$15,000 Profit In 3 Weeks With the 9x12 Method??? (Live Group Call)

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This week's 9x12 method live training is going to actually knock your socks off. It's insane. One of our members sold out three cards in three weeks, which is around $15,000 in profit. He told us exactly how he did it. Gave us tons of sales advice.

He's honestly a genius when it comes to sales. And if you don't know what the 9x12 method is and how you can make 5,000 a month with part-time work just by talking to local businesses, here's a quick spiel about what that is. This is where you sell advertising slots on a large postcard to local businesses. And the card is 9 by12 in, hence the name, the 9x12 method. It's actually a pretty cool community builder because it allows local businesses to actually be able to afford mail marketing because they actually split the cost of marketing.

And at the same time, you benefit by bringing the businesses together because you make around 4 grand profit just for coordinating it. The card is mailed to 5,000 households in the community. But imagine if you do this in two separate towns. That's 8,000 a month. All right.

Now, let's watch the training. I'm a first timer. Is that right? This is my first time on. Welcome.

Thank you. Yeah. Welcome. How long have you been in the group? I just started about a month ago.

Oh, cool. Yeah. I'm a first- timerr also. Nice. And I just joined this week.

Awesome. Oh, Lisa. I don't feel alone. Yeah, I just joined actually I don't know, maybe like three days ago. Awesome.

I have my first slot filled though. Good for you. That's great. First week. Yeah, I got a website up.

I got a Facebook page up and I have my list pretty much um um I worked on that night before last and most of the day yesterday throughout my throughout the day getting my email list ready so I'm ready to start blasting it out this weekend. Nice. How are you getting them, Lisa? I am just going through Google one um uh one one thing at a time. Um it it's I work from home um and I'm sitting here at my desk all the time anyways.

So, in between my calls for work, I've just got I have time, you know, a few minutes here and there throughout the day to just kind of keep adding to it, adding to it. And I have about um I don't know, probably about uh 20 different categories already that I have at least 10 to 15 in each category. If I if I didn't find their email, what's that? Are you using the software? I am not.

Not yet. Um I am. I love the software. Um, I'm just adding them to a a spreadsheet. Um, um, I got to get some money coming in first before I spend any more.

So, 100% agree. I love I I literally just bought a house six weeks ago and um I need some more money. I need a garage. What What is your background in marketing or advertising or printing or I have no background in printing at all. None whatsoever.

So, um I will be outsourcing that obviously. Um but I've done a lot of um teles sales marketing. Um I've done AI marketing. I've done lead generation for years. Um that's a lot of what I do.

Um I've been working from home since 2008. So, well, listen, that what what you just said is going to be what is going to make you the most successful. being able to get on the phone or get on an email or just doing it, right? It it really is. And and you know, some people tell you you don't need a website, but I think you do.

I I think you do, too, because I think you need to have that legitimacy. You know, I've been, like I said, I've been doing the type of work that I that I that I do for a very long time. Um I'm completely and that's what I do. I talk to people on the phone all day long. my my current position, I get people pre-qualified if they're looking to purchase a franchise.

So, I just every 15 minutes I'm book my my my schedule is booked solid. So, um I'm just talking to people all the time. Um I've set appointments. I I I've done I did appointment setting for years. I've done, you know, Well, this is not at all I'm not finding it now.

I'm on my first card, I should say, but I've been in marketing. I had a I I I recently moved back to New York from Charleston, South Carolina. I had a marketing agency down there for the past 20 years. So, okay, this this card is new to me, but marketing is not new to me at all. But I will tell you that uh my weak point is cold calling and it's really hurting me.

I've sold eight spots on my first card. So, I'm at the break even point. Um I could just send this card out. I could give the other side away and not make any money. And I'm seriously considering that.

But I'm going to give it this one last week. How long have you been uh how long has it taken you to fill up those eight spots? About a month. But that's because I'm not I'm not disciplined. Honestly, not disciplined.

And I don't um you know, I will um think I'm going to sit down at my desk for a few hours and work and then I'm like, "Oh, you know, I got other things to do." I'm I'm kind of in the middle of chaos. Like I said, I just moved back here. I'm living with my daughter. I'm looking for my own place.

I'm God. It, you know, it's just a lot. I understand. I had to I had to move the chaos from behind me just so it wasn't in the uh picture. I literally just moved into this house six weeks ago today.

Um and I I'm so not unpack. Thank you. I am so not unpacked. And um because I've just it's just been I was I feel like I need an adult over here. I wasn't ready.

Yeah. Yeah. Hey, on the uh on the cold calling on the cold calling, if you're interested, the the fastest way to fix that, honestly, is just Douglas, Alice SA's partner. Uh, no. Okay, that's I am Ron Douglas, but I'm not I don't I'm not anybody's partner.

All right. I'm sorry. Go ahead. No, you're fine. The fastest way to fix that, honestly, is just dedicate to say, "I'm going to call three a day."

That's it. Just Just make three. just dial three times a day. Well, I will tell you I I just read the book and as a matter of fact, I read it two times in a row. Go for no.

And that makes a lot of sense to me and that's going to be the method I'm going to try. And so instead of setting the number of calls, you set the number of nos. And so that way if you get a yes, you don't quit. You got to keep going if you haven't met your no goal. And I think it is for me for me.

I think that is something that I can work with because that's my big thing. I'm afraid of rejection like rejected in doing the type of work I've done for years. It is really a numbers game and you just got to look at it like you know what every call is your first call of the day. You can't you can't let the previous call especially like I've actually done um um business to consumer cold calling and let me tell you what is absolutely terrible. People are rude, they're nasty, f you this, stop calling my house.

Um, when you're calling businesses, it's so much nicer than calling consumers. It really is. Um, but you got to you got to forget about what happened on the last call and you got to look at every single call like it is your first call of the day. Hey, how you doing? This is who I am.

You know, and it's a numbers game. I literally, if you throw enough crap against the wall, something's going to stick eventually. So, for me, it's not about, well, I'm only going to make this many calls today. It's going to be like u I I literally just counted I have 28 different categories here from pest control, gutters, presser washing, pizza, chiropractors, plumbers, junk removal, lawn care, massage, you name it. Um and and I'm going to, you know, I'm going to blast the emails out to everybody and the ones that I didn't find an email, I was lucky enough to hopefully find their Facebook.

So I'm going to blast them out on Facebook and then I'm and then the ones that don't respond, I'm going to start calling them and just, you know, get past the gatekeeper. And then if not, then I'm I'm gonna show it face to face. This is who I am. This is what we do. What I really like to have like Yeah.

Um What do you think, Ron? I'm sorry. Did I interrupt someone? No, you're fine. I um Well, I sold the See, I I managed to sell three cards out in three weeks.

Wow. Um Wow. How did you get to that? Thanks. Well, again, you just you just start small.

You just start with, like I said, just I'm just going to do three calls today. I'm just going to do three calls today. And and when you do when when I did that, I was um obviously I did more than three calls because I was so excited that I, you know, I had sold. Um and and then um I you know, we just took off from there. And uh the you know the the hardest like like I said the hardest part is just picking up the phone and and and then I I think the hardest part is picking up the phone after a rejection.

And uh but I think the problem that people are doing is they're trying to marry the customer so to speak on the first date. And I don't do that. I um I when I when I call I I want to learn about their business. I don't even sometime or when I show up I don't even sometimes I don't even take the card in with me. If I show up at a at a business I just walk in and I just talk to them about their business.

I believe building relationships. That's how I built my marketing agency. Yeah. Yeah. I mean I don't even mention the card.

I don't even mention why I'm calling. I just I just say, "Hey, you know, matter of fact, I'm looking at one right now. It's called uh uh I I just sold this one yesterday. It was uh it's called Rustic um furniture." And I said, "Well, that's fascinating.

Where did you guys learn? You know, how did you guys start? When did you guys do this? You know, where do you guys service, you know, and I just ask questions like that?" And I was like, "You guys build all that in-house?"

And they're like, "Yeah, yeah." And I was like, "That is so fascinating." I said, "Where where's, you know, where's most of your customer base?" and they tell me and you know and I just I just listen and I'm not looking for you know a way to sell them. I just I just listen to them and I learn about their business and then you know and then I slowly ask them some of their struggles.

How's business going? Oh, it's going good or or it's not or whatever you know whatever they say and I just I you know I just kind of listen to whatever they're doing and and um and then I just kind of reverse engineer it. Um yeah, you know, like this lady, you know, I was talking to her yesterday, uh the rustic furniture, and you know, she said, "Well, you know, she says, "We do really good in this area, but we don't do really good in this area." And I was like, "Well, you know, Yeah. Yeah.

