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We need to talk about your entitlement mindset

March 28, 2018 by Jim Connolly

There’s a very common mindset among small business owners. It’s the entitlement mindset. And almost NO small business owner is aware of it, until it’s explained to them. That’s what this post is about, along with lots of ideas for how to put things right.

What does the entitlement mindset look like?

The mindset tells the small business owner that they’re entitled to success. They think they can be average, yet still succeed. They believe they can just keep on doing the same ineffective stuff, and over time, things will “somehow” just improve.

It’s little wonder the vast majority of small business owners fail, and the vast majority that survive are going nowhere. Spinning their wheels. Waiting for the break they never earned, to arrive.

The wake-up call of our age is this: We’re not entitled to anything! We have to earn it. And that includes the attention of our prospective clients. They call it paying attention for a reason.

Remember when I shared this with you?

Your blog doesn’t have subscribers, your newsletter doesn’t have readers, your Facebook Group doesn’t have members, your podcast doesn’t have listeners and your Youtube channel doesn’t have viewers.

You don’t own anyone’s attention. It’s borrowed. You have to earn it. Then re-earn it.

As this blog approaches it’s 10th birthday, this is something I’m focusing on a great deal. If I decide to commit to an 11th year, I will also need to commit to digging deep, to find ways to re-earn your attention. Again and again. That means I need to be as useful as possible to you. Knowing that if I fail to be worthy of your attention, you’ll take your attention back.

In other words, your attention is not something I am entitled to.

Okay. [Imagine dramatic music in the background] Now the bad news!

The same is true of your marketing

Sorry. But if your marketing fails to offer something worthy of your prospective client’s attention, they’ll take it elsewhere. You only have their attention on loan. And if you lose their attention, you’ll also have lost the opportunity to do business with them. You can’t afford that. It’s low leverage. It’s unsustainable.

In short, once you’ve earned the attention of a prospective client, it makes way more sense to work on retaining it. This is how you build a spectacularly valuable communication channel with them.

So share ideas, stories and suggestions with your prospective clients, which THEY will find useful. 99.9% of small business marketing doesn’t do this. It’s self-serving, from the entitlement mindset. It doesn’t attract attention and it certainly doesn’t re-earn attention. It’s usually a dull series of thinly disguised sales pitches and special offers.

They think they are entitled to the attention of people, when in reality, they’re not entitled to shit!

A quick look at the way things were

Old school marketing was all about interrupting people. It was about sales pitches. It was about big brands paying fortunes to get their ad in front of you while you were trying to watch TV or listen to the radio. The huge problem with that model, was that you had to start from scratch every time. It was expensive. Really expensive. This put it beyond the reach of small businesses. However, it was the backbone of the highly lucrative advertising industry for over a century.

The advertising industry today is undergoing a huge change. Brands are embracing the value of earned attention. They’re shifting from demanding your attention, to commanding it. They’ve moved from pestering you, to sharing stories with you.
Read this» Demanding attention versus Commanding attention.

The anti entitlement mindset alternative

Focus on what matters to your prospective clients. Then, use your marketing to share useful ideas with them. Here are just a few suggestions.

Show them how your product / service can save them money.
Show them how your product / service can save them time.
Show them how your product / service can help them attract more customers.
Show them how your product / service can make their life easier, less stressful or both.
Give them useful industry insights.
Give them useful tips, which have worked for others in their industry (or situation).

This model turns your marketing into a valuable asset for your marketplace. Guess what? That’s the kind of marketing that people share and talk about. It’s the kind of marketing that builds trust and generates sales. It’s an anti-entitlement approach to marketing.

It’s also the kind of marketing you need to embrace.

Why?

Because pushing sales pitches at prospective clients, who are already suffering from information overload, is less and less effective.

And unlike the past, your prospective clients have technology today that lets them block you, filter you from their inbox or unsubscribe from you.

What about marketing to your existing clients?

You’re not entitled to the repeat business of an existing client or customer, either. You need to re-earn it, again and again. So a similar, them-focused approach is required. Only this time, create marketing that’s useful for your clients, which includes (but isn’t limited to) how to get more from your products or services.

Apple provides us with a world-class example of how to do this right. Their dedicated Apple Support YouTube channel doesn’t sell stuff. Instead, it adds value to the Apple products you already own. This makes you more inclined to stay with their brand.

Here’s why this works so well.

Let’s assume you’re an iPhone user. When you fully understand how your iPhone works, via those helpful videos, you’ll get more value from it. This makes it massively more likely your next tablet will be an iPad, (which uses the exact same operating system). And with an iPhone and iPad, the Apple Watch makes more sense than buying a different, less compatible brand.

