I received a question concerning an older cemetery and their mapping system.  It is interesting how we have all of this modern technology including G.P.S. but the cemetery still uses the original system.

I mention G.P.S. because I was involved in a start-up cemetery that literally used satellite technology to locate the grave spaces.

The accuracy was totally amazing.

But, here’s a little more on the email I received.  It seems there’s a cemetery or two out there still using hundred year old maps with pins to identify blocks and lots buried long ago or made of cement that’s been chipped or busted.

Reminds me of a cemetery I worked at that was two cemeteries combined.  Both had sections 100 years old and a mapping system that was designed when the dinosaurs still roamed the earth.

Because it was two different cemeteries combined the mapping system for each was different.  Further, many sections had a completely different mapping system.  And, many graves spaces did not have markers to help you figure out the system.

But, I still figured it out.

I’ll tell you my secret.  I found one of the grounds guy that had been at the cemetery for plus 25 years.  He knew that cemetery inside an out.  I ended up slipping him a few bucks to stay late while I would take copies of maps to figure out where things should be.

Some of you might argue that I spent money to solve the problem.  What I did was solve the problem I had and it allowed me to be one step better and translated into more money in my pocket.

Here’s an idea for my fellow pre-need seller.

Wouldn’t it be interesting if they took those old maps and married with G.P.S. technology and not only figured out where the current supply of graves are located but new pins placed exactly where they need to be?

Well, it can be done.

But, like a lot of things in this industry they’ve been doing things the same way forever.

This is why you continually hear me go on and on about old style prospecting.  Why do cemeteries and funeral homes repeat last century techniques for selling?

My fellow pre-need seller hit the nail on the head with his question.

He wanted to know why mapping systems are still being used from the early 1900s.

It’s called, “industry norms”.

The less “industry norms” you do the better you’ll succeed.

The only other advice I can give you is to spend some time on the cemetery grounds with copies of the maps and figure it out.  There is a way.  Once you’ve figured it you’ll be that much better.

I heard a famous golfer from the 1950(s) used to walk the golf course before a tournament.  He would walk and count his steps and make notes to help him with distances and terrain.

No one else had ever done this.  He was already a great golfer but that bit of “outside the norm” preparation gave him a little bit of an edge.

To all you pre-need sellers out there do that little something extra that puts you head and shoulders above the rest.  That’s the difference between mediocre and Top Producer.

I often talk about the difference between an elite running back in football and an average running back.  The difference is about a half step.  I heard one running back once say he ran and used colors to help him get through the line.  He would glance at the color of the jersey to give him a little bit more of an edge.  That little thing turned into a big edge and made a large difference in his production.

YOU, the pre-need seller, need an edge. 

Many times it is the little things we do every day that put us closer to a sale that makes a big difference at the end of the year.  Read the posts on this site, invest in yourself, do something proactively to put YOU in a better position to sell more pre-arrangements in the next 6 months than the last 12.

Next time you’re at the bank take note of the safe door.  The safe door at a bank is huge and weighs a lot.  But, when you note the safe door take a long hard look at the hinges.  The hinges are a heck-of-a-lot smaller than the door.

Many times it is the little things we do that make a huge difference for us.  Look for the little things you can do to give you a huge advantage and more sales.

Happy Selling!

David…

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GOOD NEWS! — I don’t know how you found this site but whatever brought you here listen up.   The prospecting strategies you’ll discover in the coming days are all based on or related to several simple foundations.

Quite frankly, effective prospecting “ain’t rocket science” and involves a lot of good old fashion common sense.

But don’t be fooled by the so-called “industry gurus” telling you what to do.  The problem with these gurus is they never were successful in the first place or it’s been so long ago I doubt it even matters any longer.  What you’ll hear the gurus tell you is to Prospect for two hours every single day.  If you’ll do this, they’ll say, everything will be fine. 

Well, guess what?  It isn’t the amount of time you spend prospecting that’s important.  It’s the “HOW DO I DO IT” part that’s important.  That’s where the gurus are left in the dust.  They don’t have an answer for “how to do it”.

They can only tell you what to do.  They cannot tell you how to do it.

I will tell you how you can do it.  I will explain strategies and techniques designed to make you 6 figures annually selling pre-arrangements.

To keep it all together I’ve created a three-legged-stool.

A stool won’t stand on one leg or two.  It requires three and that’s important for you to remember.

There are three basic areas of selling.  The better you are in all three area  the more sales you make.  But, if you’re weak in some areas the stool will fall over.

Put another way, your sales will suffer. 

Don’t be fooled by the “order takers” who sit on their duff waiting for business to walk in the door.

I’m talking about developing a process and forming systems to do the hard drudgery work of prospecting for you.