Yeah. And I was like, you know, and I know because once you start selling some and you already have a card in print, man, it just gets then it just got even easier, right? And so I just said, you know, I said, I tell you what, I I said, I think I have a solution that might work for you. I said, give me two seconds. Let me go out to let me go out to my truck.

And I came out to the truck and I go back in and I had the cart and and I walked in and I said, you know, we send these out for about a nickel a home. I was like, you can't even, you know, what can you buy for a nickel these days? Oh, nothing. You know, I was like, you know, and so I said, you know, we we send these out. We fig and then and then the way I present it is we figured out or we solved a solution or we got this hack that nobody else knows about.

That's the way I present it. I was like, you know, a te, you know, a group of us uh a group of us small businesses, we got together and we figured out, you know, we broke the code, you know, or something like, you know, not we don't I don't say broke the code, but you know, something like that. I kind of give that feel. I just say, you know, we figured out a hack to get our marketing dollars to stretch as far as we can. Like I said, I got a nickel a home on this and this is what we do.

And I showed her the car and she go, "Oh, this is nice." And I was like I was like, "Yeah." And so what we what we figured out is if we all teamed up and we got on this card at the same time and we shared the marketing expense that we could go further. So now we're sending this out. We started out with a thou, you know, I didn't, you know, I just tell her this, but I said, "We started out with a,000 homes.

We did really great, so we went to 5,000 homes. We did really great. Now we're doing 10,000 homes." And she's, "Really?" I was like, "Yeah, yeah."

That's why I said it's only a nickel of the door cuz it's, you know, this small ad right here is only 500. But as you can see, the the printing is kind of small on this. So, you know, I suggest, you know, getting this double over here. And, um, you know, especially if you're going to if you really want to showcase that beautiful furniture you got right there. I would at least get a double.

And then, you know, and if you if you did something like that, um, you know, it it it's literally nine cents a door. It's less than a dime a door. I was like, that's really hard to beat. Oh, yeah. That's really hard to be.

Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. You know what I mean?

I just kind of go. So, that's kind of how I do it. That is That's awesome. And I I really like that. That's the traditional Frank Kern uh sales method.

learn about them and then find out what you can fill. And that and that's that is how I built my agency. Uh I got really lucky and got to teach at a real estate investors group. Quiet. I'm gonna mute.

I'll finish this later. Somebody else go for right now, please. I've been calling this week. So, uh I can tell you my results so far if anybody's interested. Um, uh, let's see.

I started on Wednesday, so we made about 43 calls, uh, connected me, someone picked up the phone. It was about 20 people. We got 10 nos. Uh, five people hung up on us. And, uh, but we got four interested people out of all that.

So, like, if anyone's like doing cold calling and stuff like that, it took all them nos. And, and there were nicer nos cuz I've done consumer calling and that could be getting cursed out. Yep. Very rude. So, this was a a lot less of of that.

So, that was that was the nice part. Well, what's your presentation? I mean, how do you how do you introduce yourself on the phone? Uh, I introduced myself as a local business cuz I actually do own a cleaning company in the neighborhood. So, it's it kind of helps that I'm like, "Hey, I own a cleaning company.

I only own this and um you might have seen me around this bar, which is central in that particular neighborhood. Um, this is a I had an idea. this is what we're we're kind of trying to do. You know, we wanted to send out some direct mail. We got the pricing.

It was kind of outrageous. So, we thought, hey, I'll ask, you know, some other businesses if you want to go in with us and then we just go out together cuz we all canvas the same the same neighborhood. So, this is and it those who are interested like, "Oh, yeah, that sounds can you tell me some more information?" And u a lot of times we'll email them more information. And in my email, I do a loom just to hey, it's me, da da da da, just showing you, you know, these little bits so they have visual.

Um, so I've just been um I've been doing a combination of having uh those types of calls go out um and then following up through um through email. I'll always put the information they need, but I'll include like a loom or something like that so there's a visual piece there in case they don't want to read it um as well. So that's been pretty good. I got uh some people one of the things you uh you might want to try also is um is setting them up with yes questions. So what I do is I go to their business like like if I'm going to co- call somebody, let's just say a landscaper um if you if you co- call a landscaper, I ask them three yes questions before I even get into the conversation.

And what I mean by that is you want to get their mindset going into a yes direction. So like, do you service this area? Yes. you know, do you do commercial or residential? Yes.

You know, do you do this? Do you do that? You know what I mean? And so, you ask them three yes questions before you even Well, the reason I was asking is because, you know, a team of us, you know, a group of us or whatever, you know, however you present from there, they get, you know, but if you if you ask them those three yes questions uh before you start, you'll kind of get their mind in a in a yes answering way and then you just slowly guide them down that path. Does that make sense?

Yeah, but I already know them. Like it's a different kind of relationship with some of them. So like I'm relatively like in my market I actually do interact with other businesses. So it's like oh we recognize your company or we recognize me because I I have a little bit more presence in that particular neighborhood. So like so some like half the people like oh yeah I know you you did blah blah blah because I talk about business acquisitions in my neighborhood.

So it's like folks come to me for certain things. So it was like there was a little bit of recognition the way we approached it. So I crafted what I had to say based on oh yeah I talk about X or I'm associated with Y because I'm a bit more active in that particular neighborhood. So I don't necessarily need all the yes stuff. It's like oh it's either we see you around or we recognize the kind of thing.

So I have a a slight bit of advantage because I actually actively do things in my particular um area that I'm canvasing. I mean, this week we have 15 interested folks and I got about three sold uh collected yesterday money. So, so I like if you already have like an active presence in where you're canvasing for some of you like you know where you're where you're at. If you're active is it's like oh yeah remember we always hang out the bar or I always go to this particular meeting or whatever. Just use that to your advantage.

It doesn't always have to be like a thousand% cold foot if you are active in that area. And it could be you could be active in your church. Like if you're active in your church or or something like that, take advantage of it. There's plenty of people who will refer you or they'll have, oh, you go to St. Augustine's whatever whatever.

Okay? So there's already an open door to what you have to say. So it doesn't always have to be like, oh, I'm scared. If you're if you're an active participant, if you're not, then you have to take more of a different kind of approach. But if you already are active, you know, you're a parent, you're a grandparent, you show up to a game and stuff like that, people are a lot more open to, you know, hearing you out.

Yeah, I agree totally. I I thanks for sharing, Lauren. I I I have been doing this for about a month now. Um I started out in a city uh where no one knew me and I didn't really know anybody. Uh and so the first two weeks I was grinding away and and not making a lot of progress.

Um then I shifted gears and I went back home to the community I live in and and serve and um and all of a sudden now I'm getting the results. The people are more receptive to me. I think they they know the name. They uh they know I'm a part of the community. So it it it has made uh life a lot easier.

And um uh but what um you mentioned something earlier about getting paid yesterday. Congratulations. You got three uh three paid ads. I'm curious, does anybody anybody have any challenges collecting the money? So, I get I get to the Yes.

Right. And and I've got I got somebody. Yay. I'm committed. And uh then you go to get the the collection and and uh crickets.

Anybody else experiencing that at this point? One person I had to run to their store yesterday and get a check because they didn't they don't do which is fine. It's like just it's like, "Hey, I had this l I don't really want to do that. can you can I just get you a check? I'm like, all right.

So, I had to do that. I think it depends on the type of business. Some businesses they don't mind because they're used to paying everything like that and some other businesses they don't want it logged in. So, you know, they I I would I just started I'm going to start asking more next week. Um because I didn't realize I was going to run into that.

I just didn't think about it personally until I was like, "Oh, what happened?" It's like, "Listen, I I I would prefer just to pay you in a check. Is that okay? And I was like, sure. Just um when's a good time for me to come over?

Maybe try that. Yeah. Yeah, that that's a that's a good one. You know, uh I I think um it's Yeah, I'm going to get purposeful about developing the right scripts in in that not only the ones that I can communicate over a phone call, but also in in an email or a text. And I think that you make, you know, setting expectations up front early on in the conversation, I think, will make it easier.

And that's what I'm I'm trying to, you know, wrap my mind around and just seeing if anybody else has had the same challenges or came up with a solution to some of those challenges. Skip, is your problem asking for the money or is your problem No, no, no problem. No, no problems asking for the money. Um, the question the question that I, you know, I'm up against on my own mind is, am I asking the right questions? Am I getting, you know, because I'm I'm I'm getting yeses and people responding to texts or emails, they still haven't submitted the payment, you know.

So, I So, are you sending them an invoice for that payment or Okay. How are you sending the invoice? I've done it um initially through the system. So I I am a subscriber to the CRM. So I it's great.

