Marketing tips, marketing help and advice

He speaks with great authority, on things he knows NOTHING about

By Jim Connolly | August 4, 2021

Image: Medienstuermer

Some people are excellent communicators. The way they deliver words is compelling and their ability to motivate those they speak with is exceptional.

Which is usually great. If the person sharing ideas with us is a subject expert, we gain mightily from their guidance.

The challenge comes when they speak with great authority, on things they know nothing about. When they voice an opinion as if it were a fact. When they’re as compelling as ever, yet they motivate us to do something that’s absolutely wrong.

I was thinking about this earlier, when I received an email from a reader. I thought you might find it useful, so here’s what happened.

When things go wrong

My reader recently had a legal issue with a web designer, regarding a site they’d developed for her business. She wanted some advice on what to do and spoke with a business adviser, who had previously helped her with (great) general business advice. My reader took his advice and sent an email to the web developer, using the wording her business adviser suggested.

Nothing happened.

So she spoke with a lawyer to see if she could “get things moving”.

The lawyer read the email and sadly, the email content has ruined any chance of her getting the resolution she hoped for.

This is from my reader’s email, published with her permission:

“In the past, his advice has always been excellent. That’s why I called him. […] He speaks with great authority, on things I know very little about. I now know he also speaks with great authority, on things he knows nothing about“.

Note: I made a similar mistake myself (2 actually), when I started in business. I wrote about it here.

Obviously, we need to remind ourselves to only take advice from people with relevant experience / qualifications. It’s also a good idea to consider who we currently rely on for advice, and whether their advice is working for us or not. Daily, I see the damage caused when business owners take bad marketing advice from general business advisers and generic online courses.

Yes, expert advice will come with a fee attached. However, that fee is usually way lower than the price we pay for taking bad advice.

Answers, insights and ideas: 12 Things to focus on

By Jim Connolly | August 3, 2021

There’s an old saying that assures us, if we want better answers we need to ask better questions. Good quality questions cause us to think differently and often give us extremely useful answers, insights and ideas.

With this in mind, I’ve compiled some questions, which I hope will help you to identify opportunities to help your business thrive.

In no particular order.

What lessons can I learn from the most successful person I know… and conversely, what can I learn from the mistakes of the least successful people I know?
What’s the biggest challenge currently facing my clients (or customers) and how can I help them overcome it?
What’s the biggest challenge currently facing my marketplace and how can I help them overcome it?
How can I make my services meaningfully different?
Am I regularly using the 6 Idea Trick?
What is currently the weakest point in my marketing and how can I improve it?
How many non-essential fields can I remove from my contact forms, in order to increase the number of enquiries I get?
If I charged 300% more for my services, what extra value would I be able to deliver to my clients… and why don’t I build this as a new, highly profitable, premium version of my services?
Who let the dogs out? (Okay, just checking to see if you’re still reading along with me).
What’s the best thing about my services and how clearly do I communicate this compelling advantage to prospective clients?
How might it benefit my clients and prospects, if I slightly adjust my business hours so they’re a little different from others in my industry, and better suited to the needs of the clients I serve?
Is my face also the public face of my business or do I / we mainly operate behind a logo… and if the latter, why?
Who are the top 5 people I need to connect with and what’s my strategy to make this happen?

Let me know how you get on.

5 Tips to help you build a HUGELY valuable newsletter list

By Jim Connolly | August 2, 2021

Here are 5 tips, to help you build a big and valuable newsletter readership or list.

Let’s go.

1. Go easy on the pitches

Make sure it’s a newsletter and not a badly disguised advertisement. Here’s the thing: People avoid advertising. We skip the commercials on TV. We pay developers to remove the ads from the free version of their apps. We see advertisements as unwelcome interruptions.

If your newsletter reads a little too much like a sales pitch, it will be largely ignored. This leads nicely into the next point.

2. Be useful

The more useful your newsletter is, the more your readers will value it and share it. Your ultimate goal is to build a large, targeted reader community, who become either clients, customers or advocates. None of that can be achieved with predictable, pedestrian content.

Useful content is what gives your newsletter legs. It’s what inspires people to subscribe, stay subscribed, share and make purchasing decisions. So, before you hit send on a newsletter, make sure it contains valuable, useful information. Provide answers to your reader’s problems. Share useful tips. Point your readers to helpful resources. You get the idea.

The more value you pack into each newsletter, the more your readers will value it… and the more they will value you. Think about that for a moment.

3. Get the design right

Even if your content is wonderful, people won’t take it seriously if the design looks poor. The first bite is with the eye.

If your newsletter provides valuable information, but the design looks amateurish or outdated, it’s like serving a delicious meal on a dirty plate.

