Archive for Marketing Junkie
Fitting a Little Exercise into Your Workday is good for Your Small Business
Posted by: | CommentsOkay, I know this might seem off-topic coming from a Practical Marketing Expert. But over the years I’ve learned that if you’re not healthy, chances are your business won’t be either. Plus, oftentimes your best ideas will come when you’re doing something totally unrelated to your business.
So to help you fit a little exercise into your already busy day, I thought I’d share a few of my favorite tricks…
1) Take a short walk during lunch. And if you’re not taking a lunch break you should be. Trust me when I say you’ll actually get more done if you take a 10-15 minute break.
2) Get a pull up bar. I recently got one of those Iron Gym thingies that hangs in your door with no installation. I put it in my office doorway, and every time I walk in or out I stretch, or do a few pull ups, chin ups or leg lifts.
3) If you’re gonna watch TV, work out at the same time. I do lunges, sit ups, push ups, and balance ball and balance board work in front of the tube.
Who are your customers, and why do they buy?
Posted by: | CommentsI flew to St. Louis for the Glazer-Kennedy Info Summit. This is a 4-day event about how to create and market information products (think ebooks, teleseminars, coaching groups, membership sites, live seminars and more).
This is the second time I’ve made it to this event, and once again I took home a ton of fantastic ideas. So for the last month I’ve been going through my notes and getting started on some of the new products and services I was inspired to create.
Of course, there’s ton of information on marketing and small business success in general. So I thought I’d share a few of the killer tidbits of business-building wisdom I picked up.
Today, I’ve got a really interesting way for you to look at your target customer and why they buy. This comes from the copywriting workshop Dan Kennedy presented on the first night…
According to Dan, you can put your customers in one of 6 categories…
1) Slight Edge Buyers – These folks are always eager to do better. They’re constantly looking for ways to improve and get a slight edge over the competition, or bring just a little more to the table. If you sell information in any way, shape or form (consultants, speaker, authors and coaches take note) these are generally your best customers.
2) Junkies and Addicts – These people are passionate about or have a deep interest in a subject or subjects, and/or a strong attachment to a particular author(s). So they buy everything on the subject, or everything that author puts out.
3) Reinforcement Buyers – Unlike the last two categories, these people aren’t really looking for new information. Instead, they want to buy things that reinforce the opinions and conclusions they already have…Sometimes because this gives them the courage and conviction to finally move forward with their ideas.
4) Unplugged Joiners – Some people are joiners who feel compelled to always belong to or be a part of something. So if they are unplugged from one thing they go in search of something else right away. This is why “recent expired lists” are so valuable in newsletter business…Because if they’re subscription or membership to one thing just expired they may very well be itching to “belong” to something else. Also in this category are the chronically unsatisfied, the legitimately disappointed, the people looking to move-up, and the lonely.
5) Desperate/Life Raft Grabbers/Magic Pill Buyers – This group of buyers is typically confronting new or unexpected adversity, sudden change or marketplace disruption. So they’re desperately in search of a solution. Also in this category are the perennial losers who buy lots of stuff but never use any of what they buy.
6) Life Event Driven Buyers- As life changes, so do your wants and needs. This has a tremendous impact on this type of customer. A couple great examples of folks in this category would be anyone going through a mid-life crises, or whose kids just went off to college. These events weren’t surprises, but they definitely impact what and why someone will buy. This is one reason why baby boomers are such a hot target market.
Chances are, whether you sell products or services, you have clients from a few of these categories. Which of these do you recognize in your business?
How could you market to them more effectively now that you know what motivates them to buy?
Make Your Website More Readable
Posted by: | CommentsWhen it comes to content on your Website, it’s not how many words you put up there that matters. It’s what you say, how you say it, and how you organize it that makes all the difference.
Because people are in a hurry and tend to skim and scan first on the Web, you want your content to be skim-friendly. Do this by following these simple rules:
1) Keep sentences short—21 words or less is ideal
2) Keep paragraphs short—no more than 4-5 lines
3) Include headlines, subheads and bullets wherever possible
Planning for Your Small Business Success
Posted by: | Comments“The general who wins the battle makes many calculations in his temple before
the battle is fought. The general who loses makes but few calculations
beforehand.” Sun Tzu
This week, I’ve got a question for you…
What is one of the critical differences between successful businesses owners and unsuccessful businesses owners?
It’s not how much money they start with, or where they come from.
It’s not their level of education.
It’s not who they know.
The majority of truly successful business owners have one thing in common…They are really good at deciding exactly what it is they want. Then creating a detailed plan for getting it and putting that plan into action.
You see, successful people don’t just wait around for things to start happening…They make things happen. And not just any old things…The right things.
That’s why, last week, I talked about the power of creating and writing down clear, well-defined intentions or goals for your business.