I can go in there and send the uh the the invoice right directly from there. Um and then uh when I want Can you collect I apologize. Can you actually collect payment through that system? I haven't signed up for that yet. I have Wave that I use for my uh my balancing my books and I can collect payments through Stripe with that.

So I'd plan to use that. But you can is it Stripe that they use through that? Yes, you can use you can use Stripe. You can use um Square, uh, whatever payment, okay, method you use to collect, you can use it in the CRM. I didn't get grandfathered in.

I had to pay $99 to join the group. So, I have to wait a little bit in order to um um uh one thing and and I have to that kind of caught me a little off guard was to get some sample cards was like for 20 of them was like $40 on the thing. And I'm like, well, if we're sending them out for 10 cents a piece, why would I pay $2 a piece for them? It'd be nice to have some, but honestly, I just spent the $99 and I just got to wait till I get some money coming in before I can even get the samples. Um, so I have to say that was a little bit offsetting for me.

Um, but I I I wanted to ask you guys' opinion and I I uh with um one thing that when I set up my uh my pages and and I get my templates all ready to start emailing out and everything, um I tried to avoid the word postcard EDDDM mailers as much as possible. I kind of focused it more around um co-op marketing. co-op comm community co-op marketing to where we're sharing in it together um and not putting it out there like postcard mailers you know because everybody's you know like ah postcard mailers blah blah blah you know but if I so I kind of worded it on my website on my Facebook page in my um everything that you know that it's a community co-op have you guys had any luck with wording it that way compared to hey we're just we're just doing a postcard mailer I say community card and that's been really receptive So, because it's all based around the um the neighborhood. Uh so, I'm more like, "Hey, we're going to do this community card." And that just to me so far has worked a lot better.

So, anything with the word community, hey, we're all just getting together and, you know, presented to our community that that we serve um in our area, that's been a lot more uh receptive for me. Nice. Um, another thing that I did was kind of focus in on highlighting local businesses. So, on my card, it's going to say our city highlights. Um, so I'm hoping that will draw in some um I did a Facebook post where I just asked people on the Facebook post.

I'm like, "Hey, we're getting we're getting ready to do this um community mailer um to highlight some businesses um in the local community. What businesses do do you guys want to see would you guys like to see highlighted?" you know, so I was really hoping that they would start tagging people um you know, b local businesses and I had several local businesses kind of reach out to me um and say, "Hey, we'd like to be a part of that." And then, "Oh, okay. Well, I'll message you, you know."

So, I messaged back and forth with one lady was bakery. She's swamped right now with Mother's Day this weekend. So, she is just hopefully, you know, we'll get her on board. Um do you guys do the um I had a guy ask, he's interested. He has a small clothing business, but he doesn't even want to do a half ad.

He feels it's a little out of their budget. Do you guys do the quarter ads? Do how does the printing show up on that? If you if you cut those even the half ads in half, have you guys any of you guys done that? And has it do you get bleeding?

Can you actually see the print? How does how's and that worked for any of you guys? I haven't done that yet. Maybe I have heard others say that if you sell that size ad that you do need to set their expectations because um that's exposure only. You know, that's not really a it's exposure only.

I mean, really all you could put on there is basically what their name um and maybe a QR code. Um that's should but I I don't know that I want to go that route. So, I told him I'm like, "I'm not sure if we're going to be putting those size ads on there, but maybe if if you know we have some extra space on there." I said, I I told him I would just get back to mine and let him know. But yeah, um otherwise, maybe he can get on the next card.

16 on mine and one of and one of them will be mine. I'll I'll I'll actually probably do a double since I don't have the card sold out and I'm probably going to end up sending this first one just at, you know, break it even. But I'm going to add a directory to my site. And you know, I'd like to hear what you guys think about this because I'm going to add a directory to my site and I'm going to use my approach as um a free listing on the directory and and if they take if they take a spot on the card, I'm going to add a premium spot for them on the directory. And I'm just going to use a WordPress plugin for now.

Like, you know, I don't want to spend a bunch of money. So, um I'm going to try that. Now, I am interested in asking Ron. Ron, do you do all of your um calls in person? Because I haven't done any inpersons, like just walked into I've presented in person, but they were people who I knew.

So, um yeah, I've done in person and I've done calls. I mean, I if I'm driving by and I see a business, I go, "Oh, I never see," you know, cuz obviously once you once you start you get hyper alert to new, you know, to businesses once you start doing this and you're like, "Oh, hey, check that business out." And then I just pull in and I just I go in and again, I don't, you know, especially, you know, like I live in Buffalo, New York. I really want to try to make this from home. the winter is, you know, going out driving and lugging and slugging in the snow.

And I'm right outside of Cleveland. I get it. I'm only a few I'm only a few hours from you, girl. My brother lives in Burton right there. Yeah.

Um I live just on the other side of Cleveland, about 20 minutes on the on the west side of Cleveland. So I get it. I'm right up by the lake, the lake effects. Luckily, I'm on the west side. You you know, uh from Cleveland all the way up to Buffalo, that's all the snow belt.

I get it. Well, maybe we'll have fun one day in Yeah, that'd be great. That would be great. Summer. Yeah.

Yeah, absolutely. Uh because I I I've got a sports car. I don't go too many places in the winter time because my car is not built for it. Um but you know, my first guy that I got on my card, um like I said, I just bought this house. I've had an electrician here.

I've had an HVAC guy here. I've had a fence guy here. I've had a basement guy here. And I literally just got my driveway done two days ago. My HVAC guy is my first guy.

So, I've been talking to them. Now, my electrical my electrician guy, I didn't talk to him because he kind of did it on the side, you know, not for his company, you know, uh it was a friend of mine's boyfriend who who's an electrician. He kind of he's kind of doing it on the side just for some extra money. But, um yeah, I I started out I'm like, you know what, these are the people I need to talk to, you know, definitely. And my HVAC guy, I told him, I was like, I'll give you a discount, get you on the card for the first month, and you know, we'll see how it goes and then you can go from there.

and he's like, "Okay, well, let's give it a try." I'm like, "All right, cool." So, um, those are the people that I reach out to first was the people that I've just had coming in my house, you know, um, since I've been here because that is a never- ending thing in itself. Yeah, I made um spreadsheets before I got the software. I made spreadsheets of Buffalo is a big coupon town.

So, people drive all the way across town for a free eraser, you know? I mean, it's just And so um these kinds of um publications are we get a lot of them and um the Valpac obviously and then the the little clip clip magazine and then there's another one that comes from the newspaper and we get all kinds of stuff. So, I've been saving those and I've been um making spreadsheets of those people because I know they advertise. And one thing that I noticed is they advertise across all of those different publications. So, I figure they're those are the people that are spending ad spend.

They've got ad spend money. So, those are the people you definitely want to talk to and putting it everywhere. And um this morning I went and got a desk from somebody on Facebook Marketplace and we just were talking a little bit and she asked what I did. I had one of the sample postcards in the front seat of the car and I grabbed it out and I said, "Well, I just am starting this." And she was like, "Wow, this is really nice.

You need to get those samples if you're going to see anybody in person." Pretty much just putting it in their hand sells it, right? you know, I had to spend money on uh you know, I joined and then I had to um get my domain name through Hostinger. Um you know, and then I had, you know, my you know, that sort of stuff. So, it got my website up and going.

Um so, that costs a little bit of money, but you know what? I I understand that that's money well spent because that gives me legitimacy and I understand that I have to do that. I'm not going to worry about things like business cards or anything like that, you know, but I had to have if I especially if I'm going to be reaching out to people online, I definitely need to have you I I feel you definitely need to have an online presence. Yeah. You know, or if you're out and you're talking to somebody, say you're out to, you know, uh dinner and you're talking to, you know, whoever that happens to be, you know, you run into and you start talking with them.

What if you don't have your cards with you? You know, you have to have some way that you can say, "Hey, go to my website. This is my website." Blah blah blah. So, you know, or look me up on, you know, we've got a a Facebook page, that sort of thing.

You in this day and age, it's everything's so digital. Everything is so digital. Um, you you got to have an online presence to be I I feel like you do anyways. Um, just because of the type of work I've been doing. I I highly recommend it for anybody in any kind of business that if that's the first thing that's the first thing I do when I go to something, I I get on Google.

I look for it online and I, you know, check out the their website. I check out their products. So definitely I think Mitch has got a good deal for somebody is uh building real kind of simple websites. I built kind of a complicated website when I first started. Uh but I've since built a landing page that I send people to.

There's no form or anything on it. It's strictlyformational, but it's what I'm sending out. I feel like it's um a good first touch. Um, so that's what I'm that's what I'm using. Actually, I'm just waiting.

