Jim Connolly Marketing

When you’re 1% away from switching the light on, you’re still in the dark

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marketing, business success

As we approach the final quarter of the year, people have started asking me who I think the winners in 2019 will be. Here’s my prediction, along with some tips you can use, to finish the year stronger.

It’s based on one of the many things I learned decades ago, from the late Jim Rohn.

To paraphrase Jim: The business owners who will have thrived this year, will be the same type of people who thrived last year. And they’re the same type of people who will win big next year, too.

Who are these business owners and what do they do differently from the rest of the pack? Here are 3 examples, along with links to longer answers, if you want to dig deeper for ideas.

They’re the business owners who do all the work

I’ve been in business for almost 25 years and helped thousands of business owners succeed. I’ve discovered that whenever a business reaches a plateau, it’s always down to one or more decisions the owner is avoiding. They will tell you they give their business 100%, when what they often mean is they do 100%… of the things they are comfortable with.

My tip to any business owner who’s not getting the results they want, is this. Always start by looking for a decision you’re avoiding.

Then take action. Because 99% isn’t enough. And here’s why, along with what to do.

Remember: when you’re just 1% away from switching a light on… you’re still in the dark!

They’re the business owners who protect their thinking

They avoid the people whose influence is causing them to stumble. We all know that the influence of positive people causes us to improve. That’s because these amazing people bring energy and ideas with them. This is why business leaders join mastermind groups. It’s why they surround themselves with other leaders.

However, pessimistic or negative people do the exact opposite. This is why we have to limit our association with them as much as possible. They leave us worse than they find us. They are a source of problems, stress and confusion. They drain our energy, dent our confidence and cause us to lower our expectations. And as one of my mentors used to say, if you associate with negative people for long enough, one day everything they have will be yours.

Note: There’s more on this extremely important topic here.

They’re the business owners who back themselves

When they believe in something, they take decisive action. These business owners understand that success is not anointed.

This is the mindset behind every leader, not just in business. It’s not that these people are fearless. They get fearful when they need to leave their comfort zone. We all do. What’s different, is that leaders use fear as their compass. As Susan Jeffers said, they “Feel the fear, and do it anyway”.

I hope you find these observations useful. More importantly my friend, I hope you do something with them.

How to win big, when the economic forecast looks bleak

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Marketing focus

When people are afraid, it’s often said that they’re scared stiff. That’s because fear has the power to stop us in our tracks.

And with good reason.

When people lived in caves and the roar of a huge predator scared them into hunkering down, until the threat had passed, it was a life saving strategy to be scared stiff.

However, the business owner who applies that cavemen fear strategy to their business, places a very low ceiling on their potential. Being scared into inaction is always a mistake. Often fatal.

In fact, it’s at times like this that real leaders lead. And it’s where some of the biggest gains of their lives can be made!

For example, when there are negative economic forecasts for their country, industry (or both), their entrepreneurial brain gets to work. They know their fear-frozen competitors will stand still. So they develop a strategy to gain a disproportionate chunk of market-share.

One of my business mentors had a great tip, about dealing with fear. It went something like this:

If you notice fear is stopping you from moving forward, ask yourself what direction the fear is leading you. And if you don’t like the direction, wake up and start leading your business. Because it desperately needs you to regain control.

We know from the 2009 global recession, that fear focused competitors will start cutting back, as they take in the economic warnings. Doubly so, for my UK / European readers; as brexit looms and they have no idea exactly how it will hit them, their customers, clients or suppliers.

That creates a massive vacuum.

A huge chasm of inaction.

And a vast expanse of rare potential!

That expanse will be filled, just as it was in 2009, by strategic, proactive business owners. Business owners with the entrepreneurial spirit to embrace the opportunity and move their businesses forward. Business owners like you, my friend.

Marketing has changed. Have you?

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marketing change

Before social media became mainstream, marketing was all about what you said.

Today, marketing is all about the way you operate. That’s because the service you provide, and the promises you keep, create a story. And in a connected world, the providers with the best stories win. They get the referrals, the word of mouth recommendations, the free publicity and the repeat clients.

If you’re attracting too few clients or making too few sales, don’t just improve your message.

Instead, look for meaningful ways to improve what you do. Because when you give your marketplace a story worth sharing, they’ll share it.

Are people holding you back? Here’s what you need to know

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biz dev, professional development
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There’s a pattern for success that seems to repeat itself again and again.

I’d like to share it with you.

It’s simply this: Successful people are very selective, regarding who they associate with.

The reason this is so important, is that everyone we give our attention to influences us. Think about it. When you spend time with an optimistic person, your attitude and overall mood improves. Conversely, when you spend time with a negative person, your fears and doubts increase.

One of my mentors once gave me the following advice. “If you hang around with people who’re going nowhere, one day, everything they have will be yours“!

