An Audio Version for Your Convenience Word of the Week: Core “ …. a basic essential, or an enduring part …of anything.” Insight for week 09 - You borrow from the greats, and you make your own path without losing the core of who you are. - Michael B. Jordan As I speak with people who are about to take the leap into their first entrepreneurial endeavor, often times I hear their excitement, but sometimes I hear a lack of clarity. They can vocalize what they want, but they can’t detail the steps in getting there. This is understandable. Many of us are feeling uncertain. Let’s face it – living through this pandemic, we’re all living in uncertain times. That said, in our lives and in our businesses, the compass that directs us toward success lives within us – within our very CORE. It’s easy for me to say, with my years of experience and the tools in my kit, that I can help ANY small business owner with the challenges they face in marketing …however, that is not an entirely true statement. I can help some business owners, and I have a proven record for that; I’m honest enough to realize everyone is not my ideal client. This is a lesson I’ve learned from my own mentors and coaches and a lesson I impart to my clients. To identify and attract ideal clients, we encourage you to focus on the CORE of your business and who you are as an individual.
With database fitness, we’ll get real about the core methods you’ve been using to attract your ideal clients.
Are you just following cookie-cutter advice from others or are you using your very own unique traits to build business relationships?? Please keep our insight for this week in mind: “You borrow from the greats, and you make your own path without losing the core of who you are.” Not unlike a physical fitness plan, what I’m proposing is not an overnight success strategy, however in a few weeks you can easily compare where you were to where you can be. Here’s my invitation: If you are a business to consumer (B2C) owner, I’m inviting you to a private, 30-minute consultation on attracting your ideal clients. If you are a business to business (B2B) owner, I have strategies for you as well. I promise you’ll come away with ideas and real strategies that you can use immediately and will speak to the CORE of who you are. Just follow the link. I’ll see you on the way to reaching your goals.
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An Audio Version for Your Convenience Word of the Week: Interaction “… a kind of action that occurs as two or more entities have an effect upon one another.” Insight for week 08 - It’s not enough to have a large audience online. You need to be actively engaged with them and they need to interact with you. Here’s why you should make it happen and how. It’s pretty well-known that only 10% or less of your social media circle even get to see your posts ... that is unless you are paying for ads or boosting. Here, I'm talking about organic reach, and that makes it even more imperative that you identify who’s in your audience and if they are really your ideal clients. Your database provides you with ownership - and ownership allows you the capability to display your “Unique Value Prospective”; that means with the click of a button you can entice them away from the clutter and white noise of the crowd. You can take them to a place where only you will address their issues and give them a sense of knowing that their issues are going to be taken care of. Ahhh ... you want to know how to get them to actually click that button! Right? I’ve gathered 10 ways (and even more) to get your ideal audience to stop scrolling, interact with you and accept an invitation into your database. And here, I’ll share just 3 of them with you, right now.
1. Ask Questions. What challenges have they overcome? What ideas do they have? Be prepared to listen and offer a method that will be private for them to provide feedback. Be prepared to invite all commenters to join your email list. Hold on to your trade secrets, but be prepared for deeper discussions and in-depth insights. If you are serious about building your database, meet them online and bring them off-line 2. Host Webinars, Google Hangouts, FB LIVEs, Publish a Blog or a Newsletter. All of these strategies share one common approach to success, and that is consistency. These are not one-and-done marketing tricks. If your lifestyle does not support the stability, reliability, uniformity, and the discipline required to produce this type of media, then honestly it’s best not to begin …until you can. Why? Because these are not activities that can simply be added to your “to do” list. All of these traits help build trust with your audience and if you fail to provide them, you can lose trust and lose money. Building your ideal client list can easily start here. 3. Thank You – Yes…THANK YOU. The two most powerful words in the world, perhaps even the universe, when uttered with honest sincerity, can become a potent potion to stop the scroll, stir up some interaction and attract some influential attention. In summary, active engagement is sure to turn a passive online audience into a thriving, engaged community. Interaction as the definition suggests is a kind of action that occurs as two or more entities have an effect upon one another.” In this instance, that's you ...in the process of identifying your ideal client. There you have 3 ideas that when applied properly are proven to increase interactivity, if you want more …follow the link. I’m confident that we’ll be able to create even more unique ways for your audience to interact with you and your business! Until next time, as always remember, Your Database is your most valuable asset and Database Fitness = Database Growth ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ PS: If your current Database Strategy does not allow you to create campaigns filled with opportunities for interactivity, let’s chat about what will work better for you and your business. An Audio Version for Your Convenience Word of the Week: Communication “ … the imparting or exchanging of information or news.” This is week 07 – Are your marketing efforts falling on deaf ears? …A hearing aid is not the answer. The painful truth: if you are communicating with your database regularly and there is not a lot of exchange going on, then you are having a “come to the truth moment”. It’s simple, your communication efforts may have reached a plateau. Your messages are falling on deaf ears and you have to figure out a fix. Let’s step back momentarily, to our earlier comparison of physical fitness and database fitness. If your physical fitness workout is not continually evolving to keep up with the increases in strength and endurance that your body is making, plateaus will occur. The natural fix is to look very carefully at each action you are taking. Your diet, your activities, your mindset, and your spiritual outlook; any or all could affect the positive outcome of moving forward. When you are able to identify the area that is polluting your quest for victory, you’ll have very little trouble pushing forward and gaining control of your original intent. Your desire will help you stay on track to avoid plateaus. “Desire” leads us back to our concept of Database Fitness and your business goals. Because learning what’s holding you back is not enough to move you off the plateau. You must have the desire to either let it go of a negative and/or embrace a positive to move forward. Let me share an example from one of our small business clients, whose communication efforts appear to have reached a plateau. We’ll call her Beth. Beth is a service provider. She produces a weekly newsletter, and she tracks her statistics monthly.
