“Only in the darkness can you see the stars.”
-Martin Luther King Jr.
The First Sip
Hey Sunday Brewers!
Houston, we have a “coffee” problem.
Or, at least, we will sooner rather than later…
A new study shows climate change will make it more difficult to grow Arabica coffee in the coming years.
For now, the best thing you can do is savor that fresh cup you’ve got in your hands right now and enjoy the latest edition of the Sunday Brew.
We cover…
☕️ A proven way to combat ‘Zoom Fatigue’
☕️ A simple way to increase email response rates by 65% or more
☕️ 3 ways to always be relevant in any conversion
And so, so, SO much more…
Including a touching story out of the “Steel City”…
When Pittsburgh, PA was hit with heavy snow a couple of weekends ago…
Bethel Park High School football coach Brian DeLallo called off his team’s workout and sent out the following message:
At least 40 of his players did exactly that – heading outside in freezing temperatures to help their community.
“It’s not something where our kids groaned; they did it (and) loved it,” coach DeLallo said.
“I’m lucky to coach in a community that is very supportive of our program and has great kids that really want to be part of something like this.”
Football players like David Shelpman, 16, shoveled 10 driveways saying it’s “honestly just the right thing to do.”
And at least one Bethel Park resident was overwhelmed by the gesture.
“I have lived in Bethel Park for more than 40 years now and acts of kindness like this are exactly why I have stayed for as long as I have and why I will never leave,” Robert Klein said.
“These young men have no idea how much something like this means to me, and it makes me so proud to live here.”
1 Caffeinated Neurohack
As you know, I’m a pretty big advocate for virtual meetings.
I’ve been calling for them for years, even before the pandemic struck.
But I’ll admit, there are some challenges that come with running non-stop video meetings with prospects and clients.
Researchers even have a name for it: Zoom Fatigue.
According to their studies, contributing factors include:
- Unnatural eye contact (looking slightly off-center)
- Challenges sending non-verbal cues
- Limited natural movements and gestures
But there’s another factor that’s especially critical…
Facial appearance satisfaction.
To put it another way: Staring back at yourself on that little video tile.
People are getting tired of staring at themselves all day. And in many cases, it’s caused people to feel dissatisfied with their appearance and lose confidence.
How do you fix it?
My suggestion – one that I’ve been preaching for quite some time now – is to change your settings so that you no longer see your own video tile.
Step 1: Hover over your video tile and click the ellipsis button to bring up the menu.
Step 2: Select “Hide Self View.”
This prevents you from staring at yourself, which stops you from fully paying attention to what others are saying. It’s also less likely to cause Zoom fatigue.
☕ TL;DR: Counteract Zoom fatigue by hiding “self view” mode.
Marketing Psychology Quick Hit
As any student of email marketing knows, an email’s subject line is one of the most important elements.
(It’s often this single element that convinces people to open an email.)
But in terms of getting a response…
It’s all about how you end the email.
Most of us have some sort of canned salutation that we use.
I most commonly see things like cheers, sincerely, or best.
And while there’s nothing wrong with these, they feel a little bland and boring.
According to multiple studies, there’s a much better approach.
Emails that use the words “thanks” in a sign-off are proven to increase response rates by up to 65%.
This includes phrases like: thanks, thank you, and one of my personal favorites, thanks in advance.
☕ TL;DR: Sign off emails with the word “thanks” for better response rates.
SHIFT Nation Conversations
Click HERE to discover 3 ways to always have something valuable to say when prospecting, networking, or meeting with clients!
What’s the correct play here? 14 advisors have already given their opinions…join the discussion here.
Weekly Industry Catch-Up
🔹 Bears come out to play. The Russell 2000 Index shows stocks have fallen more than 20% from a November 8 peak. By definition, that puts us in the first bear market in nearly two years.
🔹 Back to the basics. Are you totally lost when it comes to terms like cryptocurrency and blockchain? This podcast miniseries dives into the basics and what sort of disruption is ahead in the financial services industry.
🔹 Ticking up. The core personal consumption expenditures price index, one of the Fed’s key inflation measurements, rose 4.9% from this time last year. That marks the fastest gain since 1983…possibly pushing the Fed into a more aggressive policy tightening.
Thanks for reading,
Jeremiah D. Desmarais
CEO, Advisorist
#1 in ROI-Driven Training for Advisors
