Many small business owners go to great lengths, to pretend that their business is actually a lot bigger than it really is. When I ask people why they do this, they usually tell me it’s because they think prospective clients won’t use them, if they know how small they are.

In my experience, it’s never a great idea to start any relationship, including a commercial one, on a foundation of lies.  If Bob’s marketing contains addresses for offices that exist only in his mind and fake telephone numbers that are all diverted to his one real line, he’s clearly being less than honest.  When his clients find out he’s lying about the size of his business, he will have lost their trust.  This is perhaps one of the worst possible business scenarios.

Ironically, the whole idea of lying about the size or capacity of a business is completely erroneous, from a marketing perspective!

There’s zero point in pretending you are big enough to handle a project or client, that is clearly way beyond your means.  Even if you do manage to fool them into thinking you have the resources to handle their needs, they will quickly realise you don’t, once they start working with you.

Successful marketing (and business development), is about working with clients that suit your business model, not fooling those who are unsuitable into joining, and then leaving you.

Some of the smallest brands are the most respected

The small business mindset, which says; “if they know how small my business is, I will win fewer clients”, is based on an incorrect assumption.  It assumes that quality is linked to how large a business is, when the opposite is more often true.  In reality, some of the most respected brands are smaller scale and some of the least respected brands are high street chains.

For example, until last year, Twitter employed fewer than 30 full-time people, yet it was massively successful.  Twitter attracted tens of millions of dollars and has been valued at a BILLION dollars. You can join me on Twitter here.

The most famous shop in the UK and maybe one of the most famous in the world, has just one UK outlet.  I’m talking about Harrods.

Conversely, some of the lowest class and most unhealthy food in your local town, is almost certainly dished up by a national or international burger chain – but the best food is almost certainly from a great little independent restaurant you know.

Small businesses should play to their strengths

The most successful small businesses play to their strengths; rather than lie about being something they are not.  They focus on quality, not quantity.  They develop great, long-term relationships with their clients and customers, because in most cases they know their clients and customers extremely well.

Small businesses also benefit from being able to make a decision and take action immediately, whereas large companies typically move much slower. So long as they play to their strengths, small businesses can achieve amazing results and be extremely profitable too.

I would be interested to know what your thoughts are on small businesses, who create a bogus front end to make their business look bigger.

Photo: Nevolution

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The message behind this post can save you from years of frustration and help you dramatically improve your future sales results!

I received an email yesterday, from someone who has occasionally emailed me for marketing advice over the past couple of years.  This person (who will remain nameless for obvious reasons), is one of my newsletter subscribers and has been in business for years as a trainer and author.  She emailed me, asking for some free marketing advice – Before explaining that she was still unable to afford professional marketing help.

By the way, her work is very good and people seem to love her courses, as the feedback she gets is excellent.  She also works extremely hard.

So, we are talking about a hard working person, with a great product – Yet after years of trying, they are still making so little progress that they are unable to even afford a basic, inexpensive business service.

Here’s why:

Hard work is NOT the secret of business success

If it was, our grandparents would have been millionaires!

By working hard marketing her business incorrectly, this lady is like the rower; rowing their boat as hard as they can in the wrong direction. The harder they work, the further they go from where they want to be.

I have to admit, even after 15 years of running a successful marketing business, I’m still amazed whenever I hear an intelligent person say that they have been conducting their own marketing for years with no success; yet they persist in carrying on with no professional help.

Now, I can understand a relatively new business forgetting to put a budget in place for their marketing.  However, when a business has been trading for years, never making any real money because it’s determined not to invest in professional marketing help, that’s just something that makes zero sense to me.

Ironically, these businesses often spend MORE on marketing, than those that have their marketing looked after professionally.

How come?