Now let’s look at some statistics Beth is seeing in her database:
Beth’s overall desire is to increase the clicks to her CTA to a min of 50%. Since we know that more opens will increase the possibilities of more clicks on her CTA it’s a good idea to look carefully at the 300+ contacts who did not open her communication and determine:
In summary: Even if you are using a so-called “free” CRM database system, your time and talent for running the system is too valuable to spend it on people who are not engaging. Revisit your definition of your Ideal Audience. Make the choice to extract people who are not engaging. Make the commitment to put in the work required to attract more ideal clients to your database. The marvelous truth:. When you are communicating the right message to the right audience your open rates and the clicks to your CTA will be unmistakable! If your database system is a spreadsheet, or if you are uncertain of the right CRM system for your business and marketing needs, we are ready and able to help guide you. Let’s chat. Database Fitness = Business Growth For so long, I used my faithful sewing machine. Over time, I experienced more and more difficulties with various projects, and I always laid the blame on the project. I never really considered getting another machine. I cleaned my machine, oiled it, used the best attachments, and made sure it was in proper working order. However, still with some projects, I struggled with a good clean flow in stitching and overall operation. You may wonder why I didn’t change machines? I loved my machine. It was a good machine. It worked really well most of the time, so I tried changing some of my actions, and kept using it. I tried slowing down at certain points in the task, and I tried turning the fabric differently at certain points, and I tried cutting the fabric differently at certain points, and I tried pinning the fabric differently at certain points. I did all these things and still I struggled to complete some of my sewing tasks. Finally, I was forced to invest in a new machine, so I selected a “heavy duty” model. Like magic, my sewing tasks began to flow like melted butter. Sure, I still slow down at certain points, and I continue to take the safety measures I did in the past … but the difference is now I no longer struggle to get the job done. I am no longer adjusting the tasks to the machine, the machine is adjusting to the tasks. I am no longer stressed. It takes less time to get even better results, and most importantly, I find my work, my passion, is more enjoyable. So what’s the take away from my story and how does this relate to Database Fitness?