I created an image in Canva last night. I've got to put that picture on there today. I'm missing it. And then, well, if you guys want to, please check out my website and critique it for me. It's uh ourcity highlights.

com. So, if you guys want to check that out and just critique it for me would be fantastic. But I noticed that, you know, um, in the group that they'll do the website for you um for $97 a month. I'm like, can I really afford that because I really would like to go do go with the CRM or go high level eventually. Um, no.

But I I just went through Hostinger. Um, I got my domain name for free for a year. Um, and I signed it up for like for two years for like 50 bucks. So, I'm like, okay, that'll at least get me started. So, instead of doing $97 a month, I mean, maybe eventually I can, you know, switch it over and have them do, you know, a really great site for me.

I I have a contact form on there, but not like um you know, go ahead and sign up for this service, you know, right? Or sign up for the card. Uh other than just a contact form, I didn't I was going to do a jot form. I would I don't even know what you guys would recommend for me doing for that. I have no idea.

Lisa, tell me your URL again. Our city highlights. I'm taking a whole different approach on uh you know just getting started as I mentioned first month into it but I'm thinking the lead with revenue uh like you said Lisa you know starting out you know having the money to invest in these things isn't always the easiest things to do. So I I found that um I don't need a website. I don't need a business card.

All I need is your contact information and to build a relationship with you. And if I do that enough times, then I'm going to win the trust of the consumer. I'll I'll have the cards to close and then I'll have the revenue to be able to go invest in those things if I choose to later on down the road. But you're going to have your card out before me, aren't you? I I will.

I guarantee for sure. Just and it's just a mindset thing around, you know, like I I I because I've been hung up on those things in the past and and uh I've learned a lot over the years. it. And now I'm understanding that the most important thing I can do is just go build relationships come from contribution in everything I do and then all the results are going to show up for me. Yeah.

But this isn't rocket science, right? This isn't like we're not selling something that's it's it's it it's not super technical. It's it's it's but it's super helpful to the consumer who is the person just to. And that's the mindset you also have to have is I'm working with somebody just like me who's trying to, you know, build something, have success in their business, and and I get the opportunity to be a leverage for them, right? I I can help them um through this this great thing uh you know, called the community spotlight or whatever you whatever you call it.

Um well, I have been watching videos online for quite some time, but like I said, I've been in the process of moving for months. It's just been a it's freaking nightmare. Seven houses we put an you know put an offer in on and it was just anyways it was a nightmare. But I I started watching the videos for that um what was it highle marketing guy uh Jake um I I've been watching his videos for quite some time but to join his his his program it's like was like $300 and I'm like you know what I I I got to get a a an outlet put in my bedroom. I've got to get this window fixed in the basement.

I don't have an extra $300 right now. He said he's got a lead group for $44 a month. I think it is now. I think it's gone up since I joined it. But um I think Oh, so you're in both groups then?

I am. Okay. Um so I found this group and I'm like, "Okay, $99 is better than um you know." Uh and I actually saw that Mitch did a video with with Jake as as well. Um I think I think Jake is I think if I'm not mistaken um Mitch started as a result of learning what he learned over from Jake.

Yeah. I I've been looking at it for a while and I just keep saying well you know I've got to get this done and I've got to get this done and I've got all this I don't I'm not unpacked yet and um I I've got to get the driveway done and let me get through that first and you know and finally this week I was like you know what stop doing that. Stop because you just have to start. you literally just have to start and get it done. And I, you know, I joined like three nights ago at like 10 o'clock at night, you know.

Um, so in that amount of time, I've got like I literally I just looked here. I've got 28 different um, you know, uh, categories here that I have really put some serious work into. Like I've got 20 plumbers on this list. I've got um, uh, junk removal. Let's see how many guys I got on there.

17 uh for junk removal, chiropractors, massage place. I mean, I put a lot of work into it. Um and maybe down the road then I can just buy some lists or use a program that that can do that for me. There's one called I think uh it's up something or other. I've got it saved on my computer where it'll do all of that work or all the information is available free through the library.

Get a library card. Oh, got one of those. But, you know, like I said, I'm sitting here at my desk anyway. So, I I've I've really kind of jumped in feet first. I I've got all of this work done and now today is the day as soon as we're done here on this call that I'm going to start sending these emails out.

Um and um the ones that I don't I wasn't able to find an email for I I I was most of them I was able to find their Facebook. They have a a Facebook presence. So if I can't email them, I will just message them on Facebook. That's why I wanted to make sure that I had a business page set up so that I could message them through my my business page. So yeah.

Hey Ron Ron, I see you do mentoring. How how would I reach out to you? Um, yeah, that's uh actually, yeah, I forgot about that. Yeah, the mentoring giants. I I do that.

I've been doing that for years. Ever since I did I I used to Oh, man. Here we go. I'm gonna open up a can of worms here. Oh, Lord.

I used to do a I used to do a a TV show on Discovery Channel. Oh, nice. And so, yeah, ever since then, people have reached out to me wanting business coaching. So, I do that. Um, and I just I just do stuff to honestly I People ask me what I do.

I do whatever I want. I mean, this is, you know, I get bored. I start doing stuff. I, you know, I'm retiring on a on a ranch down here in Colorado. And I just kind of, you know, I I got a bunch of rentals.

I decided to get into real estate and build a $5 million portfolio in less than 12 months. And so, um, thanks, Joey. Yeah. Yeah. I, um, yeah, I got the right career choice, that's for sure.

I, um, yeah, I, you know, that's how I ended up with the 9 by12 cards, honestly, is because, uh, you know, I I've got I built a a $5 million portfolio of real estate and a lot of my tenants um, you know, I own some commercial real estate. A lot of those tenants were, you know, struggling with advertising and marketing. And I'm like, man, these guys don't know how to do any of this stuff. I can't, you know, it's hard for me to bite my tongue and not say anything. So, I just decided to start I I used to do this when I had my own company, actually.

Um, I used to do these 9 by12s. Geez. Back in 2008 when I had my own company and I would sell um, you know, all the all the spots except the prime spot, you know, the big spot that I wanted and then I would uh, you know, basically market my company for free and I did that for years. So, I decided to start doing it. Um, and so I kind of did it in reverse of everybody else.

I had already done it and um and then I offered it to some people and they were interested and I thought, well, I better go find a place I can get this printed off cheap. So, I did some searching and that's how I found everybody else is uh is that way. So, I kind of did it in reverse. Well, are you guys doing your own printing and mailing or are you having um uh Mitch do it? How are you guys working?

That's what I started to say. Like, I've known Jake for years and years. Um but uh Mitch I knew Mitch from in that group over there and um but I we'd never personally you know chatted and um what I love about what Mitch is doing that's so different than what Jake does is that Mitch is making this super simple all in one. is like everything in a box. Everything that you need in a box.

He does landing pages, websites, he does um he does uh the CRM, he does distribution, he does, you know, he takes care of like everything. And that's what I need because I'm an old lady, you guys. I'm So am I. I'm 68 years old. I cannot lug all those darn boxes of stuff.

So, um, one thing I had a hard time finding in the in the classroom thing was, um, uh, was templates for the actual ads. What I clicked on in there only showed me one template thing. Could one of you guys direct me to where I can get some templates for all of these different ads that I have to build? Yeah, they're kind of all over this. there.

Just just search the group for templates and you'll find all kinds of stuff. Okay. Thank you. How many are using the CRM? I am.

I I got it. So, yep. Help. Yeah, I just started this week with it. Before I had like a little spreadsheet with stuff and I was like in case I oversell something and don't realize it, this could be dangerous.

So, I don't want to have that conversation. Well, I was setting up my I was setting up my spreadsheets like a CRM. Like I had different colors in the cells for the the stage of the the stage of the uh For those of you that are using the CRM, have you used CRM before? And how does it compare to other CRM that you've used? I have used uh CRM before.

I've used a number of them actually. Um, and most of those have way more information than we need. I have requested uh that he add another field for other or allow us to add other fields for um different things like I want to track my client's birthdays. Oh, nice. Yeah.

I I like to do like something like a just a note or you know just something to recognize their birthday because you know when you get older like your birthday doesn't feel so special anymore you know like when you were a kid because you were getting like stuff from people and you know it was birthdays were great and that's at least in an email. I I won't do it in an email. I I want to do it in a something uh personal as far Can I interject something here? Sure. As far as the CRM goes Uhhuh.

that CRM that he put together, he's got a lot of new features coming soon. I know. But as far as the basic portion of it, Yeah. it is absolutely incredible. It is absolutely.

Do not do not go to go high level. Do not go high level has way too many things. You will be overwhelmed. No, it's the learning curve is terrible and then it's worse than that after that. Yeah, I've watched a lot of other videos about other other, you know, work from home opportunities and go high level.