If you’ve already done that, congratulations! Just taking that one simple step is often enough to get you moving down the right path.
But here’s the catch…If you really want to achieve success quickly, you have to do more than just set clear goals or intentions (A la The Secret). You need to come up with a doable plan for achieving them.
Now I’m not saying you have to spend weeks creating a 30-page business or marketing plan (though that’s a good idea in some situations). But you do need to have a well-thought out, written plan of action.
So, in order to help you do just that, I’m going to take you through a simplified version of the process I use to create highly-effective Marketing Success Action Plans for my clients…
Let’s say you want to grow your business by 30% next year.
Start by listing three objectives, or targets, you could hit that would let you reach that goal. I don’t advise choosing more than three unless you’ve got people to help you. Otherwise you can get overwhelmed and never get anything done. Fewer than three is fine. For example, you could decide to increase return visits by 10%, attract 20 new customers per month, and develop new products or services to generate an additional $X a year.
Whatever you choose, always give yourself specific numbers, or targets, to hit. That way you have benchmarks you can refer to later to make sure your plan is working.
Next, come up with one strategy for achieving each of your objectives. More if you have fewer than three objectives.
Say you want to increase return visits. A good strategy could be to send out a regular newsletter to your current clients. Or a series of follow up mailings.
Now, make a checklist of all the steps you need to take in order to put each of your strategies into action. Whatever you do, don’t skip this part…It’s critical.
So to start a print newsletter, at minimum you’re going to need to: pick a marketing angle, come up with a name, decide how often you want it to go out, write or get content, purchase a template or hire a graphic designer, choose a printer, find a mailing house, compile your client database and get the whole thing put together and out the door.
Finally, create a detailed timeline with deadlines to get it all done.
Whew! Now you have a goal, and a plan reach it. And you can start taking action by checking things off of your new to-do list.
Of course, don’t forget that some plans are going to be easier to implement, and/or more effective, than others. So take your time researching options and choosing strategies. Better yet, unless you really know your stuff, consider hiring a professional to help you make the best decisions for your business and your goals.
Remember, this is the blueprint for your future success. It’s worth the extra effort!
If you’re struggling with this, grab a copy of my e-workbook “Putting Your Business on the Road to Success to help you along. It’s filled with simple worksheets and checklists that make writing a powerful, 2-page marketing plan as easy as planning a vacation road trip…literally!
You can find it at http://www.2pagemarketingplan.com
Are you on Twitter?
Posted by: | CommentsIf so, here’s a cool tool you should know about…
This is the easiest way I’ve discovered to find a person on Twitter, or find people with a particular expertise or interest.
While you’re on Twitter, be sure to follow me at @stacykaracostas
Why Sizzling Hot Prospects Suddenly Go Stone Cold
Posted by: | CommentsIt happens all the time…You get a call or email from a prospect. They sound interested, and interesting. You chat. It goes swimmingly…Perhaps so much so that you’re already mentally shifting your calendar to fit them in.
Then, suddenly, they start giving you the cold shoulder. Or come up with some lame-sounding excuse for why they can’t move forward just yet (these usually arrive via email).
You go from excited about this hot knew prospect, to slightly deflated, a little frustrated, or possibly even incredibly worried about where your next client is going to come from now.
Maybe a touch of self doubt even starts to creep in. Thoughts like, “What’s wrong with me and my services?” and “They seemed so excited to get started…What happened?” tend to follow.
Well, I can’t answer the first one for you, but I can tell you exactly what’s happened in 99% of these instances…Life happened!
Yep. You read right. Life got in the way of you working with that top-notch, seemingly red-hot prospect.
Here’s the deal. Most people are going to call because they have a problem they believe you can help them solve. And right that second, this problem is a biggie. It’s top of mind and top of the to-do list.
So they make calls, interview service providers, and start deciding who to hire. Then, something happens…Literally.
And that something suddenly makes the problem they called you about WAY less of a priority. Now, because they have other, more pressing issues to deal with, you’ve been placed on the back-burner.
Depending on how pressing the original problem they called you about really is, they may become hot for your services again in a few days or weeks. But there’s a good chance more things are going to come up for them that take priority. So you could be on the back burner until that red hot prospect turns icy cold.
Thankfully, that doesn’t mean they won’t warm up again. It’s just that you might not still be top-of-mind when they do.
What should you do in the meantime?
First, keep in mind that no matter how disappointed you are, or how much you need the money, it’s your job be the consummate professional when they decide not to move forward.
Then, even more importantly, it’s your job to stay in front of them until they are ready to move forward again—without coming across like a pushy salesperson or pest.
