There’s no other way to break it to you. You are no different or better than your competitors!
DO I HAVE YOUR ATTENTION?
Follow me on this. I’m sure you have great products and services. I’m sure your company does everything in its power to make sure the customer is satisfied. I’m sure you spend money to advertise and take the time to help and educate your customers. And you probably have a killer product sales presentation. But none of that really makes any difference to the prospect, unless you’re able to get in front of them with a sales presentation. You can’t make a sales presentation unless you set an appointment. If you don’t set an appointment, you at least need to capture the lead so you can follow up on it continually until you do. And you can’t get a lead or appointment unless you absolutely differentiate yourself from everyone else, and your product and service alone won’t do that, but that’s not the Very Bad News … I’m getting to that.
Look, I’ve taught thousands of canvassers my 5-step canvassing system. It’s been very successful for many years, but it’s obsolete. You’ve heard me quote the statistic before, your prospects are being influenced by thousands of mass media marketing and sales messages a day. Worse yet, and more specific to canvassing and shows and events, they’re meeting with more canvassers at their front doors, retail stores, fairs and events than ever before. To say they’re desensitized to us is an understatement. The Internet hasn’t helped us any either. Consumers are smarter today than they’ve ever been… or are they? I’ll come back to this in a minute.
As for canvassing (and shows and events) they’re tired of seeing us. They peep through the door hole and spot a salesman and they pretend they’re not home; hoping you’ll go away. Or, when they see us at a store or fair they go out of their way to avoid us. The same people who will circle a parking lot looking for the closest parking spot to the door. These same people will make a wide turn to avoid us, just so they don’t have to talk to us. They don’t want to talk to us and use their already prepared objections to blow us off to avoid being sold something. Tell me if you ever heard these objections from a prospect before? “No, I’m not interested!”, “not a good time for me” or, “My husband /wife takes care of that,” “can’t afford anything this year.” If you’ve canvassed more than one day or worked an event you’ve heard those objections. Most are just initial instinct responses, and yet our rebuttals get less effective against them with each passing canvassing season.
Now for The Very Bad News
I’m going to close the loop now. For a minute, forget about everything. Forget everything I’ve discussed up to this point (this and all past articles and live calls). And forget everything you know about face to face marketing. I want you to become the prospect for a moment. There’s a knock at your door. You open the door and you see a stranger there to greet you. Who are they? Your instinctive reaction… a salesman (in most cases). The canvasser starts into his or her ‘old school’ presentation and let’s say, for argument sake, you’re interested in what they have to offer. What question will you ask yourself, consciously or unconsciously?
“Why should I choose to do business with you versus any and every other option available to me in your category, including doing nothing?”
If you can’t answer that question you don’t stand a chance of ultimately getting the business … and you don’t deserve to. However, if you can answer this question, you can turn things 
upside-down in your marketplace. Every company has a ‘Unique Selling Proposition’ (USP). A USP is what convinces a prospect that you’re superior, better or different than every other proposition available to them. A USP can be one or several things. Superior products, service, experience or longevity in the business aren’t effective ones, yet they’re the ones most will default to as a unique selling proposition. You must truly be unique, it is the thing and/or reasons that customers only want to do business with you. All too often the business overlooks their real USP’s. The customers can see them, but the businesses can’t. The customers can recognize them when they do business with you, but that happens only after the sale. If you can’t communicate your USP in your marketing, you may never get the sale, and the prospect will never get to experience your USP. You have a USP! In fact, you have several and I can pretty much guarantee you’re not aware of the most effective ones, let alone using them in marketing to prospects.
It allows you to market and sell in a vacuum!
Dr. Robert Cialdini wrote in his book, “The Power of Influence”, “5% of the population is initiators and 95% of the population is imitators.”
Understanding this, changes the game when you recognize people aren’t really looking for information, they’re looking for answers, successful solutions to their needs and wants. For example, a home improvement company’s real value relies more on the quality and craftsmanship of the installation or construction than it does on the quality of the product itself, but prospects don’t understand this. They think the craftsmanship of the installation is a byproduct of the product itself, and as you well know, it’s not! My guides don’t sell on price, they sell on value, the value of you and what you bring to the relationship.
The key for an effective info guide to sell for you is in the writing, more specifically the language. It has to be sales language, not brochure, feature/benefit language. It has to be highly persuasive. What you’re persuading them on is that you’re the best person/company in your category, for them; not your competitor. Putting yourself in this position completely eliminates competition and better yet, price sensitivity.
This strategy has leveled the playing field amongst everyone in the face to face marketing business, regardless of lead capture through door to door canvassing or show & event marketing; it applies in either venue. It’s been effective for both large and small companies.
