Jim Connolly Marketing

Marketing tips and ideas to help you grow your business

How to massively increase your sales and profits, with this 1 great idea!

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If you want to increase the number of clients you have or boost your sales figures, here’s a quick marketing tip for you: “People buy for their reasons, not yours!”

Most small business owners make the mistake of selling their services, based on what THEY think matters.  In other words, they look at their product or service and because they know it so well, they assume they ALSO know why each individual person wants to buy it.

They are wrong!

Buying motives

Notice I used the word individual in that last paragraph?  This is because people have their own, individual motivations for making a purchase.  We call this their buying motive. If you try and sell or market your service to someone, based on what you assume will be of most importance to them, you may well lose their interest.  However, if you take a moment to discover what matters to them, you will know exactly what to focus on.

That single step, of discovering someone’s buying motive and then focusing on what motivates them, can increase your conversion rate by hundreds of percent!

I saw a great example of this last weekend.  I needed a new phone, so I visited a store and was greeted by the store manager.  She asked me how she could help and when I told her I was looking to buy a new phone, she asked me a few simple questions:

  • What would I be using the phone for
  • Whether I had a contract or not and who the contract was with
  • What my budget was

Once I gave her my answers, she was able to point me in the direction of a small selection of phones that did what I wanted.  Then, by asking and answering my questions, we were able to spot a clear winner.  She discovered my buying motives and focused everything on getting me a phone, that fitted my needs.  I got a great phone which I am extremely happy with and she made a sale (and an advocate!) Win-win!

By the way, discovering someone’s buying motive always allows you to render better service to them.  With my example of the phone store manager, at no point did I even feel like I was being sold to.  It felt like she was using her knowledge to advise me, so I made the right decision.  Now, had the store manager simply looked at how I was dressed (in jeans and a t shirt), and then assumed I would want a “lifestyle” phone or that I was on a low budget, she would have lost the sale.  She would also have came across as pushy, because she would have been offering me things I wasn’t interested in.

Whenever you speak with a prospective client or customer for the first time, always establish what’s important to them and what they are looking for.  Make that your primary focus.  If you get it right, people will never feel like you are selling to them; just like in the example I gave earlier.  You will come across as a professional, who is helping them make the best decision possible, based on their needs – not yours!

How to live without limits!

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In all probability, you are using just a fraction of your potential.  In this brief post, I’ll explain why!

It starts with exploring our fake, self limiting beliefs.

There are so many gifted people out there, capable of great things; only they wrongly believe that greatness is beyond them.  In many cases, the only obstacle between them and massive success, are the self-limiting beliefs they have.  Because they don’t believe they are able to do something, they don’t even try.

If you believe something to be true, it becomes true for you (your truth.)   For instance, if you truly believe that you will lose your home and go broke if you start a business, you won’t even try; even though you may have been capable of building a business worth millions.  The belief, rather than the reality, stops you from getting started.

Self limiting beliefs can be removed

If you believe that “you can’t teach an old dog new tricks”, you will stop learning once you become old (whenever that is?)  I used to think people who were 25 were old (when I was 15.)  That would have been a severe limitation and one that was completely groundless.  I know one lady who changed her whole outlook on life, at the age of 65.  I know a guy, who started to learn karate at the age of 70.

Who said YOU can’t?

One of the things we all need to learn about ourselves, is how to separate our genuine limitations from our fake, self imposed limitations.  Look at what you believe you can’t do and check the source of that belief.  For example, if you believe you can’t dance, who said so?  Was it a qualified dance instructor, who has seen how well you can dance after professional tuition, or are you basing that belief on the feedback you got, the last time you danced in public?

Think about the things you want to achieve and then examine the beliefs that are stopping you.  If they are fake, self imposed limitations, then get the help you need and get started!  In most cases, you will be amazed at just what you are capable of.

How to get your passion and motivation back

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I have a great question for you today: If your business was perfect in every way, what would it look like?

For example:

  • If you could hand pick your client list, who would you be working with?
  • If you could work from anywhere in the world, where would it be?
  • If you were earning enough from your business, to provide a lifestyle that would really excite you, how much would that be?
  • If you could partner in a business venture with anyone, who would it be?
  • If your typical working week was perfect, what would it look like?

The power of clarity

One of the key reasons people fail to achieve the business results they want, is that they have only a foggy idea of what (specifically) they want to achieve. They know they want to do better, but fail to really focus on exactly what that means for them, in real terms. By identifying and picturing in your mind, exactly what your ideal business and lifestyle would look like and how it would provide you with a vastly better quality of life, EVERYTHING changes!

Here’s why.

The word motivation comes from the fusion of two smaller words: Motive and action. The ability to take action increases massively, when the motive (reason) is clear and exciting enough to drive you forward.

Now, compare that kind of clarity to the vague way that many small business owners think about their business. They want a better month than last month. They want a better year than last year.  That kind of vague, foggy thinking is nothing like as motivating, inspirational or compelling as having an exciting, clearly visible picture of exactly what you want to achieve.

What next?

Take a look at those questions from earlier in this post. Jot them down and then write the answers to each one, in as much detail as you can. Make that “perfect future” the inspiration that drives you forward to the results your hard work deserves!

PS: By the way, if you need a little help getting started, check this out!

How to be financially secure for life in just 4 steps!

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How did I go from extreme poverty to financial security for life, in just 8 years?

 

I get asked that question a lot and in today’s post, I am going to let you know.  It’s one of the shortest posts I will ever write, because the process is extremely easy to explain.  The challenge is putting what I am about to share with you into action.  I found it extremely easy to do, because the results were immediate and measurable.

