Jim's Marketing Blog

Marketing tips and ideas to help you grow your business

Success doesn’t care

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success don't care

You offer a great product or service. You’re passionate about what you do. You work hard. And you work smart, too.

So, why are some of your less capable competitors doing better than you?

We know it’s not the industry you’re in, because others are doing great right now. We know it’s not the marketplace, because others are doing great right now. And we know it’s not the government, for the very same reason.

So what’s the answer?

Here’s the long answer

They may sell the result of what they do, rather than sell the service they provide. They might get the same number of leads as you, but they’re trained at how to turn prospects into paying clients. Their email marketing could be expertly created, generating red-hot leads on a regular basis. Their marketing strategy could be professionally developed, so they get tons more high-quality enquiries or leads. They might have developed a massively more compelling reason for people to hire them. Perhaps they’ve taken time to learn what keeps the best prospects awake at night worrying, and then marketed their service as the answer. Or one of the hundreds of other proven ideas or tactics out there.

But it’s more likely to be a small, unique mix of proven tactics from the hundreds available.

A small mix of tactics, very deliberately chosen because it fits perfectly into their highly-effective strategy. Like those I create with my clients to help them rise to the top of their marketplace, so they have the perfect plan for what they want to achieve.

Here’s the short answer

Success doesn’t care!

That’s it.

Seriously. Success doesn’t give a rat’s ass who does great and who struggles.

So if a 2nd rate competitor decides to do the things required for sales success, explosive growth and higher profits, their business will succeed. And it will succeed every time.

Think of it like this.

Imagine a door that has a combination lock. If you use the correct 7 number combination, the door will open for you. If I use the correct combination, it will also open for me. That’s because the door doesn’t care. Press the right numbers in the correct order and you’re in!

Business success is the same. If you do the right combination of things correctly you’ll succeed. That’s because success doesn’t care. Success simply responds to what you do.

Here’s what makes your marketing go viral

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Viral marketing, through people, spread it

Viral marketing is something I get asked about a lot. It’s actually pretty easy to understand.

Every piece of viral marketing consists of two things. Two things that all marketing, including yours, needs in order to go viral.

  1. It goes to someone. (They received it).
  2. Then it goes through them. (Through them, it’s shared with one or more people).

For both of those steps to happen, your marketing message needs to be easy to share and remarkable in some way.

Allow me to explain.

Viral marketing is easy to share

As I have written previously, the Kentucky Fried Chicken strapline is an excellent example of an easy to share message. It’s just 3 words long. Finger lickin’ good. That’s easy to remember and share.

The marketing message from Apple is even easier to share. When someone is using one of their products in public, there’s a highly visible Apple logo pointing at everyone who can see them. Until 2015, the Apple logo on MacBook Pro and MacBook Air models was illuminated on the lid. Today, those logos are highly polished mirrors. The illuminated Apple logos and the mirror logos both work extremely well.

Viral marketing is remarkable

What makes viral marketing viral, is that it doesn’t spread from the business owner (or vendor) to the marketplace. After the initial push from the business owner, it spreads from person to person.

This means viral marketing not only reaches a lot of people, but unlike advertising, the people sharing the message are those we know and trust. That makes it far more powerful.

Here’s an example from my friend Jennie. Jennie knows I take lots of notes. So, when she discovered a note-taking app that blew her away, she emailed me with a link so I could see it. Within 10 minutes, I’d bought it too. Jennie’s remarkable experience with the iA Writer app provided her with the motivation to share what she’d found with her huge circle of friends. I’ve now shared the app tons of times, too. Plus, I blogged about it.

Greg uses 7 words

And then there’s my former client, Greg. I regularly get client enquiries through his recommendation, and the prospects are always very motivated. I asked Greg what he tells people. He said that he recommends my services to his friends and contacts by telling them; ‘Jim doubled our turnover in 5 months’.

Greg’s remarkable sales results are what motivates him to tell people about me. And his recommendation is just 7 words long, making it easy to share. There’s a lot of power there. Think about it: Imagine you are a friend of Greg’s and your small business wants, or seriously needs, to get great sales results, fast. His recommendation would be highly compelling to you. 

If you want to go viral, or you want to attract massively more word-of-mouth referrals, your message needs to do the same. To go to people and then through people.

What about you?

