So, as promised a few days ago via my email broadcast (it’s linked here if you didn’t read it), I’m going to share with you how CAUSE MARKETING comes into play via social media.

First, it’s important to NOTE that my definition and description of “cause marketing” isn’t going to be the same as the standard, dry academic one you may be aware of:

“the type of marketing involving the cooperative efforts of a ‘for profit‘ business and a non-profit organization for mutual benefit.”

Nope… instead, what I’m talking about here is all about your REASON for communicating with one of your lists — your open statement of “here’s why this newsletter (or blog or list you’re asking people to join) exists.”

I can’t begin to tell you how many people online confuse “pitch marketing” with “endorsement teaching” (hell, sometimes I think some folks are trying to be the Billy Mays of Email).

Yeah, sure, I get it — I just made up the phrases above; yet, when you look at how the two words in “quotes” go together, you can begin to see the word play and WHY your readers  either run to OPEN your email or instantly CLOSE  it.

We’ve got some affiliates wondering WHY their conversions were LOW on our recent Interviewing Unwrapped promotion.

Yet, when I go to look at WHAT they’ve been saying to their readers in the recent past, and HOW they’ve been saying it, the commonalities between 4 to 5% sales conversions (which several affiliates achieved) and 1 to 2% conversions (which several affiliates achieved) are pretty clear.

The higher conversions come from lists where the writer, publisher, or marketer spends the majority of their time TEACHING WHAT THEY KNOW about a very narrow and niche-specific topic.

Let me ask you something:

If you create a landing page, or have an opt-in form on a blog, where the verbiage is all about how you’re going to teach “traffic techniques,” yet you pitch MORE THAN you teach, or you rarely give away your “traffic generation” knowledge, what d’ya think your subscribers are eventually going to do?

Uhmmm, let’s see: possibly wonder about your intentions, what your agenda is, and just who the hell you are?

Or, if you’re constantly pitching stuff that’s not really related to traffic-generation, what could be the ultimate backlash from the reader?

Let their fingers do the walking to the DELETE key?

Yup, probably.

Here’s the rub about all this:

I constantly see more and more UNFOCUSED pitches and canned endorsements about others’ products (including ours) — products that don’t sync up, resonate, or jive with the “marketer’s” list.

Whether it’s the need to be seen as one of the cool people who jumped on board a “buzz-filled” dated launch, or whether it’s just about fast cash, in the long run the shotgun strategy is going to do more harm to your business (hopefully that’s how you look at cultivating and nurturing a list of readers).

I do believe Dave Vallieres said it well when he said:

“A lot of online email newsletters are well nothing but sales machines — full of hype — or pure fiction. Here’s a fact: Of the 372 IM email newsletters I subscribe to, only 12 provide any kind of factual, un-biased advice or news about Internet marketing. I’m not making a judgment here, but those are the facts.”

And, of course, like Dave, I’m NOT slapping the verbal ruler at any LWL affiliate(s) in particular.

What I am saying, however, is this:

It doesn’t matter how spectacular, mediocre, or even bad a publisher’s sales page is (er, forget that — I know we need to present somebody with a proper offer and have compelling reasons to look at that offer); if you’re not open and clear with your list about what they should (and will) expect from you, it’s all a moot point.

If you’ve got a GENERAL “internet marketing” list and you’ve been explicit somewhere along the reader’s opt-in path about you being their advocate, their researcher, their investigator for QUALITY products… then, FIRE AWAY and strictly present them with offers.

Yet, do it with YOU behind the pitch. There’s a reason, by the way, I mentioned Billy Mays above.  He wasn’t the most-liked, most respected pitchman on T.V. just by chance.  He became famous and fabulously rich for one reason ONLY:

As his partner,  Anthony “Sully” Sullivan, said last night on the Discovery Channel’s tribute to Billy:

“He was the most authentic guy I know, only pitching products that he had a passion for. Everybody could see and feel how genuine he is on camera. It’s like he came alive in your living room.”

In other words, like Billy, if you are gonna “pitch” (sell your brains out), do it for all the RIGHT reasons — to serve your subscribers and customers by finding informational products that can make their life better, easier, happier, healthier, and more prosperous!

Now, as promised, here’s the excellent blog article about how someone with 2000 Twitter followers can be more powerful than a person with 25,000.

The article will give you two specific examples of how cause marketing (my version) endears YOU, your specific interest, hobby, or fascination, with readers who actually DO want to cheer you on and LOOK at you as their expert and advocate.

Talk soon… actually, I’ll talk to you tomorrow via a  QUICK video tour of some of our new “Affiliate Tools” associated with our product line-up.

