without having to have a reason. 

Maybe we do it because we know we’ll get something in return – more recipes, books and greeting cards.  Or maybe we do it to “load the bank” for a future situation when we will need to call on our circle for support, advice or a good laugh.

We’ve noticed that every time we include a recipe with our Community Park posts, the readership spikes.  Our own sort of “Recipe-procity” trigger to get you to read the post, perhaps?

One of the men in our circle says that’s because our readers are more likely women.  Interesting.  Do only women like recipes!?

Or do men simply react differently to reciprocation?  Are they more overt: “you scratch my back, I’ll scratch yours.” 

Years ago I read a great article called Moms are from Venus, sons are from Mars: how to talk with – and listen to – your little boy so you understand each other better

One of the anecdotes in the article had to do with getting your children (particularly sons) to do something for you.  The example was emptying the dishwasher.  The author argued that you would get a better outcome if you varied your request according to your children’s gender:

For a girl:  “Please do Mommy a favor and empty the dishwasher…”  Since girls are generally “pleasers” this was a way for the child to do a favor, and bank some good will from mommy for the future.  Reciprocity. 

For a boy:  “Empty the dishwasher.  Now.”  Since boys are pack animals and hierarchy is a part of their make-up, the mother as “alpha” is telling the boy to do something – unequivocally.  By emptying the dishwasher, he has followed the rules.  Not reciprocity.

Since I had two laboratory rats handy, one a girl, one a boy, I tried it out.  It worked.

Direct Response Applications

The first question our creative director asks before she begins a campaign is “who is the audience.”  She wants to know gender, age, known prior behavior, interests, etc. etc. etc.  The more the better, because she’s building a “face” for the campaign. 

The brilliant creative savant John Nicksic considers the direct response campaign the salesman, scurrying out there to knock on doors and make sales.  The more the salesman knows about the prospect on the other side of the door, the better equipped he/she is to get the door opened.

Simplistically, if my gender reciprocity theory was right, the salesman would give women a free gift (freemium), and tell men what to do without giving them an option to say no.  We’d have 100% response rates.

Ah, if only it were that simple …

Reciprocity can be very powerful.  Lumpy packages are more likely to get opened.  Free is the most powerful word in the English language  (along with “easy” and “now”).  It feels good to give someone something.  And it feels even better when they give something back.  Effectively done, reciprocity triggers future obligation.

But like any tool, it can fail.

The mother of a childhood friend always used the phrase, “Please-and-thank-you” when she asked kids to do something.  It felt overly presumptuous to me (of course, I didn’t know that word back then, but I knew how her words made me feel).  By assuming that I was going to do what she asked, she didn’t give me an out.  If I did it, I didn’t feel magnanimous (another word I didn’t know), as I would have if I had truly “done a favor.”  I avoided her whenever possible.

In the same way, a poorly presented “free gift” can sound like a gotcha.  Worse yet, disingenuous.  A poorly chosen freemium can be a double-whammy to a campaign – reduce response AND increase cost.

But when they work, they work!

I wonder how many times around the world you could go with the address labels that have been included in fundraising packages.  End to end, around and around.  Whew. 

But they keep showing up.  Despite the mad rush to communicate by email and pay bills online, people do still use address labels.  I use them to label stuff I don’t want to lose (cameras, books).  Labels are tactile, and have a perception of value.  And they have your NAME on them.  What’s more beautiful than one’s own name??

Automotive sunscreen packages for RV owners, gun-cleaning wipes for a gun group, and apparently women like multi-use kitchen tools because that’s been a long standing freemium for one group (easier to make those recipes we’ve been exchanging, I suppose).

But a reciprocity trigger doesn’t have to be a physical item, like a freemium. 

• It can be information (communities thrive on access to information not easily available elsewhere). 
• It can be recognition (Congratulations on being a member for 34 years.  Renew now so at 35 years you receive your special gift).

Reciprocity – Plan B

Cialdini writes about another angle to reciprocity he calls “Reciprocal Concessions.”  Put forth a larger offer and when the prospect says no, come back with something smaller.  The prospect feels obligated to take the lesser offer because he has said no to the first one. 

“Is the Preferred Plan more than your family’s budget can accommodate today?  Good news – we have a special Budget-Friendly option that provides less coverage but allows you to get in today – you can always increase the protection in the future.”  Reciprocal Concession.

Pay it Forward

Communities use reciprocity as part of their “currency.”  Do for others, and someday they’ll do for you.  The Good Sam Club of RV Owners was started on the foundation of reciprocity – if someone in an RV with a Good Sam sticker in the back window was broken down by the side of the road, other members were obligated to stop and offer assistance, because someday it might be them.

And about that free gift…

It’s a bit difficult to include a free gift with a blog post, but I’d like to send you something for hanging in until the end (and the recipe pay-back).  But would you do me a favor in exchange?  Tell a friend (or two, or three) about Community Park and MCA (then brag about it to me by email so I can send your gift).  We’d like to welcome your friends and colleagues into our Community. 

And please post your reciprocity thoughts and ideas here in the comment space.  We’ll all better, smarter, brighter if we share ideas.  Cialdini calls it the “honored network of obligation,” and I’d be much obliged if you’d join in.

And now … Recipe-Procity.

Today’s recipe was the result of a recipe swap – Doris gave one, and Kathy sent this one back.  Enjoy.