Here’s the process.  Enjoy!

Firstly, we need to understand the basics:

  • You get paid for bringing value to the marketplace.
  • The greater your market value, the more the marketplace will pay you and the easier you will find it to attract the best clients.
  • So, to earn more than you earn today, you need to invest in becoming more than you are today.

The magic here, is that you are in charge of your personal and professional development.  All the information you need in order to increase your market value and your income, is already out there. The recipe is so simple, anyone can follow it:

  1. Read the books.
  2. Attend the seminars.
  3. Use what you learn.
  4. Repeat!

Read which books? Attend which seminars?

That’s part of your journey!  You see, the books that turned me on and got me so excited about my potential that I couldn’t sleep, are seen my others as being dull.  Similarly, books that were highly recommended to me, did nothing for me at all.  The best advice I can give, is to make a start for free with Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill.  You can download a full, legal copy of the book using that link.

If you found this post useful, please remember to share it with your friends.

To your success!

How to be more magical than David Copperfield

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I went from being broke and living in a slum, the son of immigrants with no contacts, to being financially secure for life in just seven and a half years.  Here’s how I did it.  It’s all about the magic that happens when we learn to embrace change.

The magic

Change can be either positive or negative.  It is something we can either embrace or fear.  What we can’t do, however, is avoid change.  The lesson I learned at the age of 21, which was to transform my life forever, is that change is actually our friend.  Change brings improvement and progress.  In fact, the process of progress always begins with the need to change from what was failing us, to what will serve us.

This is why successful people and those who struggle have such different attitudes regarding change.

  • The happiest and most successful people I know, embrace change: They see change as an opportunity to grow.  They enjoy “living in the now” because they look to the future with excitement.
  • The gloomiest and least successful people I have met, fear change: They see change as a threat to their security.  They live in a state of apprehension, because they are fearful about what the future will bring.

The magical process of progress

Thankfully, the moment we change our mindset for the better, everything else changes too:

  • When we change from blaming others for our lack of success, to accepting it is always down to us, we start the process of progress.
  • When we change from talking about what we will do one day and start actually doing it, we start the process of progress.
  • When we change from seeing problems in our lives as proof that life sucks and start seeing them as opportunities to improve, we start the process of progress.
  • When we change from being the zombie who spends hours watching others achieve their dreams on our TV screens or computer monitors, to being on “the right side of the glass” with them, we start the process of progress.
  • When we change, everything else changes too.

Most importantly, when we change from wondering what we might be capable of, if we went for it 100%, to actually going for it, we start the process of life-transforming progress.  That’s where the real magic is!

To those of you who want more from life: I promise you, if you knew right now just what you could achieve and how your life would improve in every area, you would start that process of change this instant.

How to succeed in a world of failing small businesses

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Business development

Someone asked me a great question recently:

“Why do some businesses, in the same industry, do really well during a recession, whilst others struggle or go broke?”

The set of the sail

My answer came from something my mentor shared with me.  Jim Rohn taught me that it is not the direction of the wind, but the way we set our sails that determines which way we go.  In other words, our success or failure is not the result of outside factors, but how we decide to work with what we have.  We can either stumble our way through business (and life) or we can deliberately move forward.

We can work to our plan, or do what the masses do and become a bit-part player in someone else’s plan.

Right now, you should be extremely excited about your future.  Even if things are bad, really bad, you are NEVER more than 1 idea away from turning it around.  Determine where you are right now.  Literally, grab a pen and a pad and write down your current situation.   Then, write down where you want to be.  Get specific.  Your objective then, is to use your creativity and sweat to take you from point (a) to point (b).

Not sure how to get from (a) to (b)?

Then ask someone who knows.  One of the key reasons for the extremely high small business failure rate, is the tendency for small business owners to refuse to pay for the professional help they (and their business) need.  I’ve met many small business owners, who “invest” in expensive cars that they can’t afford, yet their business is crying out for investment.  Their car is driven by someone who hasn’t a clue where they are going!

None of us can do this alone, if we want to succeed.

We all need the expertise of trusted professionals in order to proceed from where we are, to where we want to be.  I have around a dozen experts, who help me with everything from accountancy and legal advice, to keeping this blog running smoothly.  I have also paid for the best professional development and marketing tuition on the planet; learning from Jim Rohn, Jay Abraham and scores of others.  I have easily invested over £100,000 in my professional development over the past 25 years.

In the early days, I was penniless – broke.  All I could afford was a book or a tape.  I then read, and used, what I learned and was able to reinvest in “becoming more” than I was.  As I became more, I also became more valuable to the marketplace and was able to invest even more into my development.  I have maintained this approach to personal and professional development for 25 years and will continue to do so for the rest of my life.

Why?

Because if I hadn’t, I would be that marketing guy in your town; hustling for clients at networking events!  He works hard, but uses a very similar approach to marketing as all his (or her) competitors.  YOU have to be smarter than that!

Your future

So, where is your current approach to investing in your development taking you?  Do you know people, who have the answers you need, but have so far refused to invest in hiring them?

At any time, YOU can elect to change the set of your sail.  When you do, your life journey takes a very different route, deliberately planned to guide you to the life of your dreams.  The guy with the funding you need is a phone call away; so long as you know how to connect with him and earn his interest.  The lady with the marketing skills to turn your business around can’t help you, until you give her a call.

The bottom line: All the answers and help you need is out there.