During my time working at Marketing Agencies, I gained extensive knowledge about Design, Web Development, and Project Management. However, my understanding of actual Marketing was limited.
When I decided to strike out on my own, I realized that I needed to deepen my understanding of marketing and copywriting. I began to consume every book and course I could find from renowned copywriters and marketing experts.
Surprisingly, one of the most effective marketing and business strategies I learned came from a lesser-known Hollywood producer, not a top-tier copywriter.
Chet Holmes was a 5th-degree black belt in karate and a Hollywood producer who wrote and produced several feature-length movies. But he wasn't just a Hollywood producer, he was also a genius marketing and sales expert, a consultant to over 60 of the Fortune 500, and a celebrated business author.
Chet's marketing acumen made him a highly effective filmmaker. He always conceptualized the commercial or movie trailer first, and then he started creating his projects. He prioritized having an excellent sales hook.
The most valuable strategy I learned from Chet is what he called "The Dream 100" strategy.
The Dream 100 Strategy is an insider strategy among savvy marketers. It's based on sound principles that surpass any copywriting headline, online funnel design, or email sequence. You can use it in any market, to sell anything.
Let's delve into the treasure trove of the Dream 100 Strategy. Remember, it's a "secret sauce" that you don't want everyone to have the recipe for.
The Dream 100 Strategy: The Holy Grail of Customer Acquisition
The Backstory
Let's rewind to the mid-90s. Chet Holmes is working for billionaire investor Charlie Munger. His task, which he chose to accept, is to transform a small newspaper from a laggard to a leader in the industry.
Armed with nothing but his wits and strategic thinking, Holmes accomplished just that. He doubled his sales for multiple years in a row, taking the newspaper from 19th to 1st place in the industry.
His secret weapon? The Dream 100 Strategy.
Chet's job was to sell advertising space in the newspaper. However, the newspaper didn't have as much readership as its competitors and didn't stand out in any way.
Initially, Chet had a database of 2,200 advertisers to sell to.
Chet was making over a hundred cold calls a day to potential clients to win their business, but he saw little results in his efforts.
It was challenging to convince even the smaller advertisers to take a risk in buying ad space in his paper. Most of the time, his leads didn't even know about their paper!
The Plot Twist
The plot thickens when Holmes discovers that a top saleswoman in the company is outselling everyone else by a country mile. She has three times as many sales as the next best salesperson.
Intrigued, he investigates. After some persistence, she agrees to have lunch with him and explain her method.
She reveals that her secret weapon is focusing only on ideal clients.
She advises him that most of the 2,200 leads he has are likely worthless, and a small percentage are responsible for all the business in the industry. She suggests that he should focus on those and disregard the rest.
Inspired by this advice, Holmes applies it to his list of 2,200 advertisers.
He creates criteria for his ideal client, focusing on the ones that are already proven ad buyers, and diligently identifies the top prospects from his list.
The saleswoman’s hunch was accurate, he discovered that 95% of the market's ad space was bought by only 167 companies. He decides that those 167 would be his dream clients, and thus, the Dream 100 Strategy is born.
A Focused Approach, Creative Marketing, and Four Months of Persistence
Now that Chet has identified his dream clients, he can concentrate his efforts on them.
He wants to attract the attention of these major players in the industry. If he can persuade one of these larger clients to take him on, it would provide social proof to all his other leads to do the same. He just needs to set off the first domino.
Since he's working with a much smaller list, he can focus his efforts and get creative. The priority is to get their attention, so he uses the marketing principle of curiosity.
Have you ever received a surprise package delivery? Like a FedEx envelope? It’s pretty much impossible to ignore, especially if it’s “lumpy” or oddly shaped in some way. Your curiosity overpowers other emotions, you simply have to open it to see what’s inside.
Chet used this tactic and sent his top 167 prospects "lumpy mail" every two weeks, and he followed up with a personal phone call twice a month.
He was extremely persistent and disciplined.
But his efforts didn't pay off right away.
The first four months of intensive marketing and selling yielded no reward.
Charlie Munger, his boss, even had a meeting with him due to the lack of progress. But Chet persuaded him to trust the strategy, and Charlie did.
The Turning Point
In the fifth month, the first domino finally fell.
Chet Holmes closed his first deal – with Xerox, one of the giants in their industry.
This was the biggest deal their industry had ever seen, a 15-page full-color spread. It certainly grabbed everyone's attention, especially the other advertisers on Chet's list.
After the first big sale, the other dominos started falling.
Over the next five months, he closed 28 more deals with his Dream Buyers.
Within roughly 12 months of implementing his unique strategies, Chet doubled the sales volume of nine divisions he was managing for Charlie Munger. He continued this success, using the same Dream 100 approach to double the sales of some divisions many years in a row.
When Charlie Munger saw their sales figures doubling year after year, he met with Chet just to make sure they weren't doing anything illegal! He couldn't believe that such consistent growth was possible otherwise.