I’m talking about selling with a system.

Bottom line?

I’d rather have a great prospector than a great closer.  There’s no contest.  The better prospector will win in the long run while the great closer will be twiddling thumbs waiting on the next walk-in.

Most sellers of pre-arrangements believe, from day one, they’re going to sell lots of arrangements immediately.

Often, without any thought what-so-ever of how they’ll find those sales.

There’s a lot of bad ideas about selling going on out there. 

My definition of selling is something you DO more than something you LEARN.

We learn a process, we learn a system, we learn a presentation, we learn to ask for the check, and we learn to prospect.

But when it comes to sales we DO more than we learn.

No one’s born a sales person.

How many babies do you know fresh out of the womb speaking?

Yes, they may be yelling incoherently but they aren’t speaking.

It’s kind of interesting because we don’t learn how to run but we learn how to walk.

Selling is much like running.  It’s really not about the walking….but if you can’t walk you probably can’t run.

So, we learn to walk before we run.  Which translates into learning the parts of selling so we can DO the selling.

A sale is the compilation of a lot of different things put into motion culminating with the result of a completed transaction.

Though we refer to it as a sale immediately after the transaction the actual sale involves many parts.

Most pre-need sellers think of it backwards.

They think of the final transaction first, not the different steps that got the prospect to the point of that transaction.

When you’re sitting in the funeral home waiting for the next walk-in sale it’s easy to overlook all the efforts that brought that prospect to you.

That funeral home/cemetery wasn’t born yesterday.  Probably been around for a long time.

It costs lots and lots of money to keep the lights on, cut the grass, water, electricity, employees, and on.

It is the sheer longevity of the place that brings in folks ready to purchase arrangements.

The only problem…..there isn’t enough walk-in business to put you into “TOP PRODUCER” status.

You’ll need to do something else.  Remember, a sale is about DOING. 

What makes me uniquely qualified to comment on selling in the first place?

Glad you asked.

I’ve worked for cemeteries that have been around for decades.  I’ve worked for funeral homes that have been around for decades.  I’ve also worked for a cemetery that was a start-up.

I sold a lot or pre-arrangements with that start up cemetery.  Obviously, there wasn’t a crowd standing outside our doors ready to buy a grave.

I sold a lot of pre-arrangements at that new cemetery.  I’ve sold a lot of pre-arrangements at the old cemetery.

I still sell.

In fact, that’s all I do now.  I gave up the Sales Manager/General Manager, Director, and any other title you can think of to go back to what I enjoy best.

Helping families pre-arrange funeral/cemetery before the need.

Also, I don’t work inside so it’s highly unlikely I’ll ever see a walk-in slam-dunk, lay-down, done-deal, easy sale

It is this unique experience I have, and continue to have, that allows me to comment on YOU the pre-need seller.

I know you well.  I know what keeps you up at night.  I know what it’s like to wonder where the next sale’s coming from.

I’ve been poor feeling like the end is near.  I’ve been where you are now.  I’ve been there done it, did it, and worked through it.  I’ve hired folks just like you.  I’ve seen people die-on-the-vine just like you. 

That makes me uniquely qualified to give advice about selling pre-arrangements.

Really, I’m just like you.

The only difference is I figured it out.  The only question you need to ask is…..are you willing to figure it out?

That is what this site is dedicated to….YOU….the seller of pre-need.

I’m here to help you figure it out.

I’m here to lead you down the path to successful pre-need selling. 

Unlike the cemetery or funeral home that will probably be around long after we’re gone you’ve only got a short window of opportunity to begin selling NOW.

There’s no fiddle farting around.  Most pre-need sellers “die on the vine” in the first couple of months in the business.

Your job is to create a shortcut to quick sales and avoid the learning curve as much as possible.

Your job is to DO.  Not debate it.  Not sleep through it.  Not procrastinate and hope and wish.  No, your job is to DO it.

You can do it.

If I can do it you can do it.

Here’s your first lesson about doing it.  I’ll tell you a funny story about the start-up cemetery I worked for.

Initially, it was decided, the yellow pages were a necessity.

In case you don’t know it the yellow pages are one of the most expensive forms of advertising on the planet.

How did they determine what to put in the ad for the new cemetery?

They looked at what everybody else was doing and copied it.

That’s the big lesson for you today.

The only time you’ll ever want to look around and copy what someone’s doing is if that someone is a TOP PRODUCER.

All other candidates are to be seen and not heard.

If everyone’s doing the same thing and getting mediocre results don’t copy them.

You can clearly see what mediocre looks like without copying it.

I’m not sure how you found this place but congratulations!

You’ve found the perfect place to solve all your selling problems once and for all.

