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I feel like I already know you

By Jim Connolly | August 1, 2018

I’d like to share a short, easy to understand, yet extremely valuable idea with you today. It’s all about attracting high quality leads on a very regular basis.

I was prompted to write this, after some emails I received this morning. As usual, a number of them contained a version of the following statement: I feel like I already know you. These emails were from people I’ve never met. In each case, they were referring to knowing me via the ideas I share, either on my blog or the email version of the blog.

Why am I telling you this?

What this means for you and your business

Now imagine that instead of me receiving those highly targeted, premium quality leads, it was YOU.

You received them. With more tomorrow, the next day and the next. More leads than you need. And all from people who feel like they know you. People who know your work. People whose attention you have. People who already trust you. (Think about that for a moment).

This opportunity is open to you. Wide open. It requires a couple of things.

  1. You’ll need to generously, regularly share valuable information. Information so useful, that people will eagerly want to receive it and share it.
  2. You’ll need to accept that no matter how great your information is, very few people will take notice at the beginning. Which is fine. Because all you need are your first 10 people. They’ll share your stuff with 10 like-minded friends. Now you’re at 100, which becomes 1000 or 10000 or 100000. If you stick with it.

That second part is where most people fail.

They invest time and effort for weeks, sometimes months, and see little audience growth. They get demotivated. Then quit. Largely because they have been given incorrect expectations of how growing an audience actually works. Despite what many content marketing gurus say, building a valuable audience takes time. It requires patience and commitment.

Focus on the 10

The key is to focus ONLY on earning the attention and trust of those first 10 people. Turn up regularly and give them your best ideas (not sales pitches or advertisements). As long as the information you share is useful enough and you turn up regularly enough, your audience will grow. And the growth accelerates as more people subscribe. When I started my blog, it took me an age to get my first 100 readers. Today, I can get that many in 24 hours. So, stick with it.

I hope you found this information useful. But more importantly, I hope it inspires you to build an extremely valuable community.

Agile Thinking: A new mindset for a new landscape

By Jim Connolly | July 26, 2018

agile, mindset, thinking, business

Business is changing. Moreover, business is changing fast. This is great news for agile thinking business owners, who embrace the opportunities. However, it’s not such great news for business owners who are working in today’s rapidly changing environment, with an outdated approach to business.

Today, I’m going to share some ideas on how you can benefit from the exciting opportunities that are all around you.

First, I’d like to demonstrate how things have improved and why we need to apply a new mindset, to the new landscape.

A new mindset for a new landscape

Many of the world’s most influential businesses were unknown 20 years ago. Some, such as Facebook and Twitter, weren’t even founded until the early 2000’s.

That kind of global growth was previously unthinkable.

What’s more, billion dollar companies that lead their industries have been started by relative unknowns, in very untraditional ways.

Here’s a great example. Writing in Techcrunch, Tom Goodwin summed up the new age of agile business:

“Uber, the world’s largest taxi company, owns no vehicles. Facebook, the world’s most popular media owner, creates no content. Alibaba, the most valuable retailer, has no inventory. And Airbnb, the world’s largest accommodation provider, owns no real estate. Something interesting is happening.”

Tom is right. Something interesting is happening. None of those achievements or business models were possible until very recently. The game has changed. And it has changed for ever.

The age of agile business

When I look at small businesses, they tend to fall into one of the following 2 broad categories: They are either dinosaurs or agile operators. That’s to say their approach to the agile business landscape means they are facing extinction or facing unparalleled success.

Armed with a laptop and an idea, there’s very little an agile business cannot achieve.

  • The new business landscape allows an agile small business owner to have an idea in the morning, and put that idea into play before the end of business that same day.
  • Using social networks, we can listen to what our marketplace wants and provide that want. No more guess work. No more focus-groups. You can get it right every time. And in a fraction of the time.
  • Instant access to data, means research that took weeks or months can now be done in days. And at a fraction of the price.
  • With a great marketing email and some email software, a struggling business can generate a fortune in sales…  and fast!
  • With the correct strategy, anyone can develop their own community. I reach thousands of people every day, many of whom are prospective clients, without spending a penny on advertising. You can too.
  • If you have a great business idea, you no longer need a bank loan. Today, you can use crowdfunding to get the investment you need. People are doing this all day, every day.

Make no mistake, this is the golden age of business, which people have dreamed about for decades.

Yet, in spite of all this potential, almost all small business owners operate their businesses with a 2000’s mindset. They lack agility. This places them at a huge disadvantage.