How? Here’s a short list of inexpensive ways to stay top-of-mind for the long hall…
1) Collect their contact info (at least email, ideally physical address too)
2) Keep a copy of your notes regarding their business and needs. That way you can reference details down the road.
3) Immediately send a thank you card after you chat. They took the time to find and call you. The least you can do is let them know you appreciate their efforts.
4) Ask if you can put them on your newsletter list. This could be email or snail mail. Doesn’t matter. Just be sure your newsletters offer valuable information, not just sales pitches or coupons.
5) Follow up periodically with information that may be of interest to them. If you run across an article you think might be helpful, pop in an envelope and send it on.
6) Send birthday and holiday cards. Don’t just do this for your clients, do it for prospects too so they know you are thinking of them.
7) Be a great resource. If they keep getting valuable info from you, they’ll want to keep hearing from you. That’s good for everyone involved.
Keep it up and before you know it, the problem that originally brought them to you is likely to rise to the top of their priority list again. When it does, those icy prospects will get all hot and bothered again. And who do you think they’ll call…???
An Easy Way to Get More Links Back to Your Website
Posted by: | CommentsHaving links to your Website from other relevant, well-ranked sites is one of the best ways to improve your search engine rankings and drive traffic to your site. An easy way to do this is by blogging.
Even if you don’t have a blog, you can use the power of other people’s blogs to promote your own. All you need to do is find a couple of blogs that are frequented by your ideal clients and post helpful comments regularly.
The keys are to post more than just “thank you for the article”. Instead provide a useful tip or interesting tidbit. Then make sure to include your Website address in your signature with the http:// in front of the www.
This automatically creates a link back to your site. And if people are interested in what you had to say they may follow that link back to your Website to learn more.
How has this worked, or not worked, for you? Please do share by leaving a comment below…
Are you putting the sales cart before the marketing horse?
Posted by: | CommentsJust the other day I was on the phone with a potential client. We’d met at a recent seminar in San Diego, and I’d admired her can-do spirit, energy, and desire to help others by sharing what she had learned. On top of that, based on a quick peek at her Website, it seemed she had at least some idea of how to market herself on the Web.
Our conversation got off to a great start as we talked about what she’d need in place to launch her own teleclass series. But I could tell as I started listing all the different parts and pieces (marketing plan, sales page, thank you page, follow up autoresponders, promo emails, and more), and people she’d need to get it all done (copywriter, Web designer/Virtual Assistants, etc.) that she was totally overwhelmed.
That’s when she revealed a few, key facts…
1) As a retiree she was living off—and funding her business with—her retirement pension…And that wasn’t huge.
2) While she had her Website set up to grow her list, she didn’t really have a list to speak of yet. Plus she was struggling to get enough traffic to her site.
3) She’d tried doing some live speaking events but hadn’t had much luck getting people to attend her talks.
4) She didn’t have a plan in place for marketing her events, her Website, or her business. She was just winging it then wondering why nothing was working.
Right away I knew she was putting the sales cart before the marketing horse so to speak.
Sure, running a multi-part teleclass might be a terrific way for her to reach more people and grow her business. But she didn’t have the skills to do it herself nor the money to hire others to do it for her.
On top of that, since she didn’t already have a list of subscribers she regularly communicated with, she was going to have to build her list while selling her class. This is doable, but harder, more time consuming, and more expensive.
Finally, if she wasn’t able to get even handfuls of people to attend her live events, she probably wasn’t ready to invest in a bigger venture like these teleclasses. Instead she needed to take a big step back and work on her marketing basics.
My recommendation was that she stop worrying about launching something so big and complicated. Instead she should work on
getting out and doing more live events and growing her list. That way she could test different topics, titles, talks and marketing tactics to see which ones get the best response.
Then, once she had a decent following, and all the marketing materials for that talk, she could easily tweak it to deliver via teleseminars. Then later launch the full teleclass series. By then she’d already have a list of people who know, like and trust her and enjoy receiving her words of wisdom.
Of course, to do any of that she really needs to put together a marketing plan. Just like any other product or service you have to do effective marketing if you want people to show up at an event…Even a free one! Because they’re still giving you their time, and these days that is a precious and limited commodity.
The same is true with most everything in your business. If you’re having trouble selling one thing you need to figure out why or you’re likely to have just as much trouble selling something else. That requires at least a simple plan complete with goals. Otherwise your’re always guessing.
Listen, it’s easy to get swept up in the excitement of the latest Online craze or business idea. Yet if you want people to buy your new product, service, program, package, or whatever…You have to have your marketing basics in order. Winging it rarely works, especially in a down economy when people are holding tightly on to their wallets.
Can you put together events, programs and product launches quickly and have great success? Sure. But if you don’t already have a solid track record, a list of followers, and marketing systems in place, you’re going to have to spend more money hiring experts to make it happen.
