Your Best Sales Tool

If I could only have one sales tool in my tool kit it would have to be my business card.  Why?

• First, I can carry business cards in my pocket or wallet - AND I do!
• It is easy to pass along to others and small enough for them to put in their pocket or wallet.
• Business cards can define who you are and what you do in a small space.
• They are cheap.  I am a fan of Vistaprint.com and there are ALWAYS deals for business cards.

How often are you asked for your phone number?  I never just blurt out my number.  I get out a card and give it to the person asking for my number.  You wouldn't believe the times folks have said, "Wow, you're a storyteller!".  If I have something I need to write down for someone... you guessed it.  I write it on the back of my card.


As I am talking with someone and they ask what I do I simply reach for my card.  They read it immediately and usually comment.


Business cards are easy to place in a letter or card.  Anytime I send a "Thank You" I enclose a business card.


When I perform I always have a stack of cards I pass out to those who ask.  It is a lot cheaper than handing out brochures.  I DO keep a few brochures or postcards with me and pass them along to folks who have a serious inquiry at a gig.


IMPORTANT TIP: Always give someone who asks about scheduling more than one business card.  At the end of a gig give the person who invited you several cards and ask them to pass the cards along.





 Stephen Hollen is an award winning storyteller, humorist and Mark Twain Impersonator living in Beavercreek, Ohio.  He performs and tells stories in Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana, Tennessee, West Virginia, Michigan and throughout the USA. 

No one around here ever hires me!

No One Around Here Hires Me!!

Do you ever voice that lament?  Do you hear it from other storytellers or performers?


Your question to start the week:  WHAT ARE YOU DOING ABOUT IT?


The last blog entry dealt with Top of the Mind Awareness.  Lets build on that idea and think about what you are doing to change that.  Here are a few questions to get your planning on the right track.

  

• First of all, have you done an inventory of all the possible venues within 30, 60 and 90 minutes of your home base?
• Have you identified the decision maker at each venue, including phone number, e-mail and address of the venue?
• Sure, it sounds redundant, but do you have this information in a user friendly database?  Can you do letters, e-mails, labels with your database?
• Can you track the contacts you make with each venue as well as noting when you do gigs for that venue?
• Have you ever called just to introduce yourself?
• Do you make some sort of contact on a regular basis?  Frequency is the key here.  Why not develop a plan to mail postcards 4 or 6 times a year, send e-mails quarterly, send invitations to events you are doing locally?

Don't be a pest!  This is not suggesting you call monthly and hassle them. The idea is to put information in front of the decision maker with enough frequency that they will think of you when they think of storytellers.

The Bottom Line:  If they don't know you 

they won't hire you!



 Stephen Hollen is an award winning storyteller, humorist and Mark Twain Impersonator living in Beavercreek, Ohio.  He performs and tells stories in Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana, Tennessee, West Virginia, Michigan and throughout the USA. 

Top of the Mind Awareness

Wouldn't it be great if every gig you scheduled was just a short drive from your home?  Even better, wouldn't it be awesome if everyone who ever hires storytellers thought of you first when they thought of storytellers?

That is "TOP OF MIND AWARENESS".  In other words, when a customer is ready to schedule/buy - they think of you first.  You have been stamped into their memory and when they think of "storyteller" your name AND face comes up.  That is an enviable position to have.  A position that the marketing giants are careful to promote for themselves.  Think APPLE, COKE, MCDONALDS.  When I was a kid there was a Texaco commercial with a jingle that said, "You can trust your car to the man who wears the star, the big, bright Texaco star!"  Still today that is top of mind awareness.

Are you asking yourself, "But how can I do that?  I don't have a thousand person marketing department.  It is just little ol' me."

Here is how you start:  First, get a map of your area and draw a circle around where you live.  I draw three circles - 30 miles, 60 miles and 90 miles.  Lets start with the 30 mile circle and identify EVERY potential venue in that circle.  Yes, it takes some work, but it will pay off. Some potential venues might be libraries, elementary schools, day camps and  civic organizations.  Check for seasonal festivals and special events also.

As you identify the venue, determine who the decision maker might be.  If it is a library, for example, there might be several including the head librarian/director, the teen or youth librarian and the children's librarian. If you can compile additional info about a contact MAKE A NOTE!  I have known sales reps that had awesome notes about each client.  AND their clients LOVED them because they remembered and cared about who they were.  They also made good notes about when and how they contacted the client.  An example:

Jonathan Apple Memorial Library
1953 Main Street
Apple Tree, KY 40000

Director: Lizzie Borden - collects chopping tools.  Might be interested in a Father's Day program
Teen Librarian - Charles Wolfe - loves werewolf and vampire stories, ask about Halloween programs
Children's Librarian - Bonnie Buttercup - president of local garden club. loves environmental storytelling

2012 contacts: March postcard mailing, e-mails about Mother's Day programs, stopped in to see Bonnie and leave info about my "Think Green!" storytelling program.