For example:

  • They still take just as long to make a decision, even though they can get the feedback they need in a fraction of the time. As a result, their agile competitors have already eaten their lunch.
  • They use social networks to follow the crowd, rather than lead their marketplace.
  • They have a website that’s almost an online brochure, when it should be and could be, a lead-generating machine for their business. If you didn’t start work today with leads from your website waiting for you, you should have. Fix it. You’re leaving money on the table.
  • They waste money advertising, when they should be building their own platform.
  • They waste time, money and energy attending networking groups, like people did in the 1970’s, rather than build their own community.

No matter what industry you are in. No matter where you are. Your potential right now is limited only by your willingness, or otherwise, to embrace agile thinking.

What an opportunity. Grasp it with both hands.

Stop competing for business. Seriously. Stop it

By Jim Connolly | July 18, 2018

marketing blogs, competition

In most industries, there’s no shortage of providers. Quite the opposite. There’s a surplus.

There’s way too much choice. And that’s why it’s so competitive.

Imagine this

Tomorrow morning at 9am, all your competitors decide to quit. They literally cease trading. Leaving their clients with no option, but to hire you.

As a business owner, this would present you with a huge opportunity. With no more competition, you would be able to cherry-pick the very best clients. You could choose to only work with clients who are happy to pay a premium fee for a high quality service. You could decide to only work with clients, who gave you the freedom to do your best work.

You’d be free to do things your way.

Now imagine this

Tomorrow morning at 9am, all of your competitors carry on as usual.

If you still decide to cherry-pick the very best clients. To offer a premium service for a premium fee. To only work with clients who give you the freedom to do your best work. To do things your way… you will still have no competition (or very, very little).

Competition is a mindset.

Don’t give these people your time or money

By Jim Connolly | July 6, 2018

time, money, business success

Today, I’d like to save you time, money, energy and stress. I want to help you avoid making the extremely costly mistake of using someone’s title as a decision-making shortcut.

Whilst some titles are defined by meaningful, proven attainment (like the title Doctor or Professor), others are way too vague. They tell us almost nothing. They can be misleading, too. Here are some examples of titles, which sound like one thing, but often mean something completely different.

The CEO

Anyone can be the CEO of nothing. Think of it like this: Bob and Mark are both CEO’s. That title tells us they are both the head of a company. However, it tells us nothing about their company or their achievements. Bob could be CEO of a 3 month old business that’s in the process of going bankrupt. Mark could be the CEO of Facebook.

If you are thinking of giving your money, time or attention to someone, just because they have the CEO title, dig a little deeper first.

The Internet Start-up founders

I get emails most days, from people calling themselves the founder of an Internet Start-up. Some Internet start-ups are funded by millions of dollars worth of investment. Some are run by people with a proven track record of success. Some are built around a great idea and amazing people.

Others are 2 weeks old, unfunded, with no business model, trying to be the next Amazon.com… only better.

Their title, by itself, means nothing.

Best-selling: From Gladwell to Godin to minimum wage

Then there are best-selling authors. Malcolm Gladwell and Seth Godin can rightly claim to be best-selling, non-fiction authors.

Because they are.

However, they are also a world apart in the wide, 3 tiers of best-selling authors.

Top tier: Gladwell sells millions of copies of each book. His advance for one book alone was over one and a half million dollars. He’s big news and is interviewed on major TV networks, worldwide, when each new book is launched. His name is widely known within the general population. He can (and does) commanded $40,000 for a single speaking engagement! One of his book titles “tipping point” has become and everyday part of the English language.

Middle tier: Godin is successful, but sells a fraction as many books as Gladwell. Godin appears on affiliate marketing blogs, podcasts and in marketing publications to promote his books. Whilst a pole away from Gladwell, Godin’s influence is considerable within his niche.

Bottom tier: These are the best-selling authors, who sell surprisingly few books (as few as three or four thousand) and make very little money. Just search Google for “how much does a best-selling author earn”. You will see it can be as little as $15,000, over a period of 2 years. Often less. That’s for a year spent writing the book and maybe another year promoting it. So, these best-selling authors earn less than minimum wage.

There is a huge difference between Gladwell at the top and the people at the bottom. So, if you’re approached by someone who calls themselves a best-selling author in their marketing, do some research.

The top 10 rated experts in the world

Then there are those, who title themselves as a world top 10 (or top 50) expert because they appear on a top 10 list from a well-known magazine or website.

Some of these lists are endorsed. They’re 100% legit. They’re compiled by staff writers — people who work for (and are paid by) the online publication or magazine. The publication puts these lists prominently in the main body of the main website.

However, a version of this is also a very commonly used tactic to create fake credibility. Today, lots of very well-known publications use unpaid and unknown bloggers to provide free “content” for them.

And here’s why!

The publication gets content. These publications need lots of content to maintain their search engine rankings. (Google rewards frequently updated websites). Most big publishers are cutting back on staff, so getting all that content is increasingly difficult.

This is where unknown, and unpaid bloggers come in. They provide a cheap way, in every sense, for the publication to keep Google happy.

