When it comes to growing your business, traffic is the lifeblood. But not all traffic is created equal. Sure, you can drive thousands of visitors to your site, but if they’re not the right audience, they won’t convert. That’s where Russell Brunson’s “Dream 100” strategy comes in.
The Dream 100 is a targeted strategy for finding, building relationships with, and attracting traffic from high-quality sources—sources that can bring you customers who are highly likely to convert and stay loyal to your business.
In this post, I’ll dive deep into how you can leverage the Dream 100 strategy to drive highly relevant traffic to your website, build long-lasting relationships with influencers and partners, and ultimately boost your sales.
What is the “Dream 100” Strategy?
The Dream 100 is a concept popularized by Chet Holmes in his book The Ultimate Sales Machine. The idea is simple yet powerful: Identify 100 key influencers, companies, or individuals who already have your ideal customers. Build a relationship with these people, then use their platforms, audiences, or networks to promote your business.
Why the Dream 100 Strategy Works
- Focus on Quality Over Quantity: By focusing on just 100 of the best influencers or partners, you ensure you’re reaching the highest quality audience possible.
- Build Strategic Partnerships: Building relationships with these influencers gives you access to their audience, their resources, and their credibility, all of which can result in increased traffic and sales.
- Faster Results: By leveraging the influence and trust that these Dream 100 contacts already have with your target audience, you can quickly build your own credibility and gain more trust with your audience.
Step 1: Identify Your Dream 100
The first step in executing the Dream 100 strategy is identifying who those 100 people or businesses are. The Dream 100 should be a combination of influencers, bloggers, content creators, thought leaders, or organizations whose audience overlaps with your own target market.
1.1. How to Choose Your Dream 100
Here are a few guidelines on how to identify your Dream 100 contacts:
- Relevance: Ensure that their audience overlaps with your ideal customers. If you’re in the fitness niche, you might target fitness bloggers, trainers, or health influencers.
- Authority: Look for influencers with authority in your niche. They should have a large, engaged audience that respects their opinion and advice.
- Reach: Consider the platforms where these influencers are active. Do they have an email list? A blog? A popular YouTube channel? Do they have social media followers who actively engage with their content?
How to Implement:
- Create a List: Start by making a list of the top 100 influencers, bloggers, and industry leaders in your niche. Use tools like BuzzSumo, Followerwonk, and LinkedIn to find people with large followings in your field.
- Be Specific: Don’t just target people with large followings. You want influencers who have deep relationships with their audiences, not just a big number.
Example:
If you’re running a health and wellness business, your Dream 100 might include:
- Bloggers: Popular wellness bloggers with high engagement.
- Social Media Influencers: Influencers on Instagram or YouTube with a large following in the fitness or nutrition space.
- Podcasters: Hosts of podcasts that cover health, nutrition, or fitness topics.
- Industry Experts: Doctors, personal trainers, or fitness experts with credibility.
Step 2: Build Relationships with Your Dream 100
Once you’ve identified your Dream 100, the next step is to start building relationships with them. The goal here is not to ask for anything right away but to build trust and create a meaningful connection.
2.1. The Power of Offering Value First
Russell emphasizes giving first. If you approach someone from your Dream 100 and immediately ask them for something (like a shout-out or endorsement), you’ll likely get ignored. Instead, offer value first. Show them how you can help them, their audience, or their business before you make a request.
How to Implement:
- Engage with Their Content: Start by commenting on their blog posts, engaging on social media, and sharing their content. Let them know you’re genuinely interested in what they do.
- Offer Something of Value: Consider sending them a useful resource, free access to a product, or a service that aligns with their needs. This demonstrates that you’re interested in building a relationship rather than just taking.
- Support Their Initiatives: If they’re launching a new product, offer your support. This can be as simple as spreading the word or offering a testimonial for their work.
Example:
If you’re trying to connect with a fitness influencer, start by following them on Instagram, commenting on their posts, and sharing their content with your own audience. Then, send a direct message offering value. For instance, you could say, “I love the tips you shared on your latest post about nutrition! I’ve recently launched a new supplement, and I’d love to send you a free sample if you’re open to trying it.”
