Here is one of the most effective, and shortest tips in marketing.

It’s based on one of the foundations of successful sales: A confused mind always says no!

In other words, when faced with a buying decision, a confused prospective client will not proceed. They’ll say ‘no’ or walk away, rather than risk making a bad decision. And you are the one who pays the price, for their lack of clarity.

So, how many different choices are your prospective clients or customers faced with?

Here’s why that question is so important and why you need to get the balance right.

1. The more options you put in front of someone, the more choice they have.
2. The more choice they have, the harder it is for them to decide.
3. The harder their decision making process is, the less likely they are to hire you or buy from you.
4. They move on.
5. You lose a prospective client or a sale, to a less confusing competitor.

In short: Clarity sells.

Take time to go through your marketing and look for all unnecessary confusion. Some good places to start (depending on your industry) may include; the number of service levels you provide, your various pricing options, the number of bundles or packages you offer.

Then consider whether you actually need to offer so much complexity, so much potential for confusion. And if not, reduce. Everything that needs to be there should remain. But nothing else.

In today’s post, I’m going to show you a powerful way to get more, great people talking about the services you provide. But that’s not all. I’m also going to explain how to overcome a major problem: how to get people to say the right things about you.

I’ll even throw in a world-class example of how it works.

Okay let’s go

The starting point, is to decide exactly what you want people to say. Otherwise, you’re relying on them making something up on the spot. And usually, when someone is asked if they can recommend a provider, it will be a generic, weak message.

For example, if you ask someone if they have an accountant they’d recommend, the reply is usually something like; “Sure. We’re happy with the (Whatever) Accountancy Firm”.

That’s nice.

But all it really says, is that this particular person is happy with the service they receive. It’s the bare minimum. It’s vague. It says nothing about the service this accountancy firm provides. And it’s certainly not compelling.

Here’s why this matters to you: It’s entirely possible you’re already being regularly referred or recommended to great prospective clients. But you’re unaware, because, as in the above example, the referral is totally ineffective. And an ineffective referral is close to worthless.

Let’s see how the fastest growing companies overcome this problem.

How to get this right

Okay, let’s look at that accountancy firm again.

Only this time, they were professionally marketed and had already incorporated a short, memorable strapline in their branding. Something like “building stronger businesses”. If used correctly, that 3 word phrase would become an automatic part of their referrals.

So, instead of; “Sure. We’re happy with the (Whatever) Accountancy Firm.”

You get; “Sure. We’re happy with the (Whatever) Accountancy Firm. They specialize in building stronger businesses.”

That second referral is massively more powerful with far greater impact.

Think about it. If someone is looking for a new accountant, they’re clearly not happy with their current one. If we assume their existing accountant isn’t really interested in their business, a trusted referral about an accountant that focuses on building stronger businesses is exactly what they want to hear. Such referrals could be 2X, 5X or maybe 10X more powerful at encouraging people to call the accountant, than a simple “we’re happy with them”.

Here’s the thing: Most businesses make it too hard for their clients, customers or friends to know what to say when referring them. And it loses them a fortune.

Make it easier. Correctly integrate an easy to remember 3 or 4 word strapline into your marketing, so people don’t have to make something up on the spot. When you get it right, that strapline becomes part of the conversations people have about you.

That example took me 30 seconds to come up with. Now let’s look at a proven, world-class example of how this works.

How good is their food?

The marketing team behind Kentucky Fried Chicken wanted to give their diners a simple way to describe how delicious the food was. So, they made it very simple. They placed a short, powerful strapline on all their packaging.

It described their food as, “finger lickin’ good”.

And the rest is history!

Those who ate and enjoyed their chicken, now knew exactly what to tell their friends. Moreover, they were delivering an amazingly powerful, professionally written marketing message. Aware of its impact, KFC announced last month that they would suspend the use of the finger lickin good message, during the remainder of the coronavirus pandemic. See the 30 second KFC video here. Coronavirus can be spread through contact between your hands and mouth, including finger licking.

Regardless of whether you happen to like fried chicken, the mental image created with that message is powerful. The idea of people enjoying their food so much that they licked their fingers, would surely motivate their hungry friends to give KFC a try. Plus, because people who eat at fast-food restaurants know other people who also enjoy fast-food, it was pure, marketing gold.

So, the message spread. Millions or billions of times. Worldwide.

Try this

Take some time to think about want you want people to say about your business or the service you provide. Then, spend as much time as necessary crafting a powerful, extremely short strapline. If you don’t have the time or expertise to get this right, find a professional who will do it for you.

Just don’t keep missing out on great word of mouth referrals or targeted sales leads, because people aren’t recommending you correctly.

I’d like to introduce you to your main competitor.

Oh, and it’s almost certainly not the competitor you’re thinking of. Whilst there are a few (very few) exceptions, your main competitor is not an alternative brand, vendor or service provider.

No.

Your main competitor is apathy: The decision by your prospective clients (or prospects) to avoid the risk, hassle and stress of switching to you, from their current provider.

Small business marketing almost always fails to address this effectively. It focuses on reasons to hire them or buy from them, without even addressing the huge leap of faith required by a new client. This is especially the case for service providers and those selling high ticket goods.

Your marketing needs to simultaneously build trust in you AND convince prospects that switching to you is easier, than enduring their current provider.

The smartest business owners ensure their marketing clearly demonstrates the following.

• Why people can trust them. For example, by showcasing their “trust assets”. (I put some of my trust assets here).
• Just how frictionless it is for prospectives to switch to them.
• That they’ll handle the whole on-boarding process for the prospect.
• All the promises and guarantees required, to give their prospects total peace of mind.
• How prospects would be nuts, not to upgrade to their vastly superior service.

I recommend you do the same, and also introduce it into your sales conversations.

Another type of apathy

There’s a second apathy challenge you need to be aware of. It’s not about switching. It’s about hiring you, rather than doing (whatever) themselves.

For example, many business owners who hire me have never had expert marketing help before. So, they’re not switching to me from another provider. They hire me, rather than continue to dabble with ineffective, DIY marketing and suffer lousy results. They switch from apathy (with the status quo) to action.

And it’s still vitally important to make their switch from apathy as frictionless as possible. Otherwise, the fear, risk or doubt that’s held them back will carry on doing so.

Tip: Whenever I speak with a prospective client, I make sure they know that I look after them, personally, every step of the way. I call this partnering with my clients. It gives them great peace of mind. And that makes the decision to hire me massively easier for them.

You should do something very similar for your prospective clients or customers.

Moving forward

Never wait for a prospective client to tell you they have doubts, before you address the subject. By that point, a barrier to doing business with you will have already been created. And you’ll find yourself facing an unnecessary uphill challenge. Ouch!

Instead, take the initiative. Give them the peace of mind they need, in advance. Let them know there are no barriers to hiring you or buying from you. Get this right and you will have overcome your main competitor. Apathy.

Plus, you’ll have created a major marketing advantage over competing providers, who are failing to address apathy correctly with their marketing.