A popular form of this free content are so-called “top X lists”. The blogger lists people, who they happen to know, as one of the top 10 (whatever) in the world. These lists are not voted for. They are just the opinion of a blogger who’s trying to gain exposure with free content. Anyhow, these lists get linked to and shared a lot… by the people who are included on them. Those links and shares are SEO ranking factors for Google. This is why the well-known publications allow them.

The unknown blogger gets exposure. The blogger gets to claim they write for the well-known publication, even though these posts are not endorsed, not paid for and not part of the main body of the website.

If you look deeper, you’ll see there’s usually a small disclaimer on the page where these lists appear. It is also VERY common to find the blogger’s friends added to these lists. The friend will then add the blogger to THEIR top 10 list. As such, the people on these lists are not part of the top 10 in the world. And they’re not endorsed by the magazine / website, which they claim in their marketing. Literally anyone can be number 1 on these not-what-they-seem-lists. It looks impressive. It means nothing.

In short, titles can be extremely misleading. Sometimes by accident. Sometimes by design.

Because of this, using titles as a decision-making shortcut can lead us to make bad decisions. So, always credential people, before you give them your attention, time or money.

21 Powerful habits of highly successful business owners

By Jim Connolly | June 22, 2018

marketing blogs, success, habits

Over the years, I’ve worked with thousands of business owners. Some of them are massively successful. I soon noticed that these super-successful people shared certain habits. They did things, which the average business owner didn’t do.

I decided to learn from them… to acquire their habits, to see if it would help me. It did. It really did. In big, meaningful, measurable ways. Today, I’m going to share some of what I learned from them with you.

Let’s go.

  1. They personalize their business, so it’s uniquely theirs. One of a kind. Rare and valuable. This is true, regardless of their industry or profession.
  2. They are driven by a passion to do something big. Something that motivates them AND those around them.
  3. They know success is about more than money. Because if you’re rich and unhappy, you’re still broke.
  4. They show people, rather than tell people. Anyone can claim anything, so they walk the walk.
  5. They out-care their competitors. And it shines through everything they do.
  6. They out-smart their competitors too.
  7. They set standards, extremely high, self-imposed standards. Then, they achieve them.
  8. They throw away the manual and write their own rules.
  9. They focus on what they want, not what they fear. Sounds obvious, yet it’s the polar opposite of what small business owners do.
  10. They are excellent decision makers. They get the information required, study it, request advice if needed, then decide. This is one of the master skills for success in every area of life, not just business.
  11. They avoid those costly detours, which come disguised as shortcuts to success. Warren Buffett often says a key reason for his amazing results, is his commitment to get rich slowly.
  12. They do all the work required. You can’t sleepwalk your way to the top. Or even the middle.
  13. They also relax. If you work smart during work time, you can relax when it’s family and friends time. In fact, it’s essential.
  14. They seldom watch TV. None (zero) of the most successful people I know, bother with much TV.
  15. They are extremely selective who they associate with and who they recommend. Your associates have a huge impact on what you think and your expectations.
  16. They lead. The world already has enough followers and the followers need leaders.
  17. They manage their time extremely well.
  18. They deliberately build a valuable network of people — before they need them.
  19. They are willing to stand out. They know it’s the only way to be outstanding.
  20. They summon the courage to do what’s required, rather than what feels comfortable.
  21. They make promises and keep them. They know it’s a superb way to build trust and earn a great reputation.
  22. They look for opportunities to over-deliver. I call this approach radical contribution. I’ll cover it in detail, in a future post.

I hope you find those observations useful. More importantly, I hope you decide to turn at least one of them into a habit.

The amazing truth about you

By Jim Connolly | June 6, 2018

marketing blog

You’re amazing.

Those are not just kind words. It’s not an empty phrase, designed to make you feel good. It’s based on fact.

And I’ll prove it

Take a moment and remember how amazing you’ve been in times of emergency… how you’ve come out winning, against the odds. And don’t forget the amazing courage you’ve summoned, when things looked bleak. Or the amazing kindness you shown people, when they were in need. Not to mention the amazing resourcefulness you’ve shown, again and again and again.

My point?

It’s so easy to be in awe of others and the amazing things they’ve done, whilst forgetting the amazing thing’s you’ve achieved.

Remembering that you’re capable of amazing things helps you raise the bar on what you expect from yourself. And when you’re going through tough times, it’s REALLY helpful to remember that you have amazing resources, on tap, ready to be used.

There are certainly some amazing people out there. Just remember that you’re one of them.

Building the momentum you need

By Jim Connolly | May 29, 2018

If a wonderful opportunity came your way today, how prepared would you be?

I was prompted to write about this after speaking with a friend. Amy told me that she had been invited to appear on a national radio show. She’s an architect and the show was a perfect fit for her. Plus, the audience is huge.

