Well, this sucks out loud.<\/p>\n
Got word last week from Michael Senoff that the world’s “most\u00a0feared negotiator” Jim Camp joined the choir invisible. Jim Camp\u00a0was the guy the FBI called when they wanted to teach their agents\u00a0negotiation strategies, and his methods were used by over 100,000\u00a0students and were featured on CNN, CNBC, The Wall Street Journal,\u00a0Fortune, Harvard Business Review, Fast Company, Inc., and more.<\/p>\n
I first heard him on an interview Michael Senoff did.<\/p>\n
I must have listened to that interview over 50 times.<\/p>\n
(And still listen to it once or twice per year.)<\/p>\n
I never met the man in person, but did get to be a co-guest with\u00a0him on one of David Garfinkel and Brian McLoud’s “Fast Effective\u00a0Copywriting” webinars last year and he was a true class act. He\u00a0also confirmed for me on the air a tactic I use in emails is not\u00a0only completely ethical (sometimes people accuse what I do as\u00a0less-than-nice when I prey upon my market’s insecurities in my\u00a0emails and ads), but also highly effective and something he did\u00a0when he was negotiating high level deals.<\/p>\n
Anyway, I want to honor the guy.<\/p>\n
So, below is the #1 lesson I learned from him.<\/p>\n
I use it in my sales copy, emails, blog posts, when I’m negotiating\u00a0with someone, or even if I’m wanting to convince someone to do\u00a0something I want them to do.<\/p>\n
Here it is:<\/p>\n
“Vision drives decision”<\/strong><\/p>\n It’s ALL about your prospect’s vision, not yours.<\/p>\n One example Jim used was seat belts. It’s been proven over and over\u00a0seat belts save lives and, as Jim pointed out, every day someone of\u00a0great intellect dies in an automobile accident not wearing a seat\u00a0belt. So what do we do? We lecture people on it. We threaten to\u00a0ticket people. We try to “intellectualize” the idea of it (which\u00a0simply creates objections…)<\/p>\n None of which works very often.<\/p>\n Jim’s solution?<\/p>\n Ask questions that create a vision:<\/p>\n “Where is your head going to end up if it smashes through the windshield at 50 mph?”<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n Or, if selling gasoline:<\/p>\n You could go into a dissertation on the the different octane levels\u00a0and what they mean and do or, you can say…<\/p>\n “How many miles can you afford to cut off of your engine life?”<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n Or, selling water filters:<\/p>\n You can launch into a pitch about how your filters get rid of 99.9%\u00a0of chlorine or whatever, or you can pull a Jim Camp (what he said\u00a0when selling them door-to-door to get people to hear him out):<\/p>\n “Just tell me you don’t want softer hair and I’ll leave.”<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n More:<\/p>\n He had a quote that drives everything I do in copywriting.<\/p>\n (In fact, I used in every speech\/training I gave last year)<\/p>\n And that is:<\/p>\n “You’re always safe in the other person’s world”<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n What that means is this:<\/p>\n As long as you stay in their world, talking about their problems,\u00a0fears, frustrations, and desires, telling stories that are\u00a0interesting to them, and ultimately making everything you say about\u00a0them, you cannot bore people (boredom equals death in marketing),\u00a0you cannot lose their interest, and you cannot really screw up.<\/p>\n But what do most people do?<\/p>\n They start with their product first.<\/p>\n They try to “pitch” right away.<\/p>\n And, they often flounder as a result.<\/p>\n Anyway, it’s one of the single most profitable lessons I ever\u00a0learned about selling, copywriting, and persuasion.<\/p>\n No, there’s nothing “ninja” about it.<\/p>\n And there are no tricks or tactics to celebrate.<\/p>\n It’s just sound, principled thought and communicating in a way that\u00a0is in perfect harmony with the laws of human behavior.<\/p>\n Bottom line?<\/p>\n Jim Camp left us one helluva legacy.<\/p>\n I highly suggest you study his books.<\/p>\n Check out the interview he did with Michael Senoff.<\/p>\n