Ask yourself, "How often have I contacted the venues closest to me?  Once, twice in the past year?  Do they even remember me or that there is a storyteller in their neighborhood?"  How much is reasonable?  How much can I afford?  This is not suggesting that you become a pest or constantly call and hassle a contact.  Much of what you do can be subtle and passive.  Vary the programs you promote with each venue.  they might not be interested in one program and will be excited about another program.

Top of the Mind Awareness helps in another way also.  As others speak with your potential venues about storytellers, your name will come up EVEN if a venue has no money to hire you themselves.

Want more local gigs?  Identify all potential venues, develop good info about each venue, develop a systematic contact/marketing plan, make contact regularly and vary the programs you offer.





 Stephen Hollen is an award winning storyteller, humorist and Mark Twain Impersonator living in Beavercreek, Ohio.  He performs and tells stories in Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana, Tennessee, West Virginia, Michigan and throughout the USA. 

I Love Anchor Gigs

I love anchor gigs!

So, what in the world am I talking about and what does it have to do with marketing and storytelling/performing?  Great question, if I do say so myself.


As I look at my calendar, I often find that I get requests for programs outside of my local area.  You get them too.  They are gigs that you cannot do without some travel and at least one overnight away from home.  Many storytellers and other performers turn these down immediately for several reasons; too far from home, the venue can't afford to pay your gig fee plus motel plus mileage, perhaps you just don't know the area.


If you don't want to travel those are all good reasons not to take a gig.  If, like me, you enjoy the travel and seeing new sites, these gigs become Anchor Gigs and an opportunity for other gigs and more income! 


An Anchor Gig is a gig I schedule and begin to build around.  As I build a tour I do not like to bounce down the highway from one town to the next for gigs.  I would rather find a good area to market in and a decent motel, a welcoming friend or a neat Bed and Breakfast and begin to look for opportunities.


For example, if you have a gig opportunity in Atlanta, Georgia make that your Anchor Gig and draw a 60 mile circle around Atlanta.  That is approximately an hour drive any direction which is very reasonable travel time to a gig for me.  I personally love to use an Atlas and a compass for this task.  It makes it easier than trying to do this on Google Maps or Mapquest.  The map has a mileage scale that I use to adjust my compass as I draw a circle IN PENCIL! 


Try it on Google Maps - do an imaginary circle and see all the towns and cities within an hour drive!  There is Roswell, Smyrna, Lawrenceville, Marietta... and Athens is just 9 miles outside that circle, so I would include it too!

The next step is Google "mining for venues".  I search the surrounding towns, villages and cities for opportunities; Libraries, Festivals, Civic Clubs, Churches, Day Camps, Senior Centers, Museums all are great opportunities.  

I personally like to start with a postcard (can you imagine me starting with a postcard) or e-mail if I can find a contact person at each possible venue.  Having a date creates a sense of urgency for the contact.  In an e-mail you would suggest "I will be in your area the week of November 5th and have dates still available" .  For a postcard I like to use a gold foil label on the front of the postcard with "Stephen will be in the Smyrna area the week of November 5th, call for scheduling info".

I do my homework and determine which of my programs would best fit each venue and send the appropriate e-mail or postcard.  I do NOT send a generic e-mail or postcard.  I try my best to suggest a specific program.


Follow up with a polite phone call, confirm they received the e-mail or phone call and ask if they would like to schedule a program.  It might take 5 or even 10 contacts to get another gig, but persistence pays off.  Does it work?  Yes, it works very well for me.  

For the second week in August I started with a gig about 4 hours away from home.  A decent paying gig, but in the middle of the week.  I mailed about 50 postcards (my cost was about 42 cents each so a cost of $21) and made 30 or 40 e-mail contacts.  As a result of mining around that Anchor Gig I now have 4 gigs instead of one.  I will need to stay for three nights in that area, but one of the venues offered lodging in a lovely guest suite for two nights as part of my compensation!



 Stephen Hollen is an award winning storyteller, humorist and Mark Twain Impersonator living in Beavercreek, Ohio.  He performs and tells stories in Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana, Tennessee, West Virginia, Michigan and throughout the USA. 

New Story

Here is a link to a story that will be on my new album!

Church visitation

Themed Programs

July 4th will be here soon.  I wonder how many storytellers have a program developed about courage, loyalty, patriotism and the men and women who have made our country free?

