Jim's Marketing Blog

Marketing tips and ideas to help you grow your business

Minimum or maximum can make you a fortune

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marketing, minimum maximum

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There are two business models, which have proven time and again to be extremely successful.

They are:

  1. Focusing on the minimum you can deliver.
  2. Focusing on the maximum you can deliver.

In today’s post, I’ll show you how both of these work, PLUS how to keep your current business model and open up a whole new marketplace!

Let’s start by looking at those 2 models.

The minimum model

The business owner who takes the first option, will focus all their smarts and creativity on cost efficiencies. They’ll embrace automation and AI. They’ll search for ways to lower their overhead on a weekly or daily basis. They’ll know exactly what the minimum required is and they’ll deliver on it.

There is a huge marketplace willing to pay for a stripped back product or service. We see them everywhere; no-frills airlines, feature phones, late booking websites, low price stores, etc.

The minimum model works. Really, really well.

The maximum model

The business owner who takes the second option, will focus all their smarts and creativity on excellence. They’ll place a premium on exceptional customer service. They’ll set the highest possible standards and achieve them. They’ll need to unceasingly focus on delighting their customers at every opportunity.

There is a marketplace who are desperate to be treated this way. And they eagerly, willingly pay a premium. It’s an exceptionally profitable marketplace, too.

The middle of the road

The problem comes if you fail to choose… and end up somewhere in the space between those 2 successful business models.

For example.

  • Better than the minimum quality, but not premium either.
  • Less expensive than the premium brands, but not inexpensive enough for the price-sensitive.
  • Products or services that are fine, but not remarkable enough for people to tell their friends.

By failing to choose, you fall into the anonymous middle of the road; where there’s very little interest and where it’s really, really hard to get noticed. There are of course some established brands who successfully plug the middle ground.

However, it takes a ton of resources (and a MEGATON of money) to stand out, when by default, a business is doing middle of the road stuff. No one talks about the unremarkable. No one. So, these businesses need to push their message via paid advertising.

Middle of the road businesses are also why networking groups exist. They have to push for referrals, because their message doesn’t (can’t) spread organically. They’re stuck in a frustrating, unending and very expensive fight for attention.

Your highly lucrative, new income stream

You can enjoy all the benefits above, whilst still retaining your existing model.

How?

By developing an additional new brand, dedicated exclusively to either the maximum or the minimum edge of your marketplace.

Think about that for a moment.

This gives you the safety net of your existing model. Plus, it provides you with all the amazing opportunities that come from serving one of those highly lucrative edges. It opens up a lot of potential, yet with relatively low risk.

Yes, it takes planning. But I’ve worked on this with many clients over the years, and the results can be spectacular. It will allow you to open up a whole new legion of prospective customers or clients. I’ve seen what’s possible and it’s definitely worth considering, as part of your 2020 business development.

Business and Timing: How to know when the moment is right!

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marketing, time timing

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A reader shared some interesting news with me. It contains a valuable lesson, which could really help your business grow in 2020 and beyond. So with her permission, I’d like to share it with you.

Georgia said she is almost ready to launch a new business. Everything is in place. She’s just waiting for the right time.

An excerpt from her email: “[…] I’ve been waiting to pull the trigger on this project since 2014 but things have been hectic to say the least. I’m hoping things settle down now, so I can get started.“

The perfect time to start

The problem with waiting for the perfect moment is that it never comes. Perfection is elusive and fleeting. That’s because life is a series of challenges. So, as one challenge passes a new challenge arrives. And even if you were to find a magical moment where everything was just perfect, one unexpected phone call or some unexpected news and everything changes.

The decision to wait for the perfect time is simply a stalling tactic. An excuse. Albeit a super-effective excuse.

Super-effective?

Yes, it gives us permission to do nothing, indefinitely, because the perfect time never comes.

If you’re going into 2020, with a project that you know you should have shipped a long time ago, take control.

Here’s a proven framework, to get things done and avoid unnecessary delay.

  • Do the research.
  • Check the numbers.
  • Seek out the advice and feedback you need.
  • Put a plan together.
  • Then set a launch date.

… and stick to it.

10 Critical ways that successful business owners think differently

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marketing, think different

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Here are some very important ways that successful business owners think differently. I have also linked to additional resources, which you may find useful.

