Jim's Marketing Blog

Marketing tips and ideas to help you grow your business

A productivity tip, plus a note about notebooks

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notebooks productivity apps

I have 2 proven ideas to share with you today, to help you achieve more in 2024.

Ponder these 2 points for a moment.

  1. Isaac Asimov produced around 470 published books, and hundreds more short works. He did this using a typewriter.
  2. Productive people don’t buy productivity apps.

Why did I share them unrelated observations with you? It’s because they stood out, on reading last week’s entries in my current notebook.

  • The first was a nugget of information I originally gleaned from Boston University.
  • The second was something I jotted down, while speaking with the developer of a popular productivity app. He told me that productivity apps are not marketed to productive people. That makes sense. After all, driving apps are not marketed to people who don’t drive.

Tip 1: Momentum ignition

This reminded me of how we managed, before we had access to productivity apps. It also reminded me of a technique I used back in the day, which works just as effectively today. And many others have found it equally as powerful.

Here it is.

  • The moment I feel ‘stuck’ on a task, I take a short walk, and on my return focus ONLY on doing the very first step.
  • I then do that one, small thing.
  • The task is instantly transformed from something I need to start, to a task in progress.
  • Momentum is created.
  • Momentum is the opposite of being stuck.
  • This momentum ignition idea overcomes all productivity challenges for me.

Back to apps. And my second tip.

I chewed over that Isaac Asimov fact in my notebook. I mean, would Isaac Asimov have written more books, if he had a phone offering him productivity notifications and tips?

And what about Leonardo da Vinci? Would entering various data into productivity apps, then monitoring that data, have given him greater focus with which to create? I do know, that da Vinci kept copious notes. Maybe they were his productivity tool? Notebooks are certainly my best tool when creating.

This leads on to the inspiration for today’s post.

Tip 2: Note taking as a productivity monster

One of the least mentioned benefits of using a notebook every day, is what happens when you read a few seemingly unrelated notes. They very often create a spark that becomes a new idea. Like the idea for writing what you’re reading right now.

Only by reading those notes, taken 3 days apart, did I make a connection. Seeing them together helped me join the dots. The vast majority of my articles, blog posts and newsletter ideas come from my notebooks.

Without exception, every productive person I know is a note taker. Some, like me, use a mix of paper notes and digital. Others choose just one.

If you don’t regularly take notes, I recommend you give it a try. And the next time you’re in a productive slump, take my productivity tip for a spin.

Does your business pass the coffee shop test?

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marketing tip, coffee shop marketing, feelings over logic

It’s highly likely that your marketing relies way too much on logic. If so, that logic can absolutely ruin your sales results.

Allow me to explain.

Here’s an example you already know extremely well. I’m talking about coffee shops. Consider the following.

  • People don’t visit coffee shops for the coffee.
  • They already have coffee at home.
  • They pay between 300% and 750% more for coffee at the coffee shop, because of how the experience makes them feel.

Logically, they’d save a ton of money by drinking their coffee at home, sitting in their own super-comfortable chair.

But people, including your prospective clients or customers, don’t make purchasing decisions based on logic. They largely make them based on feelings. I explain how emotions drive decisions, here.

If your marketing message is based around facts, numbers, graphs, percentages… that’s way too logical. And it’s possibly losing you a lot of money. Your service or product may be less expensive, more premium, faster, or better designed. All those things are valid reasons why you should gain a huge chunk of your marketplace.

However, are you also explaining how your service or product will make your prospective customers feel?

If not, then start.

Because logic tells. But feeling sells.

In his book “How Customers Think“, Harvard Business School professor, Gerald Zaltman, confirms that emotions/feelings contribute far more to decision-making than conscious, rational thought.

The switch from marketing based on logic to marketing based on feelings is not just important. It’s essential. I hope this short post has caused you to think about a more feelings based approach to your 2024 marketing. More importantly, I hope it motivates you to, at least, test it and compare your results.