Can you see what Apple are doing? They’re marketing to existing customers, sharing useful information, because they know they’re not entitled to the repeat business of their customers.

Apple are the most valuable company on the planet. However, unlike the average small business owner, Apple does not have an entitlement mindset.

In summary

Your business and mine share one thing in common, my friend. Neither of them are entitled to anything. It’s when we accept this reality, that our mindset to marketing shifts from entitlement to earned attention. And when that shift happens, it manifests itself with a totally different approach to marketing.

So get out there and contribute to your marketplace. Bring radical value. Be as useful as you can as often as you can. And take absolutely nothing for granted.

They lied to you! You need style over substance

March 21, 2018 by Jim Connolly

The following statement will sound counter-intuitive. That’s because you’ve been lied to for years. Okay. Here goes.

In marketing, there’s a case for style over substance.

It’s a strong case, too.

Just think about this for a moment:

The top political commentators get paid a ton of money, to deliver their take on the news for major networks.
The also-rans get paid peanuts, to deliver their take on the news, for small, local networks.

Here’s the thing. In both cases, the news (substance) they comment on is the same. Here’s why one of them is earning 10 times or 50 times more than the other. It’s their style. The style with which they work.

For example:

Their courage, when choosing to take (or avoid) a controversial stance.
Their vocabulary.
Their energy.
Their ability to communicate with confidence.
Their effectiveness when injecting their personality (style) into their work, so that it’s truly theirs.

Here’s my point. When it comes to business, the substance should be there by default. Every qualified accountant, lawyer, web designer, whatever… knows what their service (substance) is and how it works. It’s their style that makes all the difference. It’s their style that sets them apart from the crowd.

Style over substance in marketing

The newsletters, blogs, vlogs, podcasts, Facebook groups, Medium publishers, etc., that people take notice of, all have their own style. The same is true of the most successful email marketing, advertising, marketing campaigns and copywriting.

And the ones that fail to grow, fail to get noticed, fail to make an impact… well… they don’t.

Instead, they follow the cookie-cutter approach to content marketing. They bought into the lie. The lie that says, “You can automate everything. Just do things this way and it works. Follow the steps. 1-2-3”.

That’s bull-crap.

It doesn’t work. In fact, it can’t possibly work. Because your style can’t be found in a book.

You can certainly learn substance that way. However, your style, the very thing that gets you noticed, by default, can’t possibly be learned from an online course, a book, seminar, webinar or any other generalized form of information.

Why?

Because your style is all about you.

Where are you right now?

Okay, I already know that you totally understand your subject. So the substance is there. It’s taken care of. That’s covered. You’re good.

But what about the style?

When it comes to your marketing, when it comes to the story behind your service, are you telling it from your perspective? Are you sharing the substance of your knowledge, using your voice, your stories and your experiences? Because it’s your style that people connect with.

It’s your style that sets you apart.
It’s your style that causes people to return for more.
It’s your style that makes you approachable.
It’s your style that gives you a voice.
It’s your style that inspires people to share your message.
It’s your style that gives value to your substance.
It’s your style that motivates people to hire you or buy from you, rather than a cheaper alternative.

And none of that can be robotized. Or automated. Because it’s you. It’s your authentic experience. It’s your greatest marketing asset. In fact, with so many competitors out there, with so many people trying to get the attention of your prospective clients, your style is the most powerful tool in your arsenal. By far.

So give your style the oxygen it needs.

Tip: I work with business owners every day on how to get this right, based on their unique situation and what they want to achieve. If you’re tired of being ignored, read this and get in touch.

Give your best advice away for free. Here’s why

March 15, 2018 by Jim Connolly

What I’m about to share with you may sound a little counter-intuitive. It isn’t. In fact, it could help you achieve breakthrough marketing results.

Allow me to explain.

I come across the following problem a lot. Mainly from service providers, who are struggling to attract new clients with their content marketing. Their primary concern looks something like this:

I know I need to provide good, free advice via my content. Surely if I give my best ideas away for free, no one will pay to hire me.

I’ve already explained why you should be stingy with your time, but not your ideas. However, there’s another, excellent reason why you should provide outstanding, free advice.

And it’s this…

Think for a moment about the alternative. Imagine you publish a newsletter, videos, a blog or a podcast. Now let’s also imagine that instead of sharing great advice, you share weaker information. Average free stuff. Nothing special. Nothing that really stands out.

Guess what?