  1. They surround themselves with motivated people. They know that you can’t build a successful company with pessimistic, fear-focussed team members.
  2. They have the courage to back themselves, rather than wait for the blind to see their vision. Steve Jobs launched the iPhone, despite senior voices telling him Apple wasn’t a phone company and the marketplace was saturated.
  3. They invest more in their professional development than their competitors do. They know that their business success today is a direct reflection of their strategies and ideas up to today. And for their business to improve in 2020, they’ll need to improve.
  4. They proactively look for interesting, valuable problems to solve. Successful business owners know that the bigger the problem you solve, the greater the potential of your business. You’ll have fewer competitors and command higher, more profitable fees.
  5. They create a story around their business that’s worth sharing. If no one is talking about your business, it’s because you’re doing nothing worth talking about. Successful people understand this and get creative. The average business owner looks for excuses and complains.
  6. They listen to their marketplace and build value around what they hear. Social media gives every business owner an insight into what their marketplace wants and needs. The most successful business owners get this. They listen. The average business owner uses social media just to broadcast marketing messages.
  7. They commit to go the extra mile. And then do it! Conversely, the average business is exactly that. Average. They charge average fees and work with average clients, on average projects. That’s not going the extra mile.
  8. They refuse to surrender their focus to the never-ending stream of interruptions. The most successful business owners understand that whatever has their attention, is influencing what they think. They only pick their phones up to use them, so the phone is working for them. The average business owner checks their phone notifications regularly throughout the day. So, their attention is continuously interrupted and their focus constantly off-balance.
  9. They use fear as their compass. Successful business owners know that meaningful progress is always preceded by fear. That same fear stops the average business owner in their tracks. This makes meaningful success impossible. Ouch!
  10. They are willing to make tough decisions. Opportunities are a little like groceries: they come with a use-by date! The business owner who waits for fear-focused colleagues to see the opportunity, before taking action, is already too late. They’ll find that the opportunity has either gone, or at best, that they were too slow to fully maximize the opportunity. A casual approach to leadership causes casualties.

How to use fear as your compass

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marketing fear, fearless

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As a business owner, the fears you have are largely the same as your competitors. This presents you with an amazing opportunity for 2020 and beyond.

Really, Jim?

Yes. Really.

You see, when you avoid doing the things you fear, you also avoid doing the things your competitors fear.

In other words, whatever you’re avoiding, they’re avoiding too.

This means whatever it is, is going to be in very short supply!

Here’s why this matters to you and your business:

  • Lack of supply = scarcity.
  • Scarcity = value.

If you want your business to be in demand. If you want to get your business noticed. And if you want to avoid selling based on price (and you do), learn to embrace the things you fear.

Because that feeling of fear is often your inner compass, confirming that you’re on the right track.

They lean forward. And they want to get involved

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marketing idea, anointed

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That’s what happens when you share a truly exciting idea or opportunity with someone.

  1. They lean forward as you’re talking. You have their attention. They’re listening intently.
  2. Then they try and find a way to get involved with it. They can sense the promise of the opportunity. So they want in. They’ll ask if they can tell their friends about it or place a pre-order; you won’t have to ask. That’s because great ideas have legs.

Reaction to an average or below average idea looks very different.

  1. People nod politely.
  2. Many will tell you they think you’re onto a winner.
  3. But that’s about as far as it goes, because average ideas lack legs. More about legs in a moment.

Why am I sharing this with you?

I hear from small business owners regularly, who’ve wasted time and money developing dud ideas, after misinterpreting the feedback they received. This need not happen to you, so long as you know what to look for.

Filter everything

Never make a commercial decision based on surface-level thinking. Filter everything for accuracy.

Before you accept any feedback, remember that people often tell you what they think you want to hear, rather than what they actually think. Their intentions are good. They want to encourage you or be supportive. But their misplaced kindness can lead you into a huge commercial loss if you accept it on a surface level.

A fantastic way to filter the feedback you receive, is to focus 95% on what people do when you tell them about your idea… and 5% on what they say.

Here’s how: Look for how eager they are to get involved, without prompting from you to take action. Just explain the idea clearly.

Then watch:

  • If your idea is a business product or service and includes a pre-order option, did they want to pre-order without you asking?
  • Did they ask you for a second meeting?
  • Did they request a sample of the product?
  • And did they ask if you’d like to demo the idea or give a presentation to their colleagues, boss or friends?