If you want to attract massively more word of mouth referrals or go full-on viral, your message needs to do the same. To go to people and then through people.

Take some time to review how clear, easy to share and memorable your message is. Then look for ways to improve it as much as you can. The more remarkable it is, the more widely it spreads. If you don’t already have one, create one. The fewer words the better. Greg’s is 7 words long. KFC did it in just 3 words. 

This is not an easy marketing project. So if you can hire expert help, I recommend you do. It makes absolutely no sense to ignore the power of viral marketing. 

Photo by Melissa Askew

Marketing 101: Styles make sales

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styles make sales, selling style, marketing

In today’s post, I’d like to share how a simple idea can help you develop a massively more effective way to sell your products or services.

Styles make sales

When I started out in sales and marketing, one of the first things I learned is that styles make sales. It works something like this.

Certain salespeople have a style of selling that is very effective with certain prospective customers. Conversely, if a salesperson’s style is at odds with a prospective customer’s buying style, the salesperson is less likely to get the sale.

In the companies I worked for back then, there were large and diverse sales-forces. A sales manager would look at the information they had on a prospect, then try and match our styles to the prospect’s profile.

I know you’ve spotted the challenge here.

As a small business owner, you don’t have that same abundance of salespeople to mix and match to the prospect’s buying style. In most cases, the small business owner is the salesperson.

The question is, how do you sell effectively to prospective clients or customers, who have a buying style that’s different to your sales style?

The answer is to align as closely as you can with what motivates them.

How?

Develop your own ‘styles make sales’ model!

Here’s a quick look at how to get yourself started.

Before you begin your pitch or presentation, spend a little while asking the prospective customer a few informal, pre-prepared questions that require useful answers.

For example, you could ask questions where the replies will indicate whether they are more (or less) influenced by facts, figures and graphs, than by stories, feelings and pictures. Then, match your presentation style to their preference.

As your presentation continues, look and listen for other signals from the prospect, which indicate that you’re on the right track or not.

Ultimately, you’ll need to create several easy to answer questions, which uncover your prospect’s buying style. You’ll also need to park the idea of a one-size-fits-all approach to sales, if that’s what you currently use. Spend the time required to get this right. It’s worth it.

What’s the pay-off?

It’s huge.

If you get it right you’ll enjoy the rewards of having a fluid presentation model, which matches the motivation your prospects need, in order to buy from you.

Just think for a moment what that would do to your sales figures.

Hey. Not so fast, stranger!

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marketing frustration

Before you sell anything to a prospective customer, there are 3 critical questions your marketing needs to answer. And fast.

Here they are.

  1. I’m extremely busy. And I get pestered with marketing messages all day. Why should I give you my attention?
  2. Everyone promises a great service. Including all the providers I’ve wasted my money on in the past. Why is your service meaningfully better?
  3. I don’t know you and I’ve never even heard of you. Why should I trust you?

Most small business marketing fails to effectively answer one or more of those questions. As a result, they needlessly lose out on additional sales or new clients.

Conversely, the best marketers answer those questions fully. They attract attention, create a compelling message, and build the trust required for their marketing to succeed. In doing so, they massively outperform their competitors. 

So take the time to answer each of those 3 questions as powerfully as possible. If you do, you’ll dramatically improve your 2024 marketing results.

Photo: Shutterstock.

The best decisions you’ll ever make

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risk taking, risky thinking

I have a very quick, yet powerful business development tip to share with you today.

It starts with a question.

Have you noticed how the best decisions you’ve ever made had 2 things in common?

Firstly, they were all big decisions. Really BIG decisions. For example, the decision to buy or rent your first home, or to get married, start a family, start a business, etc., are all huge, life-changing decisions. Secondly, you made these massive decisions even though you had no guarantee of success in advance.

Those same 2 factors are also essential to our business success. Our biggest commercial breakthroughs come from making big decisions, with no guarantees. 

So if we have a poorly-calibrated view of risk, we place a very low limit on what we can achieve. We fail to enjoy the major progress, which is only possible when we make the major decisions that will lead us to major success.

If our business is growing too slowly, we need to identify the business decisions we’re avoiding. Because the answers we need are right there.

Photo by Matt Reiter.

