Want a Successful Small Business? Forget Instant Gratification!
April 9, 2011
Here is a paraphrased summary of three different conversations I had with business owners this week:
Business Owner (B.O.): “Marketing doesn’t work, I tried it.” Me: “Really? Tell me more about that.” B.O.: “I sent out a bunch of post cards and didn’t get a single response!” Me: “Hmmm.. A ‘bunch’ you say? How many is a bunch?”
B.O.: “Two hundred and fifty!”
Me: “Ok… and how many times did you mail this group of two hundred and fifty?”
B.O.:“Well, just once, why would I do it again if it doesn’t work?” (Silly me…)
Business Success is a Journey
Nothing in life is easy. You’ve heard that right? Everything worth having requires a lot of hard work, a ton of persistence and loads of patience: Everything, from our education, to our relationships, and our careers. Did you expect to just go to a single class to earn your degree? Of course you didn’t- it took years of going to classes and studying! Did you expect to just show up at work for one day and earn a paycheck for the rest of your life? Sure, that would be nice, but no. Did you woo your spouse with pomp and circumstance while you were dating and then completely ignore him or her afterwards? Ummm, I certainly hope not!
So then why would you expect marketing your business to be any different? Why do so many small business owners expect marketing to be quick-and-easy one-time event? Place an ad and get rich! Yay!!!! Send out a postcard and make the phones ring off the hook! Wahoo! One ad, one postcard, one networking group and I’m set for life!!!
It Doesn’t Work That Way!
I’m sorry, it just doesn’t. No matter how hard you try.
I guess f you haven’t been doing sales and marketing as long as I have, mailing out 250 cards with a “10% OFF” offer and not getting a single bite may seem like an earth shattering failure… but trust me, it isn’t. If you sent out 250 post cards to your target market with an extremely amazing, compelling, and timelyoffer, on a consistent basis and didn’t get a single response, then I might be a bit more surprised.
Statistically, the chances of getting any measurable response from a single ad, postcard, email, etc. are going to be pretty slim – for many reasons…. Factor in the quality of your content/message (was it compelling, relevant, and timely?), your audience (did you target?… Know, I mean really target?) and your tracking methods and it can be nearly nonexistent.
But, Don’t You Know Who I Am?
Think about it: you are presumptuously putting your company/brand/message in front of the faces of Anyone-Who might at some point in their lives buy your products or services, assuming they 1) are your target market, 2) have made the decision to buy, 3) have allocated the resources to buy, 4) have no obstacles in the way of actually making the buy, and 5) they know like and trust YOU enough to want to buy from you.Holy cow with all of those variables it’s amazing we ever sell anything at all, isn’t it?
That is why a consistent and repetitive approach is key to effective marketing. For one thing, studies show that consumers don’t even “see” an ad until they’ve been exposed to it like seven times or something.
You are never going to build a successful business by sending one postcard or email or placing one ad serendipitously here and there. That just isn’t how it works- it isn’t how we as humans work. It takes time to build trust; it takes time for us to make decisions to move forward. It takes time for us to pay attention to all the “stuff” that’s bombarded at us each day – but that’s another blog topic…
But besides the whole “does advertising work or not” argument: Do you even know who your best prospect is? What their buying cycle is? What their triggers are? If you don’t know the answers to these questions, don’t even waste your time and your money on another direct mail piece, advertisement, networking event, or any other marketing tactic…. Really.
But if you really want to gamble your hard earned money, the next time you’re tempted to throw money away on an ad or direct mail piece without knowing the 3 things I outlined above, visit the nearest casino instead- you have a better chance of getting a return on your investment. Or better yet, hire Fortune Marketing Companyand invest in the long-term success of your business!
What do you think? I’d love to hear your thoughts on this!! Leave your comments here.
By the way – if you like this post, I would REALLY appreciate your ReTweet! Thank you!!!! 
Can Bad Marketing Make You Fat?
March 22, 2011
OK, so bad marketing can’t really make you fat. BUT it can cause your business to be out of shape, inefficient, sluggish, and unhealthy.
Leading a healthy lifestyle can be challenging. If eating right and exercising were easy we’d all be svelte, fit, slenderellas. But the fact is we’re not. For many of us choosing healthier alternatives is a learned behavior and it takes practice, dedication, and commitment. It means saying “no” to the convenience of Big Macs, Little Debbies, and elevators and “yes” to fish, broccoli and the stairs. In short, it means changing old habits, and doing what is right instead of what’s easy and focusing on the bigger picture instead of immediate gratification.
A Healthy Body and a Healthy Business
The same is true of building a successful business: in order for our businesses to be the best they can be we need to take care of them. But many business owners get bogged down in old habits, convenience, lack of education, and a real understanding of what it takes to effectively and efficiently get customers in their doors. Like our bodies, we have to give our businesses the proper nutrients and exercise if they are to be strong and healthy. The marketing “nutrients” a business needs are: planning, strategy, continuous education and research. And the “exercise” is the execution of the proper tactics = doing the right stuff, not just thinking about doing the right stuff. So, I’ve made a list of 4 practices for marketing a successful business.