Because they waste so much money on ineffective marketing:

• They send out mail shots that cost money, but no one reads.
• They buy costly brochures, which achieve nothing for them and in many cases will LOSE them sales because of how they are used and how they are worded.
• The send email marketing to people, which contains ‘pedestrian’ copy and thus fails to inspire people to call them or buy from them.
• They attend dead-end networking events.
• They market haphazardly, with no idea of how to leverage what they are doing so it’s massively more effective.
• They get websites built that fail to convert readers into customers.
• They waste massive amounts of their valuable time building online networks via; Twitter, Facebook, Linkedin etc – with little if anything financially to show for it.
• They buy advertising, which contains the wrong message, so no one takes any notice of it.
• They make short-term marketing decisions – rather than work from a simple but powerful marketing strategy.

…. and they keep on repeating these mistakes for years; until they either go broke or become too demotivated to continue.

Conclusion

Here’s what I have found: Many businesspeople confuse having the tools to do the job, with having the experience and expertise.  They think that because they have a; computer, Internet access, a car and a phone, that they can market their services.  They just need that ‘lucky break.’

This is like suggesting that owning a surgeon’s operating theatre, means you can perform heart or brain surgery; so long as your luck’s in!

Thankfully, sales and marketing results are extremely easy to measure. If you are getting the sales and profits you want, change nothing. If not, I strongly suggest you speak with a marketing professional.

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I think that the title of this post says it all – so let’s get straight to the first marketing tip!

Marketing tip number 1:

When you send a marketing email to someone on a ‘list’ you bought or hired, they do not know who you are.  Therefore, they are highly likely to consider your message as ‘spammy‘.  Not only are they very unlikely to buy from you, they might start Twittering or telling their FaceBook / LinkedIn contacts that your company just spammed them!

Marketing tip number 2:

Learn to identify the difference between marketing activities you can do, and those you can do effectively.  Anyone “can” write a marketing letter or email, but a specialist copywriter can get (literally) thousands of percent better response rates than a keen amateur.

Marketing tip number 3:

If you want your business to benefit from word of mouth publicity, it’s essential to give people something worth talking about!

Marketing tip number 4:

Give your clients a call from time to time, just to see how they are.  Don’t even think of trying to sell them something, just engage them as a fellow human being.

Marketing tip number 5:

Become famous within your industry for how well you look after your customers. This kind of reputation is gold dust.  Offering the best customer service means you will retain your existing clients for longer and find it far easier to win new customers too.

Marketing tip number 6:

Review your current marketing activities and immediately stop anything that is not working. Most small business owners have 2 or 3 forms of marketing, which they stick with primarily because they are “comfortable” with them.

Marketing tip number 7:

The most successful businesses don’t wait until things ‘slow down’ before they focus on marketing. Marketing is an ongoing function within all successful businesses.

Marketing tip number 8:

When was the last time your accountant or bank manager recommended a new client or customer to you? If it’s been a while, meet with them and ask them why. These people have “credible access” to thousands of contacts and could be a great source of new customers.

Marketing tip number 9:

Look outside your industry for marketing ideas and inspiration.  When you simply replicate the marketing activities of your competitors, it’s harder and more expensive for your message to be seen / heard / read.

Marketing tip number 10:

Using a genuine, handwritten signature on your marketing letters can increase your positive response rates significantly.  Though this can only realistically be used on smaller mailings, it is worth the extra effort.

Marketing tip number 11:

Invest in a book, audio program or training course, on how to handle inbound ‘phone calls more effectively.  Even if it only improved your effectiveness by 15 or 20 percent, you could see a real increase in new business over the coming 6 months.

Marketing tip number 12:

Turn your website into a lead generating machine in two EASY steps. Firstly, get the site Search Engine Optimised, so stacks of targeted prospective clients can find you.  Secondly, get your website copy written by an expert, so the people who find you are motivated to call you, visit your premises or email you.  This is an extremely powerful and cost effective way to generate targeted business and enquiries.

Marketing tip number 13:

Keep copies of any marketing material, which motivated you to buy something or register for something. Then, see what you can learn and apply into your business.

