Gary Halbert did “get away” with being insulting… I think the lesson here is “If you’re not Gary Halbert, don’t be insulting.” But he was funny too! “Listen up, Buckwheat…” that stuff just cracks me up.
.-= Dave Doolin´s last blog ..DIY WordPress: Creating Sidebars On-the-Fly in WordPress =-.

Timing only as it applies to a beer call.

I’m glad you clarified in your comment above because I feel the same way – well said.

>> Heh, sure does! I like that picture too, kind of sums up what I do. Accept I would never wear heels, that’s just wrong. That will drive people AWAY from results not towards it.

But it totally looks like James’ fantasy, he looks like the type that’d be into that sorta thing.
.-= FitJerk’s Fitness Blog´s last blog ..Guest Post: Why You Need to Stay Active, Even on Rest Days =-.

@ Phil – Swingers and getting drunk… Well now. Weekend entertainment?

@ Mark – It’s personally important to me that when clients hire me, they do so because they feel confident and have thought through their decision. I’ve even been known to gently send clients away for a bit of a think when they’ve mentioned they’re not sure what they want or what their goals are. It’s important that they have confidence they’re doing the right thing.

And yes. One beer please

@ Eliza – Even being more knowledgeable can become a trap. It places us above people and they sense that. They don’t feel that they’re equals, and they feel we’re infalliable. Which twists the psychology so that they think, “No point in me doing business with THIS know it all!” That sucks.

It’s also one of the reasons why people who say, “I screw up, I make mistakes, I’m no better than you,” tend to actually attract more clients.

The mind’s a funny thing that way

@ Dean – That was too funny – Dr. Laura. She’s exactly like that, isn’t she? And many people cleave to her, because they’re scared, have low self-esteem and think that authority means “must pay attention”. So yes, it does work.

But like you said, all the time? Definitely not.

@ Henry – Ahh, see, you have the right of it. Pointing out past mistakes and how you grew and learned from it exudes confidence. Even being able to point out mistakes that you haven’t yet learned how to fix conveys confidence, because you’re able to say that you aren’t perfect. Yes.

IMHO the best way to sell is not to sell, but let people buy. In order for this to happen, the business needs to offer value * first * before anyone pays. Demonstrate what you can do for a potential client, share your expertise, and people start fantasizing how great their lives would be with you.

Good example is Naomi. She uses four letter words, but not to potential clients. And she offers tons of free valuable lessons on her blog. Or you. I bet you convert a good chunk of readers to clients.

Keep up your good work. And happy holidays,
.-= Akemi – Yes to Me´s last blog ..Online Gratitude Journal November 2009 Edition #35 =-.

That’s a good message, even if you do really need to do whatever you do for a living. Acting like you don’t need work is one of the surest ways to get it.

….reminds me of a quote from Swingers when they’re getting drinks in Vegas.

” … but you also need to put some of that confidence into the people reading your copy.”

and

“You also need to make them think they know what they’re doing, which is making the good decision to hire you.”

Very well stated James and couldn’t agree with you more.

After looking over the comments in last Wednesday’s post, I noticed I missed the beer call – “Yeah. Hopeless. Anyone want a beer too, while I’m up?” This makes me think it’s all about the timing.

I am not more important than my clients. I would never even allude to that.

What I am is more *knowledgeable* than my clients on the services I offer.

As soon as you believe, as a person or organization, that you are more important than the next person or organization, arrogance and disdain creeps into your tone. Whereas, when you firmly promote your knowledge, you exude confidence.
.-= Eliza´s last blog ..The (Mis)Adventures of Mike: Mapping out business processes =-.