Write short. Be understood

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write short, copywriting tip, marketing

People’s attention spans have never been shorter. This includes your prospective clients or customers, which is why your writing needs to get to the point. Fast. This is something known as, writing short.

Writing short

As you’ll know if you’ve followed my work for a while, I’m an advocate of learning how to write short. (Roy Peter Clark introduced the phrase to me). It’s not for everything you write. Just for those times when space is limited or you want to get an extremely focused message across.

Here are some specific examples, where writing short is essential.

  • Email subject lines.
  • Tweets.
  • Event hand-outs.
  • Advertising copy.
  • Store signs.
  • Elevator pitches.
  • Messaging on products / packaging.
  • Political slogans.
  • Headlines.
  • Banners.
  • Social media profiles.
  • Flyers.
  • Vehicle signage.
  • Website buttons.
  • Calls to action.

That kind of thing.

So, what’s the problem?

By default, most business owners write long and see no reason to write short. And it’s perfectly understandable why this happens.

Think about it.

The internet provides you with endless writing space. You can add an unlimited number of pages to a website, with an unlimited number of words on each page. Your newsletter or marketing emails can be as long as you wish. In other words, you have far more space than you need.

So on the face of it, you have very little motivation to use fewer words than you currently do.

Except you really have.

Write short: The rewards are huge

That’s why I strongly recommend you learn to write with as few words as necessary. It’s a great way to improve your email open rates, get better advertising results, improve your click through rates, get prospects to take action and lots, lots more.

To get you started, here’s some tips on how to write short, from the best writers in the world.

Sorry to disturb you

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why email marketing doesn't work, why email marketing works ,email marketing

I received a marketing email earlier, which contained a serious error. This error will have dramatically reduced its conversion rate. Here’s what happened, so you can avoid it from happening to you.

The email copy started with the following 4 words: “Sorry to disturb you”.

There’s a lot of information packed into those 4 words. Enough for the vast majority of those who received it, to form an opinion on the sender.

  • The sender knew what they were doing was wrong, which is why they opened with an apology.
  • The sender also knew that their email was a disturbance. An unrequested interruption from someone I’ve never heard of.
  • Knowing all this, they still decided to send it anyway.

Like others who received that email, I stopped reading after the opening sentence. After all, a stranger had interrupted us, without our consent, to tell us that what we were about to read is just spam. It’s an instant delete.

What if the email had been valuable?

That email may have contained a useful message. It might have offered an outstanding deal. It could have provided details of a wonderful opportunity. But their email marketing let them down. So no one will know. The copy they used, the list they used and the tone of their opening line destroyed their email campaign.

Oblivious to this, the sender will be wondering why they received no positive response. Especially if they genuinely had something valuable to share. They’ll perhaps be pondering whether they need to lower their prices, or if email marketing is a waste of time, or if their great offer isn’t actually great.

If we consider this to be merely an example of ineffective email marketing, we totally miss the point!

It’s way, way bigger than that.

This example provides us with a powerful insight into how easy it is, for a business owner to offer an amazing product or service, only for ineffective marketing to let them down. It’s the difference between being inundated with sales and enquiries or being greeted with silence. 

The great news

Thankfully, it also gives you an insight into how quickly you can massively increase your sales, when you decide to improve just one area of your marketing. 

Now multiply that potential by every other marketing activity you’re doing, and 2024 can easily be your most successful year ever. This is true, no matter how challenging things have been for you. 

Finding diamonds. And 9 other tips

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small business, business tips, business ideas

Here are 10 characteristics, common to every successful business owner I have ever met or studied. I hope you find them useful.

  1. They look for the diamonds in every downturn. When something goes wrong, either internal to their business, or external to the economy, they focus on the opportunities it brings. And those diamond opportunities are always there.
  2. They make a study of business success. They listen to informed minds and take notes.
  3. They always have enough time to do everything required. That’s because they know the difference between a lack of time and a lack of direction. With direction you can achieve more in a day than others achieve in a week.
  4. They are self-starters. They don’t seek external motivation. They do what needs doing.
  5. They have learned when, and how, to say no.
  6. They are reliable and turn up even when it’s easier not to. This commitment to reliability is both rare and highly valued.
  7. They accept responsibility when they make a mistake. They learn the lessons, then set to work on improving things.
  8. They are good decision makers. Once they have the information required, they make a decision. They know that leaving decisions unmade is extremely counter-productive.
  9. They are eager to lead. They step forward, when others step back.
  10. They never mistake movement for progress. Others are moving, but doing figure eights.