It it it does offer a lot, but it is there is a lot there. So, yeah. a lot. But it's like a MLM because it's like you got to get other people into it. You gota, you know, it's expensive.

Yeah. It's $97 a month. Yeah. Mitches Mitch's is reasonable. Yeah.

Yeah. Yeah. And it's tailored for exactly what you're doing. I helped him beta test. So, I I got into it a little bit earlier than everybody else, but I was also afraid to put all my stuff in there because it was in beta.

Right. Right. So, I I just put in a few. Yeah. I I had to help um some clients of mine I used to work for.

I used to set appointments for a bunch of guys who uh did um um um you know end of life insurance you know uh death insurance that kind of stuff. Um so they started a whole new CRM and I was their only caller so you know their only appointment setter. So it was a whole that is a pain in the butt. So God bless you for going through that. So, I'm currently using Clothes with my day job right now.

And it is a really nice CRM. Um, I haven't even looked into what it costs every month um to actually have it for myself because I don't pay for it, you know, currently my job pays for it. Um, well, I'm $10.99, but the the the people that I that I work with, they pay for that. But it it is a really nice CRM and you can call from it.

Now, with this with Mitches, can you actually make phone calls from that CRM? Not Not yet. Not yet. Okay. Yeah, but it's, you know, it's it's coming.

Oh, yeah. Okay. Well, good. Good. Because that's something that um you know, if you can just click on the number and dial it right there from the CRM, it makes it so easy and it's very intuitive.

I mean, it's just so easy and you can do your cards in there and like was mentioned, you can do your invoices in there, you know, you you can uh do your pipeline in there, you know. I mean, because if you have to buy another pipeline program outside of your CRM, it lots of them don't have it. You know, he and yeah, Mitch had Go High Level and he learned all about GoHigh Level, what he wanted to keep and what he didn't want to keep, and he's going to be building it out that way, so you won't have all the extra things you don't need. Right. Yeah.

Yeah. And then in addition to that, I I I like that he's added uh two two buttons. one, you report an issue. So, if you're having, you know, glitch, you can report it. But also, there's in the bottom left hand side of the bar, um, you can, uh, share an idea like what you'd like to see in the future.

So, that too. Yep. I like that, too. It's being, you know, really what it is is it's being built by the user, right, by making these recommendations. So, that's really cool.

Okay. Yeah. I've worked with a a ton of um different CRM and um that's why I was asking how it compared to others. If he gets a um something in there to where you're able to actually dial out from there, that would be phenomenal. That would be that's all all after this initial, you know, getting through all the new, right?

You got to work out the bugs first, one thing at a time. Yeah. Then then the integration can begin to happen. So, you're going to be able to integrate, you know, email, call centers, all those things into the CRM at a later. Yeah, the future looks really bright, but but really right now, you got everything you need to go out and do what we need to do each and every day and keep track everything, right?

Well, I was actually considering taking a couple of the templates that I could, you know, got from the site and just taking them over to the local print shop and saying, "Hey, can you print out a couple of these for me?" They will. They will at Staples. It's It's not cheap. I heard I think somebody said they were like 10 or 15 bucks each.

Oh, wow. Yeah, I might be better off buying, right? Yeah, you would. Yeah. Okay.

Well, maybe I maybe I will. Well, like my HVAC guy hasn't paid me yet. I told him like I'm just getting started, so I'll you know, um what you know, we give us some time. And I told him I was like, you need to email me over your um um your logo. you know, what kind of, you know, um, coupon or anything like that, any kind of offer that you want to put on there, and I'll I'll get working on that once you send that over to me.

I said, but I'm just getting started. It's going to be probably at least a month, six weeks before I even think about getting it mailed out. So, you guys, he's like, "Oh, okay. Well, cool. So, nobody's paid me yet.

So, once maybe I get that first payment in, then I'll be able to go ahead and um, you know, yeah, I've just got so much other stuff going on. Oh my god, this house is going to be the death of me. I swear to God. I know. But this has to supplement my retirement.

So, it's important to me. My my why is a big why. Um yeah, I need a new garage. I don't have a garage. Um they to you Yeah.

I I do woodworking um as a hobby and I don't have a garage. And I'm like, I don't know why I bought this house. He doesn't have a garage. I've got a Mama's got to have a garage. Yeah.

That's That's 30 to $40,000 I'm looking at right there. So, yeah, I need some extra money coming in. And I liked when I I watched the video that that uh that uh Mitch did on um where he was looking at people's different um um websites and critiquing their websites. Yeah. And the fact that he went through his own first.

I there was some things that I really liked about his um his website that I think that I will hopefully eventually maybe uh uh put into mine as well. I live in well I'm not sure if with you living so close if you're familiar with this area over here like Cleveland is in Kyhoga County. I live the next county over in Lorraine County and there's probably eight or 10 different little cities here. So I live in one called Yria. I'm going to start here in Ayria but then like he had you know moving over to the next city the next city you know all throughout the county.

So I'm hoping to implement something like that eventually so I can do more than one card a month. I can do one in Yria, one in Lorraine, one in Sheffield, one in Avon. You know, these are all little, you know, towns in my county here. So, what are any of you guys doing that? I think a lot of people have that goal.

My goal is to do one a month. So, that and I want to have um three three areas because I'm going to mail quarterly. So, that'll give me one a month to work on. And I I think that's probably that's probably quite a bit of time. I mean, some people are going to repeat.

What are you guys What are you guys getting? Would you say a average percentage of repeats on a second card? Well, I'm just starting it. So, my whole thing is just conversations with people at this point. Okay.

All right. Well, like I said, I've got eight and I'm gonna I didn't work at all last week. Oh, that was one of the things, too, that I thought of. uh when you set up your card in the software, I had uh somebody who gave me their artwork and I had told them that it was 3x4 and I think that's what they made instead of 2.8 by 3.

8 eight and uh it wouldn't go their artwork would not go into the card and I sent I tapped on that button and said, you know, this is what's happening and they were going to look at it and get back to me. But I haven't worked in a week. My my granddaughter graduated from um school. She is uh got her master's in science and physicians assistant studies. And so she's Congratulations.

She's officially a physician's assistant now. And awesome. Oh, I'm so proud of her. So proud of her. She worked hard for it, though, I'll tell you.

But um uh so I was out of town all uh last week. I didn't work. And so um like I said, I think I'm going to give it one more week. If I can break even, I'm going to go ahead and do it. But I'm going to give it this last week.

And you know what I put on my website? Um, as a result of that video that you were talking about, on my landing page, I put a countdown timer to the next mailing and I just said I just set it for 30 days. So every 30 days it'll start over. So, um, I think that is a good idea. I saw that on there was some other really good ideas in there, too.

But, um, I like that countdown timer because it lets them know this thing's going. you don't have a lot of time to waste. So, yeah, I I pulled honestly I pulled a lot of information from that one video because I was like, I don't even really know where to start, you know. I mean, I've built websites before, but like for myself or whatever, not for, you know, it's not like I it wasn't something I've done, you know, professionally or anything. So, um I I just pulled a lot of different information and um ChatGP helped me quite a bit.

Uh you know, that is uh I love ChatGP. you guys should use it. Use it. Use it. It will help you.

Um, so I just typed in, okay, I I want this to sound professional, you know, help me rewrite this, whatever, you know, and and just kind of went from there. But, um, I was able to pull a lot and and I hope that that's okay that I, you know, kind of piggybacked off some other people's ideas. Um, I hope they don't they don't mind because that's, you know, flattery in its best form. Yeah. Yeah.

So, I I want to ask you one more thing, Ron. So, if considering that I'm not going to go out and meet people, I'm not well, I won't say I won't meet them, but I won't I'm not going to go out in person cold calling. No, I might if I'm like having lunch somewhere and, you know, it's that kind of an opportunity, but I'm not going to go out uh doortodoor. Um, does that change my number of calls from three to uh another number? No.

Not if you're not making three calls. Are you making three calls now? No. Well, I have been, but I I didn't last week because like I said, I wasn't home. But yeah, I've been making three calls.

I've been probably making 10 calls. Well, and what are you selling in 10 calls? Well, I have eight sold, you know. I mean, I have half my card sold. Well, I understand, but you've been working at it a month.

So, if you're making 10 calls a day, that's three. Was it 3,000 calls? Oh, no. I'm not doing it uh seven days a week. So, I'm making like 50 50 calls a week, right?

So, that's 200 calls and you sold eight. Yeah. Well, they all come from calls though. They didn't all come from calls actually. That's 4%.

But what I'm saying is what what I'm saying is you guys are um needing to focus on selling. Yes. You guys are talking about everything else but selling, you know. Um literally focus on selling. Sell sell.

