Always Answer The Question "What's In It For Me?"

by Bonnie Boots

Every day, I get emails asking me to do something for the sender. Some are personal requests from people that have seen my web sites and want me to help them in some way.

Others are general emails from internet marketers proclaiming, "You MUST BUY this!"

Much as I dislike the over-hyped language of most of the "Buy This!" messages, at least they remember to answer that all-important question, "What's in it for me?"

"Buy this now and you'll soon be earning $700 a day!" screams one email.

"Buy this now and see your penis grow like Pinocchio's nose!" squeals another.

Those marketers know that any time anyone on this planet is asked to do something, they immediately think, "What's in it for me?" And they make sure their emails focus on answering that question.

The personal emails I get are far less likely to address that question. A message in my email this morning is a perfect example. The writer tells me, on opening, that this is the second time he's sent me this request, and he hopes I'll have the courtesy to respond this time-and in a positive fashion.

He goes on to explain that he is "setting up a business wrapped around my web site and looking for some in-bound links to grow my page rank." He says he's visited my web site and "found it quite impressive. It would really help me to be linked to from your site, so I'd really appreciate it if you could help me out."

End of letter.

You'll notice the sender doesn't address the question that immediately popped into my head, "What's in it for me?"

The sender doesn't offer me any incentive for saying yes. He's already taken up my time with two emails. Now he wants me to spend more time creating a link back to his site. He wants all this from me, but he offers me nothing in return, not even courtesy, for although he says he's visited my site and found it impressive, he's failed to notice that my name is all over that site. He therefore opens his request with the warm, personal greeting, "Dear Webmaster."

The first email this fellow sent me hit the trash, and so did his second because he broke the primary rule of business communications-ALWAYS answer the question, "What's in it for me?"

You already know this. You know that all YOU care about, when you read an ad, listen to a salesman, or read an article on the internet, is finding what's in it for you.

What's in this article for you is the reminder of something you already know-nothing in your business is about you. It's all about the other guy, your client or potential client, your buyer or potential buyer, and what THEY want and need.

What they want, and what they need, is for YOU to answer the question, "What's in it for THEM?"


 

 
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