If you found something above that could be useful to you, make a note of it now, while it’s fresh in your mind. Then, get to work on putting it into action. Act while the opportunity is hot, and the motivation is high.

Photo by Jon Tyson 

How to sell your services into massive companies

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marketing home run

Have you ever considered selling your services to huge corporations? If you haven’t, then maybe it’s time that you did. I’m going to show you how to remove the main barrier, and make it far easier for you to land extremely valuable clients.

Once you understand what I am about to share with you, you may find it easier to gain a $10,000 client than a $500 client.

Allow me to explain.

It’s amazing what big companies spend money on

I was prompted to write this, after remembering an email I received from a friend. He’s a head of department for a massive software corporation. He had just sat through what he called a “cringe-worthy” motivational talk from a former, professional sportsperson.

Apparently, the speaker:

  • Had no business background.
  • Had no idea about the challenges they face.
  • Didn’t understand their industry.
  • Didn’t offer a single idea for how they can improve things.
  • He “shared a few funny stories, dropped a few famous names and finished with a copy/paste you can achieve anything speech”.

My friend wanted to know, why do such people get hired as speakers by massive corporations?

Here’s why that guy was hired

The reason people like that get hired to speak is simple. More importantly, it also explains what motivates massive corporations to spend money on any kind of product or service.

That speaker may have been a waste of company money, but he was a very safe bet. An easy hire, with no risk attached.

Hang on Jim, if the guy is a waste of money, how can hiring him possibly be a very safe bet?

That’s a great question! :)

Here’s how it works:

  • The decision maker, who hired the guy, isn’t spending his or her own money. The money comes from a budget, which they need to spend.
  • The decision maker’s priority is to spend their budget every year without screwing up. So they invest in what they hope will be the safest, least risky option.
  • The risk with a speaker like this is close to zero. That’s because it’s hard to measure the impact of a talk in any meaningful way.
  • Bonus: The decision maker can’t be blamed even if the speaker is demonstrably terrible. After all, they did hire a famous person!
  • So, decision makers eagerly grab any opportunity to spend chunks of their budget on these low commercial value, but 100% risk free, speakers.

The lesson here?

I think there are a couple of lessons.

1. Corporations should reward courage

Corporations need to stop rewarding decision makers, for making lousy, but safe, decisions. Instead they need to reward courage. They need to reward decision makers for advancing the company with smart investments.

Until then, former sportspeople (or influencers, faded TV celebrities etc.), can fill their boots with very easy money. At least until their impact is measured and they are no longer a safe bet for decision makers.

2. It’s really easy to sell into huge corporations

If you’re selling into a billion dollar corporation, remember that the decision maker is frightened. They will only buy from you if you can convince them that you’re a super-safe bet. If they see you as a close to zero risk, they will pay you thousands, maybe tens of thousands. And if you’re really good on the day they’ll pay you regularly, too.

Of course, in order to sound as safe as possible you need some supporting evidence. Former sportspeople have their fame.

If you’re not a former, professional sportsperson, influencer or celebrity etc., you will need to work on building your brand, like the rest of us.

If the decision maker hasn’t heard of you, you’ll sound risky. So get your name out there for all the right reasons. Highlight notable media mentions, accomplishments and anything else that will reduce or eliminate the decision maker’s fear.

Then remember the following before you market your services:

  • You’re never selling to a billion dollar corporation.
  • You’re always selling to an individual, whose priority is not to make a mistake.

Lasting success for your business

Lasting success comes from achieving the balance of being a safe bet… AND being someone who provides measurable value.

Get that balance right and you’ll build yourself a world-class reputation. You’ll also find yourself able to attract the most valuable clients, again and again and again.

Photo: Shutterstock.

Flip your business

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marketing, flip business model

Did you know, the massive majority of small businesses are built on an ineffective, upside down model?

It looks like this.

  • The business owner decides the type of service they’re going to offer.
  • They then try to find clients for their service.

That’s nuts!

It can’t work in any meaningful way.

Why?

Because it’s literally the wrong way round. The most effective business owners do the exact opposite. 

