We all know @Travis Sago's Rudolph story lesson. How understanding your customer's "glowing red nose" is the key to conversion. But I'm gonna tell you where I f*cked up my first 50 coffee dates... I was so focused on the CUSTOMERS being Rudolph... That I completely missed the reindeer sitting right across from me. (And I don't mean that in a mean way. Though some of my early prospects DID look slightly hooved... 🦌) Here's what I mean... That business owner you're meeting? They've got their own version of a glowing schnoz. And it ain't just about their "dead list." Sometimes it's the sales team that just quit... Leaving them handling calls at 9PM while their kid's basketball trophy collects dust. Sometimes it's the upcoming payroll they're stressed about... While their new funnel gets "reviewed" by the 47th Facebook rep this month. (Seriously, does Meta just hire new people every 12 minutes?) And sometimes... it's just the guilt of having thousands of people who trusted them... But they haven't delivered value to since Bitcoin was actually worth something. Here's the crazy part: Even though we're offering to take ALL the risk... To test something they're not using anyway... There's usually some deeper shit keeping them up at night. And until you understand what that is... You're just another marketer with a "revenue opportunity." (By the time I learned this lesson, my son had graduated from "dada" to "dad, you're embarrassing me.") What I've learned is simple: Shut up about the money. Ask what solving this would actually MEAN to them. Then actually listen. The partnership part gets way easier when you give a shit about their success. Instead of just trying to "close a deal." I just want you to win, Marcus P.S. Next coffee date, try LISTENING for what matters to THEM before pitching what matters to you. Been shocked how many different answers I've heard. And how none of them were "I really want some random marketer to monetize my list." 😂

I'm not one to sit around with my thumb up my butt... When I want something... I find a way to get it. When I was broke... Getting started as an affiliate marketer... I didn't have $100s a day I could spray and pray on ads. I loved me some SEO... But damn it could be slow. Ya know? But something I learned in selling ads to restaurants and 'brick and mortar' applied directly online. I could EASILY get other businesses to pay for my ads. I could even make a handsome profit. The first time I started doing this was when I was an affiliate for Dish Network. I'd work deals with pizza places and restaurants. The deal was irresistible to them. Let me pay to print your carryout menus. The catch? I place my ad on their menu. Everyone said "YES"... But... The problemo? I had way more "yesses" than cash to print menus. Did I let that stop me? Hellz no. I went to the businesses around the restaurant and sold 2 or 3 ads to THEM. Which covered my printing costs...and then some... And my ads rode for free! Ride baby ride! The advertisers loved it because it was super cheap and they could reach 5,000 people for $100 or $200 bucks. It was "petty cash" to them. And me? I did very well. I sweatergawd I was making more profit from my Dish commissions than the restaurant owners were making from slaving away in their BBQ joint for 12 hours a day. Now... Turns out... In the brick-and-mortar world, this is called an AD CO-OP. Where several businesses get together and buy ads together to get far better reach for a fraction what they'd pay if they paid for the ad on their own. Problem is... Nobody wants to set them up, 😁. (BTW: There are peeps making nice livings setting up postcard co-ops where it may cost $4500 to print and mail 10,000, but they go sell 10 or 20 ads for $500 to $1k a pop and bank $5k to $15k. Getting in the MAILBOX of 10,000 folks for $500 is RADICALLY CHEAP.) But... Nobody was doing this ONLINE in 2004... And I don't know of many folks doing ONLINE CO-OPS in 2024!