This week’s question for “Ask Michelle Anything” comes from Meagan.
Question:
Hi Michelle. I just wanted to reach out! I finished your book (in 2 days!! Lol) and absolutely LOVED it! Shane Ellison is a friend of my husbands and highly recommended it when we were asking him for some business advice.
I have a lot of work to do on my website and brand after reading your book — moving away from my former predatory marketing tactics 🤦🏼♀️— but after I do the work, I’d love the opportunity to have you look at my site and see if working together could be a good fit. In the meantime… do you have any recommendations for how to move away from predatory marketing?
Thank you for writing such an amazing book!
Michelle’s Answer:
So glad you loved my book, thank you!
Great question… And, yes, I have some suggestions.
First, understand that predatory marketing comes from the idea that in order to make money, we have to go out and “get” customers. “Getting” implies that we have to take something. “Grab, confiscate, acquire.” I hate that language. (Too Epstein-ish.)
When you’re “taking” from other people, you put yourself in a scarcity state, in which you can only profit if other people lose.
To shift your focus AWAY from predatory marketing, start thinking about how you can give value for free.
If you look at all the top personal brands, they provide massive amounts of FREE value in the form of education, free trainings, free samples, free gifts, etc. Their content “motivates, educates, and inspires” (MEI’s) people. This naturally leads customers selling themselves on the product or service. (That’s the MEI principle in action.)
What free “thing” can you offer to people who might become your ideal clients? How can you help them out long before they ever become a client?
“Give and it shall be given unto you, good measure running over.” – Luke 6:38
The giving principle is biblical, and it’s the foundation for everything good in this world.
Think of your free gift (or free offer, free content, free gift, lead magnet) as a “seed” for people to begin changing their life in a positive way.
It provides people with a sample of what you do, how you think, what you’re all about – but it also opens up a doorway for them.
Your free gift can open people’s minds to a truth that maybe they’ve previously rejected or not been exposed to.
Your freebie can educate people on the basic principles of how things work.
Your free gift should be so potent, so high-value, that it can change someone’s life even if they never work with you or buy from you.
When you give, don’t be attached to getting anything back. Learn to give for the pure joy of doing so.
For example, when I first started as a copywriter, I wouldn’t just pitch potential clients — I would offer them a free gift: a sample of my editing. This sample gave them so much value that some of these people hired me to rewrite all of their sales copy, which then opened the door to hundreds if not thousands of other writing projects.
It all started with a free gift.
Predatory marketing is all about “getting.”
The second you try to “drum up business,” or “get clients” or “make sales,” you’ve lost the point.
Think deeper. Ask your higher self, “Who can I help today? What can I give today?”
The law of giving and receiving states that in order for you to receive, you must first give. Whatever you give (whether positive or negative) will come back to you tenfold. Some people call this “karma.” Others see it as the “mirror principle,” i.e., whatever you are deep down is what you’ll see reflected back in your world on a daily basis. If you’re a generous person, life will be generous to you. If you’re an angry person, life will bring you more experiences to be angry about.
~ The Anti-Marketing Manifesto (Chapter 3: Stop “Getting Customers, Start Giving”)
If you need help coming up with a free gift that is compelling to your perfect-fit clients, email me! Let’s chat. If you already have a freebie, but it’s not generating any interest in your market, send it to me and request an edit.
Resources mentioned in this article:
The Anti-Marketing Manifesto: How to Sell Without Being a Sellout – available on Amazon
Michelle Lopez Boggs is a copywriter, copywriting mentor, and author of "The Anti-Marketing Manifesto: How to Sell Without Being a Sellout." She's helped her clients sell millions of dollars' worth of products and services online by using the MEI(S) principle — motivate, educate, and inspire, and sell. 