4 Diet Strategies We Can Apply To Create Strong, Healthy And Sustainable Businesses:
1. It takes planning – If I don’t plan what I’m going to eat, when I get hungry I’ll grab whatever is convenient – whether it’s good for me or not – simply because it bears a small semblance to actual food. This is exactly what many small business owners do: without a plan they latch on to any marketing or advertising idea that comes along because it bears a semblance to “marketing” or promises to satiate a need for more customers. Buy buying the wrong advertising to get more business is just like grabbing that chocolate cupcake to nourish your body; you’re just consuming empty calories to stop the gnawing hunger pains, losing sight of the bigger picture, and hoping for impossible results.
2. It takes imagination – Broccoli and chicken breast get old fast. If I had to live on that for the rest of my life, I’d have thrown in the towel long ago. In order to be a success with a new food strategy, I need to get creative and try out some new flavors, new spices, and new recipes. The same is true with your marketing. Don’t get bland! Don’t copy what your competitors are doing. Take some risks; try some new combinations, new words, new packages, and new offerings. Spice it up!
3. It takes discipline – Does one day of eating well and exercise get you to your ideal weight or optimal health? NO! Well one ad, one direct mail campaign, or one promotion isn’t going to get your business where you want it to go either… You need to make a commitment to the process. If you don’t have the discipline to stay focused on the big picture you’ll be tempted to fall back into old habits; purchasing those 1000-callorie marketing cupcakes that do nothing but send you on a sugar roller coaster!
4. It takes time to see results – we don’t get overweight and/or unhealthy overnight and we don’t get healthy overnight. We also don’t build businesses overnight. Building a brand, credibility, and trust takes time. Don’t give up too early…don’t get desperate and grab that 1000 calorie marketing cupcake = an expensive ad or campaign you know deep down isn’t right for you but fills a momentary need for instant gratification…
What do you think? I’d love to hear your thoughts on this!! Leave your comments here.
By the way – if you like this post, I would REALLY appreciate your ReTweet! Thank you!!!!
How Well Do You Know Your Business?
February 6, 2011
As we all know, times have been tough for small business and most small business owners realize they need to do something different if they want to survive. But what they don’t quite get is that they need to change how they think about their business. They call me and say, “I need your help” and then they go on to tell me HOW I need to help them. Twice now in the past month 2 small business owners have called me – one has been around for more than 20 years, another only a few months – barely surviving and seemingly desperate for help.
I spend the first 20 minutes or so listening to them, asking questions, learning about their business, the marketing efforts they’ve tried, and what their challenges are. What I hear is that like 99% of the small business owners I meet they’re caught up in the same old old-school way of thinking. “If I just find that one magic “thing” that works my business will take off: a new magazine ad, a ne
w packaged marketing method for my industry, a new direct mailer, a new sign on my storefront, a new yellow pages ad….”
Inevitably, after getting all of their experiences, concerns and worries off their chests they’ll sigh and confide, “I’m desperate, I don’t know what to do. How can you help me?” I tell them it’s really pretty simple. I can help them study and understand their business, their industry and their customers and then use that information to advertise and market their businesses more effectively. Then I’ll ask, “Do you know your target market? Do you know what makes them buy when they buy and what makes them choose you? Do you know what makes you truly unique in your marketplace?” The answer is usually the same, “Wow, no I don’t really know those things…”
Here comes the “But….”
“But….. I just need this…. Or I just need that… “
What it boiled down to is that they both wanted to pay me to come to their businesses, look at their store and tell them how they should advertise = spending more money on TACTICs. I turned them both down; it would have been a disservice for me to take their money and give them a dime store assessment… It wouldn’t solve their bigger problem – which was that they both had inadequate information to make informed and logical marketing decisions.
How can you expect someone to walk in off the street, spend an hour with you, and give you information that will transform your business? Really, does that make sense? Sure I’m a marketer, sure I do this for a living and sure, I know how to advertise better than the average small business owner – given the appropriate information, data, and research!!! But spending an hour with them was not going to solve their problem.
Why is it so hard to understand the importance of market research?
Do you think Pepsi or Toyota got so big by blindly investing in the newest shiny marketing idea of the week? Of course not they invest millions in market research. They KNOW their customers. They KNOW their market. They KNOW how and when and why people buy. Sure, companies as big as Pepsi and Toyota have reached a certain level of success and market penetration and can afford to do some advertising just for advertising sake – but we as small businesses don’t have that luxury. We need to FOCUS; we need to spend our limited marketing dollars wisely. We need to get the best possible return on our marketing investment and can’t afford to waste money on things that don’t work.
I want to hear from you!!
Have you done the research? Have you surveyed your customers, studied your competitors and created a truly unique value statement for your business? If not, what what’s stopping you?
By the way – if you like this post, I would REALLY appreciate your ReTweet! Thank you!!!!
Leave your comments here.
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+Carolyn Higgins, President of Fortune Marketing Company
- Carolyn Higgins, President of Fortune Marketing Company specializes in helping small to medium sized businesses get the customers they need to sell more, increase profits and achieve all of their business and personal goals. We do this by implementing and managing marketing systems based on data and strategy - there is no guess work. For more information visit us at: FortuneMarketingCompany.com. We'd be glad to help!
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