Here’s what they do

  • They decide the kind of clients they want to work with. For example, clients who are happy to pay a premium fee for a premium service, clients who demand the fastest possible service or maybe clients who value a no-frills service.
  • Then, and only then, they decide what services to offer. The service is based around the things, which their ideal profile of client will value and desire. And it works like a magnet!
  • They then market this service exclusively to these targeted prospective clients. They shun everyone else.
  • And it works spectacularly well.

If you struggle to attract the right kind of clients, I strongly recommend you consider flipping your business model around. 

Focus on the kind of clients you most want to work with. Then, consider rebuilding your services so that those ideal clients will find it extremely attractive. Delight these ideal clients and not only will they hire you, they’ll tell their friends. 

On a personal note: I built my own business on this model. As a result I work with fantastic clients every day. And over 90% of them come from client referrals.

It’s far, far, far more effective than trying to sell people a service that wasn’t specifically built around their needs, and is similar to what your competitors are already offering them.

Photo by John Fornander

Growing your list

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Build your list, list building

I receive a lot of questions from business owners, who want advice on how to grow their lists. And I usually start by explaining the absolute cornerstone of list-building, which is very seldom mentioned.

It’s simply this.

The idea of growing your list is based on a fallacy. You can’t possibly grow your list or build your list.

That’s because your list is never yours.

You simply borrow it.

Allow me to explain

We don’t own the attention of subscribers; readers, viewers, listeners, or followers, etc. We have to earn their attention… and then keep re-earning it. Never, ever take it for granted. Consistently strive to provide useful information. 

When we stop thinking of subscribers as our subscribers, we operate from a them-first mindset. This motivates us to produce our best work. As a result, we find that we retain far more subscribers for far longer. We also find they proactively recommend us to their friends and contacts.  

The pay-off is huge.

The pay-off from this approach is huge. With greater retention, plus a faster growth-rate, your lists will grow like a snowball. It’s the list building equivalent of compound interest. 

Photo by Melanie Deziel 

New is getting old

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marketing risk, new, change, fear of change

When it comes to creating a powerful marketing message and attracting customers, the word ‘new‘ is overrated. New is a very loaded word and can destroy your marketing results.

There are 3 broad reasons for this.

  1. The newest product or service is always a riskier bet. At best, it’s a bigger gamble than the trusted incumbent. At worst, the customer feels like a paying guinea pig.
  2. The newest product or service is seldom the best. It lacks the improvements that come from years of feedback. It lacks the robustness that comes from stress-testing.
  3. New doesn’t last for long. This makes it a short-term marketing message. Anything that’s new is only new for now.

A dozen better alternatives

Given the challenges of using the word new, I recommend you replace it with something more compelling. More motivating. More attractive. To get you started, here are 12 alternatives.

  1. A faster way.
  2. A more enjoyable way.
  3. A cleaner way.
  4. A proven way.
  5. A stylish way.
  6. An profitable way.
  7. A premium quality way.
  8. An ethical way.
  9. An exciting way.
  10. A safer way.
  11. A more reliable way.
  12. A cost effective way.

What next?

Take a look through your marketing and search for opportunities to replace new with a better alternative. This is usually in situations where new is used as the only adjective. 

Also, you can apply this to your presentations, negotiations or meetings. For example, if you’re trying to sell a new product, service or idea to someone, they’re more likely to pay attention when you tell them about your ‘more profitable way’ of doing something, than your ‘new way’ of doing something. 

Finally, in situations where you need to use the word new, such as a press release or product launch, combine it with another word. For example, new and improved. 

Photo by Werner Du plessis

Did you see what those liars are saying?

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marketing liars

Have you ever looked at the marketing promises made by your competitors?

  • Your most unreliable competitors will promise to deliver on time, every time.
  • Your lowest quality competitors will promise premium quality at low prices.
  • Your least competent competitors will promise a highly professional service.

And they’ll all have testimonials. Testimonials that are often the opposite of what a real client or customer will experience from them.

It’s horrible. It sucks. But it makes sense

After all, they’re hardly likely to admit that working with them or buying from them is a total nightmare. You see, the mindset that says it’s okay to produce low quality work and charge over the odds for it, has no problem being dishonest in other areas of their business.

What does this have to do with you?

Everything!

It has everything to do with you. And here’s why.

