Yep, it’s true. Your prospects are lying to you.
Maybe it’s just a few of them, and maybe it’s a lot – but the lie is there.
They say it, and it stops your sale dead in its tracks, because you believe it, and because you don’t want to push, don’t want to pry, and don’t want to be indelicate.
But it’s not right – not for them, and not for you.
Because they aren’t just lying to you – they’re lying to themselves, too…
The Big Lie That Your Prospects Tell
The big lie comes in a lot of different variations.
“It’s not in the budget.”
“I’m not in a position to do it right now.”
“I don’t have the money.”
“It’s really too expensive for me.”
But it always boils down to four little words: “I can’t afford it.”
To which I politely say… bullshit!
At least 99% of the time…
Why It’s a Lie 99% of the Time
First of all, let me concede that there are two situations in which “I can’t afford it” is the truth:
- Super-high ticket items being sold to normal people… we’re talking yachts, mansions, private jets, and submarines. This situation is beyond the scope of this post (sorry, but if you’re selling yachts, mansions or submarines, you’ll have to check back next time).
- Anything being sold to someone who’s flat-out broke… meaning that there’s no money in their pockets or bank accounts, and their credit cards are maxed out. This is rare, but sometimes real, and my heart goes out to you if that’s your situation (and I recognize that some people are, which is one of the reasons why I made Engagement from Scratch! available as a free download).
Most people don’t fall into either of these two categories, though. They may not be rolling in the dough, but to say that can’t afford what you’re selling just isn’t true – if they really wanted to, they could buy it.
In all of those cases, when you hear the words “I can’t afford it”, it really means one of two things:
Truth #1: I Can’t Afford It = I Don’t Trust You
You’ve painted a picture of the beautiful outcome that your offer will create for anyone who buys it, and it really does sound wonderful… except that they aren’t buying – both literally and figuratively!
This hurts to hear, and most people don’t want to say it… which is why they say that they can’t afford it, instead. It’s a white lie that is meant to protect your feelings, and they say it with the best of intentions.
But underneath those good intentions lies the sad truth that they don’t believe you can deliver on the promises that you’ve made. They don’t trust you.
So what can you do? Plenty! You can…
Do you get the idea? It’s not that they aren’t interested, they’re just scared. So show them that they’re in good hands, and the fear will melt away.
But more often than not, the problem is much, much worse. They trust you, but they just don’t want what you’re selling…
Truth #2: I Can’t Afford It = I Don’t Want It
It’s not that they don’t have the money at all, it’s just that they don’t have the money for you.
The rosy, beautiful, idealized picture that you painted doesn’t actually look rosy, beautiful or ideal to the person you’re talking to.
It’s that simple.
And why don’t they want it? It could be one of two reasons:
- You’re talking to the wrong person. It’s the wrong target audience, the wrong need, or the wrong timing. You’re selling something that people just don’t want. If that’s the case, you have a problem, and you need to go back to the drawing board of getting to know your target audience.
- They’re afraid. Maybe they’re afraid of success, and maybe they’re afraid of failure. Maybe they’re sabotaging themselves, and maybe they’re afraid to hold themselves accountable.
I’m sure you know why I’m talking about this…
Yep, you guessed it, it’s about “Marketing That Works”
As you probably know, our “Marketing That Works” training program is currently accepting new students. And as you probably already know, it’s a great program; you can see the details in this video, but in a nutshell, here’s what you get:
- A full framework for building a thriving and profitable business
- Five core modules and 26 lessons (six months of training)
- The pre-loaded bonus MP3 player
- Full instructor access and support (as much as you need – seriously)
- A 1-on-1 “Borrow My Brain” phone strategy session with me ($250 value)
And why do you want all of this? Because it will lead to a thriving business with more prospects, more customers, more revenues and more profits.
That’s our promise to you, and we back it up with our iron-clad “extra $1,000/month” guarantee – if you don’t add $1,000/month to your bottom line within six months, we’ll give you your money back. In other words, we’re guaranteeing you a minimum of an extra $12,000/year.
And on top of all that, the first two weeks are a free trial.
So we’ve painted a beautiful picture, and we’ve given you every reason that we can think of to make it easy for you to trust us.
There’s really only one question left…
Do you want a thriving, profitable business, or don’t you?
It’s really that simple. We’re offering you the chance to have the business success that you say you want, and we don’t just say that you’ll get it – we guarantee it.
So do you want it?
You can tell us whatever you want, and that’s fine. Tell us you don’t have the money, or the time, or whatever.
But be honest with yourself.
Do you want a thriving, profitable business?
Do you want more leads, more customers, stable income, and the knowledge that you’re building a lifestyle and legacy that you can depend on?
Well, do you?
If the answer is “no”, or “not right now”, then that’s cool. We’ll still be around, and we’ll keep on serving up fun, interesting, entertaining, and valuable content for your education and enjoyment.
But if the answer is “yes”, then we’re waiting to show you how to make it happen.
So take a deep breath, and then take the plunge.
We’ll see you on the other side.
Danny Iny (@DannyIny), a.k.a. the “Freddy Krueger of Blogging”, teaches marketing that works at Firepole Marketing. Together with Guy Kawasaki, Brian Clark and Mitch Joel, he wrote the book on building engaged audiences from scratch (available on Amazon, or as a free download).