You’ve just given your marketplace a weak, low-impact insight into your work. You’ve painted a lousy picture of how good you are. So, not only will people be highly unlikely to hire you, they’ll also be unlikely to share your newsletters, videos, podcasts, blog posts or subscribe to you. That’s a huge lose, lose. (Actually, that’s wrong; it’s a lose, lose, lose, because you’ll also be damaging your reputation as a knowledgeable professional. Ouch!)

Here’s what really happens when you give great free advice

Yes, freebie hunters will certainly gobble up all your free advice. But that doesn’t lose you a penny. Why? Because they were never going to hire you anyway. Freebie hunters are the dabblers. The DIYers. So, they were never a prospective client. (Tip, read this: Don’t let greedy amateurs get you down).

Yes, a subset of genuine prospective clients who take your free advice will do (whatever) themselves. Of course, if they find your ideas so powerful that they actually use them, they’re highly likely to subscribe to you and share your work. That’s how every successful resource spreads. Also, I know from experience that many of them will later hire you.

However… there’s also a hefty subset of prospective clients who will find your high quality advice extremely valuable. Now, this subset of prospective clients are the ones who value their time. They love the peace-of-mind that comes from getting expert help. They value professionalism.

These prospective clients will hire you, so you can do the job properly for them. And yes, they’ll also share your newsletters, videos, podcasts, blog posts and subscribe to you.

How do I know for 100% certain that this works?

Simple: It’s how I grew my business!

It’s why I get enquiries from prospective clients, multiple times, all day long, every day. And if it works for me, it can work for you too. Just make sure to offer as much value as you can, as often as you can. Hold nothing back.

P.S. Here’s that article I mentioned earlier. It’s well worth a read: Be stingy with your time, but not your ideas.

How to build a huge and valuable list

February 22, 2018 by Jim Connolly

Hold onto your hat – I think you’re going to love this!

If you want to build a large and extremely valuable content marketing list, today’s post is exactly what you’ve been waiting for.

I was inspired to write this, after a reader emailed me. He explained that he had just read this post. Then he made an excellent point. And it highlights why most small business owners fail to get the content marketing results they want. Here’s what he said, along with my response.

He said that if his newsletter had lots of readers, he’d make time for it. he’d take it a lot more seriously. He’d publish regularly. He’d invest in a professional newsletter distribution service. He’d make it a high priority business activity. But he can’t justify the time now, because his readership is too small.

Overcoming the biggest challenge with list building

Every small business owner with a newsletter, podcast, blog or vlog started off with a tiny audience (or list). Just them and their friends. Mine started off with 6 readers. And one of them was me! However, there’s one massively important difference between those who build a huge list and those who don’t.

Those who build a huge list put the time and effort in, in advance, so that it grows. They do their best work and turn up regularly, when they have just 10 people. Because they know that’s the only way to build an audience of 1,000 people or 100,000 people.
Those who fail to grow their list, also start off with enthusiasm. But their enthusiasm drops, if their list isn’t growing as quickly as they expected. So, they commit less time to it. And things slow down even more.

The cornerstone of building a great list

The only way to successfully grow an audience or list, is to treat your work as if you already had the numbers you wanted. I wrote with as much passion, commitment and energy when I had 6 readers, as when I reached my first 10,000 readers. And I write with that same commitment today.

From day one, you need to invest the time and effort required. Here are some examples of what’s needed, plus a few tips.

Put in the effort. It’s work… not something you fit in around work. Put time aside specifically for developing and publishing.
Turn up often. If you have a newsletter, which you only publish once a month, it will take a lot longer to build your list, than a weekly newsletter. If you have a blog and you only publish once a week, it will take a lot longer to build your audience, than if you publish several times a week.
Learn what kind of information your marketplace needs and wants. A great way to do this, is to look at questions they ask in relevant forums or on social media.
Learn how to become a better (and better) communicator. Whatever content marketing channel you choose, learn from the best.
Make your work easy (and interesting) to read / watch / listen to.
Make it easy to share. This is essential if you want your list to grow.
Never add anyone to your list. Seriously, don’t. That’s not content marketing. That’s spamming. And spamming sucks.
Avoid content marketing tricks. Tricks have a predictable habit of backfiring. Just commit to doing the work. That has a predictable habit of succeeding.

I know what you’re thinking. That sounds like a lot of work. And it is. However, the rewards are disproportionately huge if you’re willing to commit to doing the work.

Here are a few more posts I’ve written on this subject.

How blogging can help you attract new clients.

How to earn trust with your content marketing.

The death of blogging.

Content Marketing: Is this useful?

I hope you find this useful. More importantly, I hope it inspires you to improve your content marketing, so you achieve the outstanding results you’re capable of.