Direct Marketing - Andy Lockwood

“The most significant thing I learned from direct marketing is how to build my business.” - Andy Lockwood

Andy Lockwood is an internationally renowned best selling author,  college advisor and financial aid expert.  He is the creator of the "P4" college advising system (Plan, Path, Position, Produce), a "backward-planning"  approach designed to help students discover their wiring and strengths, reverse engineer a set of colleges offering "wholesale" prices - that help students achieve success, post-college.

Andy is a member of the National Collegiate Advocacy Group and the National Association for College Admission Counseling. He received his BA from Wesleyan University - where he was on (not "played for") the basketball team - and St. John's Law School.

Andy talks about how to enter business and learn direct marketing principles.👊

1. If you could go back in time, and you can change one life or business or both decisions. First off, would you change it? And if you would change it, what would you change it to?

Andy: Yeah, that's such a great question. I don't think I would change anything. I mean things are going pretty well now. But they didn't always go this great. So I think that maybe I would have reached out for more content, like what you produce a little bit earlier on.

I remember in the beginning around 2000, that's when I sort of started dabbling in business, coaching, marketing, direct marketing, that type of stuff. But it probably took me a couple years just to really fully embrace it. So maybe I would have accelerated that a little bit. But I think we all know, we all just have them. We're ready for it. So I'm not sure that I would really change anything.

2. Is there anything in your journey to where you are right now business or in life, that was just super positive?

Andy: There's been a few of those. But the first one was sort of what I alluded to, was when I stumbled across direct marketing. I practiced law for five years and that was in House counsel to a publicly traded brokerage company in Miami. And we left that position, because we got sold a couple times, that's a different story.

So you know, one thing led to another, and I was in the mortgage business at the time. So I went to find a guy who specialized in direct marketing for the mortgage business. And he happened to be sort of a disciple of Dan Kennedy, which if your audience hasn't heard about him, everyone should know, he's sort of at the top of this, it's at the fruit.

3. Do you have methods, tools, techniques that you use for any kind of getting stuck that you use? And that you advise your clients that you could share?

Andy: Absolutely. Because not only do I have the same issues myself, but I also work one on one with a lot of kids who write essays to get into college. So this is gonna sound kind of silly, but arbitrary, but the best thing that always helps me get unstuck. So I don't have writer's block anymore. It's really just more like, I don't feel like doing something, but I forced myself to do it.

So I write a newsletter, every month, I've written four books. I read, you know, emails, probably three to five times a week. And the best thing that I do is, I got this from some other information marketer,

I take out my phone, and I set it for 33 minutes and 33 seconds.

Don't ask me why? Probably because somebody else did. And I block everything else out. No emails, no calls, no kids, no, you know, you name it. And all I'm doing is focusing on whatever it is I have to work on. So if it's writing something, I have that block on uninterrupted. And if I'm stuck about what to write about, I'll sit there at my screen, literally, and just sit there and then eventually I'll start.

4.  If you had to start over from scratch right now, what would you do? Would you go back to law school? Would you just go straight to marketing?

Andy: I would definitely go to marketing and I would do a webinar or presentation just  to get going. But that's the most significant thing I learned from direct marketing, how to build my business. So get in front of people, get your message out there, get your offer out there. You get in front of the right people, I should say, two people show up. I've had presentations where literally one person showed up, and she ended up hiring me. And then she hired me again for a second 100% conversion rate.

5. Is there anything that you would like to close with and anything that you have that would benefit the viewers and listeners?

Andy: Anyone interested in this sort of random event, interested in learning about being a college advisor. I have a certification program, and that's on my website, lockwoodcollegeprep.com. And what it is, is basically a way to get into business and learn direct marketing principles to get in front of a crowd and get people to hire you.

📣 Here's some good news for you!

Micro Success Secrets:  Direct Marketing - Andy Lockwood is officially available across the web! 

Please go listen or download now at https://player.captivate.fm/episode/bddc1fd8-e3cc-4d55-a63f-04c4be056fe9

Andy Lockwood Contact Information:

LinkedIn Profile URL: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lockwoodcollegeprep

Email Address: [email protected]

Phone Number: 516.882.5464

Website URL: https://www.lockwoodcollegeprep.com/

Facebook: facebook.com/LockwoodCollegePrep/