Sell. Yeah. That guy right there. What what's his name that just popped up there? What is um He doesn't even have a website.

doesn't have I didn't have a website. I didn't have a business card. I didn't have none of that crap. I just went out and sold the first card. But you went out.

It's different. No, I picked up the phone. Picked up the phone and picked the call. Go making excuses. Grab the phone.

No, I don't I do not agree in this day and age. I do not agree. I think if you're selling on the phone, there's so many scams. I think you have to have a presence. Everyone thinks you got a scam.

Um, well, I'm not going to argue with you. I mean, you sold eight, so stick with it. Well, I didn't sell all those on the phone. It's It's really hard for me. Phone calling people is really hard.

I'm I'm actually thinking I'm I should probably hire an appointment setter. Yeah, that ain't going to work either. No. Nope. Imperfect action is better than no action.

And if you're more comfortable on the phone, do 70% on the phone, do 15% email, do 15% uh uh in person, or vice versa. I've been selling co-op advertising for 20 years now. And my 80%, actually more like 85% is in person. The rest of it's on the phone. And then you got a little bit of DMs and a little bit of email because those are the tougher ones.

Totally agree with you, Dave. Just rock it. Do it. Yep. Do it.

And like Ben said in the chat right there, he said, "Don't spend any money till you're making money." I agree with that, too. I haven't I have not spent a dime on this business until somebody else paid me. you know, I sold the first, I don't know, four or five ads and then I went out and and uh, you know, built the website or whatever. So, I mean, yeah, I mean, just get out there and sell.

You can't deposit excuses. Nope, you can't. Well, let's see how I do this week. Let's Let's all just like set a goal for ourselves and say this is what we're doing and do it because it's that's that is the only way it's going to get done. You can talk about it a lot and you can, you know, learn learn how to do this business, but basically it is that you, you know, you're putting together a mailing, a community mailer, uh, because it's cheaper to advertise together than it is to do it alone.

And and I mean, basically, that is it's not that hard. I mean, you got you got to talk to people. Well, I mean, I go through this with other folks is like if you're not talking to people, you have no way of presenting, you know, what you have to offer in the first place. Like the fastest path to cash is is, you know, is is actually talking to people. So, like I know people want to do things online.

They don't want to like speak to people and stuff, but it doesn't work. Like, you're going to have to go outside, you're going to have to pick up the phone, you're going to have people hang up on you and maybe say not nice things to you. And that's kind of that's kind of part of what it is cuz even someone with no sales skills, if you keep calling say, "Hey, this is what we're doing as a community, want to know if you're in or not or you would like to, okay, I'll send you a couple information and follow up with them and like, hey, this, you know, um, I got to mail this out in like another week. Are you in?" Okay.

Yeah, here's my money. And that's kind of how I got my payments. That's a great tip, Lauren. Thank you for that. That is great.

What are you guys pricing your your ads at, if you don't mind me asking? I'm selling 600 for on my slots, but I'm doing singles. Can't hear you, Dave. Dave, you said something. We can't hear you.

Oh, I'm sorry. Pricing on ads 500 750 or no, 450, 650, and 850 depending on the size. Okay, I think I put mine at 355 and nine. Do you guys think that that's fair? Does it cover your cost?

Well, if I uh I'll make more money if I sell more half ads to be honest with you. Um than even uh the regular size ads or the doubles. Um if I sell it'll take you it'll take you longer and cost you more. It's double the double the time of find double the number of customers. Yeah.

Abs. I mean, at this point, I just want to sell. I don't care what size you buy. Just buy something. I'm doing I I got I got 16 4x3 spots.

That's what I got. It was a whole lot easier to sell four halfpage ads. Right. And to the same point, you guys were talking about small tiny ads that you you were discussing if you could even read the font. Yeah.

Those those will drive you crazy. They won't produce fruit. They'll be the biggest pains in the butt. They're going to want to give you seven proofs to change their ad. The the the the smaller and the lesser price, the more aggravation.

Just you got to know when to say no. Don't let it kill you. Go with the bigger ads. 100%. Thank you, Dave.

I appreciate that. Um I because I when the guy mentioned it I'm like h you know I was like I said really we got to look at you know how's that going to print being so small? I I think it's going to be you know you're not going to be happy with what you see anyways. So and I have no background in printing but I know enough to know that if it's that small what are you even going to be able to see? Yeah.

I'm doing just the one size spot. I'm listing it for $6.99 and I'm selling it for 600. Nice. Yeah, I keep mines at 600.

I've talked to like but I've had like one realer. Oh, can I have a double spot? Yeah, sure. I'll give you this and sold it. So, and I'm doing uh 500 for the single and 900 for the double and and anything else above.

Let's just talk. So, have you guys given away any spots just to get like a a really good business on there and get a great coupon on there? Have you guys done any of you guys done that? And how if so, how's it working? Everybody's like, "No pale, no."

I haven't given away. I haven't given any away yet, but I I'm going to be I offered to give a month free to my um my lawn care kid. I mean, he's such a great kid, right? I just I was like, "Look, I'll put you on there for a month." I was like, "And then if he brings in, you know, cuz he's literally just starting his lawn care business."

I was like, "And then from there on out, you know what? Because I like you, you just do all my lawn stuff for free and I'll keep you on there." And he said no. He said no. I was ready to give him free advertising because he's such a great kid, you know.

Um, he was like, "Honestly, I got to take this other job and I just I don't think I'm going to have time to take on any more business." I'm like, "Well, that's a that's a good problem to have, buddy." I traded I I traded business when I first started my agency. So, from 2009 to 2021, I did not pay for a single car repair. Not a tire, not a windshield wiper, not a nothing.

And I nice and and they were just starting their business at that time, too. And so it they and they think they made out. And I know I made out. Oh, I'm all about the barter. When I bought this house, um I had my own brand new appliances that I I bought maybe a year ago.

This house had a a gas stove and a refrigerator, really nice um stainless steel. I needed some handyman work done. And that's how I met this kid. I just put it on um Facebook. I'm like, "Hey, I need some handy."

I said, "I'm looking to get rid of, you know, these uh and I traded him for rebuilding the gate to my fence and putting up what I call my fake garage." The the pad was still there, so I bought one of those tent things. So, I just traded him appliances for doing that work for me. And I'm like, I'm all about a barter all day long. You know, I was going to get rid of those appliances anyways, and I needed that work done.

So, it worked out. So, I know he's he's he's he's all about the barter, too. But evidently, he's going to be taking on too much work. So, if you have to give a spot away, which I'm you know, I'm I'm I'm thinking I'm going to um what what do you I was just thinking when you were saying that, Lisa, like if you give it to somebody that doesn't have a a large average sale, like a landscaper, are they really going to see a return on that like or or are you better off to go after some people who like a, you know, a roofer for example that has a really high-end product. Honestly, I think if I have to give one away, I think it would be something that's like a super popular place in town that's going to put a great coupon on there to add value to the card.

I think that that's I think that's the the you know if I'm you know like I said I was just trying to help this kid out because he's such a great kid and he's just starting his own business and I'm starting my own and I'm like hey you know and I could get you know free lawn care out of it whatever not a big deal give him a little half spot you know would be all right but um I think if I have to give a spot away just to get somebody on the card I would make it a really super like maybe a really popular restaurant in around, go into there and say, "Hey, um, you know, we're going to do this community mailer. Let's highlight your business on here. Let's put an an offer out there, some kind of really great coupon." And then I can tell the other people like, "Hey, you know, yeah, nobody needs a roof all the time, but you know, maybe this restaurant over here, Wolfies, is one of big popular restaurant here in town. Um, people are going to hang on to that that card.

They're going to stick it on their refrigerator and then they're going to see your name and then when they they're going to see that name and they how long are they going to have that sticking on their their refrigerator or in their junk drawer or whatever and every time they you know open up that junk drawer they see your name on there you know that's I think a good selling point if you get if I'm able to get somebody on there if I have to give one away that puts a really great coupon on there really great offer that really adds value to the card so this so the people are keeping it I think what I'm you just kind of made me have an idea I'm I am advertising on my website that I give a percentage of my profits to the Buffalo Bills Foundation. We're a big football town in case you knew that. So, everybody does everything is Bills here. Everything is the Buffalo Bills. Everything here is right.

So, I decided to go Bills. Go Bills. That's right. That's a that that's a greeting in in and of itself. Um, so but that's what I might do.

I might So maybe go to the stadium and ask them for a coupon if they want to get get on there for free at the stadium. Like you can get, you know, if you come to a game, you can get, you know, a free drink with whatever or, you know, something like that. Wouldn't that be outrageous to get something like that? Hey, if you offer them a spot for free, why would they not? You know, that's you know, I gota I gotta stop you ladies for a second here.

