Jim Connolly Marketing

Reject the masses. Here’s why

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marketing specific, targeted message, marketing tips

Here’s a very straightforward, proven way to build a successful service-based business. I’m going to suggest you reject the mob.

All right. That’s the intro finished. Let’s go!

Depending on the service you provide and your location, there are thousands, maybe tens of thousands or hundreds of thousands of prospective clients.

Except, they’re not really your prospective clients at all.

No.

Whilst you may be able to provide a degree of service to some of them, for the vast majority you won’t be exactly what they’re looking for. You can’t possibly be. None of us can.

After all.

  • Some will want a more local provider.
  • Some will demand the lowest priced provider.
  • Some will insist on the absolute premium, and happily pay the maximum to ensure it.
  • Some will need a provider that speaks a certain language.
  • Some will be looking for a provider from one of their networking groups.
  • Some will want a provider with a rare, highly specialist knowledge.
  • Some will require a provider who charges annually in arrears.
  • Some will only hire a provider with offices in multiple locations.
  • Some will want unlimited phone access at no extra charge.

Given you can’t possibly serve the majority of your marketplace, I have a strong recommendation for you. I recommend you adopt a much more focused strategy.

Here’s why. Along with how it works.

Shun the masses

The temptation is to try and have as wide an appeal as possible, so you get a shot at as many prospective clients as possible. That’s a very common approach. It seems to make sense, but it’s completely wrongheaded. A bad mindset to work from. And a very expensive mistake.

Why?

Because by trying to be somewhat relevant to everyone, you fail to be directly relevant to anyone – including your actual prospects.

Your actual (genuine) prospects need to see your marketing and immediately identify that you’re talking to them. By weakening that message, you lose them.

They’ll assume you’re not what they’re looking for, when you’re exactly what they’re looking for and exactly what they need.

So my plea to you is simple.

Reject the mob. They’re not interested. They’ll waste your time. They’ll want ‘this’ when you offer ‘that’. And you’ll go nuts trying to make them happy, let alone keep them happy.

Embrace your actual prospects instead

Focus on being directly relevant to the prospective clients you can absolutely delight with your services. These are the people who will hire you, pay you the correct rate, recommend you to their friends and stay with you for years and years. These are the clients you can confidently build an amazingly successful business with.

These are the clients you need. And they need you. They really need you!

Now, go and let them know! Focus all your marketing, so that it’s strikingly obvious you’re exactly what they’ve been looking for.

We’ll find a way

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There’s something exceptionally powerful in the following 4 word statement, ‘We’ll find a way’.

It’s quite literally transformative. Just consider the impact it has in each of the following scenarios. Then we’ll look at opportunities for you to apply it directly into your business.

  • We’ll find a way: It’s a springboard to growth and development.
  • We’ll find a way: It’s a mindset to make your meetings ultra productive.
  • We’ll find a way: It’s a sign of your commitment.
  • We’ll find a way: It’s the starting point of every great discovery.
  • We’ll find a way: It’s a mindset for removing barriers.
  • We’ll find a way: It’s a message that demonstrates your willingness.
  • We’ll find a way: It’s the answer to feelings of hopelessness.
  • We’ll find a way: It’s a preface to collaborations and partnerships.

There are many, many other examples of the powerful impact this phrase can have.

We’ll find a way in your business

With this in mind, here’s something I’d like you to consider.

I wonder how it might improve your business, when you look for opportunities to include ‘we’ll find a way’ thinking; in your conversations, client meetings, sales presentations, social media copy, newsletters, planning sessions, staff training, internal and external emails and project meetings.

As you have probably already noticed, we’ll find a way thinking is one of the most powerful, yet least talked about attributes of the world’s most influential leaders.

So, consider it another tool in your arsenal. Another option. A way to remove blocks that were holding you back. And a mindset that will be invaluable to your business as we enter 2025.

A big powerful idea

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Yes, as 2024 comes to an end, things are changing fast. That’s why today, I’m going to share an idea with you that can help you move forward with confidence. It’s something I’ve used for decades and it has never failed. 

It’s all about the importance of focusing on a big, powerful idea.

Here’s why it will work for you, along with a proven way for you to develop your very own big, powerful idea.

  • Big ideas crush apprehension and replace it with eager anticipation and excitement.
  • Big ideas fill you with motivation. They also provide the energy that’s required to achieve them.
  • Big ideas force you to grow. Every big idea requires you to learn new things, connect with new people and expand your horizons.
  • Big ideas attract the attention of others. People lean forward when they hear a big idea. They want to know more.
  • Big ideas draw people to you who want to be involved. You never have to worry about getting the help you need, if your idea is compelling enough.
  • Big ideas spread. You don’t need to push big ideas. They go from person to person. They have legs. They’re the source of that ‘buzz’ that every thriving business has.

Think big. Plan big. And enjoy the energy, clarity, direction and rewards that come from working toward your big, powerful idea.

The question is, where’s your big idea going to come from? 

Here’s your answer. 

Finding YOUR big, powerful idea

Given that this newsletter is being read by people on every continent, in every industry and with vastly different levels of experience, here’s a ‘silver bullet’ tactic. I’ve used this for decades and shared it with millions of people through my work. It’s a 4 step process I call The 6 Idea Trick. 

Important: Past experience shows that the correct way to use that tactic, is to make time for it. It’s amazingly effective. It will work, but it’s not magic. It requires time and effort. 

Your business is losing a fortune. But your numbers look great

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losing money, small business, small biz, marketing

Photo: Nicola Barts

A company pays a salesperson $125,000 a year.