So invest in the best design or newsletter template you can. Because whether your newsletter looks cheap or is presented professionally, it all reflects back on you.

4. Ask readers to share

Even if readers think your newsletter is great, it may not occur to them to share it. People are busy. Really busy. By reminding them, you plant the idea of sharing the newsletter in their mind. Moreover, you do this at the exact point, where they have just read it and enjoyed it. I used to have a section at the bottom of my newsletter, which said:

“If you have found this newsletter interesting, please share it with your friends”.

When I added that short message to my newsletter, the results were immediate and measurable. It’s amazing what a simple reminder can do.

5. Help it spread

Convert people who had your newsletter forwarded to them, into subscribers.

Imagine your friend had just forwarded a great newsletter to you. You’d want to get a regular copy, right? You don’t want to have to rely on your friend, remembering to forward each edition to you. So, I added the following sentence to the above message:

“If you have had this newsletter forwarded to you and would like a regular copy, click here.”

Never underestimate the power of a subtle, non-pushy reminder.

Make no mistake, newsletters can be an extremely powerful marketing asset. It’s why I make my best blog posts available in newsletter format. And it’s why I ask you to take your newsletter seriously and invest in it accordingly. Give it the time and effort it needs. Because the rewards for getting it right are huge. Really, really huge.

Marketing 101: Greed, need or deed?

By Jim Connolly | July 23, 2021

Today, I’m going to show you how to avoid creating an incorrect, damaging impression of your business. This is critically important, so let’s dive in.

You’re a professional. You have a superb business. You offer an excellent service. And you care passionately about your clients.

My question for you today my friend, is this: How clearly does that message come across in your marketing?

Greed, need or deed?

Think for a moment about the marketing messages you receive, from emails and social media updates, to advertisements, cold calls and direct mail, etc. Every marketing message is based on one of the following three motivations.

Greed motivated: I want your money. Buy my stuff.
Need motivated: I need you to buy from me. Please, please buy my stuff.
Deed motivated: There’s something that I believe will help you, so I created it for you.

Greedy marketing repels people. Greed is one of those universally disliked attributes. It’s ugly. It’s selfish. We avoid greedy people and greedy businesses.

Needy marketing also repels people. As soon as the marketplace thinks a provider desperately needs sales or needs money urgently, it sets alarm bells ringing. “What if they’re going broke!?!” These alarm bells make people way less likely to buy from them.

Deed driven marketing attracts people. It makes us feel positive toward the person or brand behind it. It’s an easy message to connect with. Deed driven marketing is about sincerely wanting to help the people in your marketplace with the products or services you provide. It attracts their attention, makes them feel good about you and creates a powerful connection between you.

IMPORTANT: Here’s where the challenge comes in. Many small and medium-sized business owners who are deed focused, have no idea how greedy or needy their marketing looks. And it’s seriously hurting their business.

A couple of very common examples

One common example is the use of freebies, such as free initial consultations. These are widely used by service providers, who dabble with their marketing and have no idea how much damage they’re doing to their reputation.

When you attach zero value to your time, you send a damaging, toxic message to prospective clients. The marketplace knows that the best service providers are busy professionals, who have no need to give their time away for free. So, if they see a provider offering freebies, it tells them that the service provider is under-employed, getting too few referrals, in need (needy) or all three! This keeps the service provider in a negative loop, as the best clients are repelled and freebie hunters (who grab anything that’s free), are attracted to the free consultation like moths to a flame.

Another common example is special offers.

These can also come across as needy or greedy when handled incorrectly. And that’s exactly how the vast majority of small and medium-sized business owners handle special offers. They put their offers together, outside of a professional marketing strategy. In doing so, they can cause the marketplace to think there’s a so-called fire sale going on. Equally, the use of special offers can train your marketplace to wait for the next special offer, which makes it hard to sell anything at the regular price. This eats profits and it’s totally avoidable.

In short, it pays to be highly intentional regarding how you market your business. Always look at the bigger picture from an outside perspective. Make sure you’re projecting yourself as eager to help, not greedy or needy.

You don’t have any clients or customers

By Jim Connolly | July 21, 2021

Image: Juli Moreira

You don’t have any clients (or customers).

You also don’t have any subscribers, contacts or followers.

And neither do I.

We don’t have them. That’s to say, they’re not our possession. Instead, we borrow them.

We need to earn and then re-earn whatever connection / relationship they have with us.

Client retention planning

That’s why a client retention plan is critically important. Yes, delivering the best service possible is essential, but that’s what our clients expect. We retain our clients by exceeding expectations in key areas.