If that’s not in your cards, it’s best to set a big goal then work backwards to figure out how to get from here to there in small, doable steps that set you up for success. As your revenue and list grows you can launch something more ambitious.
In the case of this prospective client, since she couldn’t afford to hire me to do it for her, I suggested she grab a copy of my 2-page marketing plan guidebook “Putting Your Business on the Road to Success”.
That way she can put together a simple yet effective plan for marketing her events that makes sense given her budget and skill set. Then she can track results and figure out what’s working.
Plus, she can send her finished plan to me for a complimentary critique and get access to my marketing expertise at no additional charge (a $300 bonus that comes with this $67 product!).
You can do the same by going here: http://www.2pagemarketingplan.com
Got questions, thoughts or suggestions on this topic? Please do share by leaving a comment below…
Need a way to edit your audios and podcasts?
Posted by: | CommentsI use and love WavePad software. It’s perfect for simple editing like deleting sections of audio, or linking multiple audios together. It also converts files from WAV to MP3 or 4 and a whole bunch more tasks I don’t even understand.
Yet it’s so easy and intuitive I’ve never even had to look in the help file.
Try the free trial and see what you think…
http://www.nch.com.au/wavepad/masters.html
Do have other ideas for audio and podcast editing? Please share by leaving a comment below…
Three Ways to Take Control and Grow Your Business…In Any Economy
Posted by: | CommentsHas your business slowed because of the economy? If so, you’ve got a few options. Keep doing what you’ve always done and hope it turns around on its own…Or, do something different.
Clearly, it makes more sense to try doing something different versus doing the same thing and hoping to get different results (Because that’s the definition of insanity, right?!?). The first way you’re in control of your destiny and the other you’re future success or failure is largely out of your
control.
If, like me, you’d rather take control and make things happen good for you! Because there is quite a lot you can do, in any economy, to make your business more successful. Below I list a number of different ideas you can use to change your business for the better.
However, before you make any major changes, you might want to know why people aren’t buying from you right now…
> Is it because what you offer is now too expensive?
> Are you selling something that is perceived as a luxury instead of a necessity?
> Do people simply not know you exist, or not understand what it is you’re selling and why they would want to buy? (Hint: If you do very little marketing and rely mostly on word of mouth and referrals, this is likely one of your problems).
Once you know the answer to this question, it’s much easier to make good decisions moving forward. Because the last thing you want to do is come out with something new that no one wants or buys either for one of these reasons.
Okay, now that you have an idea of why your prospects aren’t buying from you right now, it’s time to come up with some new ways to grow your business.
1) Diversify.
Change what you offer. And be sure you’re offering products and/or services at different price points. Often, the person who buys an inexpensive item from you—and likes it—will come back later ready and willing to spend more.
If you only do consulting, consider launching a group coaching program, or doing a workshop. These let you charge less and help more people at the same time. Plus, you can actually make more money with less effort once you have your new program up and running.
Or try offering a membership program where clients pre-purchase services at a discount, or pay a monthly fee for access to you. These reduce the up front costs to your clients, again making you more affordable. They also help you even out your cash flow since you’re not always doing the work then waiting to get paid on the back end.
If you sell products, maybe there are multiple products you can bundle into packages. Or packages you can split into single items.
2) Niche.
If you’re trying to go after too large a market, you are likely missing out on a lot of sales. These days especially people want a specialist or expert and are willing to pay more for them.
Would you buy a book on Internet marketing from your bookkeeper? Probably not. If you were a bookkeeper, would you pay more for a seminar on how to use Internet marketing to grow your bookkeeping business, or one on marketing in general?
Find yourself a niche or two to focus on so you can speak directly to them in a way that really resonates. Often you can repurpose products or services you already have to speak to a specific idea or target market (Chicken Soup for the Soul now has books for everyone from Mom’s to fishermen).
3) Reformat.
Everyone is different—especially when it comes to learning styles. Some people like to read, others want to listen, or watch, or participate. So it’s best to offer your products or services in as many different formats as possible. Never assume your audience only wants your materials delivered one way.
For example, you can take an article you’ve written, record it as an audio podcast, shoot a short video about it, and offer a workshop on the subject too. Or combine a workshop with a product.
—-
While I know this can sound like a lot of work up front, if business is slow you have time. And it’s much easier to do this than launch a new business from scratch if your current one goes under.
Besides, once you start doing this it’s actually a lot of fun. And it’s even more fun when you realize you’re helping more people and your business—and bank account—is growing as a result!
Got questions, thoughts or suggestions on this topic? Please do share by leaving a comment below…
“WARNING! You could end up spending WAY too much for a Website that does nothing to make sales or grow your business!!”
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If you can plan a vacation road trip, you can write a highly effective small business marketing plan with this e-book!
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