My client James Hardie, the largest fiber cement siding panel manufacture in the country has implemented this program. In 2013 we rolled it out in 2 trial markets, Chicago & DC… 2 of the hardest canvassing markets in the country. The reason for these 2 markets was to really put the strategy to the test. The idea was if it can be successful in these markets it can work anywhere. Keep in mind, James Hardie is a manufacturer, they don’t sell their products direct to the consumer, but they’ve taken an active role to get leads and provide them to their dealers.
After it was introduced in those 2 markets and I trained their canvassers, they started seeing results in not only an increase in the number of leads they were capturing, but also the increase in the number of appointments their dealers were visiting with. It was a result of the relationship and rapport created with those leads, through the guides. They were also seeing higher web traffic because more people going to their website from the canvassing activity and door hangers going up. Because of the metrics set up they could track the neighborhoods they’d deployed my ‘Information guide’ strategy into, and how much of an effect it was having. After the trial markets we have since rolled it out in 5 more markets, Boston, New Jersey, Charlotte, Raleigh & Minneapolis. The systematic approach and replicable results in just a few years has fueled adding 3 more locations this year in Milwaukee, Kansas City and Columbus.
Hardie was excited over the first year results, but they didn’t compare to what happened in the second year, in Chicago & DC. In those markets, in the second year, they had the same amount of canvassers, the same amount of overhead and the same amount of door to door and show & event activity, however business doubled in 2014 over sales in 2013; here’s why, and it directly correlates to my ‘guide’ marketing.
They weren’t canvassing any more than they did the year before. They were still getting the same amount of ‘now business’ (appointments made and sales in the same year) from their canvassing efforts, the doubling came from the leads they’d captured the year before; the prospects who were not ‘now’ buyers, but were nurtured into buyers. When they were ready to buy they turned to James Hardie, because of the relationship and positioning we’d created. They had twice as many sales from the same amount of expense and overhead. The cost of the leads they’d captured the year previous came to fruition simply by having the leads and following up on them. While the competitors were out there struggling to convert only the ‘now’ business, James Hardie had taken away a certain percentage of those ‘now’ buyers because they’d already established value with them. When the competitors came knocking the prospects ignored them, because we’d established and proven our USP (Unique Selling Proposition) with the prospects. They were already predisposed to do business with a James Hardie dealer, when they were ready.
The proof is in the results; and the results have continued in the other markets we’ve opened this strategy to. It’s proving itself to work in perpetuity too. For Hardie and their dealers it’s proven to be like a snowball rolling downhill, picking up size and speed. The same phenomenon has duplicated in each of the markets over subsequent years. We continue to get sales from leads generated in the first year, producing sales 2 & 3 years out; without any further of canvassing those leads. Needless to say, we continue to roll it out in more Hardie markets. My system was started in two markets and in 3 years has grown to ten.
Hardie is an example of a large company implementing my system. 
On a smaller scale, my coaching client in Southern California, Clear Choice Windows. The owner JD was working out of a spare room in his home and contemplating closing up shop. In the spring of 2013 he was on pace to sell around $300k that year, barley breaking even. He tried everything to get leads and was frustrated chasing internet leads all over southern California. He consulted with me and I came out to California in May of that year to help him recruit and train a team to the system. JD ended finishing the year from pacing at 300K in sales in May, to finishing the year with over $1.5 million in sales!
In less than a year he now had the capital to upgrade to his second office space and looking to break well over 2 million in sales. He was able to scale his business comfortably both in size and workforce by working smart about his lead generation and working the leads he got.
Now For The Methodology/Strategy Behind My New System
You’re familiar with the traditional ‘free estimate’ offer. I’ve changed the script slightly. Instead of the free estimate my new script offers the free guide. Here’s my script, in making the info guide offer:
“It will have everything you’ll need to know for the if and when you’re ever in the market. We’re sending it out to everyone, but we want to make sure we send you the right guide.”
I then move into my lead capture script. My lead capture script is a step by step way to easily and quickly obtain all of the prospects contact information (names, phone numbers and emails).
Think about this approach. The old school ‘free estimate’ offer in your introduction will only be useful with 5 to 10% of the potential prospects you meet with. Don’t get me wrong, you want ‘now’ business and they’ll always be there, even with this information guide offer. However, using the ‘old’ offering a ‘free estimate’ in your introduction approach repels many qualified prospects who simply don’t feel ready at the very moment you approached them and you’re missing out on so much business. Using my information guide offer you’re still going to get the ‘now’ people, but you’re also going to get the people who will be in the market very soon, even down the road. That’s the river of gold that so many face to face marketers miss out on. My offer has the perception the prospect isn’t committing to anything substantial. It plays off their desire to keep the interaction with you at a minimum. It lowers the threshold for getting their name, address, phone number and email address. Once I have all this contact information I can follow up with them 3 different ways; by mail, email or phone. My clients are increasing their lead generation by a factor of as much as 5. You develop a stronger mailing, email and telemarketing list. You still get the people in the market for what you offer now (5%-10% of the people you meet), and you’ll also capture the future buyers and have their permission to follow up with them. Keep in mind, after capturing the lead with the information guide offer my system always follows with offering a free estimate next. In fact, my clients are showing more appointment set on the spot than the typical average. Many prospects who initially would’ve been turned off by a marketer trying to jam an appointment down their throat, are less guarded and will take you up on your offer of making an appointment.
