Guest Post by Staci Stallings
I like visuals especially in marketing because I read something and go, “Wow. That’s really good,” and ten minutes later I can’t remember what I read or how to do what I read. Sometimes I go over and over and over instructions because as words, for me, things don’t always stick. With this in mind, I want to explain something that can make or a break a marketing campaign.
I call it “The Promo Chain.”
This is the chain of events that must take place to turn a prospect into a client, a potential audience member into a reader, a visitor into a reader, or an Average Joe into Your Biggest Fan.
It’s pretty simple really, but I’ll bet you’ve never given a lot of thought to how it actually works. In fact, the crazy thing is you go through this chain thousands of times every day with other products and services that you use and buy and you don’t even know it. The trick is to know it and to use it, so you get results and not frustration.
The Promo Chain looks like this:
Let’s go through each part.
Hook — What hook do you give to the potential reader? WHY should they read this promo or content? If you don’t hook, I don’t care how good the rest is, you’ve lost them.
Info — What do they need to know to become interested, to stay interested, and to decide to “continue the relationship”?
Request — Some people have a really good hook, they give great info, and people are eager to do more, but if you don’t make a request or give them a way to continue the relationship, they are gone.
How To — Tell them HOW TO continue the relationship. You’ve gotten their attention, given them great info, you’ve asked them to continue the relationship, now you’ve got to tell them how to do that.
JUMP — This is where you’re trying to get to with all the others. You want them to take the next step and choose to continue your “conversation” or “relationship.” When you learn to do this effectively, you will begin to turn potential readers into subscribers and subscribers into readers.
Let’s look at The Promo Chain in action:
Here is a tweet. Tell me where this tweet breaks down on The Promo Chain.
#Author @StaciStallings has released a new book. It’s called DREAMS BY STARLIGHT. You should check it out!
I would tell you, it’s probably broken before you ever get started, but there are several problems.
1) Don’t START with the info. I don’t care that Staci Stalling has released a new book unless I already care WHO Staci Stallings is. And since this tweet should target NEW and previous readers, this is not very effective.
2) You should check it out! That’s our request, so check one done-well box there. But wait! How do I check it out? Am I supposed to write down the information, go to Amazon, and do a search? What if it’s not on Amazon?
Don’t give potentials roadblocks if you don’t absolutely have to. They should be able to read, click, read, click, read, click. If it’s read, click, search and search and search. Or worse, read and no click, you’ve lost them unless it’s a 100% pull message.
Let’s try another:
“I was obsessed with this book.” COWBOY by @StaciStallings Buy it NOW! via @Amazon http://ow.ly/8oyQ6
1) Hook. Pretty good hook.
2) Info. Check
3) Request. Check (although this one seems a little in your face to me 🙂
4) How To (in some venues like blogs, you might want to make it even clearer like “Click Here.” Twitter doesn’t give you that luxury as you don’t have many characters to work with. But everyone knows what a URL means.)
5) JUMP. Here’s the part that’s sometimes frustrating. It may take someone as many as 10-12 imprints to jump. Sometimes it doesn’t. If your hook and info are so good they can’t pass it up, they will click. But just know that you will go through this process thousands of times to get an audience built up. So keep writing and keep working The Promo Chain!
Staci Stallings is a contemporary Christian author and founder of Grace & Faith Author Connection, a group of Christian authors dedicated to helping each other succeed in the Social Media.
A stay-at-home mom with a husband, three kids and a writing addiction on the side, Staci has numerous titles for readers to choose from. Not content to stay in one genre and write it to death, Staci’s stories run the gamut from young adult to adult, from motivational and inspirational to full-out Christian and back again. Every title is a new adventure! That’s what keeps Staci writing and you reading. Although she lives in Amarillo, Texas and her main career right now is her family, Staci touches the lives of people across the globe every week with her various Internet endeavors.
Her books can be found here, her blog is here, and the G&F Marketing blog is here.
