Establishing & maintaining rapport with your online audience is perhaps the single most important ingredient in marketing online. Actually in marketing period, but even more so online because of the lack of personal contact. Rapport is at the core of selling, always has been, always will be.
Let me tell you a little story.
Earlier this week, I got a call from a salesman after leaving a message about getting my stereo repaired. My expensive, but aging Nakamichi CD player is on the fritz, & I???m virtually tuneless. Not good.
It was a notable conversation for anybody interested in the art & science of persuasion. And in particular, the role rapport plays in that process.
My apprehension was this.
I bought the unit about 8 years ago, & I???m thinking. OK, this is going to cost me some money. I could probably now go out & buy a new CD player for the same amount. Just getting an estimate is going to cost me.
So the guy calls up, & immediately starts building rapport with me. How does he do it?
After introducing himself, he says, ???So you???ve got an MB-1s, awesome unit, what do you listen to???? I tell him, ???I???m into rhythm & blues & jazz???. He probes a little to see what kind of blues I dig, & we find ourselves rapping for a bit about how much we both love the music of Stevie Ray Vaughan.
And then without missing a beat, he says ???So I suppose you???re wondering whether technology has advanced so far in 8 years that you could replace your MB-1s with a new unit for pennies on the dollar?
I say, ???yes???.
And then he goes on to tell me. ???Unless you???re prepared to fork out a sizable chunk of change on a relatively high end unit, your going to lose some of the raw analog warmth & character that oozes faithfully from Stevie???s Fender Stratocaster every time you slide a CD into that Nakamichi???.
And I???m like, Wow, thanks for saving my life dude.
This wasn???t the only guy I called, but I can tell you this. He was the only one I considered doing business with. And it came down to the rapport he created.
So what can we learn from this?
First off, let me point out that while this was a personal interaction, you should take the principle of rapport very seriously when it comes to your marketing.
The fundamentals are thus.
I liked this guy. Because I liked him, I listened to him. Because I listened to him, I believed him. And because I believed him, I bought from him. Sure it wasn???t a huge purchase. But what happened in those few minutes on the telephone takes place in virtually every sale you make, whether you???re an active participant in the process, or not.
You are developing an unspoken relationship with your customers, as a result of both your personal interaction, & every piece of online marketing you deliver.
The challenge is this. How do you generate rapport, when you don???t have the expensive luxury of personal contact with all of your clients at every stage of the buying cycle?
Here are a few ideas.
1) Be a person in your online marketing. Far too many businesses make the dreadful mistake of coming off as stuffy, corporate, & boring, in the name of professionalism. Your business can be professional, & still have character.
This is just as true in b2b & technical sales, as it is in consumer sales.
One of the best things you can do is deliver your marketing message in the first person. You should voice a friendly, rapport-building persona in virtually every kind of direct response advertising you do.
2) Communicate with your prospects, in their own words. If you???re marketing to engineers, & you know they use acronyms, use acronyms. If you???re selling to the CEO, speak in plain English. Just common sense, but so often ignored. If you???re selling b2b, understand that there are multiple decision makers involved. Find a way to speak to them all. Use multiple campaigns if need be.
3) And finally, give your customers more than they expect. It is rare to do business with a company that demonstrates a genuine concern for the actual outcomes that their customers experience as a result of a purchase.
This is very different than simply being committed to the satisfactory performance of your product or service. You build rapport by showing your prospects exactly how what you???re selling ???fits in??? to what they are already doing.
In the final analysis, your prospects & customers should feel like they know you as a person from your marketing & advertising. More importantly, they should know you as the kind of person they would call a friend, & look forward to hearing from.
Copyright 2005 Daniel Levis
Daniel Levis is a top marketing consultant & direct response copywriter based in Toronto Canada. Recently, Daniel & world-renowned publicist & copywriter Joe Vitale teamed up to co author ???Million Dollar Online Advertising Strategies ??” From The Greatest Letter Writer Of The 20th Century!???, a tribute to the late, great Robert Collier. Let the legendary Robert Collier show you how to write words that sell…Visit the below site & get 3 FREE Chapters! http://www.Advertising-Online-Strategies.com/ad-strategies.html
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Austin, the “Live Music Capital of the World”, is a slogan based on the very essence of this city that is supported by residents and local government alike. There are virtually hundreds of venues where locals and visitors can enjoy every type of live music imaginable.
In 1991, blues musician Lillian Standfield approached the City’s Music Commission to propose Austin be labeled the “Music Capital of the USA”. After extensive research, city officials discovered that Austin had more live music venues per capita than any of the major cities including Nashville, New York City or Las Vegas. It was suggested the city slogan be upgraded to the “Live Music Capital of the Universe”, but the council compromised, and on August 29, 1991, the “Live Music Capital of the World” became Austin’s official slogan.