Marketing tip number 14:

Your best ideas can come at any time, so make sure it’s always easy for you to capture them.  I recommend you carry a small digital audio recorder. They cost very little and are a lot easier to use than a notepad; especially if you are out for a run at the time!

Marketing tip number 15:

Always look for ways to increase the value of your services.  The more value you offer, the easier it is to win new clients and the harder it is for someone to tempt them away!

Marketing tip number 16:

Who is the most successful company or person in your industry right now?  Find out and then see what you can learn from their success. A quick study of the least successful people in your industry can be equally valuable, by showing you what to avoid!

Marketing tip number 17:

Make sure your full contact details are visible on every email you send.

Marketing tip number 18:

Can you give at least one really good reason why someone should use your services, rather than any of your competitors? If not, it’s time to add a uniquely valuable dimension to your service. It’s easier, less expensive and the results come faster – when you market a uniquely valuable service, as opposed to an ‘average’ one.

Marketing tip number 19:

Before you take marketing advice from anyone, especially online, check out their background first.  Much of the free marketing advice on the Internet is so poor that it could seriously damage a business.

Marketing tip number 20:

Testimonials can be extremely effective, but only if used correctly.  Make sure that the testimonials you use in your marketing, are from people your prospective clients can identify with and that they compliment different elements of your services.

Marketing tip number 21:

What do prospective clients see, when they search for your name or your organisations name on Google?  Over 95% of people now check a potential supplier out on a search engine, before deciding to use them or not.

Marketing tip number 22:

When writing a marketing message, focus it 100% on your most preferred prospective client type. Unfocused marketing messages do not compel, motivate or inspire people to respond. By trying to appeal to too wide a group of people, you fail to be directly relevant to anyone. Focus, focus, focus!

Marketing tip number 23:

Avoid using address labels on mail shots – it’s what many junk mail senders use. You will get a better response rate if you use window envelopes, with the name and address printed onto the letter; because more people will actually open the envelope.

Marketing tip number 24:

Never moan to your contacts about how bad business is, even when things are quiet.  Bad news spreads fast and people avoid doing business with (and recommending) what they think might be a “sinking ship.”

Marketing tip number 25:

Avoid the use of buzzwords in your marketing or negotiations whenever possible.

Marketing tip number 26:

Other then your direct competitors, who already has a great relationship with your prospective clients?  Their endorsement of you and your services is gold dust. Now, think of how to motivate them, so that they want to share how brilliant you are with their network.  The results can be amazing.

Marketing tip number 27:

People hate being pestered or pursued.  If you want to attract business, stop chasing it!

Marketing tip number 28:

I have never paid a penny for advertising, however, in the past 14 days, 3 of the best known companies in the world have asked me for marketing help or advice.  This is purely because of my reputation and my online presence. What are you doing, to attract enquiries for free?

Marketing tip number 29:

Start a blog and post new material to it whenever you have something valuable you want to share.  Blogs are either free or inexpensive, yet they can be excellent for developing your reputation as an expert and for communicating with people.

Marketing tip number 30:

Does your website have a contact form that people can use to get in touch?  If so, make it as easy as possible for people to use, by asking for as little information as possible. Name & email address should be enough for someone to make an enquiry. Asking for their company name, phone, location etc just puts people off!

Marketing tip number 31:

Let your personality come through your business. People find it easier to connect with a business when it has a personality – than when a business feels cold or impersonal.

Marketing tip number 32:

When building your business network, size is far, far less important than quality.  Don’t waste your time ‘connecting’ with people, who lack influence or reach. A network of 10, extremely well connected, influential people is USUALLY more than you will ever need!  BTW: You won’t meet these people at a typical networking ‘club.’

Marketing tip number 33:

It’s far easier to sell something to an existing client than it is to sell something to a stranger.  Find 3 new services, which are profitable for you to provide and which your clients really need – then offer them to your clients.  This is probably the fastest way for you to generate a huge increase in turnover and profits.