That's the power of The Dream 100.
Keep reading, and I'll explain in detail exactly how and why to execute this strategy.
The Dream 100: The Ultimate Customer Acquisition Strategy
The Dream 100 is based on the idea that it's more effective to focus your efforts on a smaller number of ideal "dream" clients, rather than trying to reach a larger number of prospective customers.
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The Dream 100 is all about identifying your top 100 prospects and figuring out ways to win them over.
Think of it as creating your own NBA All-Star Team of clients or partners. You don't want bench warmers or unproven rookies. You want the absolute best superstar players. Who would be the all-star clients for your business?
You want clients who can transform your business and catapult you to the top overnight. Acquiring one can often trigger a domino effect of growth.
Once you've selected them, the next step is to take a focused approach to marketing to them. Get their attention, and relentlessly follow up until you're at the forefront of their mind. Eventually, the sale will close itself.
Here's what Chet Holmes, the creator of the Dream 100, says:
The goal of the Dream 100 is to take your ideal buyers from “I’ve never heard of this company” to “What is this company I keep hearing about?” to “I think I’ve heard of that company” to “Yes, I’ve heard of that company” to “Yes, I do business with that company.”
- Chet Holmes
The Dream 100 Strategy in 7 Steps (Because Even Dreams Need Structure)
Research Your Market: Gather a list or database of all prospects or potential clients in your market. Go wide and don't be picky, that part comes later. Use Google, relevant databases, local directories, etc.
Create Criteria: Determine your criteria for your "Dream Client". This is up to you and highly situational, but consider things like revenue, branding, related partnerships, and long-term potential. Remember, these are your DREAM clients, so don't be shy about being ambitious.
Identify Your Dream 100: Channel your inner Marie Kondo and declutter your leads. Keep only those that spark joy (or revenue potential). These are your Dream 100 candidates based on your criteria. Memorize them, cherish them, and love them.
Get Their Attention: Develop and execute a marketing plan to get their attention. Come up and execute a marketing plan to get their attention. Don't just slide into their DMs like an overeager Tinder match. Develop a thoughtful strategy to engage them and leave a good first impression. Invoke their curiosity so they can't ignore you.
Win Them Over: You have their attention, now you've got to build a relationship and win them over. Woo them like Shakespearean lovers—minus the tragic ending. Provide value, solve their problems, and make them wonder how they ever survived without you. Keep marketing to your Dream 100 and follow up consistently. Use a schedule and CRM to stay disciplined.
Close The Sale: Once you've built enough trust, close the sale. The sales process will vary greatly depending on your industry and what you're selling. In some cases, you might close the sale after a few touches, and in other cases, the sales cycle can take months or even years.
Keep Going: That first sale provides you with a lot of social proof and trust in your market. Use it and keep marketing to the rest of your list. Stay persistent, and the dominos will fall. Refresh your criteria and update your list periodically.
The Power of the Dream 100
Laser Focus: The Dream 100 is all about quality over quantity. Instead of chasing after every lead out there, you concentrate your efforts on those who matter. This way, you're not spreading yourself too thin, and you're able to provide each prospect with the attention they deserve.
Efficiency: By focusing on a select few, you save time, money, and sanity. It's the business equivalent of taking the express train instead of the local. The Dream 100 Strategy is all about working smarter, not harder.
Relationship Building: The Dream 100 isn't just about making a quick sale. It's about building long-lasting relationships that can lead to larger opportunities down the road. By focusing on your Dream 100, you're able to nurture these relationships and turn prospects into loyal clients.
Social Proof: It's challenging to get attention when you're unknown, and even harder to gain trust. But when you land a big name from your Dream 100, you get to carry their credibility moving forward.
Universal: This is not a tactic, it's a strategy. It will work in any market, selling any product. It doesn't matter what marketing channel you pick. You can apply it for Public Relations, Advertising, Podcasting, Influencer Marketing, Prospecting, Joint Ventures, and more. It will work today, and it will work 100 years from now.
So, there you have it—the Dream 100 Strategy in all its glory. Fast, powerful, and budget-friendly, it's the secret sauce that your business needs.
I'm grateful I found this strategy early in my marketing career. It helped me get started selling my consulting services, and I’ve also applied it with many clients in various industries.
My favorite thing about this approach is the clarity you get when you have a well-defined list. It's daunting to start a marketing plan, but this makes it simple, and you don't waste your efforts.
To learn more about how the Dream 100 Strategy can transform your business, email me at animittra@gmail.com. I love discussing all things marketing.
I’m going to teach you what I think is the single most important formula in business, R+R=Profit. This helped me create my first successful ad campaign back when I was a newbie copywriter.
Instead of pushing prospects through your sales funnel, parrying their objections and practically dragging them along each stage, why not try a more natural approach? Let’s pull them in by telling engaging stories filled with empathy. Let's invite them into our world by sharing eye-opening insights that shift their beliefs.
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