As I was about to congratulate her, she explained that she refused the offer.

“I just couldn’t do it Jim. I’d be too nervous”.

It happens to us all

I’m sure all of us have, at some point, refused an opportunity because it took us a little too far from our comfort zone. I know I have. The thing is, everything is difficult, before it becomes easy. To get to the point where things are easy, we need to push through the difficult part.

The problem with avoiding opportunities like that, is that we fail to give ourselves the experience required, to overcome the fear. We need that experience, for example, to become comfortable and confident on radio, TV or public speaking. Then, when an opportunity comes our way we can eagerly snap it up.

Justin Timberlake and 200 million viewers

It reminds me of something I saw a couple of years ago. It was a very brief conversation, between Justin Timberlake and one of the hosts of the 2016 Eurovision Song Contest. The host was deliberately trying to make Timberlake feel nervous, ahead of a live performance.

The show’s presenter asked him if he knew how many viewers were about to watch his performance. He replied, “No”. The presenter said, “Around 200 million people”. Timberlake replied, “Ha. That’s cool”. He then got on stage and sang as if he were performing in front of a dozen close friends, rather than almost twice as many TV viewers as the Super Bowl!

It turns out that Timberlake has been performing to millions on TV since he was just 11 years old. So, he pushed through the hard part years ago. Today, he’s comfortable with the TV cameras and the thought of millions of viewers tuning in. His performance was fantastic.

Creating unstoppable momentum

Opportunities come in different sizes. Smaller opportunities come with very little upside, but they’re usually within our reach. However, the best opportunities almost always require you to stretch. To push yourself.

Every time you embrace a great, challenging opportunity, you become more prepared for the next one. The more prepared you are, the easier it gets. The more opportunities you accept, the more opportunities you attract.

You create momentum. Unstoppable momentum.

This momentum leads you to an increasing number of bigger and better opportunities. And that’s exactly what you need, for your business to reach its full potential.

Get specific. Really specific

By Jim Connolly | May 26, 2018

marketing competitor, competition

As a business owner, there are 2 ways you can choose to market your services. One works extremely well. One doesn’t. And most people are choosing the wrong option. I don’t want that to happen to you.

Here are both options, along with how to make the right choice for you and your business.

  1. Try and appeal to as many people as possible.
  2. Intentionally choose the type of customers or clients you want to service. And ignore the rest.

The first option seems to make sense

The thinking looks like this: If we try and appeal to as wide a range of people as possible, we’ll have more prospective customers. This should mean we’ll make more sales (or attract more clients).

The reality is different. Very, very different.

By trying to be relevant to almost anyone who could have a need for your services, you end up being directly relevant to no one.

Here’s the problem: Only a directly relevant message has the power to motivate a prospective customer to take action.

Vague, diluted, semi-relevant messages are ignored.

Here’s a far better approach

The most successful business owners get specific. They decide exactly who they want to serve. They then intentionally focus on communicating with this section of their marketplace. They learn what matters most to this group. They uncover their main challenges. They then connect with them in a way that’s directly relevant and therefore exceptionally powerful.

That kind of specific, directly relevant marketing is what’s required, to inspire people to buy from you or hire you.

Focus on the edges, not the middle

By Jim Connolly | May 24, 2018

The middle ground feels safer. That’s why it’s so crowded. However, it’s very hard to stand out, when you embrace the middle ground. The real value comes from pushing what you do to the edges.

There isn’t an area of your business, which you can’t edge.

Here are some examples to get you started:

  1. Push your copywriting to the edges, so it motivates people to take action.
  2. Push your quality to the edges, so your brand becomes a byword for excellence.
  3. Push your communication skills to the edges, so people feel motivated when you speak.
  4. Push your leadership to the edges, so people follow you.
  5. Push your creativity to the edges, so you can find the answers and ideas you need.
  6. Push your courage to the edges, so you do what’s right rather than what feels safe.
  7. Push your commitment to the edges, so your business gets the resources it needs.
  8. Push your service to the edges, so it’s different from your competitors and of unique value to people.
  9. Push your customer service to the edges, so people tell their friends how well you looked after them.
  10. Push your visibility to the edges, so prospective clients can find you.

Let others cling onto the middle ground. Let them offer average services, to average people, for average fees. You deserve batter than that!

Embrace the edges, my friend. Embrace the edges, stand out and let your prospective clients see just how remarkable you are.

A useful productivity tip from Leonardo Da Vinci

By Jim Connolly | May 8, 2018

I’m sometimes asked what hardware and software I work with. The truth is, over the years I’ve used dozens of devices and hundreds of different programs.

Here’s what I found, after spending a lot of time and money, trying to gain an edge.

