Welcome to

1. Welcome to “Selling the Complex, New & Invisible”Presented by Rob Laporte,CEO of DISC413-584-6500 | www.2disc.com | rob@2disc.com

2. Overview(1 minute) • Two Topics in this Class: Selling the Invisible and SEO (Search Engine Optimization) • My Background • Your Background • An Introductory Anecdote • What DISC Sells – and What You Will Sell Today! • You Craft a Selling Strategy • My Selling Strategies • Abstracting the Lessons • Concluding Remarks

3. Education, Ad Agency, Survey Research, Salesman Grad School: marketing mistake, some achievements, smelled coffee, began DISC Good success considering no venture capital: Various customers, good PR, helped people; old economy hard work. I’m not a great salesman, and I hope to learn from you as much as you do from me. My Background (4 Minutes)

4. Your Background(4 minutes) • Pop vocabulary quiz: server statistics, conversion rate, SEO, viral marketing • What have you learned about selling the invisible? • A note about learning vocabulary: Business Week, etc.

5. Introductory Anecdote(3 minutes) • Selling a 1947 Hoover Vacuum Cleaner • Selling an invisible statistical-linguistic grid woven into code and text

6. What DISC Sells(5 minutes) • I’ll describe, not sell • DISC services we won’t discuss today • Anyone familiar with SEO? • Anyone not used a top search engine, like Yahoo or Google or AltaVista?

7. What DISC Sells(cont.) • LISTEN! • DISC sellsgood positioning in the major search engines. • I will simplify the process for the sake of brevity.

8. The SEO Process(10 minutes) • Learn the vocabulary of the customer’s business • Analyze the web’s linguistic competition for that vocabulary • Prioritize the keywords and phrases for each page of the site to be optimized • Weave the key phrases into the text and html of the text • Examples: www.gbimarketing.com, www.hardigg.com, www.hannoush.com, www.candletoppers.com

9. The SEO Process (cont.) • Managing Post-Purchase Dissonance Using Proof • WebPosition Reports • Server Logs • Email and Sales Increases

10. Craft a Selling Strategy(5 Minutes) • Choose one of Three Scenarios • Art Jacobson of www.AnytimeMaineLobster.com • Norman Hannoush of www.hannoush.com • The committee at Hardigg Industries, www.hardigg.com

11. Volunteers, Open Discussion(15 minutes) • We Won’t Role Play, Just Discuss Your Strategy and Sales Materials.

12. My Selling Strategies(5 Minutes) • First, listen to the prospect, getting him to reveal wants and needs • In initial conversation, I focus on ROI (Return On Investment) • Then I focus on Proof: WebPosition Reports, Server Logs, HAPPY CUSTOMERS, and the expert witness of professional organizations. • Throughout future conversations, I frequently return to ROI and Proof, while speaking of all features in terms of the prospect’s benefits and his or her customers’ benefits. • As always, good rapport, good salesmanship helps • A note on the natural vs. the learned technique.

13. Write a One or Two Sentence Abstract of . . . (3 minutes) • What you learned today about selling the complex, new, and invisible • Volunteers, open discussion

14. Write a One Word Abstract of . . .(2 minutes) • What you learned today about selling the complex, new, and invisible • Volunteers, open discussion

15. Closing Remarks(7 minutes) • Increasingly, you will be asked to sell the complex, new and invisible. • Can you think of examples?

16. This presentation will be posted on the web, with your abstracts. • Email your one or two sentence and your one word abstracts to rob@2disc.com (Rob Laporte) and CC to dorong@som.umass.edu (Professor Goldman) • Be sure to type “Selling the Invisible” in the subject line.

17. The value of general and humanities education in the digital world • If you can come to understand great literary, philosophical and scientific works, you will be much better prepared than a lot of your competition to see, master, and sell the often invisible productions of our brave new digital world.

18. Future Connections • I will be available for one-on-one consultations in mid May. Please email me (rob@2disc.com) for an appointment. • A sales opportunity for you: DISC awards a finder's fee of 7.5% for any successful referral. That's 7.5% of the fee agreed upon between DISC and the referred customer, payable DISC's final payment. In other words, if you refer business that does an average $10,000 with DISC, you get $750!

19. A Few Good Links • www.cc.gatech.edu/gvu -- user surveys - excellent, non-partisan statistics • www.yahoo.com/Computers_and_Internet/Internet/Statistics_and_Demographics -- more stats • www.iab.net -- the Internet Advertising Bureau; promotes the web, but good information. • www.wilsonweb.com -- about e-commerce, extensive lists of articles from various top sources. • www.webpromote.com

20. A Few Good Links • www.searchenginewatch.com - THE best page on search engines. • www.nua.ie/surveys/ -- EXCELLENT web marketing source, esp. for international issues.

21. Thank You for Attending “Selling the Complex, New & Invisible”Presented by Rob Laporte,CEO of DISC413-584-6500 | www.2disc.com | rob@2disc.com