Marketing tip number 34:

Subscribe to my marketing newsletter and get articles like this one, once a month!

Remember to share!

If you find these tips and ideas interesting, please share them on your favourite social network, using the link below.

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The most successful businesspeople work smart. They understand the difference between movement (being busy) and progress (being busy doing the right things.)

Hard work alone is not enough, which is why many of the hardest working people out there, get very average results.

As they say, “if hard work alone was the secret to success, our grandparents would all have been millionaires!”

The secret to business success

I have been fortunate enough to work with and associate with some exceptionally successful people.  One of the common traits I have witnessed with all of them, is that they use a ‘test and measure’ approach to everything of importance in their life and their business.  This test and measure approach is also the cornerstone of successful marketing; so I am going to use a marketing example, to show how it works.

For example, when I write marketing emails, I will test different headlines (sometimes called straplines) against each other and measure the feedback – keeping the most effective headline.  Every element of the email is similarly tested and measured; everything from the number of words used, to the time and the day it’s sent.  This can increase positive response rates by (literally) thousands of percent.

Test and measure for business success

In business, the most successful people constantly test and measure what they are doing.  This is how they manage to grow their businesses so successfully; even during a recession! They study the feedback from everything they do and then set their sail accordingly.  This guarantees they move forward and make regular, measurable progress.  When something is not getting the results they want, they quickly seek to either improve it or replace it.  If something works, they seek to maximise it’s potential.

As a direct result, their businesses grow faster and more reliably than their competitors and they can look to the future with excitement, instead of apprehension.

A new year of the same old year over & over again?

When we compare that approach to the way most businesses operate, we see a major difference!

The so-called ‘average’ business owner will work really hard, yet spend their time repeating what they feel comfortable with.   For example, if they feel comfortable attending networking events and writing marketing letters, that’s how they will market their business – even if this is not the right marketing mix for their business, (which it isn’t for ANY business.)  For these people, 1st January is not the start of a new year – it’s just an opportunity to relive the same old year over and over and over again!

The good news is that any of us can dramatically produce amazing results in our businesses (and in any area of our life for that matter,) when we adopt the test and measure approach. We owe it to ourselves to ensure that we are making the progress required, to get the rewards that our hard work merits.

If your business has reached a plateau or your sales have hit a ceiling, the temptation is to work harder or work longer hours or both.  However, what you really need is an effective marketing strategy to work with.

Why?

Because, even if you row your boat REALLY HARD in the wrong direction, all that hard work will actually take you further away from where you want to be!

What next?

I have prepared a list of ten, highly effective marketing tips for you here, which you can start using right now, to help you take your business to the next level.

I also recommend you subscribe to my marketing newsletter. It’s only sent once every 3 or 4 weeks and each edition contains valuable, free marketing advice.  To get your copy (and your free ebook), simply click here.

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For most businesses, the first week in January is not the start of a New Year – It’s simply the chance to live the same old year over and over and over again!

They carry on investing their time and money in all the wrong places and thus, they get the same kind of results.  Such businesses reach a plateau after a few years and tend to stay there.  Like a truck that’s stuck in the mud, the harder they try the deeper they seem to get trapped.

The owners of these businesses complain about their lack of results, but fail to make the changes required for success. This fear of change is what psychologists refer to as The Homoeostatic impulse.  It’s best demonstrated in the human desire for things to “be the same – but better.” However, as we all know, improvement can only come as the result of change.  Things don’t “just magically get better” – we have to make them better.

If you always do what you have always done, you will always get what you have always got!

So, as we enter the first full working week of 2009, let’s embrace the opportunity to learn from what we did in 2008.

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As some of my more eagle-eyed readers will have noticed, I have just added a new page to this website; all about my popular 1 Year Marketing Program.

If you are serious about dramatically improving your sales and profits, this program is exactly what you need!  To find out more, click here!

