reciprocity

Trivia

Today's Question: All of Henry Ford's cars
were black until 1925 when he introduced
two new colors. What were they?

Yesterday's Question: A 1959 commercial for
Good Luck Margarine featured whom as the
spokesperson?

Answer: The spokesperson was former First
Lady Eleanor Roosevelt.

Today it would probably be impossible to
get the First Lady to endorse your product,
but the power of endorsements remains
an incredibly powerful marketing tool.

Think about who could be a powerful spokesperson
or endorser of your products or services. In
many cases, that person may be a or local or industry
celebrity and could be paid just a small sum,
paid in equity, or not paid at all if you have
a strong relationship with them.


*** Months Later & This LAW Still Holds True

Several months ago, there was a huge snow storm
that caused my power to go out for two days.

Fortunately, a friend of ours living a few miles away
didn't lose power and invited us (my wife, kids and I)
to stay with them until our power was restored.

Well, the other day, I ran into William, the father
of that family. William is a great guy, so I was excited
to see him. But I felt slightly awkward because I
felt a little as if I owed him something.

Now, after our stay, we gave William and his wife
a nice bottle of wine and a nice thank you card.

But that must not have made me feel "even."

You see, a very powerful law was in force here --
The Law of Reciprocity.

The Law of Reciprocity was made famous by
Dr. Robert Cialdini in his book "Influence: The
Psychology of Persuasion." The Law states
that if you give someone something, they feel
compelled to give you something back in return.

That is why you'll often receive "gifts" in the mail,
like return address stickers from non-profits. Their
hope is that by sending you something of value, that
you will reciprocate by sending them a donation.

The Law of Reciprocity is clearly very powerful.

And it should be added to your marketing mix.

- Can you give your customers or prospects a
product sample, a book, or a report of value to them?

- Can you give quality advice that can improve
their success?

- Can you make a helpful introduction to a
potential partner?

Think about what you can do for others.

Since if they truly value it, they will seek to
help you out when they can.

Note: I am not saying to do this in sneaky way
where you give someone something just to try
to get the Law of Reciprocity working for you.
You must be genuine in your efforts to
help someone out for this law to take hold.



*** Watch This to Protect Your Company


Entrepreneurs are always concerned (and rightfully so)
about protecting their business ideas and concepts.

Not only are there numerous cases of individuals and
companies unlawfully stealing ideas and infringing on trade
secrets, but there are even tons of examples of
companies losing the right to use their company name
or product name after they start achieving success.

To make sure you are protected, I asked Stephen
Strauss from the law firm Fulwider- Patton LLP to give me
a private webinar on these key topics.

You see, Stephen specializes in trademark, copyright,
unfair competition and trade secret law. He's at the top
of the game in this field, not only representing a diverse
list of startups and large corporations, but top
entertainers like Stevie Wonder.