I was studying the work of Leonardo Da Vinci one day, when I had an epiphany: Da Vinci changed the world, writing with a quill!

It’s not about the tools

What matters is you, your decision-making and whether you put your decisions into action. That’s because a great plan, well executed, will produce outstanding results… regardless.

My advice is to find a set of tools that fulfil your needs. Tools you feel comfortable with. Then focus on doing the work. That’s where the impact is, my friend.

A very important message

By Jim Connolly | May 2, 2018

content marketing, list building, blogging

I receive a few dozen important marketing emails every day. Of course, none of these messages are important to me.

They are not even of interest to me.

Most are not even relevant to me.

They are only important to the people sending them!

I’m sure you get these emails too. The special offers that aren’t remotely special. The poorly targeted offers, which are totally irrelevant to you and your needs. The outright spam. And anything with the word “webinar” in it!

Here’s the thing: Before you invest in your next marketing email or mail shot, press pause. Ask yourself who it’s supposed to be important to — you or them. Because if it’s only important to you, you’re not marketing to people. You’re interrupting them.

Do it again and you’re pestering them.

How to get it right

A far better approach is to wait until you have something to say, which is worth listening to. Then share it with people who have given you permission to contact them. A valuable message, sent to people who want to hear from you, is vastly more effective than a selfish request from a stranger.

Tip: Here’s a powerful email marketing lesson from Google.

The mindset adjustment that transforms businesses

By Jim Connolly | April 30, 2018

How good are you, when it comes to making business decisions?

That’s a really important question.

Why?

Because good decision-making is an essential part of growing a successful business. That’s why today, I’m going to share a very simple idea with you, which I found extremely useful. It helped me become a massively better decision-maker. More importantly, it can help you, too.

Let’s go!

Much of the email I receive from readers, is connected to a problem they have, regarding a decision. Usually, it’s a decision they’ve been wrestling with or procrastinating on. And in almost every case, the fact they’re delaying the decision, is making things a lot worse. That’s to say, their inaction is turning a minor challenge into a major problem.

The idea that improved my mindset

If you or someone you know struggles with decision-making, consider the following fact. It shifted my mindset to decision-making and allowed me to transform my business.

A decision is always made. Because time will make it, if you do not.

Here’s an example of what I mean.

A guy wakes up with toothache, decides to ignore it, take some painkillers and goes to work. He does this day after day. He tells himself he’s busy. He tells himself that if things don’t improve he’ll make a dental appointment. Eventually, he needs emergency dental treatment. It’s now a much bigger problem. Plus, he’s been in pain, unnecessarily, for days or weeks. And the cost of treatment is higher.

That’s what happens, when we allow time to make a decision for us. We end up with a much bigger issue to deal with. The situation is out of our hands. There’s a lot more pain attached. And it’s more expensive.

There are 2 lessons I took from this

Firstly, we can’t avoid making decisions. We can only delay them. And no one procrastinates their way to success.

Secondly, by delaying decisions, we surrender control of the outcomes. Any business that loses control of its outcomes, has extremely limited potential.

In short, once we have the information we need, it’s time to quit stalling and make a decision. This mindset shift inspired me to become a better decision-maker and build a better business. I hope it helps you too.

Bonus — Here are 10 Daily decisions to help you smash your business goals.

The step by step guide to marketing your business

By Jim Connolly | April 17, 2018

Lawrence from New Jersey emailed me with a great question. He wanted to know why I don’t provide any step-by-step marketing guides.

Here’s my answer. It contains an exceptionally valuable marketing tip, which I hope you find useful.

The thing about cookie cutters

Cookie cutters are extremely effective when you’re making cookies. They let you produce lots of identical looking cookies, very fast.

Conversely, a cookie cutter approach to marketing is of very little value.

Why?

Because by using the same marketing approach as your competitors, your marketing becomes identical to theirs. You become camouflaged. This makes it very, very hard for prospective clients to find you. And when they do find you, you’ll seem way too similar to your competitors, so there’s no reason to contact you. Oh, and if they do contact you, they’ll be price sensitive.

Throwing away the cookie cutter

Successful marketing is about standing out. It’s about being noticed by the right people and giving them a compelling reason to hire you or buy from you. And for that you need an individual approach.

  • You need marketing that sets you apart from your competition, so you are the one who gets hired.
  • You need marketing that gets you noticed for all the right reasons, by all the right people.
  • You need marketing that’s specific to you; your unique business, your unique situation and your unique goals.

However.

The marketing guides available via blogs, websites, seminars, webinars, and books, etc., are designed to be used by a wide range of business owners. This means you end up with the same generic marketing ideas as everyone else.

That’s the recipe for how to be ignored! It’s also the total opposite of what you need. And it explains why I don’t provide step-by-step guides.