What?  You haven't thought of July 4th as an opportunity to get gigs?  I'm not talking that day in particular, but the weeks before and after are a great opportunity for storytelling.  It can be a time not just for stories about the America's Founding Fathers, but also stories of courage, stories of simple folks who stand up for what is right.

Actually, it is probably too late to promote programs for this holiday.  However, with an election cycle coming, this is a great time to promote the same programs for fall!  This is a great time to remind folks why we vote, why we are blessed in the country we live in.  With a nation that divides itself between a two party system, why not remind folks on both sides of the political aisle of those great men and women who symbolize the leadership we all should seek to demonstrate?

Patriotic themes are not really your cup of tea (pardon the Boston Tea Party reference - another great story)?  Take a look at the other seasons and holidays coming up, plan programs around those themes and start marketing those particular programs?

Ideas?  Scary stories for late September and October! Stories of harvest and giving thanks for blessings for November.  Christmas stories for December.  I do the stories and talk about the origin of Santa Claus - for grown up audiences, of course.  It is a popular program!  I have heard some wonderful Hanukkah stories - a great December theme!

Get the idea?  Start planning now to market a program around other seasons and holidays!  Do you have a program for the weeks around Valentine's Day?  Romance, love, the difference between men and women, the humor in weddings and marriage???  Getting any ideas?  Don't forget those same programs can be used for other types of venues - weddings, anniversaries, for example.

Here is the important take away:  A storyteller can gather stories for just about any event on the calendar.  Develop a themed program and market that program seasonally.  It will give venues an idea that they can slip into their calendar.  Take my word for it, those who program are definitely calendar and holiday oriented as they plan their year out.

Junk Mail Review

Want a great way to learn more about marketing yourself as a storyteller or performer?  Here is a simple way to learn more about marketing:

EXAMINE YOUR JUNK MAIL! 

See what business are paying marketing companies to produce.  Go through and read the pitches, look at the photos, feel the paper.  What catches your eye?  Which ones are your favorites?  Which ones are just worthless, not interesting and not worth a second look?

Each day save your favorites and keep a stack for a week or two.  At the end of that period go through the favorites and begin to pull out the best pitches.

Then ask yourself these questions:

Why did I like this one?  Was it the pictures? The pitch? Did I want or need what they were selling? Was it clear as to what they were selling?  Were the benefits of purchasing the item clear and well defined?  Why would someone buy the item based on the piece of mail you have?  Is there a clear and definite "ASK"?  Is there a "Call To Action"?  Is there any sense of urgency or a limited time offer?

Now, get your marketing materials out and put them beside the "professionally done" junk mail you have selected.  How does your marketing material look next to the professional pieces?

Is it clear what you are selling?  Is your pitch to the point?  Are the benefits on your marketing pieces clearly defined?  Do you ASK for anything?  Do you have a "Call To Action"?

Do a review of your materials and try to look at them from the point of view of the folks that will be receiving them.

Now, the hard question:  If a potential venue receives my marketing materials in the mail... will they just go in the trash OR will they take a second look?


Troubled by the answers that come to your mind?  Then maybe it is time to refresh your marketing materials!

Are They Buying What You Are Selling? Part 3

Question for the day:  How many possible venues are within 30 minutes of your home?  How many within in 60 minutes?  90 Minutes?


The next question is a telling one!  How many of the possible venues within 30 minutes of your home even know you exist?

These are low hanging fruit for the storyteller/performer, yet many folks don't take the time to identify them, much less contact them.


Here is a great business/market planning exercise:  

Step One: Get a map of your community.  Print one from an online resource, go the the local chamber of commerce and get one. buy one that you find at the local drug store, convenience store or book store.  Identify the areas that are within a 30 minute drive of your home.


Step Two:  Begin to identify the venues in that area.  Do schools in your area still have opportunity and funding for programs?  How many libraries, day camps, boys and girls clubs, scout groups can you identify?

Step Three:  This is such an important one.  It is one you can save for later, but one that can have impact if you do it early in your process.  Identify the decision makers at each venue.  Do some online research and check out websites.  For example, does the local library website list the children's librarian?  Do you do programs for adults too?  If so, what about that librarian also?  


No website for a venue?  That is OK too.  Make a call, be pleasant and ask the receptionist or person answering the call to identify the person who schedules programs for their organization.


Step Four:  Build your lists and save them in some orderly way.  Most sales organizations use CRM - Customer Relationship Management programs to track contacts with customers and prospects.  There are free and easy to use programs out there.  You identify prospects and past clients, put them in the database and then actually track how and when you make contacts!  It actually takes the "happenstance" out of your marketing and business planning.


Not ready for that?  Consider using a spreadsheet, Outlook or even just mailing labels on your Word application.  If you want to be low tech you can write each venue name, address, phone number AND contact person on a 3x5 card.  Just do something.