The prospect’s perception is that we’ll send the guide out by mail, but I recommend to deliver it by email and I teach clients exactly how to handle this with the prospect. Think about the list you’ll be building. You’re building a list of the ‘now’ and ‘future’ buyers. That’s just on the lead capture side of the equation.
2 important things happen in this transaction:
1. You aren’t viewed as every other canvasser or marketer who pushes prospects into an appointment. The prospect feels that you’re giving them all of the control. They’re feeling empowered to make an informed decision on their timeframe.
2. Delivering on your promise of sending the guide (electronically or physically) you establish yourself as someone of integrity, following through on what you say you’ll do. Don’t miss this. This is an important psychological trust building tool. It’s basic, but very important in the mind of the prospect. It starts you on the path of becoming their trusted advisor.
Fundamentally I haven’t changed the way you canvass, but rather changed the approach with prospects. Instead of offering a free estimate that puts prospects immediately in a sales situation, I’m offering them free information to look into on their terms and comfort. It feeds their need to understand and it lowers their guard because you’re not a sale person, only an order taker. Don’t misunderstand me. The role of the canvasser hasn’t changed. Their job still is to get appointments. The information guide doesn’t change that goal; it only changes the first offer to the prospect. My system and script leads the prospect from accepting the 
guide to asking for the appointment, but that’s not the subject here; maybe at a later member call. Here the focus is on lowering the prospect’s guard, building trust and rapport and capturing a lead.
When they receive the guide you take another step up in the trust ladder with the prospect. You promised them an information guide and you followed through on your promise. It doesn’t matter if the prospect reads the guide or not, the fact remains you delivered on your promise.
When we identify all the USP’s that make you unique and are able to answer that question in the prospects mind – “Why should I choose to do business with you…” and you start using them in your marketing, in my guide, you’ll completely change the game. Remember, people don’t want information, they want successes that is based on your experience which proves to them that you have the right solutions for their needs. So many companies work hard to provide social proof, but most of it is so disjointed and incongruent. My guide is a complete communication and positioning of you as being different from all the other choices and giving prospects a clear definition of why they should choose you! It galvanizes you from competitors who may be trying to ‘sell’ them at the same time you’re developing a relationship with them.
The strategy is completely scalable and you’re in control of it. I’ve talked openly about only focusing on what you can control. As a canvasser you can’t control a lot of things like how many people are going to be home, the prospect’s response, weather, etc. However, you can control the number of doors you knock on. You can control how well you know your presentation and how well prepared you’re to give it. Focusing on what you can control will produce consistency in your lead flow. I’ve shown you a way to change the game. So, the decision is yours. You can either lament over what your competitors are doing, or, you can take control of the game and take comfort in that your competitors will be talking about you in their strategy meetings. They’ll be trying to figure out either what you’re doing or why. In either case, you’re winning the game because you’ve finally gotten down to business. And the business you’re really in is the lead generation business.
“If you’re going to wait for all the lights to be green in town you’re never going to leave the house.“ Zig Ziglar
There’s no better time than now to implement the program I’ve laid out here. We’re only a few weeks away from the opening of the canvassing season. It typically begins with daylight savings. This year that’s March 13th, only 3 weeks away. How’s your season shaping up? The same as last year? What will you do differently this year from last year? Will the results be the same, worse or better? It’s up to you. If you’re a Silver Level or higher member and haven’t listened to the live Telecoaching call when I discussed in detail my info guide development, then I’d suggest you do so now. Or, for a more immediate approach, schedule a call with me to discuss how it can be customized for you and your business. You are in control of your destiny; you either make it happen or you let it happen. Which will it be this year?
Between this article and my live call on the subject, I’ve only scratched the surface on the psychology and methodology that makes this thing work so well. I’ve shared only 2 client stories here, but have many, many more. Set up a call with me and I’ll share more with you. 
Email me at cthompson@canvassking.com to request a free consult call. If you want more leads, a system that produces virtually automatic sales year after year, insulates you from competition and price sensitivity then take a minute and write me an email. Simply copy and paste the following into your email:
Subject line: Info Guide discussion
Body copy: Chris, I’d like to set up a call to discuss how your info guide system can work for us and what we can expect from it. Also, how we might get started on it before the canvassing season.
My ‘call’ days are time sensitive due to my schedule and typically I’m on the Eastern Time zone. Please let me know in your email your best availability for mornings or afternoons based on an Eastern Time zone.
Committed to your canvassing success, Chris Thompson-The Canvass King