Because because uh I think Leah I think you mentioned you you shared earlier that you had a big why? Yes. So So do you mind sharing with us kind of like a little bit about what that might look like? Well, you mean what what is my why? Is that what you're asking me?

Sure. Sure. Um I have no problem sharing that. Awesome. I am a baby boomer.

I didn't save enough money to live very long. I have some money set aside. Um, but my family lives into their 90s, right? And I don't have enough money to last that long. And I don't want to live like a popper in my old age.

I've I just traveled three years in an RV. I just went across the country twice in an RV. Just me and my two dogs. Nice. Um, so so money money is important, right?

Money and so so that you can so so you fair enough. So you can live out the life that you choose, you know, in the great years of uh of uh you know, senior senior being a senior. Exactly. And Lisa, you've got a big why with with the home that you just bought and you need a new garage or you got I need a garage. So you willing to give away those things?

Why are you willing to give away your garage? Why are you willing to I totally understand what you're saying. I do my the I think it's better off spending time talking about Ding ding ding ding ding ding I think I'm better off to get one card out even if I have to give some spots away and just so I get one card out so I have one to show. Yeah, I understood Leah. I I know the I I get the value of having that card, but let's just let's just say it's tomorrow's the deadline and you've got to give it away.

Right? Rather than give it away, what if you could give yourself half of the money? Like you got a whole side of a card that you could be sharing with a stadium like the Buffalo Bills who has the big budget to be able to go and say, "Hey, look, I've got this opportunity here. It's a big one. I've got the whole side of this community card that we're doing to help other businesses like yours.

I I'm going to offer this to you today for 50%. Right? At the very least, you've just put money in your pocket. You've sold the card, so you now have something you as evidence and you helped a big, you know, a big stadium. By the way, if you help them, do you think they know people?

Yeah, they do. That's that's an excellent idea. I'm definitely going there. I'm definitely going to drive down there. I don't mind driving right now.

the weather's good. I just by the time the snow falls, I don't want to be driving all over the place. The biggest part about all this is just mindset. Every single morning, you got to get up and remind yourself why you're doing what you're doing. So, I love that you have a big why.

And everybody should, you know, at least think about some goals. If a big why is even better. And it gets you up and it drives you to go do what you want to do each and every day. I need a new table saw, too. Yeah.

I mean, we can go on and on, right? So, just, you know, just wrap your mind around mindset, come up with different ways and ideas and use the community to figure out ways to go off and and, you know, achieve those, achieve those big wise. That is that that is an excellent idea. How can they say no? Yeah.

And and and I again I'd encourage I'd encourage you to go sell the card out, but but but uh in the very end, at the very least, you got it's got to be win-win. Everything should be win-win or no deal, right? That's your mindset going into what would you what would you price a whole back side of the card for? What would you price that at? Well, I mean, you you you got to do the math on your card, but but I'm I'm thinking that in in my scenario, half of a card is four grand.

Yeah. You know, and so if I'm if I'm able to if if half of the card is eight slots and I sold four grand to get that, then the other side's another four grand. If I ended at the very least getting two grand, then then at least um bringing a little coin home, paying some of my expenses. But uh again, I I would try to sell the card out. I could give the stadium a big spot right in the middle and then make my template on the back side, make the ads a little bit smaller, sell those at half the price.

That's a great idea. As far as the Buffalo Bills and Highark Stadium or any other NFL or collegiate football team, you've got to have an agent. You've got to have rights. It'll take you a year to sell them an ad, if it's even possible. I've already worked with the Buffalo Bills.

Oh, you have? What if you What if what you're putting on there is about donations to their foundation? You can't use their their name, image, or likeness. Well, they're gonna license. They had to get it approved by legal because I work with bigger companies.

That's why I said that to you earlier. Okay. But yeah, you know, it doesn't have to be the Buffalo Bills. We're using them as a as an example, a placekeeper. Find somebody who you can help.

Right. Right. And sell that card out. Fulfill your goal. Fulfill your big why.

But but don't give up. It's it's it's plenty of time. There's plenty of time to go out and make it happen. You got to look at it as a mindset that you're helping people. Like I'm very like I'm helping you out.

If you say no, then that's fine. Maybe next month, maybe never. That like it's like you're not cursing me out. Listen, I've been in in sales position with people that will curse you clear out. So this is like, oh okay, no, no, no, no problem.

No, cool. And I just keep going like, hey, you know, I'm just very like kind of casual in it. And that's how I've gotten interested people. That's how I've gotten like money collected yesterday because I just started, right? just got to be like very, you know, you don't have to be like the like some people are afraid of being salesy.

I've been in sales for over 15 years. So, it's like if you say no, you say no. Next month, next. Hey, you got a spot. Like, yeah, sure.

Why not? You know, just you have your big why, which is a good thing because you're going to get a lot of nos. You're going to get a lot of like crickets and nos and all that other good stuff. But if you're coming from the point well, you know what? I'm helping people get visibility in a place where all the other marketing that they're doing, they're spending thousands of dollars on marketing or they're losing uh customers because of all kinds of factors that are coming in.

You know, c people are losing jobs so they don't go to their shop as much, you know, in my area and I'm in a big city in the first place. Like people are not getting roofs done because I have a client um who, you know, they're losing money because people have lost their jobs or they're saying, "Hey, I'mma hold off on this because this stuff is raised." So, they need more visibility. any way they can they get visibility and this is just a very uh affordable option more affordable than doing a whole lot of stuff. So just getting your name out there.

So I look at it as we're coming together and we're helping each other out. If you want to be a part of it fine if you don't I just keep on going. I just kind of keep that mindset going. So like you're a collaborator. You're bringing a community of business owners together for the share goat of we're trying to stay in business.

You're gonna be a rockstar, Lauren. You are a rock star. Yeah, can I put in my two cents on pricing? Mark, what' you say? I'm sorry, we didn't I didn't catch that.

I was I want to put in my two cents on pricing on what I am I'm just starting, but I I uh I want to kind of give you an idea of what I'm doing. So, I'm I have mine priced to where my pricing entices the companies or businesses to do multiple months rather than just a single. So, my my single pricing starts out the small ad at 600. And if they want to do multiple months, I do 450 for the small ad with a threemonth minimum commitment. And I have my pricing go all the way up to $3,600 for a full page ad for a three-month commitment.

But then I also show them the value of what they're saving going to three months versus only doing a single ad for month by month or only doing one one time. So, I do uh 600 uh 900,500 and then up to 3600 or not 36, but it's at like 4,800 actually going doing the math off the $600 price. Uh but they I figure that's going to be a way to keep retention on the businesses to go multiple months rather than having to go find a new business every month. And then I have my second tier on the medium ad is the best value. I have that one actually discounted more just to maybe get them to jump up from a small ad to the mediumsiz ad versus that way.

Rather than selling 16 small ads, I'd rather sell eight medium ads. But that's my two cents. Good stuff. I have a question for you guys as a group. um in the in the program in the in the community they have a tab called maps.

Is that where all of the people in the group are located? Is that what that is? I'm not familiar. Um when in the school community it has community classroom calendar members and it has a a tab called map. Yes, that is where we're all located but it may not be within uh for privacy sake.

It's there's a there's a lag or not a lag. Uh it'll put you within 10 miles of where you're at because I noticed there are two other people that are super close to me in my same county that are on that map. Have you guys ran into an issue of territory at all? You can only put one landscaper on your card. Correct.

Uh, right. Right. But I'm I'm just saying as far as other How many landscapers are on your list? A ton. Uh, a ton.

I've got um Don't worry about it. Okay. I I wasn't sure if that was something that you guys had ran into or not with uh other people doing the same type of card in the same area. Again, pick up the phone, make the call, sell the card. Don't worry about anybody else.

Run your race. All right. Yeah. What Joey said, like I have someone who paid for it who also pays for Valpack, so he didn't give a Like they don't they don't care, right? You'll be fine.

Just have the have as many conversations as possible. Be personable. Be sincere. And they say yes, they say yes. and be like, "Okay, do you have a do you know someone else who might be da because the whole purpose of being you'll get more flies with honey."

Like the more personal you are and it's like, "Hey, I'm in this with you with you guys together, you'll sell more people versus cuz you got a lot of people who call small business, mine included, you know, and they're just trying to like they're trying to list me all all of a sudden and you know, and that's not what you're that's not what you're trying to do. the more you get inter more you integrate with your business community around you the more opportunities that uh you will have to keep your card sold out but the right now you just need to go and just sell some slots. So talk to people. Go in, have coffee, you know. Hey, you know, I'm I was in town.