For example.

We need to engage out clients regularly. Many providers only engage with their clients when they’re working together on something or when they invoice a client. But very, very few will maintain regular contact with their clients at other times, such as sharing useful resources with them; articles, event invitations, newsletters, ideas, etc.
We can also connect them with useful people. Very, very few providers will proactively introduce their clients to valuable contacts.
And we can look for opportunities to help our clients develop their businesses. Very, very few providers will proactively recommend their clients to potentially suitable prospects.

Those are just a few examples from what I do with my clients. Obviously, you’ll need to adapt, adjust and develop your own ways to exceed expectations, depending on the services or products you provide. The key is to exceed in an appropriate, valuable way.

The solution?

I recommend you consider developing a simple, client retention plan. I’ve used them for years and they’re invaluable. Start simple. Set reminders for each client; to collect and share useful, helpful and insightful resources and connections with them. This is a powerful and proven way to go far BEYOND what’s expected, so you get the opportunity to re-earn the privilege of serving your clients.

I’ve spoken to countless hard working business owners, who have lost clients purely because of unintentional complacency. They worked hard to do everything the client expected. They genuinely believed that would be enough. They then discovered it wasn’t.

In short, without a deliberate plan to retain our clients, even the best businesses and brands can become a little complacent. And as they say, a casual approach causes casualties.

Bring me your problems

By Jim Connolly | July 15, 2021

bring me your problems, marketing

There’s real power in the following 4 words: Bring me your problems.

Why?

Because everyone has problems. And nobody wants them. That includes your prospective clients. What they want (and need) are answers. They want to get unstuck. They want to free themselves from frustration. They want reliable service providers, who they can trust. And this is extremely important to them.

In short, your prospective clients are highly motivated to get their problems solved.

Okay. Hold that thought for a moment.

Now let’s look at the service you provide

Your service is the answer to a problem. Or a series of problems. How do I know this? Simple. Every service provider is a problem solver.

So, I’d like you to answer a question: When was the last time you asked people to bring you their problems?

Sure, every service provider markets the services they provide. They have them listed on their websites, they mention them when they speak with prospective clients, they may even mention them in a newsletter, blog, vlog, podcast or on social networks, etc.

But that wasn’t what I was asking.

My question was a lot more literal than that.

In very literal terms, when was the last time you used these four words [bring me your problems] in your marketing?

Bring me your problems is a powerful, direct request. It bypasses all the fluff. It cuts right to the chase. It strikes at the core of what your prospective clients want and need. And this is especially the case when those 4 words feature prominently, in the right place.

Here’s how it works

It looks a lot like this.

Your prospective client has a problem.
She finds your website (or any of your marketing assets).
She can see that the services you provide are related to her problem.
She then sees a direct request, asking her to bring you her problems.
Boom! Your message has engaged with her needs like a laser.
You’re now massively more likely to have motivated her to contact you and hire you.

Is it really that easy?

Absolutely.

An interesting point, from David Ogilvy

By Jim Connolly | July 9, 2021

Image: Jim Connolly

The above quote from marketing legend David Ogilvy, builds on his belief that there’s little variation between most brands. The onus is on the brand-owner to create an interesting personality (or story), which clearly differentiates it and builds desire.

In his 1963 book, “Confessions of an advertising man“, Ogilvy expands on this.

“There isn’t any significant difference between the various brands of whiskey, or cigarettes or beer. They are all about the same. And so are the cake mixes and the detergents, and the margarines” “[…] The manufacturer who dedicates his advertising to building the most sharply defined personality for his brand will get the largest share of the market at the highest profit.”

Ogilvy’s message here is clear: Don’t invest your time, money or energy on the best way to advertise a product or service, until it has an interesting and well defined personality.

Sam urgently wants to spend $95,000. Here’s why this matters to you

By Jim Connolly | July 5, 2021

Image: Drew Beamer

If you’d like to see a surge in new, high-quality clients, then today’s message is written just for you. It all starts with Sam and her problem.

It ends with a proven way for you to transform the future of your business.

Sam is a successful business owner. She needs a great new website for her business. She has a significant budget and is very eagerly looking to invest.

However, Sam’s now presented with a huge problem! All the web design providers she’s found have snazzy looking websites, as you’d expect. And on these websites, they make the same lofty claims about their services.

They say they have a great, experienced team.
They say they use the most up-to-date design techniques.
They say they understand the needs of their clients.
They say they will give you a dedicated account manager.
They say they will build you a site that engages your marketplace, drives sales and gets your business noticed.
They then provide predictable case-studies or testimonials.

How the heck is Sam supposed to choose?