That salesperson has generated an average of $250,000 a year, for 3 years, in high-profit sales.

He did great.

No he didn’t!

He was terrible.

In fact, he was worse than a waste of money.

And here’s why.

He was losing the company a fortune!

You see, that salesperson left the company and was replaced by a new salesperson.

The new salesperson was also paid $125,000 a year.

And using the same source of leads, over the following 3-years they generated an average of $750,000 a year in high-profit sales.

In the space of 3-years, the first salesperson under-performed by $1,500,000.

Data and information

Too many business owners, and sales/marketing directors, who should know better, make decisions based on data, when what they need is information.

Information is what you get, when someone applies knowledge, experience and context to data.

  • Data will show you that your salesperson is generating a 100% profit.
  • Information does that. However, your information-based decision-making causes you to research the average conversion rate for your industry. It immediately identifies a major problem that’s losing you a fortune. The salesperson is way, way below average and needs training or replacing.

This same data error is made by most small business owners, when they advertise. And it locks them into believing that they need to run ads.

  • They run the ads and data shows an ‘X’ percent profit is being achieved.
  • They then look at ways to further increase that profit figure, with better written ads, better timed ads, better designed ads or placing ads on different platforms. This is an extremely limiting approach.

The business owner using an information-based approach, would look at the ad data. THEN, seek out one of the massively more profitable, massively more expensive options.

They’d examine the profitability of investing in email marketing, joint ventures and endorsed relationships, etc.

They’d discover that JUST ONE, successful Endorsed Relationship campaign can generate far more high-profit income for them in a week, than your business usually generates in a year. No ads required. Ever.

In short, you can’t make informed decisions without information. Data is just a single component. And using it by itself, can ruin an otherwise great business.

Closing the sale?

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sorry closed wooden board at entrance
Photo by Mathias Reding on Pexels.com

When I started out in sales and marketing, it was all about closing the sale.

In fact, good salespeople were often referred to as good closers.

Decades later, I still see sales recruiters asking for candidates who have a proven record of closing.

Here’s why you need to be extremely careful, before using any of the countless closing techniques and tricks.

Closing for business?

The challenge with the closing mindset, is that it positions the prospective customer as little more than an obstacle. A barrier between you and the sale. A hurdle to be overcome. It’s little wonder so many closing techniques are based on aggressive, psychological tactics.

Here are a couple of the worst, widely used examples today.

  • The silence close. This is where a series of long, uncomfortable silences are used at key points in the sales process. The person selling uses this discomfort to exert the maximum mental pressure on the prospective client. It’s borrowed from interrogation techniques!
  • Assuming the sale. This is where the person selling literally ignores the prospect’s lack of interest and acts as if the prospect has agreed to make the purchase. They just start asking for the delivery address and a suitable date. When/if the prospect objects, the salesperson responds with a series of why? questions, further pressuring the prospect.

In a nutshell, the focus is on outmanoeuvring your opponent. It’s them against you. A confrontation.

Here’s a very different approach, along with why I strongly recommend you use it.

Opening

I built my reputation in sales by adopting the total opposite approach. Instead of focusing on closing, I focused on opening. And I made a fortune.

Opening?

Yes. Opening relationships and opening opportunities. I found the idea of closing to be self-defeating. I discovered that you can achieve a great deal more, by opening relationships with people. This means taking time to listen to them. And then learning about their challenges and what they want or need. If our marketing is targeted correctly, we’re automatically only speaking with people who are our ideal profile of client.

When handled correctly, and preceded with effective marketing, this means there’s no need to close anything or close on anyone.

The whole process becomes a natural, flowing conversation, where we seek to help people overcome a challenge, with the products or services we provide.

It’s an effective, rewarding and professional way to achieve amazing sales results, and build masses of high-value relationships that last.

Too passive?

No way! This approach may sound passive, but consider the people YOU like. The people you trust. The vendors you’re already purchasing from. Are they pushy? Are they confrontational? No! That’s because we avoid people like that. Conversely, we’re attracted to those who respect us and are open and honest with us.

We trust people who are open and honest.

We buy from people who are open and honest.

We value people who are open and honest.

We recommend people who are open and honest.

In short, the more open we are, the more opportunities we’re open to, the more sales we make and then, the more referrals we receive.

You’ve grabbed your reader’s attention. Now what?

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content marketing, newsletters, copywriting,

You have grabbed your reader’s attention. Your next step is extremely important. Here’s what to do next, plus something you must avoid in order for your marketing to be effective.

Let’s go.

Getting the reader’s attention is the easy part. We can do that with a clickbait headline or an outrageous statement.

However, a marketing message needs to tell them something or sell them something. And it absolutely must be consistent with that headline or statement we used.

If not, we lose twice over.

  1. We’ll lose the sale.
  2. We’ll lose the reader and the chance to market to them again. They’ll remember that we used an inaccurate headline to trick them into opening that email or clicking that link. They’ll feel foolish. They’ll feel duped. They’ll remember for a long time.

It’s a terrible tactic with a limited lifespan. The longer a business owner uses it, the more prospective clients they will alienate. That means when we have something to share with them, which is well-written, which is worth their time, which is what they need, which is what they want… they won’t click on it or open it.

The solution

By all means, grab their attention. Just make damn sure that your message is of interest to them, that it’s consistent with your attention-grabbing headline or statement, and that it motivates them to take whatever action you require.

That way, you win twice over.

  1. You’ll win the sale.
  2. You’ll win the attention of the prospect, because you’ll have trained them that you’re worth taking notice of.

Now that’s a win-win situation worth striving for!

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