Since that day, Austin has more than ‘walked its talk’. Not only do they organize a number of regular musical events, they have integrated music into the day to day running of the local government. City officials have also developed various programs to assist up-and-coming musicians with the promotion of their music. Here are just a few of the events and programs supported by this city.
Events
- Live from the Plaza provides a series of free concerts on the plaza at City Hall.
- Parks and Recreation provides an extensive calendar of events that have musical performances. They sponsor annual events such as the Trail of Lights (a holiday music venue) and a number of summer concerts.
- South by Southwest is a major annual film and music festival.
- The Austin City Limits Music Festival is a three-day music and art festival held in the fall.
- In the summer, local businesses support a series of free blues shows in Zilker Park
Memorials:
- Austin Music Memorial at the Joe R. and Teresa Lozano Long Center for the Performing Arts honors deceased individuals who have contributed to the music community in some way.
- Stevie Ray Vaughan has a striking life size memorial at Lady Bird Lake.
Local Promotion:
- Music on Hold is a program where local music is played in the City’s telephone hold music system.
- Austin Music Channel is a local station devoted to showcasing local talent.
- Austin-Bergstrom International Airport has live music throughout three different venues in the terminal.
- City council meetings include live music in their weekly sessions.
- Austin Convention and Visitors Bureau actively promote “Live Music Capital of the World” as a travel destination and also provide assistance in booking local musicians.
- Texas Music Office - Texas Talent Registry provides a listing of over 1700 bands and their contact information.
Local Government Support:
- Creative Industries Loan Guarantee Program provides loans to individuals or companies involved in music, film, art and technology.
- The Austin Music Economic Impact Study describes how music affects the economy and discusses various ideas to promote the music community.
- Austin Energy is a rebate program that provides energy savings incentives to over 220 of Austin’s live music venues.
Jim Olenbush, fully accredited Austin REALTOR ®. Contact him for all your Austin real estate needs.
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Major and Minor Seven Guitar Chord Extensions
At their core, major and minor chords are built from triads which consist of root, third and fifth (1 3 5) intervals. These intervals are derived from the major scale and named according to their scale degree. Other notes, or extensions, from the major scale can be added to chords such as seconds, fourths, sixths and sevenths (2 4 6 7). Adding extensions creates more complex chords with richer sounds. This free guitar lesson will give you a quick introduction to this topic and how to apply this music theory principal to the fretboard and popular songs.
Major Scale Patterns and Chord Progressions
Before you begin to study extensions you should first learn how to build major and minor chords (triads) from the major scale. This would include guitar chord progressions and playing by numbers (a.k.a. the “Nashville Number System”). You might even need to take a further step back and learn major scale patterns. Remember, each music theory topic builds on the one before it. Major scale patterns and building chords are two topics that are foundational to understanding and applying chord extensions.
Chord Building Theory
If you’ve already been through the process of building chords for the entire major scale, then you’re ready to start adding chord extensions. All you have to do is repeat the whole process, but this time add an additional interval to the triad. For example, a seventh interval ( or 7). Starting on a G note in the key of G, 1 3 5 7 are G B D F#. The F# note is a major seven interval and is just one note shy of an octave. Any time you add an F# to a G major chord you create a G major seven chord (or Gmaj7). This can be done with any G major chord shape in any position, and any F# note regardless of the octave. You’ll have to rearrange your fingers in order to accommodate this extra note.
Next, add a seventh interval to the ii chord in the key of G, A minor. To do this, count the notes of the G major scale STARTING ON A. If you do this correctly the seventh note away from A is G. This interval is called a flat seven because it’s one fret less than a major seven (or two frets shy of an octave). When you add a G note to an Am chord you create an A minor seven chord (or Am7). This can be done with any Am chord shape in any position, and any G note regardless of the octave. You’ll have to rearrange your fingers in order to accomodate this extra note.
Now that you have identified the seventh interval for the first two chords in the key of G you can continue the process with the rest of the scale. If you do this correctly the following sequence should emerge:
Harmonized Major Scale With Sevenths
I Gmaj7
ii Am7
iii Bm7
IV Cmaj7
V D7 (which means “dominant” seven)
vi Em7
vii F#m7b5 (whoa, that’s a mouthful!)
Dominant Seven Chords
The V chord, D7, is unique in that it’s a major chord but it has a flat seven interval like the minor chords. Because of this it has special name which is “dominant” seven. For some strange reason, it’s the dominant seventh chord that is written simply as “7.” The major seventh chord must always include “major.”
As with any music theory topic you learn about, you must apply extensions to the guitar fretboard by playing songs. The follow lists will help to get you started by naming some well-known tunes that use seventh chords.
