Selling to customers that don't know they need your product

[nashville]

I have a problem marketing situation that I need help with.

I have a group of prospects that seem to run a business just because they like the business not because they know how to run that business.

When I try to sell to them, about 5% are totally thrilled and love what I do. The other 95% could not care less it seems. There does not seem to be anyone in the middle.

I used to own the type of business I am now selling to and I started this new one because I saw a need. But I guess only about 50 of us saw that need, not the other 1500?

My prospects complain that they need more leads, but yet when I try and sell them they are not interested.

How do I know if its my marketing message or just not an industry that will not respond?

[Dcrux]

How do I know if its my marketing message or just not an industry that will not respond?

Easy answer: Test. Hard Part: What to test.

My suggestion would be to find out what these people like and hate about being in business "X." Show how generating well-profiled targeted prospects (notice I did not use the word "leads") will allow them to spend more time on the things they like and less on what they don't. Make what you find the central appeal of your copy and headline.

If the product is just generic warm body lead generation, this idea will probably not work better than marginally. Working raw leads is widely disliked in a wide range of businesses. The better product would be how to get rid of working tepid leads, not do more.

Usually, when response is meager, it's not the approach -- it's the product, offer, or some combination of the two. (Given the copy is spelled correctly and reasonably competently written). Copy is a sales multiplier -- and you don't get good results multiplying by zero or near-zero.