Photo by Jon Tyson

Liars, surveys and Steve Jobs

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steve jobs, focus groups, surveys, feedback

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 adage.

There’s often a very big difference between what people say and what they actually do.

Allow me to explain

Talk is not cheap

I spoke with a business owner last year, 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.

Here’s what happened.

  • 78 of his subscribers took time to respond.
  • 73 of them 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 on the project.

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 smart.
  • Things they think will make them look loyal.

This is why Steve Jobs shunned focus groups. He learned that people in focus groups tended to say 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, as my previous example demonstrated.

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

steve jobs, focus groups, surveys, feedback

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 product or service at a 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 those areas need to significantly improve before the actual launch.

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

In short, a survey can be useful. But actions speak louder than words, and they speak with a lot more honesty, too.

Image credit: Shutterstock.

You in 2024: You’ve already got what you need

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freedom of choice, empowerment, business success

I’m referring to freedom of choice. That’s what you need. And that’s what you have.

The catch?

There isn’t one.

Think about it.

  • You have the freedom to choose what you want to achieve in 2024, and start planning for it.
  • You have the freedom to choose what you say yes to, and what you say no to.
  • You have the freedom to choose to improve how you think, and start feeding your mind with better inputs.
  • You have the freedom to choose to make more money than ever before, and start planting the required seeds for it.
  • You have the freedom to choose to remove what’s holding you back, and replace it with things that empower you to be your best self.

And you have the freedom to choose to get started today.

Photo by Teuku Fadhil

Attract more customer enquiries, the friendly way!

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attract customers, friendly, warmth, approachable

Here’s a quick marketing tip, which can help you attract more customer (or client) enquiries. I hope you find it useful.

It starts with a question: How easy is it for your prospective customers to get in touch with you?

I’m not asking how visible your contact information is on your marketing materials. I’m referring to something that is almost as important and yet seldom written about; how approachable or friendly you seem, to prospects who don’t already know you.

For example.

  • When a prospect is reading your newsletter, how approachable do you sound to them? The best newsletters are written so that the author comes across as friendly, informed and interested in helping you. The least effective are written by people who come across as impersonal, distant and only interested in what’s in it for them.
  • When a prospect reads your comments on social media, how approachable do you sound to them? Some business owners can appear sarcastic, rude or even confrontational when people dialogue with them or ask questions. This is a really, really bad move if you want prospects to feel comfortable enough to contact you.
  • When a prospect reads the about page on your website, how approachable do you sound? Many small business owners write their about page in the 3rd person, rather than speak directly to their reader. Instead of saying; ‘Hi, thanks for stopping by. My name is Jordan and…’ they start with ‘Jordan has worked in web design since 2012 and… ‘

Why should this matter to you?

Here’s what we know for absolute certain. The less comfortable someone feels about approaching a potential service provider, the less likely they are to contact them.

By including a friendly, human touch in your marketing, you start to nurture a positive impression in the mind of your prospects, long before you ever speak with them. This helps them feel far more comfortable contacting you, hiring you or buying from you. 

Photo by KOBU Agency

Protect your business from ear tickling

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tickle ears, bad clients,

Here’s a quick tip for 2024. I want you to protect your business from something I call ear tickling.

Ear tickling is what a client does, when they dangle carrots in front of you, to fool you into doing far more work for them than you’re paid for. For example, they tell you they’ll want to do more projects with you (in the future), or buy more services from you (in the future) to get more unpaid work from you (in the present).

The dangerous thing about ear tickling is that it takes months, or years, to discover it’s happening to you. That’s because the client’s narrative deliberately points you to a vague point in the future. And by the time you figure out they’re bullshitting you, it’s too late. 

How to avoid it

It’s best to safeguard yourself in advance. Successful business relationships require structures. Set these at the very start. Then stick to them. Yes, if a client is in need, be as flexible as appropriate. Otherwise, focus on delighting your clients with your very best work. And bill them according to your agreement. When a client truly values what you do, they will pay for your value. 

