Marketing Advisor Update

Sales and marketing tips, insights and advice for service businesses amd companies selling complex or technical products.

Wednesday, April 15, 2009

Are You Fooling Yourself

It's hard work being consistent.

And sometimes it can be boring.

When we start something new - whether it be a new exercise regime or reading the first chapter of a best-selling novel - we get caught up in the excitement. We might even experience an adrenalin rush. It feels good.

But it doesn't stay that way. At least in most cases anyway.

What happens?

We get used to it.

Doing the same thing. Over. And over again.

This reminds me of a quote attributed to the ancient Greek philosopher Aesop - 'Familiarity breeds contempt'.

In other words we get used to it and start to forget why it is important for us. We overlook the purpose of what we are doing. We lose sight of our initial objective because we get bored or lazy.

It is the same with doing your marketing. It is easy to get excited by the latest fad, marketing technique, or piece of advice. But the excitement doesn't last. You get lazy.

You find yourself committed to too many things. Most of which are only half done. Then you let things slip by.

= = =

* Skipping the personal networking events.
* Overlooking the regular newsletter article, or blog post.
* Not sending 'thank you' messages.
* Updating the website only 'when I have time'.

= = =

Sidebar: Many successful business owners pretty much know what
they should be doing. Their challenge is often having the
discipline or structure to implement what they know. This is
where a coaching or marketin mentor program can be invaluable.

For any business, one of the secrets to marketing success is to be consistent.


Of course you need to be doing the right things in the first place. And then ensure you are consistent in your implementation.

That is why - when planning your marketing - you must make choices you can consistently deliver.

An example. For many service-based businesses presenting an informative seminar can be a fantastic way to build credibility and attract clients. As you would expect, presenting seminars on a consistent basis will have even greater impact.

But if you know you don't have the skills, or the enthusiasm, to deliver informative seminars don't make the mistake of including that tactic in your marketing schedule.

Don't fool yourself.

Because if you can't commit to being consistent it is rarely a good idea to do it at all.

Please don't misunderstand me here. I'm not suggesting you should simply ignore every marketing tactic you don't like. (In some cases that wouldn't leave much on the to-do list!)

If presenting seminars was important for growing your business I would recommend you learn effective presentation skills as your first option.

In summary, identify and explore the value of relevant marketing options. Then consistently implement your chosen strategy.

Related link:
Get help to implement effective marketing with Stuarts Marketing Mentor Program

Labels: , ,

Friday, October 17, 2008

Danger... Danger... 9 of 10 Businesses to Cut Their Marketing Expenditure

A report out this week by PriceWaterhouseCoopers claims that the current economic downturn has severely affected business confidence in Australia. As a result, 9 out of 10 (of the 750 private businesses surveyed) say they will cut marketing costs.

How dumb can you get!

(Aside: they need to attend my marketing planning workshop in Sydney Oct 30)

And I'm not just saying it's a dumb thing to do because I work in marketing.

It is well known that marketing creates new business. To cut back on marketing because it is seen as a luxury, or 'expendable', is just plain poor business management.

Often these decisions are made by the bean counters who control the purse strings within the company.

Now look... I know many nice accountants. But the nature of their profession makes most of them focus on how to reduce costs. Not how to maximise profit.

Don't become a victim to others peoples fears.

Make your own decisions about how successful you want your business to be.

You certainly do need to manage expenditure. But be prudent and make smart decisions to build your business. Don't just throw up your arms and say... we have to cut costs, at any cost.

If you are in Sydney, why not consider attending my 2-minute Marketing Plan workshop on October 30. At the workshop you'll learn all about how to stretch your marketing dollar and choose marketing tactics that will work for your business.

Labels: , ,

Friday, January 12, 2007

Using a One-Page Marketing Mind Map

















In case you didn't see my latest article...
The mind mapping concept is based around having one central idea or theme. From that you develop a set of related ideas that radiate out from the central theme, connected by lines, or flows.

However, for creating a One-Page Marketing Mind Map we need to alter the mind map format a bit. In our marketing mind map we need to show relationships between marketing tactics.
Read the entire article and download example ...

Labels: ,