Step 3: Create Opportunities for Collaboration
The key to leveraging your Dream 100 effectively is creating opportunities for collaboration. A simple way to do this is by offering to collaborate on projects that will benefit both parties. These could include joint ventures, affiliate partnerships, co-branded content, or guest blog posts.
3.1. Collaboration Ideas
- Guest Blogging: Write guest posts on their blog or invite them to write for yours. This gives you access to their audience and vice versa.
- Webinars or Joint Facebook Lives: Partner with them for a live event where you can provide value to their audience while promoting your business.
- Affiliate Partnerships: If they have a large email list, offer them a commission to promote your product.
How to Implement:
- Reach out with a proposal: After you’ve built a relationship, reach out to your Dream 100 contacts with a proposal for collaboration. Make sure your offer benefits them as much as it benefits you.
- Be Clear on the Value: Let them know exactly how you plan to help them, whether that’s by sharing valuable content with their audience, offering an exclusive discount, or co-hosting an event.
Example:
If you’re working with a well-known fitness influencer, you could propose a joint webinar where you both talk about fitness, health, and nutrition. You promote the webinar to your audience, and they promote it to theirs. Afterward, you can offer a special discount on your product to attendees from both sides.
Step 4: Use Your Dream 100 to Drive Targeted Traffic
Once you’ve developed a relationship and collaborated with members of your Dream 100, it’s time to start driving traffic from their audiences to your site. By leveraging their influence and trust with their followers, you can quickly drive high-quality, targeted traffic.
4.1. Targeted Traffic = Higher Conversions
The beauty of the Dream 100 strategy is that you’re not just driving random traffic to your website. You’re bringing in people who are already pre-qualified and interested in what you have to offer. This leads to higher conversion rates.
How to Implement:
- Use their platforms to share your offers: Collaborate with your Dream 100 contacts to promote your content or product. This could include social media posts, email campaigns, or even direct mentions in their content.
- Drive traffic with paid ads: If you have a solid relationship with an influencer, consider running paid ads alongside their promotions to boost visibility.
Example:
A fitness coach could partner with a popular nutrition blogger to run an exclusive offer for their audience. The blogger promotes the offer via email, social media, and their website, driving traffic to the coach’s landing page where visitors can sign up for a free consultation or buy a product.
Step 5: Nurture the Relationship and Continue to Add Value
The work doesn’t stop once you’ve collaborated with your Dream 100 contacts. Nurturing the relationship over time is key to maintaining the flow of high-quality traffic.
5.1. Building Long-Term Partnerships
Once you’ve created one successful collaboration, continue to offer value. Building a long-term partnership ensures you’re not only driving traffic once but that you’re building a steady stream of traffic over time.
How to Implement:
- Stay in touch: Continue supporting their work and keep providing value, even when you don’t have an immediate ask.
- Offer exclusives: Provide exclusive offers, content, or discounts to your Dream 100 partners so they feel appreciated and want to continue working with you.
Example:
A software company partners with an influencer for a one-time promotion. After the campaign, they send follow-up emails to the influencer, thanking them for the partnership, and offering an exclusive lifetime discount to the influencer’s followers.
Conclusion:
The Dream 100 strategy is one of the most powerful ways to attract high-quality traffic and build lasting relationships with influential figures in your niche. By identifying the right people, building relationships, offering value, and strategically collaborating, you can drive targeted traffic to your business and scale faster than ever before.
This strategy takes time and effort to implement, but the long-term payoff is immense. By following the steps outlined in this post, you’ll be on your way to building strong partnerships that result in consistent, high-converting traffic for your business.
Next Steps:
- Identify your Dream 100 and start building relationships.
- Offer value first and focus on creating mutually beneficial collaborations.
- Use your Dream 100 to drive targeted traffic and continue nurturing your partnerships.
By consistently applying the Dream 100 strategy, you’ll set your business up for sustainable growth and success in the competitive world of online marketing.
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