Instead, I strive to encourage you to stand out. To get specific. To take your marketing seriously. Because that’s the only way to get the attention you need, the sales you need and the results you need.

There’s only two ways to grow a business. You need to choose one

By Jim Connolly | April 15, 2018

marketing help, marketing advice

It’s becoming harder and harder to sell the average product or service.

Why?

Because when something is average, the lowest price wins. And there will always be someone lower priced than you. Plus, your prospective customers can find these lower priced alternatives, on Google or Amazon, in seconds.

There are only two, proven ways to build your business today. Here they are.

Option one

You can decide to try to cut your costs back to the bone and undercut the competition. Lower prices attract attention. Lower prices get people talking. Average products or services do neither.

And if you can get the efficiency savings right, with a significant increase in sales, you can make a very nice profit. This guy sold a UK retail outlet where everything cost just £1, for £50,000,000.

Option two

Alternatively, you can decide to turn your back on average. There are more, wealthy customers out there than ever before. And they want to be treated differently. They’ll very happily pay for that premium difference, too.

That’s why luxury brands thrive in every industry and profession.

The important thing my friend, is to decide.

Either aim for low profit, high turnover or aim to be a premium provider. Then market your business accordingly. Don’t position yourself somewhere between the two. Because it has never been harder to succeed in the middle-ground, than it is today.

How to crush the competition!

By Jim Connolly | April 6, 2018

marketing help, marketing advice

Joe emailed me with a very direct question. As lots of you may have a similar challenge, I’ve shared the question below, along with my answer.

Hi Jim. What’s the best way for me to crush my competitors?  I’m going to lose my business soon unless I turn things around and I’m sick of missing out to competitors that are no better than me.

I think crush is a strong word, but it certainly gets Joe’s frustration across.

How to beat the competition

There are a couple of proven options. I’m going to highlight them, then offer a more powerful alternative.

1. Most business leaders will tell you that the best way to beat the competition, is to outsmart them. This means spotting or creating opportunities before they do. This is a very effective approach.

2. Some enlightened business leaders will tell you that the best way to beat the competition, is to out care them. This means focusing heavily on customer care. It means truly going the extra mile. It means showing the marketplace that you care enormously about what matters to them. This is also very effective.

However, I’ve uncovered a 3rd and massively more powerful alternative. You can out manoeuvre your competitors by doing both of the above!

By outsmarting them and out caring them, you leverage 2 enormously powerful strategies. You set yourself apart from all the rest. This makes you a lot more visible. Moreover, it makes you more visible to the right people; those who value what you do. And as my clients can confirm, it’s a spectacularly effective way to build a high-profit business.

Is the out manoeuvre approach easy? No. It takes a little additional effort.

Is it possible? Yes. Of course it is. I do it every day.

Is it worth it? Absolutely. You see, this approach not only helps you attract great clients or customers. It helps you retain them. And a business that’s regularly winning great new clients, and seldom losing any, is pretty-much unbeatable.

[P.S. Here’s a recent interview I did with the team at The University of Northern Iowa. I hope you find it useful!]

Why toddlers don’t run the world’s most successful companies

By Jim Connolly | April 3, 2018

Motivation and persistence are essential for business success. But by themselves, they’ll only get you so far.

Otherwise, the world’s most successful companies would all be run by toddlers!

We need to talk about your entitlement mindset

By Jim Connolly | March 28, 2018

content marketing, trust

There’s a very common mindset among small business owners. It’s the entitlement mindset. And almost NO small business owner is aware of it, until it’s explained to them. That’s what this post is about, along with lots of ideas for how to put things right.

What does the entitlement mindset look like?

The mindset tells the small business owner that they’re entitled to success. They think they can be average, yet still succeed. They believe they can just keep on doing the same ineffective stuff, and over time, things will “somehow” just improve.

It’s little wonder the vast majority of small business owners fail, and the vast majority that survive are going nowhere. Spinning their wheels. Waiting for the break they never earned, to arrive.

The wake-up call of our age is this: We’re not entitled to anything! We have to earn it. And that includes the attention of our prospective clients. They call it paying attention for a reason.

Remember when I shared this with you?

Your blog doesn’t have subscribers, your newsletter doesn’t have readers, your Facebook Group doesn’t have members, your podcast doesn’t have listeners and your Youtube channel doesn’t have viewers.

You don’t own anyone’s attention. It’s borrowed. You have to earn it. Then re-earn it.

As this blog approaches it’s 10th birthday, this is something I’m focusing on a great deal. If I decide to commit to an 11th year, I will also need to commit to digging deep, to find ways to re-earn your attention. Again and again. That means I need to be as useful as possible to you. Knowing that if I fail to be worthy of your attention, you’ll take your attention back.

In other words, your attention is not something I am entitled to.

Okay. [Imagine dramatic music in the background] Now the bad news!

