Don't Neglect the Phone

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by CKasso

Pick Up The Phone And Let's Network
Copyright 2004 by Willie Crawford

I was forced into my best marketing tool by problems
with reliably getting my email through. As more and
more ISPs, and more and more individuals, heavily
filtered their email, I wondered if my subscribers
were getting issues of my ezine.

Actually, I had subscribers to a number of my lists
email me and ask to be added BACK to my lists. Upon
checking, they were often still on the lists. That
pointed out a real problem. How could I stay in
touch with my clients if they had no control over what
email they were allowed to receive.

I looked at a number of different solutions... to
include a program called Newsmon, that bypasses
email altogether. Newsmon allows me to upload an
issue of my ezine to my server, and then a desktop
application on my subscriber's computer checks every
so often for new updates posted on my server. If
there are changes since the last time Newsmon was
queried, the program pulls down the updates from
my server to my clients' desktops.

I looked at a number of other technologies too. The
problem with all of them was that it required my
clients to learn to use something new or different.
I didn't want to force them to do that.

That's when a friend suggested the simplest of all
solutions. It was a somewhat old fashioned solution.
He suggested that I simply get a conference line and
communicate with my clients in group calls. In
addition to sending out a regular newsletter, I could
also hold regular conference calls and even discuss
the same topics as in my ezine.

Desperate for a reliable way to keep in touch with
my clients and continue building our relationships,
I check out a number of conference line providers.
These ranged in price from free to over $500 a
month.

I tried out several of the free ones, but decided
against all that I tried because they had a
tendency to over-schedule or over-load the trunk
lines. I was on several calls where the call just
DIED. By the time the moderator and a few callers
got back through, IF they got back through, the
momentum of the call was gone. These calls also
had to leave a negative impression in the minds of
the callers... they had to appear very unprofessional.
They made the hosts of the calls look cheap.

Having decided to go with a paid bridge line
provider, I tested several and settled upon one
call e-teleconferencing. They are at:
http://therealsecrets.com/teleconferencing/

For less than $1.40 per day I could get a bridge
line capable of handling up to 200 callers. This
is the monthly rate. This company had a range of
plans offering from 50 line up to 200+ lines on
a monthly basis, which is what I went with. You
can also use the lines on a one-time basis and
even get a complimentary trial.

I went with the monthly plan because, as I said,
that came out to less than $1.40 per day. These
were my lines to use 24/7. I could use them as
many times as I wanted. That meant that I could
share my brilliant idea with friends if I wanted
and we could all have an incredible resource that
allowed us to stay in touch with out clients. I
could even record my calls and then have people
dial in later to listen to the recordings.

This turned out to be a brilliant idea, with amazing
results!

I started hosting a free weekly brainstorming and
networking session with my subscribers and clients.
Within 3 weeks of me starting this the word had
gotten out enough to where I was getting callers
from Germany, Korea, England, Australia, and all
over the U.S. and Canada.

My format for the calls was to allow my clients to
email in questions prior to the call for us to
discuss. I also chose 2-3 sites for us to review
during each weekly session. Callers could try
to squeeze in questions during the 1-2 hour calls,
but if they emailed them in, they were assured of
being addressed.

The net effect of this was that my online community
is more connected, more responsive, and more
targeted than it has ever been. Hearing live voices
on the phone has taken my entire online business to
a whole new level! While the audience on these calls
is much smaller than my ezine subscriber base, I know
that these clients are hearing my message. Not only
that but it's a 2-way communication stream.

One of the biggest let-downs about publishing an
ezine is when you send out an issue and then get so
little feedback that you wonder if anyone is reading
it. With networking phone calls, you don't have that
problem. Instead, the problem becomes who gets the
chance to give you, or other subscribers/clients
feedback.

If you are fed up with email problems, consider
the teleconference solution. My friends at
e-teleconferencing will even let you try out the
service free. Just visit them at:
http://therealsecrets.com/teleconferencing/
Be sure to tell them I sent you and ask for $10
back just for knowing me :-)

If you'd like to see what a "live ezine' sounds
like, join me on one of our weekly calls. To get
the call-in details, just send a blank email to my
autoresponder at: willie3-56875@autocontactor.com

Feel free to copy my idea. Maybe I'll join one of
your calls :-)

Willie Crawford has been teaching others how to build an
on-line business since late 1996. Frequently featured in
radio, magazine and newspaper articles and interviews, Willie
teaches the average guy what the top marketers are doing but
seldom talking about. For example, Willie demonstrates the
power of automated residual income through his system at:
http://ProfitAutomation.Com Visit now for a business boost.