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The trick is, be an April person!

By Jim Connolly - Published: December 23, 2022

motivation, success 2023

Every year since 2008, January has been the busiest month for visitors here on Jim’s Marketing Blog. By the end of March, the numbers revert back to normal. This year will be no different.

January is also the busiest month of the year for new gym memberships. By the end of March, the gyms are way less busy.

Those 2 facts are not disconnected. And they bring with them a very useful insight into human motivation.

The trick?

The trick I referred to in the title of this post is this. Whether it’s growing a business or getting healthier, the ‘trick’ is to understand that success comes from an ongoing commitment.

Success comes from turning up, being there and doing the work.

Not in January when the motivation is strong, but in April [and beyond] when the average person has quit. So, become an April person and stay the course.

The rewards go to those who finish the race well, not those who start well and fail to finish.

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

By Jim Connolly - Published: December 20, 2022

Get attention, content,  marketing

You have grabbed the reader’s attention.

However, getting their attention is the easy part. You can do that with a clickbait headline or an outrageous statement.

Your message now needs to tell them something or sell them something. And it absolutely must be consistent with that headline or statement you used.

If not, you lose twice over.

  1. You’ll lose the sale.
  2. You’ll lose the reader and the chance to market to them again. They’ll remember that you 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 you use it, the more prospective clients you will alienate. That means when you 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.

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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Liars, surveys and Steve Jobs

By Jim Connolly - Published: December 16, 2022

steve jobs

Image credit: Shutterstock.

Steve Jobs understood something about marketing. And it gave him a huge competitive advantage. Today, I’m going to share that advantage with you.

It’s really simple to understand. It’s easy to deploy. It can save you an absolute fortune and also dramatically improve your results.

It starts with this age-old business fact: There’s often a very big difference between what people say and what they actually do.

Talk is not cheap

I spoke with a business owner once, who had recently surveyed his newsletter readers. He wanted to know if they’d be willing to pay for a premium version of his most popular service. He accurately described the service, including the fee.

In total, 78 people took time to respond, with 73 saying they would “happily pay for the service when it became available”.

With 73 people happy to pay for his new service, he built it, and launched it. However, despite what they said, just 8 of them actually signed up. He estimates that he lost almost $40000 in the process.

Steve Jobs understood this better than any of his competitors

Sure, it’s important for us to listen to what our marketplace is saying. But when we listen, we need to do so through a filter. We need to understand that in many cases, people will tell us:

  • Things they think we want to hear.
  • Things they think will make them look good.

This is why Steve Jobs shunned focus groups. He learned that people in focus groups tended to say smart, generous things in order to look good. He found their feedback to be not only of little real value, but potentially misleading. That’s a dangerous mix.

Whilst we need to listen to what people say. We tend to make massively better decisions when we watch what people do.

Early birds

This is why entrepreneurial business owners sometimes offer an early bird discount when they launch something new. For a short period of time, they offer the new (whatever) at a slightly reduced rate. They do this, primarily to measure what kind of genuine interest there is.

Here’s why.

  • If the marketplace is eagerly buying, the business owner knows there’s a significant demand. At least, at the early bird price.
  • However, if the marketplace isn’t interested, even at the reduced price, then something is wrong.
  • Maybe the marketing needs to improve. Perhaps the product / service itself needs more value pumped into it. And it’s possible that both areas need to significantly improve before the actual launch.

That kind of real-world feedback provides data you can make decisions on, with far greater confidence than data from a survey.

Polling people with a survey can be useful. However, in business we know that actions speak louder than words. After all, great ideas are not anointed.

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What your clients need from you

By Jim Connolly - Published: December 15, 2022

marketing wants needs

Today, I’m going to explain how the world’s best service providers keep their clients happy, generate valuable referrals and build a great reputation.

It’s all about the difference between delivering what a client wants and delivering what a client needs.

Wants and needs

Think about some of the most powerful commercial logos. Apple, McDonald’s, Nike, Adidas and Target, etc. All of these designs look simplistic. A child could reproduce any of them in a few seconds.

