Can you be like Disney?

Here's an email I received from Craig Garber Wednesday:

Hey Scott,

Having three kids and living just an hour and fifteen
minutes southwest of Disneyworld, rest assured I've made
many pilgrimages to see the house that mouse built.

In fact, I've been to at least one theme park a year since
1989 when I moved to Florida. And I don't think there's
ever been a time I went there, that the thought of how
pricey the trip was, didn't cross my mind.

And now, here we are smack dab in the middle of the worst
economic recession the country's ever seen since the Great
Depression, and what happens?

Does Disney offer a price cut on weekends in August for
families of four or more? Do they let kids under twelve in
for half price on Fridays? Do they give away free
cholesterol-filled artery-clogging deep fried chicken
nuggets outside Cinderella's castle?

Nope, not even close. They INCREASE their prices by around
5%. Now it costs $72 for an adult to get in, up from $69.

And what do you think is going to happen as a result of
this? Because if you do an online search about this,
people are outraged! And I don't mean mildly pissed off, I
mean Al Sharpton "Day of Outrage" kind of angry!

Questionnaires show that people are now going to rethink
their plans about Disney moving forward.

Know what I think? I think they're going to rethink their
plans for about 45 seconds and then book their flights to
Orlando International Airport, that's what I think.

Know why?

I'll tell you why: Disney is the ultimate in "unique"
places. There is literally not a single other place on
earth where you're going to get the same experience.

In fact, Disney is so cool I love going there with Anne
alone, even without the kids. It's that much fun and that
unique.

No one's changing plans because of the old adage about
paying high prices that says, "Price is only an issue in
the absence of value."

And one thing Disney delivers is value. They are one of the
singularly most unique experiences you can have, period.

Often, consulting clients will ask me, "How can I raise my
prices?" And the answer is to "just raise your prices."
Same way Disney did. In fact, they raised their prices
without any fanfare at all -- they didn't call a press
conference to announce it, they just "raised their
prices."

Their other entertainment divisions aren't doing so well, so
they went to the one place that won't be impacted by a
price increase - their theme parks.

And here are three ways you can provide enough value to your
buyers so that a price increase shouldn't matter.

Ready?

O.K., here goes:

1. Guarantees - liberal promises that ensure there's less
(or even better, no) risk to your clients go a long way to
making people feel comfortable spending money. Lowering
risk is one of the most enticing things you can do to
encourage ANY relationship, especially a business
relationship.

2. Give more value - one of the things most people do,
especially during a recession, is to reduce prices. But
for starters, if most people are doing something, there's
an outstanding chance doing something opposite to that is
going to be better for you, especially since most people
are mediocre, at best.

So start thinking opposite to what the crowd is doing. In
my new book (September release), "How To Make Maximum Money
WIth Minimum Customers," (see http://www.kingofcopy.com/max
to get on the pre-release giveaway list) I devote an entire
chapter to showing you how to easily increase the value of
what you sell, by creating low-priced and high perceived
value informational products.

But my point is, when you're offering more you're usually be
to get more, rather than offering the same for less. Think
"forward" not backwards, up not down... you get my drift.

(A lot of this also depends on who you're trying to attract
as customers or clients.)

3. And lastly, be the Disney of your industry, if you know
what I mean. I don't mean to walk around with mouse ears
or find a mascot in a big goofy costume (unless you have an
amenable ex-wife, of course). What I mean is, make
yourself different in enough ways that people notice.
Share your story, communicate often, and communicate
effectively.

People don't mind paying more when they know more about you.
Remember, the more people know about you, the more they
usually care about you. Especially when... they like...
what... they know.

Now go sell something, Craig Garber

P.S. In this month's Audio Success CD interview, my SEO
Secret Weapon spills the beans on many of the most
effective, most practical, and EASY ways of upping your
rankings in your industry -- and locally. Listen to it
free, at http://www.kingofcopy.com/ssnl -- AND make sure
you watch the video to see all the other freebies you get!

***

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