Why Search?



Search engines take advantage of reverse broadcast networks to help save you

time and money. Search allows you to "sell what your customers want, when

they want it!"



Finding Prospects



I had just finished reading Permission Marketing when I exchanged in one of the

most interesting chat sessions of my life. A random kid from California instant

messaged me to say hello. In much the same way as other marketers do, he scouted

the web to find his ideal client. This guy searched through Yahoo! profiles and

found that on my profile I wrote that I collected baseball cards.



He wanted to know if Barry Bonds was my favorite player. He told me he had over

16,000 Barry Bonds cards. I told him that I had an autographed serial numbered

Barry Bonds rookie, but baseball cards did not mean much to me anymore.



I asked if he did business over the internet. He, of course, said no. It was clear to

me why. He had no way to display any of his cards, and he was using spam to

contact people. I asked him if he wanted to have a website on which to sell his

cards.



He told me he couldn't afford it. He said that it was too expensive. What is a fair

price for limitless distribution?



Baseball cards usually drop in value rather sharply once a player retires. Not only

does the price drop, but demand plummets. It’s a logarithmic loss of value. I have

picked up Robin Yount and Dave Windfield rookies for $5 and $8 each (both

cards went for $100 or more in their heyday.)



This kid wanted to buy my autographed Barry Bonds rookie card to add to his

16,000 Bonds cards that he will never sell, thinking he was doing business. I sold

baseball cards back in high school, and I knew how to do it well. I did not learn it

well the first day either. I was trying to sell expensive cards to people who did not

want to spend much money. What solution did I learn? "Sell what your customers

want, when they want it!"



I still displayed some of my $400 and up baseball cards, just to get the oos and

ahhs. Once you have a crowd many people follow just to see what is going on then

you can make sales. I knew I would not sell these cards. So what did I change?

I created a display case with stacks of all the major stars and local popular players.

Each card was $1. It did not matter if the card was worth 25 cents or $4, I just put

$1 on each of them. I kept up with whom was doing well and would buy up all the

With search you do not singles of people that were about to become popular. Buy price ranged from 3

hunt for your customers. cents to a quarter a card. Most of them I bought sold within a month or two.

While they are actively

By taking the time to go through their junk and making ordering simple I made

interested in your products

money. That $1 display case was a gold mine. Usually that case sold more than my

or services they hunt for

good cases did and I had small investment (other than taking the time to organize

you.

the cards).



I decided I would do this kid a favor and send him a free book on marketing from

my favorite author. When I asked him if he wanted a free marketing book he

spouted off Eminem lyrics. He got angry when I was trying to help him. He stated

a few of the lines around



I'd rather put out a mother **** gospel record



All of his frustration he felt, all of his anger, and all the time he wasted were

unnecessary. That is why search is powerful. You do not hunt for your customers,

they hunt for you. You pick the keywords and the customer picks you. You not

only "sell what your customers want," but you also sell it “while they are actively

looking for it.”