The same is true of your marketing

Sorry. But if your marketing fails to offer something worthy of your prospective client’s attention, they’ll take it elsewhere. You only have their attention on loan. And if you lose their attention, you’ll also have lost the opportunity to do business with them. You can’t afford that. It’s low leverage. It’s unsustainable.

In short, once you’ve earned the attention of a prospective client, it makes way more sense to work on retaining it. This is how you build a spectacularly valuable communication channel with them.

So share ideas, stories and suggestions with your prospective clients, which THEY will find useful. 99.9% of small business marketing doesn’t do this. It’s self-serving, from the entitlement mindset. It doesn’t attract attention and it certainly doesn’t re-earn attention. It’s usually a dull series of thinly disguised sales pitches and special offers.

They think they are entitled to the attention of people, when in reality, they’re not entitled to shit!

A quick look at the way things were

Old school marketing was all about interrupting people. It was about sales pitches. It was about big brands paying fortunes to get their ad in front of you while you were trying to watch TV or listen to the radio. The huge problem with that model, was that you had to start from scratch every time. It was expensive. Really expensive. This put it beyond the reach of small businesses. However, it was the backbone of the highly lucrative advertising industry for over a century.

The advertising industry today is undergoing a huge change. Brands are embracing the value of earned attention. They’re shifting from demanding your attention, to commanding it. They’ve moved from pestering you, to sharing stories with you.
Read this» Demanding attention versus Commanding attention.

The anti entitlement mindset alternative

Focus on what matters to your prospective clients. Then, use your marketing to share useful ideas with them. Here are just a few suggestions.

  • Show them how your product / service can save them money.
  • Show them how your product / service can save them time.
  • Show them how your product / service can help them attract more customers.
  • Show them how your product / service can make their life easier, less stressful or both.
  • Give them useful industry insights.
  • Give them useful tips, which have worked for others in their industry (or situation).

This model turns your marketing into a valuable asset for your marketplace. Guess what? That’s the kind of marketing that people share and talk about. It’s the kind of marketing that builds trust and generates sales. It’s an anti-entitlement approach to marketing.

It’s also the kind of marketing you need to embrace.

Why?

Because pushing sales pitches at prospective clients, who are already suffering from information overload, is less and less effective.

And unlike the past, your prospective clients have technology today that lets them block you, filter you from their inbox or unsubscribe from you.

What about marketing to your existing clients?

You’re not entitled to the repeat business of an existing client or customer, either. You need to re-earn it, again and again. So a similar, them-focused approach is required. Only this time, create marketing that’s useful for your clients, which includes (but isn’t limited to) how to get more from your products or services.

Apple provides us with a world-class example of how to do this right. Their dedicated Apple Support YouTube channel doesn’t sell stuff. Instead, it adds value to the Apple products you already own. This makes you more inclined to stay with their brand.

Here’s why this works so well.

Let’s assume you’re an iPhone user. When you fully understand how your iPhone works, via those helpful videos, you’ll get more value from it. This makes it massively more likely your next tablet will be an iPad, (which uses the exact same operating system). And with an iPhone and iPad, the Apple Watch makes more sense than buying a different, less compatible brand.

Can you see what Apple are doing? They’re marketing to existing customers, sharing useful information, because they know they’re not entitled to the repeat business of their customers.

Apple are the most valuable company on the planet. However, unlike the average small business owner, Apple does not have an entitlement mindset.

In summary

Your business and mine share one thing in common, my friend. Neither of them are entitled to anything. It’s when we accept this reality, that our mindset to marketing shifts from entitlement to earned attention. And when that shift happens, it manifests itself with a totally different approach to marketing.

So get out there and contribute to your marketplace. Bring radical value. Be as useful as you can as often as you can. And take absolutely nothing for granted.

That time a spammer wanted to point lasers into my eyes

By Jim Connolly | March 26, 2018

content maketing, trust

Did you know that your marketing can fail, even before people read what you have to say?

Well, it’s true. And it happens all the time. Here’s an example of what I mean.

Spammers pointing lasers into my eyes!

I was prompted to share this with you, after I received a spam email. It was from a company that wants to sell me laser eye surgery. They even offered me a discount.

Let’s unpack that for a moment:

They assumed I’d be happy to place my eyesight in the hands of spammers. They thought I’d be perfectly okay, about some spammer pointing lasers into my eyes.

And they were wrong.

What your content marketing says about you

Here’s the thing:

  • That laser surgery company may use only the most highly trained laser surgeons.
  • They might have the best possible equipment.
  • They could have outsourced their marketing to an agency and been unaware their message was being used to spam people.
  • And they may well be like many small business owners, and think that it’s only spam when someone else is doing it.