I just stopped. Like I got one guy who I'm going to go stop into their store uh this weekend probably. Be like, "Hey." Yeah. Cuz he responded to me.

Hey, I just wanted you to have a name with a face and see me physically cuz I didn't see you last week at the meetup type of thing. They just want to know you're real. Cuz we get calls like my clean business. We get calls all the time and I have an agency so I know what it's like to get those calls. So, hey, I'm just real.

You're not putting your money in the the abyss, right? I just didn't want to uh end up butting heads with someone else that's trying to to sell the same card in the same area. Um that was already in the group before me. Um there's I' I've seen it addressed many times by people who it's right now happening to and everyone has said it's not an issue. It's it's a non-issue.

Yeah. Okay. To go around. Yeah, that's fine. Like, you can like I just don't want to piss anybody off.

I don't give a But I mean, that's that's me. I particular But hey, you know what? I I'm all about let's let's team up and get three cards out together. I I'm okay with that. I'm okay with working with other people as long as it's making me money, you know?

Um I I' I'd be completely okay with working with somebody else to get more more cards out quicker, you know? Like I'm in Houston. I know there's another guy. He he's doing a piece like I'm in an area where it's it's too big. It's like multiple people.

Even in the smaller neighborhood, smaller is the size of a of a of a small city already. It's like over 100,000 people and I'm in that neighborhood because I I do a lot of business there. I'm I'm there. I hang out there anyway. Right.

So like you can have like six, seven cards in there and never no one ever touches. Yeah. Unfortunately, my community is not that big. Um Houston's probably bigger than my whole county most likely would be my guess. Yeah, I wouldn't worry about other people.

Just like at the end of the day, the thing that's stopping you is like you having the have the damn conversations, right? You're not going to know until you know. Just talk to a bunch of people. Hey, this is what I'm doing. I'm a real lady.

I'm whatever. And build relationships and you will be fine. Yeah, I am. Um um soon as we're done with this call, I'm get myself together and I'm headed out this afternoon to just start visiting some businesses because that's what I got to do. Um, I'm going to, uh, send out emails and blast as many of those as I can out without, you know, um, shutting down my my brand new email account.

Obviously, I can't do that. But, um, the same as Facebook, I'm just going to get myself out there because the worst case scenario is all they can say is no. Hey, I saw somebody say, I'm not sure in which group I saw this, but I saw somebody say that the way to handle not getting your group not getting shut down using Facebook messages is to um go through your group and just look for those. I mean, I got one here. It's like every single week they're asking the same question.

Who's the doctor I should go to? Who cuts hair? Definitely. I saw that too. Just scroll through and just go in that community group and and do a search for call here.

Um I I got you that sort of thing for all those replies. I I have started doing that. I got one call back, but I haven't but I didn't sell it. Um I just suck on the phone. I'm just terrible on the phone.

Um do Facebook post. Yeah. Well, do Facebook posts and uh you're right now you have good weather and you don't mind driving. So, do the do it in person. Go to the commerce, go to meetups, do it in person.

If you work now all the way down to about fall winter where you don't want to really drive, you will fill up your car and you have built enough relationships to get your referrals. Yeah, I I agree. Okay, here here's here's another little tidbit, guys. The fir first of all, focus on people that have the money. Okay?

Don't a barber shop, you know, gets $30 a cut, right? It's it's easier to sell a guy that does fencing who his average customer is 10,000 bucks, right? I wish I could get a fence for 10,000. They told me 22. Sorry.

I apologize. You in your house. I swear. It's killing me. So, I'm What I'm saying is go where the money's at.

Go. And don't be afraid to go find people that are already advertising. If you type in a fence company and they've got a Google ad or they got Facebook ads, those are the people you want. You want to go towards those people because they already understand the value of marketing. Yes.

And you're not working, you're not walking uphill and you're not fighting uphill. Don't go to the local pizza place where his, you know, his profit margins is $3. go to somebody who, you know, who is huge and has, you know, like a window company for instance, you know, where their average customer is 10,000 bucks. They only need one at that point and it makes it's a no-brainer for them to buy. Hey, those type of businesses, what where do you where do you start as far as like if you're cold calling them, who do you who do you know to ask for in in like a larger business like that?

the owner or the manager. So, you you should already know who it is before you call. If you're going to ask me, I speak to the owner or the manager, you're going to get hung up on or you'll you'll just get sent to voicemail. You need to do do the research and find out who the owner or marketing manager is. In most cases, it's going to be the owner probably 85% of the time, but otherwise it's going to be the the owner.

100% agree with David. And the BBB is a good place to find that information. The library is the free place to find all that information. The the BBB, you can do it right online and it'll nine times out of 10 tell you who owns that business. You won't get their contact information, but you'll get at least get their name.

And the Secretary of State website too is another place you can well sometimes it's their agent though. The library what she's referring to is reference USA. They have a database on their website. You need a a library card to access access the website and all two what is it 32 million businesses are on there and a lot of them have owner names on it. But make sure you understand that none of these lists are 100% up to date no matter what they tell you because that owner may have changed.

Um, I've had that happen. But ChatGpt is a good friend, too. Ask Chat GPT who owns this particular business in this town. It searches the web for all the newspaper articles that were written on them and all the websites. And a lot of times you'll see the owner and some news newsworthy article and a picture of them.

Then now you can go find them. That's good. Thanks. I've written some press releases for myself with chat GPT that I'm going to send out too. Can someone just Dave, I think it was you.

Can you repeat the name of the reference uh in the library? Yeah, it's on their website. It's uh it's called reference USA or I think the name changed. Yeah. Or the name changed and you'll see it.

resource uh resource I don't know just look it's in their business it's in their business databases there's several there some of them have the a toz one some of them have reference USA but the library is the source for all that information and if you have an appointment you go into the library and you make an appointment they will show you how to use all this stuff and and if you have a library card you can you can log again to your library account generally online and you don't even have to go to the library. That's right. You don't have to get a card. Yep. Awesome.

Thank you very much. And I think there's also the chamber of commerce like in different chambers of commerce and areas they know who the owners are because they are members of the chamber and therefore they're paying money and a lot of them advertise with the chamber. So making friends with the chamber and showing up to one act is a resource that is right there. Joey's making a lot of um comments in the chat. If you guys are watching chat, he's been commenting right along.

Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Use your chamber because people like forget that they're there and like chambers have fundraisers and chambers have galas and all kinds of stuff and especially if you're in um a town that's u a little bit more higher income, like go to your go to your chamber.

They're terrible at doing a whole lot of things, but they're very good at doing other things. And anybody who's still a member, they know who the owners are. They know who the managers are. just go in the chamber and let them know what you are doing, that you're a part of the community and stuff like that. And they'll be glad to hand you over a list or point some people out that might be interested because um you're helping them help their members do something important, which is getting their name out so they can get business.

So, don't forget that uh your chamber or you I'm in one place with multiple chambers, but if you have one two chambers, you should be friends with the folks at your chamber. I literally just looked at my library page for my local library and they're calling it business source premiere on on this one. So, um it'll it'll be referenced something like that. Um reference USA resource USA business resource um and and it underneath of it, it literally says boost your business knowledge by researching company and industry profiles um country and market research reports and magazine articles. So, it it may be named something different at each um at each library, but but the resources there, and I've used that in the past.

As far as chambers go, they can be your best friend or their worst or your or your biased friend. They will not promote or support anybody who's not a member. They are very, very biased. But if you join them, you can get a non-brickandmortar join fee membership for about $150. And then you can do a they even do it.

It's called an email blast and they'll send your flyer out to every business in the uh in the chamber. And then since you are a chamber member, they are uh more apt to possibly do with you uh do business with you possibly. But you have to be a member to do it. Nice. Or you can do like me.

I I teach them certain marketing things. I was like, "Hey, I'll teach you guys about Facebook ads and I won't charge a thing and I don't want any business. Just let me." So they told me yes. Awesome.

Great. Love it. Love it. Barter, I'm telling you, it works. Bart is beautiful.

Great call. Not enough people do it anymore. Well, you guys, I have thoroughly enjoyed my first chat here. Thank you guys all for listening and giving me all of your good advice. And um I I hope to do they they do this every week.

They have this every Saturday. Every Saturday. Okay. Well, you guys have a great week. I am It's noon here and I am going to get myself together to to get out here and start selling some cards.

Um so, thank you all for all of the great advice. Good luck selling this week and I hope everybody gets it gets the full card out this week. So, you guys have a great week. All right. This has been a great call.

I thank everybody for the all the encouragement and the tips. That's what I like about, you know, being able to come to a group like this. You just get so much support. So, I appreciate it. That's good for everybody.

The iron sharpens iron.