LWL Worldwide Inc
Publisher, upcoming  ‘LWL Wealth Vault’ & ‘Renegade Money Guide’

* Amongst many other products that help
you think outside the box and live a
no-limit life.

I got this video from Bob Burg, who eloquently points out that providing value (to customers) does NOT equal being taken advantage of.

BELOW the video, the link will take you to, how shall I say… a much more direct and raw version of this topic and it’ll also give you some views on why your customers aren’t always right.

First, check out the hilarious video:

*   *   *

Now [ time to be SERIOUS] —  if you’re a publisher, or someone who sells your own products, here’s a marketing lesson you need to listen to carefully…

* * * * * * *

I see this all the time — from affiliates, publishers in our peer group, and even a few of our past business partners.

Yes, when a customer, subscriber, or even JV Partner whines, or gives unsolicited advice (in the form of complaints) on the changes that should be made, or feels victimized by a good ol’ fashioned marketing strategy, SOME MARKETERS CURL UP IN A BALL ON THE FLOOR WITH THEIR THUMB IN THEIR MOUTH.

Look, if you’re working with passion, connecting with people to move your mission forward, and just plain in the business of business (i.e., feeling good about exchanging your value in the way of money), you’re ALWAYS gonna offend someone.

It’s the way life works. Sorry, I just can’t put on rose-colored glasses (I’d have to go borrow some from one of the metaphysical marketers I know who have a few spare ones) and spin this in a pretty way for you.

The TRUTH (the reality): You can’t please them all!

Some marketers and teachers I know — especially the ones I encounter within the spiritual growth and metaphysical arena — can’t handle the thought of having an upset or disappointed subscriber / customer.

Look, thicken-up, keep things real, and understand that everybody isn’t going to agree with, or like, you.

And, that’s a good thing — the more you can polarize the crowd, the more loyal your followers are, the more money you will make (and, if you feel that that isn’t your key goal, you’re fooling yourself – REMEMBER: money only comes to the person who is serving with honor, commitment, and a sense of congruency with Who they are and Why they’re doing what they’re doing).

Don’t change something on your website, modify a marketing model, give into a refund policy, or even offer a new service just because one, two, five, or ten people ask, whine, or judge you.

A fellow marketer Heather and I know once told us:

“There will always be depressed, unhappy, and jaded people in this world that feel they need to voice themselves or tell you how you need to treat them. They think they are smarter than you, and will do what they can to prove it. Just realize that they spend a majority of their time looking for attention and majoring in minor shit. Yes, it’s okay to call a spade a spade, regardless of how evolved or spiritual you think you’re supposed to be.”

Here are a few unconventional (but potentially profitable) truths to start stomaching:

Customers Aren’t Always Right!

Challenging customers is part of sales. If we want to prescribe the right solution, we must get to the truth with our customer. Sometimes customers don’t start out telling us what we need to know. Sometimes customers lie to us. To get to the truth, we must challenge our customers.

Hal Rosenbluth, CEO of Rosenbluth International (a corporate travel agency), took this truth to heart and wrote an excellent book about it called: Put The Customer Second – Put Your People First and Watch ’Em Kick Butt.

And, if you don’t have employees, revise his book title for your own slogan: Put Your Business FIRST, Your Customers Second.

I know that’s not going to sit well with some of you reading this, but the simple fact is that when I say “customer” in the above title, I’m referring to the troublesome, irritable, miserable ones. They don’t run your business. You run your business. Get it?

It’s Okay To Tell The World Why You’re Great!

I have nothing to say about this that Dan Kennedy already hasn’t said.

Here’s an excerpt from his book, The Ultimate Success Secret:

“General Patton was viewed by many of his peers as a shameless, egotistical promoter. Madonna, throughout her career, has been sneered as a no-talent self-promoter. Brandon Tarkitoff. Donald Trump. Richard Nixon brought himself back from utter, unparalleled disgrace to respected status as an astute elder statesmen through an aggressively implemented, thorough strategy of self-promotion.

“And let’s add the adage, ‘There have been many statues erected to honor those highly criticized, but very few statues erected to critics.’

“You really have two choices. You can choose to stick your nose up at the promoters, criticize them and criticize promotion, view it as unseemly, as beneath you, as crass, and stand around grumbling about it. OR you can get good at it and use it to create influence, prominence, prestige, credibility, celebrity, career and financial success. It is your choice.”

And, if you’re inspired now to learn more about the virtues of shocking your bad customers, being a couthful self-promoter, and having conviction with your plan of marketing, read what Robert Ringer has to say about For The Love of Making a Ripple.

Your Partner in the Quest For
Living a Life Without Limits,