Of course, none of that matters. Because when we’re spammed by a company, all we know for 100% certain, is that they’re spamming us. And spammers are considered to be annoying, desperate and unprofessional.

That’s a bad look for any business.

Be careful how you deliver your marketing

The way you market your business is part of your story. It shows your marketplace how professional you are. It shows them what you believe to be acceptable. It shows them what your business standards are. And it shows them where they should position you, among your competitors. All of that takes place before they even see (watch or hear) the content of your marketing message.

The lesson here is simple. Great marketing, delivered poorly, is like a delicious meal served on a dirty plate. It turns people away, regardless of how amazing the content might have been.

I hate marketing. Yes. Really!

By Jim Connolly | March 14, 2018

marketing tips, ask better questions, ideas

I once heard a comedian make an unexpected, yet interesting statement. He was being interviewed on the radio. The interviewer asked what the comedian’s pet hates were. High on his list was marketing and people who worked in marketing.

The interview was part of a media campaign, to promote (market) his latest stand-up comedy tour. He seemed genuinely unaware of the irony… as he took every opportunity to share the venues, dates and ticket prices. All of which was, of course, marketing.

I think I know what the comedian meant, though. And he had a point.

Some marketing really sucks

Hate is a strong word. However, there are parts of marketing that I hate. For instance, I hate the way junk food is deliberately marketed at kids. I hate the way tobacco companies market cigarettes, to encourage more people to smoke. And I think pretty-much everyone is sick and tired of all the spam emails and cold calls we receive, from people pushing junk at us.

In each of those cases, marketing is (mis)used to motivate people to make bad decisions. There are lots more examples too. And it sucks. It really sucks.

As a result, many business owners feel conflicted about marketing. Their negative feelings about much of the marketing they experience, becomes a barrier to the promotion of their own business.

It would be easy to hate marketing, if that’s all marketing did. But it isn’t.

Marketing is so much more than that

Marketing is also used for good. And we see powerful, positive examples all day every day.

Marketing is used to encourage people to make better lifestyle choices, through public health campaigns. It’s used to motivate people to use their democratic right to vote. It’s used to promote the good works of charities. It’s used to educate children on how to stay safe online. It’s used to encourage people not to drink and drive.

And it’s also used to help small business owners, like you, build successful, rewarding businesses.

In reality, marketing is neither good or bad. It’s what you market and how you choose to market it, which defines how people feel. If you want your marketplace to embrace your marketing and connect with what you have to say, market your business accordingly.

That means stepping away from sucky, predictable marketing. Then crafting your own, value-driven marketing — marketing that people WANT to receive.

GoDaddy top 10

If you don’t think that’s possible, remember that every message you receive from me… is marketing.

Marketing that people email me to thank me for. Marketing that they share with their friends. Marketing that’s linked to by some of the world’s leading websites and brands.

The bottom line here is simple. The way you feel about marketing your business will have a direct impact on your success. So make sure your attitude to marketing is aligned with what you want to achieve.

What a difference 20 minutes can make

By Jim Connolly | March 7, 2018

A reader emailed me with some great news. He used the advice from one of my blog posts and it’s worked extremely well. There’s a powerful idea behind what he did, which I’m going to share with you. It can help you achieve similar (or even better) results.

Here’s what happened.

Danny is a partner in a medium-sized accountancy firm. After reading this, he decided to open for business 20 minutes earlier than his competitors. So, instead of 9:00am, he and around half the team are there from 8:40am. He then emailed all his clients to let them know.

The response was immediate.

He said, “I had replies back in minutes Jim. Clients loved that they could call us before their own businesses opened. They also said it was really useful, that they could pop in on their way to work. It created a wave of good feeling toward us. In the 3 months since we started, client recommendations have increased by 87% on the same period last year.”

Why it worked

Danny increased the value of his service, in a meaningful way.

Clients were immediately able to see the benefit. Most of his clients are in retail. They could now speak with an accountant, not a call-handling company, before the client’s own business opened its doors. It was a story worth sharing. So his clients told fellow retailers, knowing they’d find it useful too. Some of these retailers switched. Danny’s team bought into it too. They appreciated the flexibility of being able to start and finish work, 20 minutes earlier.

That’s an 87% increase. For the sake of 20 minutes. Think about that for a moment.

How to make it work for you

The real lesson from Danny’s story is NOT about opening 20 minutes earlier. That’s just a tactic.

No.

It’s about understanding the importance of constantly looking for opportunities to make your service remarkable. Remarkable enough to get people’s attention. Remarkable enough to talk about. Remarkable enough for your clients to truly value the extra something you provide.

The end result is massively more referrals, far better client retention and never having to sell based on your fee again.

Here’s the post, which gave Danny his idea.

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Hi! I'm Jim Connolly and I help small business owners to increase sales, boost their profits and build amazing businesses. Read more here.

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