In essence, none of these providers have given her any reason, why Sam should hire them, as opposed to their identical looking competitors.

And these same web design companies are wondering why business is so slow. They’re sitting there, right now, blaming coronavirus, the economy, etc. They’re waiting for things to improve.

Why this is YOUR problem too

Whatever industry you are in, right now, there are people in Sam’s position desperately keen to hire you. Money is not an issue. Plus, they are really eager to get moving. They just need to know that hiring you is the right decision.

Now, maybe you already get these high quality, eager-to-proceed enquiries regularly.

But let me tell you, the majority of small business owners don’t.

Most people reading this are suffering from an unpredictable flow of new clients. This makes it impossible to plan ahead with any real confidence. They’re working hard. They’re darn good at what they do, too. Yet to their marketplace, they look way too similar to their competitors.

You’d think the answer was obvious

And it is. They need to look at what their competitors are doing, then build a service that’s meaningfully better and market it correctly.

But that’s NOT what allows the problem to persist!

What allows the problem to persist, is that too many small business owners think it doesn’t matter.

Among them are the web design companies in Sam’s marketplace. Who are capable of delighting Sam with their service, yet who are missing a (minimum) $95,000 web design project. Of course, they’re missing out on countless other great clients too.

All the time wondering why business is so quiet.

We need to be smarter than that. So, learn how to stand out, then communicate it effectively. Or find someone, who can show you how.

Anything less and you’re leaving a fortune on the table, needlessly.

Something important just happened

By Jim Connolly | July 1, 2021

Something important just happened. Today, you and you’re business crossed the 2021 half way mark.

You now have 6-months of 2021 data to review and learn from. Data that when acted on correctly, will help you finish the year massively stronger.

For example.

You know what the new needs and wants of your marketplace are.
You know how your clients, your team, your competitors and your suppliers act in times of great uncertainty.
You know the real commercial value of your trusted advisers; those who were there for you with rock solid advice and those who were not.
You know whether your business growth strategy needs to be adjusted a little or radically improved.

So, what if?

What if you were to determine the improvements you need to make; how to adapt, who to replace, who to reward and how gently or rigorously to adjust your strategy… and than make all the changes? Even the uncomfortable, scary changes?

What if you were to use this as an opportunity to radically improve your business, so that it’s set to absolutely thrive before the end of the year?

I’m just asking you. What if?

Why?

Because of the thousands of business owners and C-suite leaders reading this, some will never have given themselves the opportunity to see just how high they can fly.

They will often have wondered what they’re truly capable of. But they won’t yet have ripped the lid off their potential, by examining the data around them and doing what they believe is required, for them to achieve the biggest rewards. I’m talking about the tough decisions. The decisions that ruffle feathers… the decisions that force them out of their comfort zones.

If you’re not that person, I’m sorry to have just wasted 5 minutes of your time.

But if you are that person, please take a moment today to ponder on this: What if?

Seriously. What if?

The marketing power of ‘why?’. Includes 15 examples you can use today

By Jim Connolly | June 30, 2021

Image: Emily Morter

My first business mentor shared something with me, which I will never forget. I think you’ll find it useful. He explained that the most successful business owners think in a similar way to young children.

I asked him what it was.

He said:

“Like children, they’re always asking why?. But unlike children, their why questions are focused. They’re specifically seeking ways to improve their business”.

The marketing power of “why?” questions

With that in mind, here are some marketing ‘why?’ questions you might find useful. They’re in no particular order.

Why do too few people know how amazing my business is?
Why isn’t my business a lot more fun?
Why doesn’t someone from the top media outlets come to me, when they need expert opinion for a news story?
Why am I still working for some clients, even though they’re assholes?
Why are some of my competitors doing so much better than I am?
Why isn’t my website a sales generating machine (or super effective lead magnet for my services)?
Why haven’t I created a premium version of my service, so I have something great to offer the most valuable clients in my marketplace?
Why have I settled for (whatever you’ve settled for)?
Why do I rely on an expert to repair my car or style my hair, but rely on DIY when it comes to growing my business?
Why do I charge my current prices or fees?
Why do I leave my best ideas unused?
Why do I let (whoever) influence my business decisions?
Why aren’t more people talking about my business? Try this.
Why don’t more of my clients recommend me?
Why am I using a similar marketing strategy during this economic crisis, to what I used when the economy was a lot more stable?

Your questions will obviously depend on your unique situation, but hopefully something there got you thinking.

If it did, don’t just brush it off. Take some time today to answer the question. Then, take at least one step to putting your answer into play.

Remember, it isn’t what we know that determines our success, but what we do with what we know. That’s why in business, the winners get moving.