Does one of your clients seem a lot like an ear tickler?

If so, you need a deadline and some clarification. Ask for a date when you will receive your return for all your extra work. And ask for clarity regarding exactly what that return will be. I’ve found their response, or even lack of a response, will give you a very accurate insight into their true intent.

Photo: Shutterstock.

Success doesn’t care

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success don't care

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

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

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

So what’s the answer?

Here’s the long answer

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

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

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

Here’s the short answer

Success doesn’t care!

That’s it.

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

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

Think of it like this.

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

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

The end of selling? I hope so. Here’s why

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Boost sales, no selling required, marketing

It turns out that everybody in your marketplace has at least 2 things in common.

  1. They hate being sold to.
  2. They hate having problems.

The most successful business owners have figured this out. In fact, they’ve taken those pet hates, and used them to develop a powerful, extremely effective growth strategy.

Instead of selling to prospective clients or customers, they help them solve problems. And they do this via the products or services they offer.

Think about it, your business exists in order to solve a problem or a number of problems. Every business does. Therefore, as business owners we should be approaching prospective clients as a problem solver.

This means talking to them, instead of pitching to them. It means listening to their needs, so we get a clear understanding of their problem, then explaining how we can help.

When your marketplace sees you as a source of answers, they’ll regard you as a useful asset. And that changes the whole dynamic of how you do business. You become a massively more attractive proposition. Because we’re drawn to those who can help us or assist us.

In short, doors that were closed to you when you were trying to sell stuff, will fly open when you approach them as a problem solver. And you’ll find people start hiring you or buying from you, without you having to sell anything.

Marketing 101: Styles make sales

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styles make sales, selling style, marketing

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

Styles make sales

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

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

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

I know you’ve spotted the challenge here.

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

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

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

How?

Develop your own ‘styles make sales’ model!

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

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

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

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

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

What’s the pay-off?

It’s huge.

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

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

Marketing money Vs Marketing creativity

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creative marketing, creativity

Ever wondered why I don’t write about how or where to spend your marketing money?

Well, today I spill the beans.

There are a lot of ways you can spend money on marketing. Advertising and promotion is available via thousands of providers. It’s so easy.

  • You pay them your money.
  • They say they’ll get your message in front of X number of prospective clients or customers.
  • Hopefully, a percentage of these will contact you.
  • And a percentage of that percentage, could spend money with you.

So far so good, right?

It would be, if your competitors didn’t have the exact same options.

But they do.

Buying attention is overrated

Obviously, your competitors advertise to the same marketplace as you… otherwise they wouldn’t be your competitors.

So your ads are always competing against their ads.

Whoever spends most money, gets the most attention. This is equally true when you advertise on different platforms, as digital advertising reaches the same target groups regardless of where they are.

This makes buying attention with ads extremely precocious! Your ad reach will always depend on the marketing money your competitors choose to spend. It’s out of your control. It’s also impossible to plan the future growth of your business with confidence.

Why?

A well-funded competitor can, quickly and easily, wipe your visibility out before you even know what’s happening.

Thankfully there’s an effective alternative.

Marketing creativity over marketing money

I choose to focus 100% on a very different marketing model. It’s a model that is impossible for your competitors to copy, as they can’t see what you’re doing, unlike paid ads / promotion.

BUT they won’t know why.

That’s because the marketing model I use is entirely based around creativity, not money.

It’s about attracting attention, not buying attention.

It’s about giving your prospective clients something to talk about.

And it’s exceptionally effective. In fact, The Wall Street Journal came to me for an example of how I achieve massive marketing success for my small business clients, using creative marketing strategies, and NOT A PENNY spent on advertising or promotion.

In short, I don’t write about how to buy attention because it’s a risky, expensive, unpredictable and exceptionally limited way to grow your business.

So now you know.