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It’s a fact; before someone becomes a client or customer of your business, they need to trust you.  One of the fastest ways to create an image for your business, which people in the marketplace will trust (and desire), is to make “the power of association” a part of your marketing mix!

Marketing and short cuts

People are programmed to look for short cuts when it comes to making decisions!  This is why the recommendation of a friend is so powerful.  If there are 10 equally good print companies in your area and you need to pick one, the one that has been highly recommended to you by half a dozen of your friends will win your business every time!

The recommendation of your friends quickly and powerfully reduces the level of risk you feel about using the recommended company.

In marketing, you can ‘leverage‘ the power of association to create a similar decision making short cut in the mind of all your prospective clients!

The marketing power of association

If your prospective clients associate you or your business with a highly respected person or organisation, they mentally link you and them together.  This instantly elevates your reputation in the marketplace!

For example, an unknown designer can make a fortune, simply by having Brad Pitt say he loves wearing their clothes!  Yesterday, he or she was an unknown designer – today they are a super-cool designer to the stars!   Their designs are no better or worse than they always were, but their new association with Brad Pitt means there will now be massive demand for their work.

Brad Pitt’s praise created a short cut, by showing people these designs were ‘cool.’  His comments would also generate a stack of invaluable free publicity. That’s the power of association!

How the power of association helps me

If, for example, someone has never heard of me, they might be cautious about using my free marketing advice.  However, when they learn that I have contributed to The BBC or CBS or their favourite newspaper – they instantly see me in a different light.  My work takes on a totally different perspective, because of my associates.

How the power of association can help YOU!

More importantly, the power of association can be used to massively improve YOUR results!  If you want to benefit from the power of association, you need to do two things.

1. Firstly, you must be extremely selective about who and what you associate yourself and your business with.  You need to deliberately target people and organisations that will increase your reputation in your marketplace.
   .
   For example, phone your local radio station and ask if they need a newspaper reviewer for their early show.  (That’s how I got my first coverage on The BBC!)Think of the people and organisations that are most respected in your profession and form associations with them.
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2. Secondly, you must make sure that everyone knows about your high calibre associations!  It’s not enough to be linked to some great people and organisations; you need to make sure the marketplace knows.
   

The power of association can also work AGAINST you!

I spoke with an accountant recently, who told me he had wasted over £1,000 sponsoring a business event.  The event was a free-to-attend lunch and seminar; hosted by a well-known UK business development organisation.

Although he got a handful of leads from the event, they were a total waste of time.  He explained; “they just picked my brain for free accountancy advice!”

The reason his sponsorship could never have worked is simple.  He had just associated his accountancy practice with an organisation well-known across the UK for providing free, low quality business advice! Also, the people attending the event were those who are looking for FREE, generic advice.  These are the very worst people to market his premium accountancy service to, because advice from a qualified accountant is neither free nor low quality!

So, it’s extremely important to be selective, regarding who you associate your business with.  The right associations will attract business and the wrong associations will lose you business even faster!

Avoid this common problem

As I mentioned earlier, a personal or professional recommendation CAN be a wonderful source of new business.  The problem here, is that very little is ever said about the DAMAGE that can result from having your business recommended by people who lack credibility or are unprofessional!

For example, I was emailed by one of my newsletter subscribers, who runs a small law firm.  He had been a member of one of those networking groups; which meet for breakfast once a week to swap referrals.  To remain a member of this network, you have to provide leads every week.

He found that a few of his fellow networking associates were using the same ‘high-pressure techniques’ to generate leads for him; as they were using to generate leads for their own direct sales businesses.

Two years later, his law firm’s professional reputation is still tarnished; because of the hard sell approach used by his former networking associates!

What next?

Every association you have is either helping you gain credibility and trust within the marketplace or it’s bringing your reputation down!  Take time to list and then evaluate the credentials of everyone whose name or logo you use in your marketing.

Next, decide which side of the scales they are on!  Are they helping you or hurting you?

If they are not improving how the marketplace views your business, you should seriously consider disassociating from them immediately.

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