Step Five:  Make contact.  Now, you know I am the Postcard Potentate, so I have to suggest a postcard as a great first contact.  It is cheap to mail (32 cents per postcard), cheap to print (Vistaprint always has half price deals - $12.50 or so for 100, or $99 for 1,000) and for not much money you can have an attractive, professional marketing piece in the hands of prospective customers.

My advice is to have a specific program you are promoting.  This will allow you to send other mail about other programs.  It ALSO reinforces their awareness of you and your programs.  Repetition is the way to keep your name top of mind for these decision makers. The more times you make contact the more likely they are to think of you as they plan programs.


What did you say?  You would rather do an e-mail contact?  Great, even cheaper for a first contact.  I suggest a little more homework before you can send that e-mail.  Do not send a bulk e-mail blast.  Take the time to send to each IDENTIFIED decision maker.  Spend some time online at websites or on the phone and get this info ahead of time.


Step Six:  (You can stop at Step Five and still get more gigs than you get now.  However, if you want to really kick your marketing into high gear...)  Make a phone call follow up!  Call the decision maker, introduce yourself and mention something that is time sensitive.  Offer a deal if they schedule early, suggest a program that is tied to a calendar period - scary stories during October, for example.  Make the quick pitch and shut up.  Give the person a chance to think and respond.  No matter what the answer, be polite, thank them for their time.  Most of all - DO NOT HASSLE them constantly.  Do not be the aggravating telemarketer.


Last of all, Keep records of your contacts.  I cannot emphasize this enough.  Keep records and do some analysis of what works.  this will make your marketing more efficient, more structured and more effective.

Are They Buying What You Are Selling? Part 2

Part two of this question is simple.  How do you develop your storytelling programs?  Do you just pick out some stories, memorize the bones and start trying to get gigs?  Do you tell stories particular to your ethnic group?  Did you choose the types of stories for a particular reason?

More importantly, do people want to hear the stories you have chosen?  I know this flies in the face of some "purists" who might think any story is important to tell.  The reality is if no one wants to hear the stories you have chosen NO ONE would hire you!  If you choose to tell "The longest and most boring story ever told"... well, you might not get much business.  Find what people want to hear and you will have a much better chance of getting gigs.  That is a reality.

There is a way to balance this, do what you are passionate about and what folks will pay for.  First of all, take time to talk with people about potential programs.  Ask about your ideas.  Get a group of tellers and decision makers at venues you target and ask them what they think.  Perhaps not about specific stories but about a program in general.  Ask if you can bend their ear for a while and sit down in person or even on the phone and review your ideas.

Then LISTEN!  Seek advice and take good advice to heart.  Also, if you have a program in your brochure that no one ever asks for - TAKE IT OUT! 

Last but not least, change up your offerings on a regular basis.  Develop a new program and promote it heavily!  When you get a gig from the new program you can them mention other tried and true programs that might also be of interest!

Are They Buying What You Are Selling? Part One

The title above is my question for today?  Are folks buying what you are selling?  I have had storytellers and other performers tell me they just can't get gigs, no matter how hard they try.  There may be a couple reasons for that.  Take a look at one with me:

How are you approaching folks?  Are you polite, pleasant, not intrusive?  I had a sales rep in the pharmaceutical field that worked for me who was so rude at times.   He really knew his products, was super smart but just had no interpersonal skills. (I inherited him - did not hire him)  He was abrupt, arrogant and not a favorite of the offices he called on.  For that reason he had terrible results. 

He just didn't get it, no matter how much I worked with him.  He always complained about another rep that had awesome numbers, was loved by all the offices he called on but just didn't know the product as well as he should.

The difference was the successful rep KNEW he worked for the offices he called on.  His success was due to them and he treated every single person with respect and genuine friendship.  His sales pitch was weak at best, but the doctors loved him.  He respected their time, their place of business, their staff.  He was humble and sincere and won awards every year.

The bottom line?  People "buy" from people they like.  This is one of the basic TRUTHS in marketing/selling.  I am not talking about the greasy slickster in a loud plaid sport coat who wraps an arm around you as they start with, "Tell ya what I'ma gonna do, just cause I like you..."

Here is how to build a good foundation to your marketing!  First know your market.  Know who makes the decisions at each venue.  Second, treat them like the awesome resource they are to you.  When they hire you be sure to follow up with a thank you card.  Write it out by hand and mail it to them personally.  Be personable, humble and appreciative.  Don't grovel, just let folks get to know you.  Get to know them at the same time.  KNOW their name, ask about them, how their day is going. 

Last but not least; DO NOT over pressure them to schedule you.  Don't waste their time.  Get to the point and be kind.