Your prospective clients or customers have been lied to before. This means the claims you legitimately make in YOUR marketing will only be treated seriously, if you back them up.

Here are a couple of tips to help you make the truth of your marketing a lot more believable.

One way to add credibility, is to link from your website to external sources. For example, link from your website to external reviews or positive media coverage. Similarly, if you’ve been accredited by a respected organisation, link to the page on their website, where you’re mentioned.

Another way to add credibility, is to turn up regularly with useful information, via a newsletter, a blog, a podcast or on social networks, etc. By providing genuinely useful, informed advice, you demonstrate your knowledge. By doing this regularly, you show your reliability. This also gives you an opportunity to show your personality. By demonstrating your knowledge and allowing your marketplace to get to know you, you create a potent marketing mix that really helps you to build trust.

Please don’t just find this advice interesting.

Do something with it.

When the economy is in bad shape, people think a lot harder before making any investments. This includes investing in the services or products you provide. Showcase your credibility and make the decision to invest in you as easy as possible.

Set your business free from this limiting belief

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marketing, failure, success

With 2024 less than 2 months away, I’d like to help you overcome one of the biggest barriers to business success. If you do, you’ll set yourself up for an amazing year ahead.

Ready?

Then lets go my friend.

It starts with one of the biggest paradoxes in business. The only way to succeed more often, is to increase your failure rate. (I’ll give you 3 examples of why this is provably correct in a moment).

The challenge here, is that many small business owners have not yet figured this out. They avoid taking action on their ideas, unless they are convinced, in advance, the idea will work out exactly how they want it to.

That’s an exceptionally high bar to set. So they tend to leave most of their ideas on the drawing board. Including the ideas that would have made them a fortune.

Broadly speaking, there are only three potential outcomes after you take action on a business idea. And you can benefit massively from all three of them.

  1. It might work out just how you wanted, right out the box! A quick win. An instant hit. 
  2. It might work later, after you make some adjustments. By putting an idea into action, you attract feedback. Feedback allows you to tweak and improve. And improvements lead to success.
  3. It might flop. If it does, you get to learn from it and invest that learning into future opportunities. These failure lessons help you build an invaluable reservoir of feedback, which leads to better and better decision making. This is how ALL ongoing success happens.

When you fully understand the value of feedback, it becomes a lot easier to take action with your ideas and insights. That’s because you will have eliminated any irrational fear of failure. Just like every successful business owner before you. 

Failure is feedback.

And feedback is your friend. 

Stop using buzzwords in your marketing. Seriously. Stop it

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remove buzzwords, marketing copy, clarity sells

One thing in business is certain. There’s no shortage of buzzwords and phrases. Here are just some that I’ve seen in use recently.

  • Knowledge transfer.
  • Price point.
  • Intersection.
  • Deep dive.
  • Disrupt.
  • Ruckus.
  • Knowledge transfer.
  • Ideate.
  • Pragmatic.
  • Whiteboard it.
  • Paradigm.

Buzzwords are used by people, in an effort to appear informed or fashionable. Interestingly, using buzzwords has the total opposite effect.

Here’s how they work against us and our marketing.

  • Buzzwords make informed people cringe. Not only is this embarrassing, it’s a terrible idea if we want our peers to take us seriously or recommend us.
  • Buzzwords confuse the uninformed. And that’s the last thing we need, when we want people to understand our message.

In short, buzzwords not only add nothing positive to our marketing, they actively weaken it. And because they’re totally unnecessary, we can remove them with no negative impact.

Remember: One of the keys to effective marketing is to always aim for clarity.

Photo by Kim Gorga on Unsplash

That breakthrough you need

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step by step success, breakthrough business

There’s a lot of commercial doom and gloom out there right now. That’s why it’s essential to remember that your business success remains under your direct control.

You’re in the driving seat.

It’s in your hands.

Better still, those who have succeeded in the worst of economic conditions have given us one of their keys to success. Take a moment to study their stories and you’ll immediately notice a pattern.

A wonderful pattern.

A pattern that you can follow and achieve similar breakthroughs in any economy. It’s simply this: Their success was achieved one step at a time. For example.

One connection at a time.

One opportunity at a time.

One proposal at a time.

One presentation at a time.

One meeting at a time.

One new client (or customer) at a time.

One major new client at a time.

