RECIPROCITY you back:“ Thank you. Oh, and I was going to tell you about your hair.” or“ Oh, I was going to tell you about that shirt. I don’ t know where you got it. It’ s amazing.” Sound familiar?
Another example of reciprocity is going to lunch with a friend and grabbing the bill before your friend does. In most cases, your friend will say,“ Oh, I wanted to do that. Hey, next time lunch is on me.” Because people have an internal desire to be even. And what most people and companies do wrong is thinking reciprocity is“ I’ ll do for you when you do for me.” The companies that thrive, the companies that go above and beyond, the ones that stand out from the competition, are the ones that get the art of reciprocity right and manipulate reciprocity to fit within their business structure.
Eight years ago, one of the forms of reciprocity that I created that I think was a game changer for my company— I can’ t actually measure the ROI on it, but I know it’ s been significant to the tunes of millions of dollars— was my Weekly Wisdom video program. I’ m in the education business, and I always want to help people get to another level. I write books and create courses and do events to give people a path and a plan to help them achieve the level of success they desire, whether it’ s in personal development or in real estate education on how to invest and diversify a portfolio. But besides the education, besides the books, I want to overdeliver. I want to give value without the person even knowing it’ s coming.
This thought crystallized into an action plan after I attended an event where the entrepreneur trainer, Eben Pagan, said the following:“ Take your business to another level and move the free line.” And what those words meant to me was that I should give away for free some of the things that my competition is actually charging for and then raise the quality of what I do offer for sale. And lo and behold, an unintended reciprocity program was started that very week. I went home and decided to create videos for my entire network of people who follow me, buy from me, or know me outside of my business. I recorded a video a week, delivering my thoughts on success strategies, success habits, and positive mind-sets; on how to overcome problems, how to get through tough spots, and how to focus on solutions. Here in these videos were all my ideas on how to be successful that I’ ve developed over the years.
Well, that was over eight years ago, and I still do one video every week. I’ ve had millions of people follow these videos and that builds a form of reciprocity. Every week, they get an email with a video that delivers massive value and it’ s free. They don’ t have to buy the video to access it. I don’ t ask them to buy anything. And what that has done is strengthen my bond with my community. For those who buy from me, there is a feeling of,“ Wow, I bought this, but look at what else I got.” So later on when I come out with a new product or a new service or a new book, those people are excited to get it because I’ ve given them so much value in advance. And I know I get recommended more, I get suggested more, and my books and my courses get this viral effect because of reciprocity.
Cynics can look at reciprocity as a game, like a trick to get your clients to do something, or a trick to get your spouse or anyone in your life to do something. Or you can make it part of your business, a part of your life, a new mind-set:
I’ M GOING TO GIVE IN ADVANCE. I MIGHT NOT NECESSARILY GET IT BACK FROM THE PERSON
I GIVE IT TO, BUT THROUGH THE UNIVERSE, THROUGH THE BUSINESS WORLD, THROUGH GOD, THROUGH WHATEVER I BELIEVE IN, IT WILL COME BACK TO ME TENFOLD IN NEW AND EXCITING WAYS AND EXPAND MY BUSINESS.
I think reciprocity is the key rule that many companies miss. +
Dean Robert Graziosi is a well-known American entrepreneur, marketer, success coach, business owner, real estate investor and leading trainer throughout the world. He has appeared daily on American TV for nearly 15 years and is highly respected as a top businessman, entrepreneur, multiple New York Times best-selling author and Inspirational speaker. Graziosi is perhaps best known for his long running interview style TV shows and for becoming the leading real estate educator in the world. He has reached viewers in America and around the world who number in the millions. He has written five books which have dominated the success, business & real estate book sales space since 2006, with his best-selling book amassing over 1,000,000 copies sold. DeanGraziosi. com
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