The key is to be guided by what they do, far more than what they say. It’s a proven, time-tested way to see if your idea has legs or not.

Why are legs so important, Jim?

I’ll use the example of an idea for a new product or service.

  • If your idea has legs, it means it will spread from person to person by itself. Every viral product or service works this way. People learn about (whatever it is) and tell their friends. Their friends do the same… repeat. These products or services require far less marketing and are massively more profitable.
  • If your idea doesn’t have legs, growth only comes when you tell people about the product or service. Ideas that lack legs require lots of marketing and are drastically less profitable. Growth is slow, expensive and time consuming.

So, get feedback from people. Especially those in your target market for the product or service. Look closely for signs that the idea has legs, by focusing on what people do. Are they leaning forward? Do they want to get involved? And remember that actions speak louder than words.

I know what you’re thinking…

At this point, small business owners often ask me whether it’s possible for an existing product or service, which lacks legs, to be transformed into a runaway success. The answer is yes. I do it all the time, working with clients to pump massive extra value into their products / services, which gives it legs.

Your business in 2020: Why a radically better approach is essential!

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marketing targets 2020, 2020 goals

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Note: I’ve never started a post like this before. I’m asking you to read this to the end, as it challenges some incorrect, common knowledge, which can seriously hurt your business results.

In today’s post, I’ll explain how to remove the barriers that currently hold you back from achieving the business success you’re very capable of. It’s based on a spectacularly effective process I use with my clients. And it can radically improve the way you think about the whole topic of success and achievement.

Now allow me to deliver on those hefty promises.

Ready?

Let’s go!

To start, I want you to think about something for a moment. Here it is: What are your business’s growth targets for the coming year?

Let’s now think for a moment about your targets.

In particular, why you chose to set those specific growth levels for your business. Because this is something business owners often (very often) get completely wrong. And it massively limits the potential of what they can achieve, before they even start.

I get to speak with business owners, all day, every working day of my life. It’s been this way since the mid 1990’s.

And…

Here’s what I see at this time, every year

You will have 2 similar-sized businesses, in the same city, serving the same marketplace, yet with drastically different targets for the year ahead.

  • One will aim for a 10% or 15% increase in overall growth, and a slightly higher increase in profits.
  • Another will aim for a 45% or 50% overall increase with a higher profits percentage.
  • The majority of the time, the business owner with the higher targets will out-perform their rival. And often by a very considerable amount!

This is something every business owner should find interesting.

Why? Because this huge difference in results happens, even when they have almost identical resources available.

Here’s the part where I challenge some common knowledge.

This may surprise you. But I’m not saying that by setting a high target, you’ll do X percent better. That’s not only too simplistic, it’s a totally wrong-headed approach, which usually backfires!

In my experience, we need to go a little deeper than that.

A radically better approach is required!

Here’s what we know: When a business owner sets a target, it’s usually based on (or just above) what they believe their business can realistically achieve. Their belief is what sets the target, not the other way around. That’s why setting yourself an unrealistic target, if anything, is counter-productive. If you’ve ever tried to fool yourself like this, you’ll already know you’re too smart to believe it, so it doesn’t work.

To paraphrase a popular motivational quote: “If you don’t believe it, you won’t achieve it”.

So, how do you set, and then genuinely expect to achieve, truly inspirational business goals?

Here’s what I’ve found keeps on succeeding

In working with business owners, I’ve seen amazing results by helping them identify why they believe that (whatever target) is probably the best they can realistically expect. This includes helping them determine why they think anything beyond that relatively low target is unrealistic for them. And the breakthroughs are amazing, especially if they’ve reached a bit of a plateau in recent years.

So, how does this help you achieve at such a higher level?

It looks like this.

  • When you have genuine reasons to believe, based on cold, hard facts, that you can absolutely achieve way, way better results, it dramatically improves the way you feel about the potential of your business.
  • This causes a likewise improvement in your decision-making, as it aligns with what you now know is absolutely possible for you.
  • This then leads to smarter marketing / business development activities.
  • Note: It also brings you massively more clarity and a matching increase in your motivation and energy.
  • And every business that makes smarter decisions and takes the actions required has to improve. It’s pure cause and effect.

Why not take a look at your targets for 2020 and determine if you’re setting yourself up for a spectacularly exciting year, or a re-run of 2019. If you’d like me to help you get it right, read this and get ahead of the masses who will wait until January.