SFR 270: Optins Vs Leads

Just cause you have a BIG list, doesn't mean you have BIG leads. Here's how I turn optins into leads…   There’s a HUGE difference between optins and leads!    A lot of people are super impressed by list size…   However, #TruthNuke, just because you have a BIG list, it doesn’t mean you have a ton of buyers.   The whole reason why you want to build a list is to sell   So I want to show you how to turn your optins into leads in the quickest MOST effective way possible.   What I’m about to share with you is some serious sales psychology because the bottom line is…   The more you understand human behavior, the better marketer you'll become.   OPTINS VS LEADS   On a basic level, the function of someone putting their email in, and you thinking, "Oh, I got leads..." might look the EXACT same as when someone opts-in…    BUT!   ... when you think about sales psychology itself, you might NOT be getting a lead at all.    Let me explain...   Q: Have you ever done door-to-door sales?    I ask because door-to-door sales taught me something REALLY powerful!      Here’s how…   I did door-to-door selling pest control. I'd walk up, knock, and someone would answer, but when I was out knocking doors was I handed a list of people who were…     Leads?    Asking for pest control information?    Q: Did the act of someone answering the door and engaging in a conversation with me make them a lead?    A: NO, it didn’t!    ***I'm bringing this up because there are times when I've gone through somebody's funnel, and I'm like, "Oh, sweet funnel. This is actually a really cool funnel."   They're like, "Look at how many leads I'm getting."    I'm like, "Your leads aren't really coming until step two."    They're like, "What do you mean? The optins are GREAT!   But, NO! There’s something key they’re missing...   I want you to pay attention to THE FACT that…    Someone who opts in for something is NOT necessarily a lead.    THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN OPTINS & LEADS?   Here’s a CLASSIC example:   Let's say you have a standard lead magnet page with a FREE PDF to download …    A typical page layout would be:    A page with a headline:  “DOWNLOAD THIS COOL FREE PDF”     The FREE PDF   An email entry field which says: “Put your email address down below so we know where to send your PDF, yada, yada, yada.”    A button   Now, let's say that AFTER some has downloaded your FREE lead magnet, you actually want them to buy a software trial.   Once they’ve given you their email to download the PDF, you have a list which you can send to an email sequence that pushes them to the software trial.    So the steps are:   They optin   You put them on a list    All these emails push them to: "Go get the software"    But think about this…??? Q: If somebody opts in are they actually a lead yet?    A: A lot of times, NO!    Q: So when does someone become a lead? (And this is important to notice)   A: … it depends on whether you started talking about the software on the first page.   If you didn't... they're NOT really a lead yet!   Put simply... A lead is somebody who has an interest in what you’re selling   ... that's it!    So when I was knocking door-to-door and someone opened the door -  we can say, they kind of opted-in.    When I made the list of those I needed to follow back up with at the end of each day -  I was looking at my leads.   BUT…    The leads weren't every single door on the street.    I was like, "You know what, there were two people who were really interested."    A lead is somebody who expresses actual interest in what you’re offering while an optin may just want the free PDF.   An optin is an act to get the FREE… it's the act of getting on the list.   A lead is an act in the actual sales process.   Does that make sense?    BUSINESS LEAD GENERATION   OPT- IN: “I'm opting in for whatever gets me on the list.”    LEAD: “I'm actually showing interest in the sales process.”    I'm telling you this because it's a powerful difference.    And it might sound like, "So what, Stephen?"    But you need to understand that…    The whole reason why you want to build a list is to sell   So the sooner I can get them into the zone of creating a pre-frame (#LeadMagnet), the better...    I want to pre-framed potential leads on the first page.    For example:   Sticking to the software trial scenario; let's say my FREE PDF was about cooking… that's definitely NOT a lead list for a software funnel.    Instead, I need a PDF that tells people, "Hey, download this free PDF on the top 25 agencies to hire to build your next software or app..."   I would say that's much closer to an *actual lead* because they're showing a genuine interest in what you’re selling.    “I HAVE A MASSIVE LIST!”   I'm saying this because sometimes people will come to me and say:   "Stephen, someone gave me a list of three million people. I have three million leads."   I'm like, "No, you don't [chuckle]... You have a random list of 3 million people."    Those aren't leads    You need to do things to turn them into leads before you send them to the actual thing you want them to buy.    It's a HUGE difference - BIG, BIG, BIG difference!   Here’s how it works…   Let's say I've got a funnel and I've created this cool offer that I wanna sell…   On the first page, I have a hundred people who optin, but it's NOT something that's related to the actual thing I'm looking to sell…   … those leads are waaay less qualified!   The whole idea is to create a PRE-FRAME on the first page - whatever they're downloading needs to be a pre-frame.    WHAT MAKES A LEAD?   There are two things I really look for:   I ONLY wanna sell to those who have a pre-existing desire for the thing I'm selling - that's super key and it’ll shortcut half of your headaches in this game.    The target person NEEDS to have a pre-existing desire and a pre-existing disposition for whatever it is that I'm gonna go sell.    On the FIRST page, the very first interaction I have with them, NEEDS to set them up for whatever they're gonna see next.    One of the things I've noticed is that people will start creating a list, and think the list size is the thing that makes all the difference, but...  *IT REALLY DOESN’T*   If your list is NOT pre-framed for whatever you're gonna send them to next, you just have optins, NOT leads.   Here's why this is important:    Let's say that I have...    A 10% optin on my first order page.   8% optin on OTO #1.     2% optin on OTO #2.    Let's say this is a frontend funnel, which means the prices are a little bit cheaper - it's the low-end of the value ladder things in this funnel...   It's NOT…    Your high-end stuff   The biggest done-for-you services    The expensive stuff   Q: Are the conversion rates of 10%, 8% and 2% acceptable?    A: Yeah.    I've had people say, "Man, I want more! How can I increase the conversion?"   You could increase the conversion rate, (and spend most of your time doing it)...    I'm NOT saying that's a bad thing to go do…    OR…    You can just focus on getting a better quality lead in the door, and it'll probably increase your conversions anyway.    Do you know what I'm saying?    Changing the offer is NOT always the answer.    Changing the sales message is waaay easier than changing the offer, however...    Q: What's waaay easier than changing the sales message or the offer?    A: Changing WHO you're talking to.    BUT…   What's even easier than changing the WHO is changing the FIRST thing that they optin to... (and let's say it's free)...   Just change the optin and it literally attracts a different person to you - so that better people are seeing a more targeted optin!   Better leads are actually getting a chance to buy from you in the back end.    LEAD FUNNELS & PINK VOLKSWAGENS   I look at A LOT of funnels!    And when I'm looking at all these funnels, people are like, "What should I change?"    And they'd be like, "Oh, man it looks like OTO number two is sucking it up! Look at that 2% conversion. Oh, that's super bad."    However…   It may just be that I’ve NEVER been in the market to buy a pink Volkswagen... and you offered me a pink Volkswagen.   *IT WASN’T THE OFFER*!   (Don’t write in… I know it’s NOT a Volkswagen