Topology and Telemarketers
by Clay Campbell

Topology is a “Wizard Word” I use to mean the taking of something that works great in one industry and arrange it to fit into the needs of your own particular business. Would you invest $400 per month if it would return $4000 a month?
Of course you would or else you should get a job being a greeter at Wal-Mart or something about equal.

Here’s my example:

Some big companies like Dish Network use “telemarketers” right? I guess that is really successful, because I keep signing up for the “no call list”, and I keep getting calls. They are like fire ants and terrorists: they just keep right on coming at you no matter what you do to them.

So I figured I could make this idea work for me. Maybe it could work for you too. Here’s the deal. I am spending $400 a month and calling it “advertising and here is what we are doing.

We are in the tourism business and own a Country Music Theatre by Kentucky Lake about 120 miles northwest of Nashville Tennessee.
I found a very nice lady with a very amiable, friendly, kind personality. I am giving her the list of tour bus companies that have been to our place and she is calling them first. She will just tell them we have a new computer ticketing system and we are updating our data base, which, by the way is true. Never lie to people to try to sell them something. (My mother always said a person would go to hell for lying.) One thing people detest in advertising is something that smacks of a “bait and switch”.

Our new telemarketing person is asking the group leaders if the info we have is correct, and if they would like to have a copy of our schedule of upcoming events. And would they like to be notified when we announce a new big Star like: Merle Haggard, Willie Nelson, and Loretta Lynn etc. They almost always want that new current information ASAP, so they can sell the trip to their customers. So we are doing them a favor in a way because they would make money on the trip.

We will also be contacting Churches with senior groups, Senior Citizens Centers, Banks that take their customers on trips, and even the Red Hat Ladies clubs. We will be offering to send them a schedule and asking if they want to be on our mailing list.

This is an EXPERIMENT! We will have her work 10 hours a week, we will pay her $10 an hour and that’s $400 a month. Now if in six to 8 months she has not found some groups to come to shows, then we can discontinue the experiment. I believe that she will bring in 10 times more dollars than we pay her. But we will keep a close eye on measuring the results.

Always remember my # 2 Rule of Business: Never expect what you don’t inspect!

Bob Parsons says in rule # 9 -Measure everything of significance. I swear this is true. Anything that is measured and watched, improves.

So there you have the idea of Topology. I am using the idea of hiring telemarketers to advertise for my business. How could you change it up a bit to adapt it to your business?

Perhaps now would be a good time to have a complimentary meeting with a Wizard of Ads Partner. Links to their websites and blogs are listed down the right side of The Wizard Times. Hundreds of their articles with free insightful advice can been seen at www.americansmallbusiness.com 2009 would be a great year to attend a class at the Wizard Academy 21st Century Business School in Austin Texas. What is the Wizard Academy?

See you next week.

Clay Campbell
Wizard of Ads

PS. Need help to attract more customers and grow your business?