Guitar Songs That Use Major Seven Chords (Maj7)
“Under the Bridge” Red Hot Chili Peppers (verse end)
“Fire and Rain” James Taylor (intro/verse)
“Plush” Stone Temple Pilots (verse)
“Everyday” Dave Mathews Band (intro/verse)
“Riviera Paradise” Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble (verse)
“Dust in the Wind” Kansas (intro)
“Best of My Love” The Eagles (intro/verse)
Guitar Songs That Use Minor Seven Chords (m7)
“Tears in Heaven” Eric Clapton (chorus)
“Change the World” Eric Clapton (chorus)
“Let it Ride” Bachman-Turner Overdrive (intro/verse)
“You Ain’t Seen Nothing Yet” Bachman-Turner Overdrive (intro/verse)
“Oye Como Va” Santana (intro/verse)
“Long Train Running” The Doobie Brothers (intro/verse)
“Black Water” The Doobie Brothers (intro/verse)
“Stairway to Heaven” Led Zeppelin (interlude)
Guitar Songs That Use Dominant Seven Chords (7)
“Black” Pearl Jam (intro)
“Papa’s Got a Brand New Bag” James Brow n(intro/verse)
“Nothing Else Matters” Metallica (intro/verse)
“Cross Road Blues” Cream (intro)
“Roadhouse Blues” The Doors (verse 2)
“Black Horse and the Cherry Tree” KT Tunstall (intro/verse)
“Sitting, Waiting, Wishing” Jack Johnson (intro/verse)
Guitar Songs That Use Minor Seven Flat Five Chords (m7b5)
“Change the World” Eric Clapton (chorus)
“Smooth” Santana (verse)
“I Will Survive” Gloria Gaynor (verse/chorus)
Other Songs Worth Learning
“It’s Too Late” Carole King
“Ventura Highway” America
“Let’s Stay Together” Al Green
“One” U2
“Collide” Howie Day
“Daughters” John Mayer
“Ooh Baby Baby” Linda Ronstadt
“Don’t Know why” Nora Jones
This is merely an introduction to adding seventh intervals to chords. Because there are so many different ways to make major and minor chord shapes on the guitar fretboard, there are many ways to build chords with sevenths too. In fact, the whole CAGED chord system can have seventh intervals added to it. Once you get a handle on extending chords with sevenths, you can try adding seconds, fourths and sixths. From there, you can get into chords with multiple intervals added, but don’t get ahead of yourself. At least now you can begin to understand what those numbers next to chord names are for!
Play Until Your Fingers Bleed!
Mr. Desi Serna (Google Me!)
Author of Fretboard Theory
http://www.Guitar-Music-Theory.com
Scales, Chords, Progressions, Modes
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Guitar and Rock music are inseparable and probably one of the main reasons for this is that most rock numbers or compositions have short or prolonger lead guitar solos. The lead guitar solos can be mastered by using different scales and guitar improvisation techniques like hybrid picking and legato technique.
There is such a huge variety of guitar improvisation techniques available that you can practice solos all your life and yet not find the end. It is infinite! One such guitar improvisation technique is called hybrid picking. Hybrid picking can add an absolutely new dimension to the sound that is rendered by your lead guitar. This is a type of guitar improvisation technique that is most commonly used by guitarists in music genres or styles like blues, rock, country, bluegrass, and even jazz. One of guitar legends who has used hybrid picking very effectively is Stevie Ray Vaughan. He used it for rendering a solo in Lenny Here’s a small exercise in hybrid picking that you can try:
e-0–0–0–0–0–0-
b–1–1–1–1–1—
g——————
d——————
a——————
E-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-
You can increase the speed as you become comfortable with the above and move on to this:
e-0-0-0-0-0-0-0–0-0-0-
b———————-
g———————-
d-2-3-0-0-0-2-3-/5-5-0-
a———————-
E———————-
Hybrid picking is a guitar improvisation technique where you pick the guitar strings or chords using the fingers as well as the pick at the same time. The advantage is that you will be able to use your plectrum to play lead guitar that normally requires the fingerstyle mode of playing.
You will also be able to make wide string leaps like you can leap from the 5th string right to the 1st string, which can be quite a difficult exercise otherwise. To effectively use the hybrid picking guitar improvisation technique, you will need to your pick between your forefinger and thumb.
Legato Technique
The legato technique is another effective guitar improvisation technique that renders slurred notes quite similar to the notes rendered through hammer-on’s and pull-offs. Here is a small exercise that includes some kick ass legato licks:
e———–5–7–8–7–5———-
b—————————8——
g———————————-
d———————————-
a———————————-
e———————————-
Legato guitar improvisation technique has been effectively used for solo performance by the likes of Joe Satriani, Alan Holdsworth, and Steve Vai. The above notes that form the legato technique will require you to hammer the notes without picking. You should ideally play this at 60bpm.
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