Writers are experts at crafting ‘The Button’.

It’s the last scene in a TV show designed to hold the viewer’s through a commercial interruption (or is it a message?). Well, they’ve already pushed by button by their frivolous cover up of their intent but they invariably keep my attention. The ad is entirely about interrupting my train of thought and in no way is a message and is very similar to a cold call without any preparation or value on behalf of the caller.

A message is some useful information I need. An ad is just an interruption. Never mind the definition at this stage. It’s vital you do things that keep you customer’s attention. Anything!

Keep your customers attention with a strategic system.

First you need a system. It can’t be done by chance alone. Just like the TV writers, you need a gripping story line and a strategy to make it happen. And just like the advertisers, you need to constantly and repeatedly interrupt whatever your customer is doing and gain their attention. Remember it’s not too likely that the law of averages is on your side. If you get a lot of ‘cant’s, won’t, and might’s’ … without a definitive attention keeping plan, you’re pretty much cooked.

Let’s see if we can’t improve your odds with these simple steps:

1: Leave your customers with them ‘wanting more’.

Often we are just too eager to fill in every conceivable blank in a misaligned effort to satisfy our customers every whim. The lesson here is not to divulge everything. The reason is simple: when the customer has all the information they need, you are technically and fundamentally useless. It stands to reason that they can now make a decision because they have all the information at hand so why on earth would they be interested in your interruption at this stage?

Customers think they have all the information and merrily go off making crazed buying decisions (mind now that they’re only crazed if they didn’t buy from you). Just as often they make the wrong decision. That’s why you have to keep their attention on you and stay in the game until the very, very, very end.

2: Never underestimate the power of FREE.

Somewhere your strategy has got to include something with ‘Free’ in it. That’s because it’s irresistible. And if you get to keep their attention with this offer, make it worth their while because you can use it over and over again. Get your marketing folks on this now!

3: Keep changing what you’re doing.

Just like every advertisement you every see, it keeps changing, some seemingly every nanosecond. It’s impossible to keep your customers attention with a monologue. Change your voice and inflection frequently, move around or at least make important gestures to important features, get involved and become important enough that they will pay attention to what you have to say.

4: Take a pause.

For heaven’s sake, take a pause. That’s right, a mini-break, a pause, snap out of it, plan a stop and this gets the attention of the customer to come up for air so they can think or do something.

5: Ask for input.

If you want to involve your customer, just ask for his input or ideas. Think of how well this technique works when a speaker asks for a show of hands or comments. It’s works the same way for you.

6: Keep it fresh.

This is probably one of the hardest things to do, from both sides of the fence. From your customer’s prospective, they may have seen and heard someone like you or your product dozens of times. Conversely, you may have this rather unfortunate sense of déjà vu with just too many of your customers. Make it a part of your strategy to insert another person, item or issue that gets both you and your customer sitting up and taking notice.

FREE MosaicCRM Expert Tips

Here are a few FREE techniques on using your CRM tools to get attention:

• Profile Accounts: In the B2B world generalist, mass marketing is dead. Clients today only read messages that are specific to their current needs. Adding a Rating, Type, Industry and Status profiles add significant ‘readability’ advantages when added to the usual geographic and product denominators.
• Automated and Personalized Contact: Templates work especially well. Design Sell Sheets that are personalized to each Contact on a regularly scheduled email/mailer.
• Mass Email/Mail: use your Advanced Search tools to create specialized Account/Contact lists for News Items, Free Something or other topics that will get their interest.
• Track Birthday/Customer Anniversary Dates: automatically schedule calls, emails, cards and letters
• Track Biz Networks: Track Contact’s business network updates
• Insert Objectives: Use Call/Meeting Objective and Topic inserts for important Calls or Appointments as a reminder to help keep on track.

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Written by
Bill Noonan, CEO MosaicCRM

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