But if you choose to ignore this website, well, don’t say that I didn’t warn you.

Next time we’ll talk about that 3-legged-stool I mentioned earlier.

We’ll get into the meat and potatoes of how to sell pre-need.

Happy Selling!

David…

P.S. Be sure and subscribe on the top right of this page.  It is FREE.  Also, be sure to roam around the “archive” section of the site to begin the journey of selling pre-arrangements as a Top Producer….not a wanna-be, not a mediocre, but a Top Producer. ……

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I received an email recently by a fellow pre-need seller who was asking about selling.

He wanted to learn how to sell.

As if he could learn selling in 3 easy lessons.

Selling is not something you LEARN.

Selling is something you DO.

If your idea of keeping up with this site is to pick up a few magic pills, swallow with water and “puff” you turn into a seller you might as well move on.

Most sellers don’t even understand what selling is.  It is not an isolated function, no, not at all.

People tend to view selling as taking an order.

You know what I mean.  If you’re in-house sales and waiting on the next slam-dunk, lay-down, flop, no-brainer, easy sale you aren’t in sales.

You’re an order taker.

Big difference.

This attitude of sales is prevalent and will seriously hold you back from major success.

Did you know that selling pre-arrangements is wide open? 

There are more sales out there waiting than sales people could handle if they viewed selling properly.

Mastering sales is what the pre-need seller dedicates a life to. 

Selling, or getting the order, is just one component in the entire process.

In a previous post I harped on the idea of prospecting and that I’d rather have a great prospector than a great closer.  Why is this?  Because closing only happens at the end of the selling process.

Prospecting happens at the beginning of the selling process.  Selling is an accumulation of many things that make up a sale.  Think of those things as components.

If you wanted to drive your car someplace it doesn’t just magically appear at your place of destination.

You must start your car first.  Well, for Pete’s sake.  You can’t drive the car unless you start it.  You can’t drive your car without an engine.  Probably need a transmission as well.  How about a steering wheel?  Tires wouldn’t hurt either.  Shifting from park to drive would be a good thing. 

If you are selling you are doing things to get you to the sale.  You aren’t just selling without presenting.  You aren’t just presenting to a wall.  You’re in front of prospects.  How’d you get in front of those Prospects?

Something spurred those folks to see you.  If you’re relying on walk-in business what happens when the business doesn’t walk in?

Selling is more than closing and getting the check.  Selling is a process much like driving your car is a process.

Heck, I’ll bet you have brakes to stop your car.  I’ll bet you have a steering wheel to turn the car.  I’ll bet you even have an accelerator to speed it up or slow it down.  Probably have some mirrors to see where you’ve been and a windshield to see where you’re going.  I’ll bet there were some other cars in front and back.  I’ll even bet there could have been some construction or other hazards you had to watch out for including other drivers who don’t know how to navigate.

You see, driving a car is a process.  There are steps in the process.  There are adjustments you must make.  There are many things you must think about.  I know, I know, eventually you put the car on cruise control and it seems to arrive with little or no effort on your part.

Well, guess what.  Selling can be very similar once you’ve established the process.  It can get you where you want to go with little or no effort on your part.  Mostly I refer to the process as systems.  The more systems you have in place the easier it is to navigate the selling process.

In fact, the more systems you have in place the more FREE time you have to complete the selling process with your prospect.

Another way of saying systems is to say time.  It is about your schedule of events that contributes to your time.  Time isn’t so much a scheduling issue than it is a goal issue.  What are you trying to accomplish?  Dedicating time to accomplishing those tasks, systems, process is what it’s all about.

I like to summarize it like this.  Do something every day that will get you closer to a sale.

Once you’ve got that down do two things every day that will get you closer to a sale.  When you view selling as a process, and put that process into place, you’ll know exactly what you have to do to get that sale and will eliminate the attitude or “order taking” and waiting for the next slam-dunk, lay-down, flop, easy no-brainer, sale to fall into your lap.

Better yet, you’ll view those slam-dunks as a bonus not a necessity.

Happy Selling!

David…

P.S. For Pete’s sake!  Some of you haven’t invested in your SELF yet.  Well, why the heck not?  I’ve made the Whole Enchilada available to members, subscribers and now…you, the faithful readers of this site.

But hurry!

There’s only a couple left and that’s it, they’ll be gone for ever so get up off your backside and spend a little bit on your self.

No one else will do it for you and no one can take away your education or experience.  No one.

Click here for the Whole Enchilada of everything I’ve got including the kitchen sink.

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It got me to thinking and we debated about the return on his investment.

I made the argument that no matter how well his 401K did the best investment and the biggest return he’ll ever make is on his own efforts.

His own work. What he does for a living.

