| |
| |
|
Marketing Information |
|
|
|
Are You Marketing Backwards?
Marketing is like rowing a boat. When you know how the pointed bow moves smoothly forward through the water encountering the least amount of resistance. Rowing backwards, the square stern of the boat pushes against the water, requiring more effort and increases the risk of having a wave come over the transom (back) and swamping it. Yet most people market backwards, trying to grow their business while pushing against the greatest level of resistance. Wouldn't you like to market your business so that it moved easily forward? What's the first thing most people do to increase sales of their products, services? They put together a description of their credentials. Then they pick up the phone, run an ad campaign, send out a brochure and or build a web site and ask people to buy. Do you know anyone who has used this approach? Have you tried it yourself? Were you happy with the number of new clients and customers you attracted? It's a common misperception that the fastest way to attract more clients and customers is to focus on asking people to buy. It looks like the obvious route, but in most cases it generates only a trickle of new clients for small business owners. It can work if you're a large company with millions of dollars to spend building your brand. Why doesn't this selling approach work for service professionals and small business owners? A sale is the end point or one of the waypoints in your relationship with a client. Before they are ready to give you their money prospects need to be confident that you have what they want, and they trust your product or service will deliver on your promises. When you lead with a focus on selling and your credentials you run into high levels of resistance. It is like trying to row a boat backwards. Marketing is about building relationships, one by one. Start by focusing on what your prospect wants, not on yourself. Think about it. When you pick up the phone or encounter a friend, what's one of the first things you say? Do you launch into a monologue about yourself? Most people usually start the conversation with a friendly questions or two and then find a topic of mutual interest. If you have information your friend is interested in, you share it. I frequently get calls from people who say they hate marketing. Why? Trying to convince people to buy feels pushy. An alternative that is more effective - and more fun - is to focus instead on giving people what they want. Get your prospect's attention by leading with a question or statement that succinctly gets them thinking about how you can solve a problem they have. This is your marketing message or elevator speech, not your sales pitch. Once you have their interest, give them something they want in order to prompt them to contact you. This could be a short report or article. Does your marketing approach give people what they want? Does it help start a conversation and a relationship? Once a prospect gives you their contact information, go to work and make good on their trust by showing an interest in their needs and giving them a steady stream of useful tips. The more you give your prospects, the stronger your relationship will be. Rowing a boat backwards is hard work and won't get you very far. There is just too much resistance. To attract more clients and grow your business stop marketing backwards and pushing against high levels of resistance. Give your prospects what they want, build relationships and you'll find more prospects buying the solutions you provide. - 2004 © In Mind Communications, LLC. All rights reserved. The author, Charlie Cook, helps service professionals and small business owners attract more clients and be more successful. Sign up for the Free Marketing Plan eBook, '7 Steps to get more clients and grow your business' at http://www.marketingforsuccess.com
MORE RESOURCES:
Google News |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
The Magic of Using Booklets for Tradeshow Giveaways Candy, squeeze balls, pens, and key chains -- these provide questionable value to anyone visiting or staffing a tradeshow booth. More and more meeting and marketing professionals are considering something a little different - booklets. Strategic Internet Marketing I met Sue at a recent networking event. She is an author and speaker, and promotes her products by speaking at events and selling her products after the talks. 4 Steps to Successful Offline Drawings There are many different ways to market offline, each important to your success. One of these being drawings. Your Marketing - From The Couch To The Cash Register When you put time or money into any marketing plan, your only objective is to MAKE A SALE. Are you sure your marketing is going to get your customer from their couch to your cash register?When somebody hears your message or sees your logo from some medium you have created, what does the path from that first 'touch' to your cash register look like?We call this path the yellow brick road. Five Steps to a Web Site That Sells I'm always amazed that people would spend months to develop their web site, pay thousands of dollars to have it put together and then.. Identifying, Creating and Using Your USP? What's your USP? Don't know, or worse still, you've never heard of it.USP is an acronym for Unique Selling Proposition. Shopping Comes Back To The Community THE GREAT BRITISH TRADITION OF STREET MARKETS IS UPHELD AT STREETTRADERSUNITED.COMHammer Force Ltd, a Croydon-based online service provider offers people who enjoy an alternative to impersonal shopping malls a chance to access a site which lists more than 708 UK markets, arranged by region in an easy-to-use format. Hermey Wants To Be A Dentist December marked the 40th anniversary of the original broadcast of the classic "Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer"©, network television's longest-running, highest-rated holiday special. From my earliest childhood memories, watching Rudolph has been a tradition, one that continues today with my own family. Moving a Business Relationship from Free to Fee: Power of Freebies - Part 2 In the last issue we looked at 5 reasons why giving stuff away is a great tactic for filling your pipeline.Now let's take a look at the kind of things you may want to give. Devious and Deceptive Packaging Have you read anything in the news lately about childhood obesity, Jose Canseco and steroids, or fat free foods? Where is the truth in any of that?If only we lived and shopped in a pure world where labels told the whole truth and nothing but the truth. But while consumers rely on labels to make wise nutritional choices, food manufacturers use labels to sell their product. Motivating Shoppers with Online Coupons (Part 2 of 2) Last time we discussed how online coupons and promotion codes can motivate buyers. We discussed examples of coupons and some of the aspects of these offers that can boost sales and generate urgency to a purchase. How to Turn Your Promotional Products Expense Into a Profit Center If you use promotional products you probably already know the power of giving away freebies. You may use them to thank current customers, or to give incentives to potential customers. Getting Ideas for Your Postcards If you're going to do postcard marketing on an ongoing basis, it's a good idea to have a collection of cards to inspire you. In advertising and marketing circles, this is called a "swipe file. Produce More Sales from your Email Promotions Five Ways - Part 1 Do sales come from your ezine regularly? How many well-written articles do you submit per week to opt-in online ezines? How often do you send thank you's and follow up messages to your different email groups? If you answered not many, then you need to re-evaluate. The answer to online success is the same as traditional success--promotion, promotion, promotion. Loan Officer Marketing - How Branding Shapes Your Prospects Perceptions Social scientists have proven that people experience what they come to expect. It's like the first time you watched your favorite movie. Creating Assets: Spark Your Thinking With These 16 Comprehensive Questions Here are some questions to get your thoughts and cash flow moving that will also keep your product creating aligned and focused. Find your gold mine in your surroundings by looking at any promotional literature you have created, audio or video tapes you have produced, press releases or articles about or by you, your product catalog or list and even your business card. Build Relationships Personal marketing makes it easier to sell, by building relationships nurtured on awareness, value and trust. Make your relationships more fruitful by making them personal. Five Marketing Tips to Double Profits It's a startling fact: almost all entrepreneurs aren't marketing their businesses effectively. Marketing goes much deeper than advertising. How to Really Get Your Customers What Really Makes Your Postcard Mailing Successful? The biggest single factor in the success of your postcard mailings is who you send your postcards to.You need a list of people or businesses to send your postcard offer to. Meaning and Marketing - The Eye of the Storm It's 1954. Yes, Mrs.
|
| Article List | Index | Site Map |
|
All logos, trademarks and articles on this site are property and copyright of their respective owner(s).
The comments are property of their posters, all the rest is Copyright © 2006 CanadaSEEK.com - All Rights Reserved. |
