The Hidden Wealth Opportunity Lurking in Almost Every Business
Chinua Achebe says of his first job at the Nigerian Broadcasting Corporation: It was tedious work that involved reviewing scripts and turning them into readable content for radio. It turned out to be the thing that helped him most in crafting realistic dialog for his novels.
Jane Austen had to read early drafts of her books to her family after dinner. The reactions and feedback from a live audience helped shape them into masterpieces.
When we do CRO (Conversion Rate Optimization) work, one the most valuable things we do is listen in on sales calls. The highest converting sales copy is crafted from the phrases and and arguments used by the top salespeople.
For instance, when we worked with a large pet health insurer, one of the most common objections was their use of a per condition deductible (hard to explain) rather than an annual deductible (easy to understand and the norm).
One of the successful sales reps handled it this way: The most common pet ailments tend to recur, for example canine diabetes. The per condition deductible is a lifetime deductible. When you meet your deductible one time, you are set for the pet's life. You never have to pay again and again, each year, for medical expenses related to that condition!
Listening to sales and support calls (whether live or recorded) is one of the most profitable things you can do. You will often get insights on ways to improve your messaging, better ways to position your product and even ideas for whole new products. It is can be tedious but those who do it are often richly rewarded!
