If your sales results are too erratic or you find yourself in that feast or famine cycle, this post is written just for you.
Most businesses offer products or services, which people are only interested in when they have a problem. If your business provides the answer to a problem, there’s a very good chance you’re using the wrong marketing approach.
I’m going to explain why and also show you how to get it right.
Knowing you before they need you
Coaches, accountants, designers, dentists, trainers, financial professionals, lawyers, translators, consultants, etc., are only sought after, when someone has a requirement.
Here’s the thing: If they already know who you are, before they need you, you are massively more likely to earn their custom, than some provider they have never heard of. For instance, my most recent client had been a subscriber of mine for months, before hiring me.
I once heard Mercedes’ head of advertising say, that if Mercedes focused on showing people advertisements, the week before they were about to buy a new car, it wouldn’t work. So, Mercedes focus on getting their marketing messages in front of us when we’re kids. Then, when we’re 35 and are thinking of buying our first luxury car, we think of Mercedes.
Whilst that approach is too long-term for most small businesses to consider, the advice is sound. It’s all about the client or customer knowing who we are, before they need us.
Switch from short-term gambits to a long-term strategy
Make marketing an ongoing part of your business, not something you do when you lose a client or when sales are down. Remain relevant to your marketplace. Stay in their mind (sometimes called ‘front of mind’). Keep earning their attention, through strategic, useful, permission-based marketing.
In a nutshell: If you want great, long-term results, you need to make great, long-term plans.