CHAPTER 81

STRATEGICALLY ASKING FOR HELP CAN BE GREAT MARKETING

As children we instinctively ask a lot of questions. If you've been around a three- or four-year-old recently you know exactly what I'm talking about.

For some reason, though, our culture demands that we began asking fewer questions as we “mature.” I know that public schools drove that message home quite clearly for me. Only the uncool or slow students asked questions.

The truth is, though, most, if not all, of my successful online businesses have been a result of me asking my customers a lot of questions. Just because I'm the expert does not mean that I know all there is to know about what should be done next, or what products my customers want, or what industry trends everyone should be paying attention to.

Another benefit of asking questions is that you present yourself as being authentic. Nobody likes to hang out with someone that seems to have their ears turned off, but is constantly teaching others new things because they are the expert.

I've noticed a very predictable trend on my Facebook account. My personal Facebook account has about 5,000 friends, which is the current limit for a personal Facebook page. In spite of that fact, there are often times that a comment or post that I make will receive only a small handful of replies. That's okay with me, because I'm not trying to get the maximum number of replies; I'm just trying to share a useful thought or interesting fact. What does surprise me, though, is the ...

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