Thankfully, the opposite is also true.

Get around the right people

By associating with successful people, you’ll massively increase your own chances of success. The conversations and inspirations you’ll expose yourself to will be consistent with progress and achievement. Their expectations from your successful associates will also be greater, causing you to raise the bar.

This all combines to improve how you think. As your thinking improves you will find yourself making better decisions. And as decisions precede your actions, your results will improve.

This sets a positive cycle in place, which creates unstoppable momentum. It’s one of the least discussed professional development strategies, yet it’s also one of the most powerful.

We don’t live in a bubble

Life is complicated. As such, there are some people we need to be around from time to time, who are negative. This could be a family member. It might be the person next who’s going through a tough situation. That person in need could be you or me one day, and we wouldn’t want people turning their backs on us!

It’s not about avoiding people when they require help.

It’s about balance.

This simply means not spending unnecessary time with people who have a damaging impact on us. And proactively associating with those who inspire us to be the best people we can be.

The cookie cutter guide to destroying your business

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marketing, cookie cutter

Today’s post comes with a warning. Don’t rely on general advice to solve a serious, specific problem.

I’m writing this, following a surge in emails from readers who’ve wasted time and money making the same mistake. I want to help you avoid this common and expensive error.

Let’s start by looking at the best way to mass produce cookies!

Cookie cutters are highly effective. They let you create lots of identical looking cookies, really fast, based on an identical template.

Of course, this means they’re of no value whatsoever, if you want to create individually hand-crafted cookies.

Why am I telling you about cookie cutters?

Simple. The marketplace is packed with cookie cutter guides to marketing. These marketing seminars, books and online courses are designed to deliver step-by-step instructions, which anyone can use to produce ‘marketing’. They’re strikingly similar and extremely general.

They have to be. Because they’re designed to be sold to as wide a range of business owners as possible.

This model works EXTREMELY well for those selling online marketing seminars, marketing programs and digital marketing products. Why? Because production costs are low and it scales to infinity! They create a generic product once, which can be sold unlimited times at an enormous profit. That’s why we’re seeing more and more of these products being sold.

However, it doesn’t work for the end user. I see this confirmed in increasing numbers, from readers who’ve wasted time, lost money and missed opportunities to grow, by following general, unspecific marketing advice.

Think about it: When your marketing is similar to everyone else who’s using these general marketing ideas, your marketing becomes camouflaged. Lost in an ocean of businesses, doing extremely similar things.

  • This makes it way too hard for prospective clients to find you.
  • And if they do find you, you’ll look 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, because you seem like all the others. When providers look similar, prices or fees are used to determine value.

My advice to you?

Ignore the cookie cutter!

Successful marketing is always specific. It’s about getting noticed by your prospective clients and giving them compelling reasons to hire you or buy from you. It’s about developing marketing that’s focused on your unique business and your unique goals. It’s about identifying the exact type of clients you want to attract, then making your business irresistible to them.

So, ignore the cookie cutter.

Get intentional.

Rise above the noise of all that generic marketing, which is currently making you invisible to people who want to hire you or buy from you.

That’s the only way to get the attention you need, the sales you need and the results you need.

I’m here for you

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kindness, business, contribution

If you’ve ever been an a difficult situation, you’ll know there’s amazing power in those 4 words. Just knowing someone cares enough to want to help us, by itself, can improve things.

What does this have to do with business?

Here’s the thing: Not every business owner reaches out to help others. This includes many business owners who have a kind heart and feel they ought to do more commercially, to help others in need. It’s understandable. By default, business owners are busy people. They have problems of their own to deal with. And they have employees and customers relying on them. Too few hours in the day, etc.

Of course, the same is true of all those business owners, who DO offer to help. If anything, they’re often even busier than the business owners, who tend not to reach out and help.

Is there a business case for genuine kindness?

I don’t know.

Maybe looking for a commercial angle renders the whole thing pointless. It ceases to be an act of kindness, and instead, becomes a calculated tactic, disguised as kindness. And once the target learns that someone tried to profit from their difficult situation, any good faith is destroyed.

Here’s what I do know.

Business is all about people, so it tends to reflect life in general. Just as selfish people usually have fewer friends, business owners who are perceived as selfish tend to have fewer business contacts, who feel motivated to recommend them and their selfish approach.

Since starting my business in 1994, here’s what I’ve found, time and time again: Business owners who are contribution focused, are regularly talked about for all the right reasons. They have zero problem with referrals, as people eagerly recommend them. Think about it… it’s more rewarding and less risky, to recommend someone who’s known for their kindness.

So, maybe there is an unintentional benefit from operating our business from a contribution mindset.

That’s worth considering, if you’re a business owner, with a kind heart, who wants to help, but finds it hard to justify the time required.