I told him he could make a ton more money from his own efforts and consistently beat any kind of a return on his 401K, or for that matter, any other investment. Nothing beats your ability to make a living.

As a seller of pre-arrangements you hold in your hands the unique ability to make more money than any of your co-workers, friends, relatives, neighbors, and on and on.

I happen to know this guy will probably retire out in a few years but he could certainly add a lot more money to his 401K now than his current return on investments.

Why am I sharing this with you?

Your education and Your experience are so valuable I think we tend to take it for granted.

Do you realize how much more you know now than 10 years ago?

I get more people than you can imagine asking me for FREE advice.

No matter what the situation every time I offer the advice to the emailer it doesn’t matter, they won’t listen.

Why you ask?

Well, it’s simple really.

It doesn’t matter how valuable the advice is if you perceive it as cheap.

You get what you pay for and most who don’t invest in advice treat it as the paper it’s written on. Cheap and not worth it.

I invest in myself all the time because it’s the greatest investment I can make.

How much are you worth?

How much do you invest in yourself?

Now for my shameless plug.

Head over to the “my latest offerings” page and invest in yourself right now.

Yes, now!

If not with me than invest in yourself with someone else but for Pete’s sake, or somebody’s sake, take a little time and money and effort to make yourself better.

Happy Selling!

David…

P.S. For those of you who emailed me to get my customer newsletter I’ve been told the link connected to the private page I snail-mailed you isn’t working or even showing up on the page.

I’m not sure how to fix the problem so I’ve sent the Computer Guy a note to help make it work.

I’ll let you know when it’s up and running.

Also, the CD and Special Report;

How to Write A Newsletter in 6 Minutes of LESS

will be in the snail-mail on Monday.

…

How to Publish Your Newsletter In 6 Minutes or LESS

The CD and Report will be in the mail next Monday.

I want you to take note of several things.

First, when a person raises a hand in interest you must fulfill the request for information. It is critical.

Second, don’t worry about how good it looks. What’s important is the content of the information.

Third, can your prospect use the information to make an informed decision? Make the info relevant.

Fourth, include an offer. You must have an offer.

Fifth, notice how I’m sending you written material and audio material. Could you do the same with your prospects? I happen to be several decades behind on technology and I figured out how to produce a CD why can’t you?

Sixth, make sure you include testimonials on all of your correspondence.

Seventh, is the material congruent? Remember my postcard mailing and the Rusty Ol’ Typewriter. The font and the reference to the typewriter and the message were all congruent.

Eighth, send more than one piece of mail. Make more than one contact. Develop a system and makes it automatic so you don’t have to think about it.

We’re going to talk more about these steps in the coming days. It is important that you become aware of how information is sent to you from other companies.

Have you ever responded to a FREE offer?

What was sent to you?

Was there multiple contacts via snail-mail, email, phone, in-person?

It’s time for you to pay attention to your junk mail and become a student of how good prospecting works.

Become a collector of junk-mail

Happy Selling!

 David…

P.S. For more on Sales Letters see my latest offering click here

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The reply said…..”I hope this works…”

There was a movie, in the 90s, called “A league of there own”.  In the movie Tom Hanks sees a girl begin to cry and yells, “there’s no crying in baseball!”

Guess what.  There’s no “hope” strategies in sales.

It isn’t, “I hope this works.”

When it comes to sales you gotta get that thinking out of your head.

When I attempt different selling strategies I’m doing nothing more than TESTING.  I’m not hoping, I’m testing because if it doesn’t work I’ll head back to my Pre-Need Laboratory and begin further experiments.

The light bulb was not invented because of hope.  It was invented through trial and error until he got it right and had a light bulb.

Selling is implementing strategies to get sales.  There’s no hope in selling.  Selling is well thought out game-plans of action that result in sales or no sales.

If your strategy doesn’t work change the strategy.  If you are relying on one strategy you’re doomed for failure.  And if you’re hoping that’s even worse.

So, if you’re hoping this or that will work begin to change your mindset today and re-set your expectations properly. 

The goal is to implement your game plan.

You will get results from your game plan.

This may make you happy or may make you sad.

If the results aren’t what you want than add another strategy, tweak the existing strategy, and or implement more strategies because you need more than one prospecting plan.

Don’t rely on ‘door-knocking’, ‘walk-in’, mailing, drop-by, lawn-fishing, file research, mining your natural market, events, or any other one thing.

Do many things.  Develop many prospecting entry points for your sales.

But most of all, don’t rely on HOPE because it’s a sign of desperation on your part as if this doesn’t work I’m out of the business or I’m done.

There is hope in many things but when it comes to sales rely on your SELF and the activity you do that is necessary to generate the results you want.

Happy Selling!

David…