One life-changing contract at a time.

By looking for where your big breakthrough will come from amid the economic gloom, your mind isn’t in the present moment. And it’s easy, really easy, to miss the daily steps you should be taking that will lead you to breakthrough success.

Here’s your next step

You know what you want to achieve. So just ask yourself. Based on what I know right now, what’s my next good step?

Then resolve to take that step. Do the same thing tomorrow and the following day, and every day. Just one step.

The success of this approach is easy to verify. You simply need to read the chronicles of anyone who’s ever achieved anything of great value. It’s the worst kept secret in business. And the best way to achieve the success you desire.

All it takes is one step at a time. One day at a time.

You can thrive in the weeks and months ahead. Remain focused on what you want to achieve and do the right things correctly. Easier said than done, but it’s not exactly difficult, either.

With change comes opportunity

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When times are rough it’s tempting to wait for things to change.

But waiting is a really bad idea.

Why?

Look around you. Change, lots of change, is already happening. It’s everywhere. And you’re right in the middle of it.

Here’s what we know: With change comes opportunity.

This means there are opportunities everywhere and you’re right in the middle of them.

Stop waiting.

Start looking for the opportunities. Because they’re coming at you faster than ever.

Photo by Pablo de la Fuente on Unsplash

Sales tip: How to turn a ‘no’ into a ‘yes’!

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marketing close sale, sales tip

When a prospective client or customer decides not to hire us or buy from us, how can we turn their no into a yes? And how can we do this, even when they’ve had their objections or concerns fully answered and they still say ‘no’?

Faced with that kind of rejection, there are 3 broad ways we can choose to respond.

  1. We could just leave it. They’ve made their decision. End of story.
  2. We could reply and let them know why they’re wrong and make sure they know they’ve made a big mistake. If we know the competitor who won, we could also include all the bad stuff we know about the lousy dirt-bag.
  3. Or we could contact them and be more genial, positive and helpful to them, than if we had won the contract!

Yes, it’s number 3 I’m going to focus on. Because it’s exceptionally effective.

Turning a prospect’s no into a yes

Imagine how the following might work, as a massively more effective way to respond to a prospect’s ‘no’.

  • You contact the prospect and thank them for the time they spent with you or with your proposal.
  • You also let them know, up-front, that you respect their decision. This is important. It shows you’re not doubting their ability as a decision maker.
  • You add that as a result of their decision, you’re working to improve your proposal or presentation.
  • You then find something generous to say about the competitor who won, so long as it’s true. Nothing sarcastic or tongue-in-cheek, but truly gracious.
  • And finally, you let them know that if they ever need anything, you’re there for them and happy to help.

Here’s what we know for absolute certain. Very, very few people respond with that type of good-natured, yet professional strategy. But when they do, they get remembered for the very best of reasons. It’s exceptionally powerful and I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve seen it work.

Here’s what can happen

Here are just some of the outcomes this can generate for people, who were originally rejected.

In many cases, the prospect who rejected them suddenly wonders if they made the wrong decision, in choosing the other provider. I’ve personally seen this result in an immediate about-turn, with the rejected provider winning the deal.

Much more commonly, I’ve seen the rejected provider given the contract, as soon as the winning provider screws up!

It’s as if the prospect is unconsciously looking for their original choice to fail, after becoming fully aware what a wonderful provider they rejected. By respecting the prospect’s decision and leaving the door wide open to them, the rejected provider makes it extremely easy for the prospect to contact them.

But that’s not all!

Ask anyone who uses this approach and they’ll confirm that it also results in a number of referrals, from the prospects who didn’t change their mind about hiring the rejected provider.

I’ve used this strategy for years and seen amazing results. My clients have, too. So give it a try. You literally have nothing to lose and everything to gain.

Photo by Jim Wilson on Unsplash

Small adjustments. Low risk. Amazing sales results

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From a sales and marketing perspective, which of the following do you think gets the best results?

  • A sign on your customer entrance that says “We’re open”, or a sign that says “Come in”?
  • A message in your marketing, which gives your “opening hours”, or a message in your marketing that gives your “drop-in hours”?

The second option in both those examples always performs better (sometimes by factors of hundred’s of percent) in tests.

There are 3 important points from that short exercise.

1. Small adjustments can produce massive improvements

Minor adjustments to your sales or marketing can create breakthrough results.