Now, imagine for a moment what happens when a business owner hires a great designer to create their logo. The designer then gets back to the client with a powerful, extremely effective, yet simple design. Like one of the world-class examples I just mentioned.

Because the client is not a design professional, they want MORE for their money. So, they demand changes.

  • More detail.
  • More lines.
  • More complexity.

If the designer gives the client what the client wants, the client ends up with a confusing piece of junk.

If the designer gives the client what the client needs, the client ends up with an effective, professionally designed logo.

How to get this right

The best service providers use education, to help the client understand what the client needs.

When the service provider does this correctly:

  • The client ends up with what they want and what they need.
  • The service provider ends up with a happy client, who has a great piece of work. That’s the kind of client who provides valuable referrals and the kind of work, which helps you build an excellent reputation.

Your clients deserve your very best work. And so do you.

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Maximum or minimum can make you a fortune in 2023

By Jim Connolly - Published: December 13, 2022

Business 2023

There are 2 business models, which have proven time and again to be extremely successful.

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

The 2 models I’m referring to are:

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

Let’s start by looking at those 2 models.

The maximum model

The business owner who takes the first option, will focus on providing 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 minimum model

The business owner who takes the second option, will focus on cost efficiencies. They’ll consistently search for ways to lower their overhead. They’ll embrace automation and AI. They’ll know exactly what the minimum required is and then 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, low price stores, etc.

The minimum model works. Really, really well.

Just don’t land somewhere in the middle

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 buyers.
  • Products or services that are absolutely fine, but not remarkable enough for people to tell their friends.

By failing to choose the maximum or minimum model, you land in the anonymous middle ground; where there’s very little interest and where it’s really, really hard to get noticed.

Middle ground businesses are why networking groups exist. They have to push for referrals, because their message doesn’t spread wide enough or often enough by itself. They’re stuck in a frustrating, unending and very expensive fight for attention.

Your highly lucrative, new income stream

Here’s something worth considering for 2023. Something that can help your business thrive, whilst still retaining your existing model.

What is it?

Develop 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 2023 business development plans.

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When customers say you’re too expensive

By Jim Connolly - Published: December 11, 2022

Jim Connolly marketing

When you ask why they didn’t buy from you, prospective customers or clients often say that your prices are too high.

And it could be true.

However, it usually isn’t.

Allow me to explain.

Your prices are probably not the problem

Let’s start with a small sample of far more likely reasons for their decision.

  • You could be marketing to the wrong people.
  • Your marketing could be failing to clearly demonstrate enough value, making your price seem higher than they expected.
  • You could be asking people to make a decision before they have all the information they need.
  • Your marketing promises could be too similar to those offered by your lower priced competitors.
  • Your branding could be positioning you [in the mind of your marketplace] as a lower priced provider than you actually are. This is really common.
  • You could be contacting them at the lowest point of their cash flow cycle.
  • Your payment terms may not be flexible enough for them.
  • You could be responding to enquiries too slowly.
  • Your marketing could be suffering from Toxic Complexity. This is dangerous and extremely common.

And there are many of other reasons. None of which have much to do with your prices or fees, and everything to do with your marketing and how you sell your products or services.

It’s a trap!

Lowering your prices can be tempting. It’s a quick and extremely easy way to make your products or services seem better value. But it’s a trap. A trap you need to avoid. A trap that can put your business in a dangerous race to the bottom. You do not want to be in a race to the bottom!

A far better alternative is to find out what’s actually causing people to think you’re too expensive. And to then focus on improving your product, service or marketing in those key areas.

If you’re not sure where to start looking for answers, the brief list above is a useful place to begin. Try to look at each item on that list from the perspective of a potential client. For example, research your competitors to see how your; services, marketing, payment terms, promises, guarantees, branding and response times, etc., stack up against theirs.

Remember, in many cases, your prospects will have done some research before contacting you. Others will do some research after contacting you. You need to know what you’re competing against.

And make lowering your prices the very last thing you consider.

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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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