In the above examples, tiny changes to the text were made. However, by increasing the number of prospective clients (or customers) who take action, those changes can result in a very tangible, positive impact.

For instance, a client of mine made a change I suggested, live on our first Zoom meeting. He was able to see a clear, measurable improvement with a tiny textual change to a call-to-action button on his website that same day. He then rolled it out to all his relevant pages the following day, with equally outstanding results, but this time across his entire range of services. We tested, measured and adjusted until he squeezed out close to a 175% increase in the click-through rate from those pages, to his sales pages.

Test, measure and adjust?

Yes.

If you’ve followed my work for any period of time, you’ll know that every marketing adjustment you make needs to be tested and measured.

  • Tested: Put into play in a real world setting.
  • Measured: Results compared against past performance. If it improves things, you keep it and then seek to further improve it with your next adjustment.

That process is then repeated until you see no further measurable improvement. Then, you move on to the next marketing element to adjust and improve.

2. Low risk

The type of subtle adjustments I’m referring to here, either cost nothing or very little for you to put into play. This means they can be deployed quickly.

So, you now have the freedom to make adjustments to each part of your sales and marketing. In fact, that’s exactly what EVERY professionally marketed business already does.

3. One size does not fit all

Different marketing adjustments, tactics and strategies work differently in different industries. And even within the same industry, there are dozens and dozens of things that will determine how effective any change to your marketing will be, for your specific business.

Some of the most common factors include.

  • The profile of client you sell your products or services to.
  • Your pricing; whether it is higher, lower or around average for your industry.
  • How well, or poorly, any changes you make, work alongside your current branding.
  • Your location.

Small, low risk adjustments that are specific to you

You don’t need to make major changes.

You don’t need to spend major money, it usually takes just a little of your time.

But you do need to find out what works best for you and your business.

You can waste a massive amount of time focusing on the wrong things to adjust. You can waste even more time, making the wrong adjustments. And in both cases, you’ll be leaving a potential fortune on the table.

This is one of those areas of marketing where it makes no sense to dabble with it yourself, unless you absolutely have to. So, if you can afford to invest in expert marketing help, do.
Note: I explain why in more detail here.

When done correctly, this strategy will give you a huge spread of improvements that will combine to increase your sales. It’s a proven, low risk, highly effective and exceptionally robust way to grow your business in any economy.

Photo by Ross Findon on Unsplash

What is sub-scratch and why must you eliminate it?

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What is sub-scratch and why must you eliminate it?

You’ve never heard of sub-scratch before. That’s understandable. It’s a term I created. Here’s how I explain it to clients, and why you need to AVOID it.

Starting from scratch / sub-scratch

  • Starting from scratch is an opportunity to start anew. It frees you to build a project on a clean, clear foundation. And it’s extremely underrated.
  • Starting from sub-scratch is the exact opposite. It’s what happens when you start work on a project, which is already broken. You need to pick up the pieces and erase the damage before doing anything else.

I was prompted to write this, after learning about the following, recent sub-scratch example.

A business owner wrote, and sent, a very pushy marketing email to everyone in a local business directory. None had requested the information. She then discovered that she and her ‘spammy email’ were being trashed in the local Facebook business group. The business owner then posted confrontational responses to some individuals in the group, making things even worse. By choosing to dabble with the initial marketing that caused the problem, then dabble with the PR required to mitigate the problem, she’s seriously damaged her reputation within her target marketplace.

My expensive sub-scratch mistake

I made my own sub-scratch mistake well over 20 years ago. It cost me a fortune. I still cringe when I think of it. I had a financial investment decision, which I was maybe 80% sure I knew the answer to. Rather than hire a professional Financial Advisor, I dabbled. I asked a wealthy friend and he agreed I was right. So, I proceeded. I was wrong and so was my friend. It ended up losing me thousands. I still needed to hire a professional Financial Advisor, but she needed to unpick my DIY financials, before building me a solid foundation.

As small business owners, you and I need to make sure we don’t create sub-scratch problems. We need to be very intentional about the things we absolutely know we’re able to do, and those things where we lack the knowledge required. It’s always more effective and far less expensive, to hire an expert at the start, rather than afterwards.

Photo by Francisco De Legarreta C. on Unsplash