Using the right tools can often transform stressful situations into successful outcomes. Things change and we need to face those changes. Especially if you’re self-employed, using the right tools can lead to better outcomes. Are you still using spreadsheet programs to maintain client information? Are you using Gmail to follow up with clients? Are you feeling overwhelmed with scheduling communications to keep in contact with clients? If you believe you are doing your best to grow your business, and it seems like an uphill battle, then now may be the time to evaluate your tools and consider making a change. There are more efficient and productive ways to build relationships with prospective clients and maintain trust with existing clients. Communication is crucial for client engagement with your business -- and engagement can lead to the greater revenue and business growth that you seek. If you are struggling in what seems an up-hill battle to attract your ideal clients, let’s chat! Database Fitness = Business Growth Word of the week: Focus “To concentrate attention or effort …” “Simply put, focus involves the ability to pay attention to things that will help and avoid distractions that will hurt your work efforts.” - Dr. Jim Taylor, Sport psychologist, parenting expert, professor, author, speaker. Last week, we discussed DESIRE and how it is the foundation for success in all areas. This is week 5 and we'll take a quick look at FOCUS and the positive effect it has on your endeavors. It’s amazing how many distractions can come your way when you are trying to focus on your goals. How can you stay on target? You can do it! Even though you may not be completely ready to fully execute your plan, you should not allow a day to go by without placing intentional focus onto your goals. As a small business owner you are likely to be “wearing many hats”. We talk about Database Fitness because it's all about using a system to help you wear your hats well and to document, measure and manage your areas of focus. Here are some tips from Huffington Post providing the four important Ps to help you focus:
The first P is perform. When you are going to begin a project, for example, a sales report, strategic plan, marketing analysis, or financial projection, ask yourself what tools/time and talents you’ll need to perform your best and then create an environment that will allow for optimal performance. The second P is process which involves focusing entirely on what you need to do to complete a high-quality product without concern for the outcome. Do this with confidence and the outcome will be accomplished. The third P is present which means focusing on the here and now rather than on what has happened in the past or what might happen in the future. Finally, the fourth P is productivity which involves focusing only on those things and blocking out distractions that will enable you to be the most productive you can be. It's been proven; if you can take control of your ability to focus and block out distractions, you have given yourself a powerful tool that will enable you to perform at consistently high level and be both effective and efficient in your work efforts. The result: better quality work, more success, and achievement of your professional goals. That said…As a long-time business owner, I know how difficult it can be to stay focused. As a matter of fact, the tagline for my business purposefully says it: “Online, On Target and On Budget”. If you believe you would benefit from having a one-2-one accountability session with me, please schedule a short consultation. I promise to keep our chat in line with your focus! Word of the week: Desire “a strong feeling of wanting to have something or wishing for something to happen.” “Desire is the starting point of all achievement, not a hope, not a wish, but a keen pulsating desire which transcends everything”. - Napoleon Hill Here’s a scenario you may be familiar with: You set a goal to grow your contact list. You start out strong, with good intentions of growing a large, quality, business contact list. Then slowly things begin to fizzle out. You're getting less and less contacts, and less interactions. You ask yourself …what just happened? That scenario is a lot like one for a person who starts out with the intention of building a physical fitness regimen, finding themselves in the same downturn. Although the two may not outwardly appear to have any commonalties, the same missteps and collapses can be experienced in both a Physical Fitness plan and Database Fitness plan. Both take similar actions to achieve success. Both can face similar challenges. How do you keep the momentum going when it seems so difficult to get started, or you believe you have reached a plateau? Team DonPaul will help you concentrate on Database Building. We call it Database Fitness. Let’s take a closer look at four primary contributing factors - · Desire · Focus · Consistency · Effort Your DESIRE is the foundation. Your desire is the fire. The fire can dwindle into embers, and still be rejuvenated almost instantly with a few new thoughts or ideas.
Your FOCUS will remain sharp by keeping your desire in sight. Those who have a true desire to achieve success in any specific area will always do better when remembering to call on their aspirations. Just as a physical fitness accountability coach can help you stay focused on achieving your goals, of let’s say defining your abs, an accountability coach for your Database can help you focus on the right activities too … such as defining your Ideal Audience. Your CONSISTENCY …again, is tied directly to your desire. It’s very difficult to remain in a schedule with an activity when you have lost the desire, When you lose the desire, you lose focus and there is no reason to maintain consistency. EFFORT is the final factor in accomplishing what you have set out to achieve. No matter what the end game happens to be, the effort that’s placed on the task is usually what generates the most positive outcome. All of this you may have heard before and it may seem easy on paper, however years of experience has taught us that a system and a plan will help you to work smarter. if you believe in the importance of getting in front of your target audience, and you have a true desire to grow your database, let’s chat. You can be sure your time will be well spent. Word of the Week: Crucial “...decisive or critical, especially in the success or failure of something.” For example: "It is crucial for small business owners to identify their ideal Client and get in front of them!" Ideal Clients make-up Ideal Audiences and Ideal Clients are the foundation for the success or failure of a business. Not Just any Clients….Ideal Clients. At times, you may hear the terms “Target Audience” and “Ideal Audience” blended into the same discussion. A “Target Audience” and an “Ideal Audience” are not the same. Understanding the difference will help you stay focused and retain your winning edge. Putting together an “Ideal Audience” can be challenging…Why? Because wherever there’s more than one person in the same room, listening to the same promotion, or holding a mobile device and reading the same content, there will be more than one interpretation. Never-the-less, your honest desire to listen and offer solutions will be duly noted and the outcome will be reflected in the growth of your database. Never stop being your unique self and never forget that each prospective Client is unique as well.. Even though Clients may divulge similar problems, pain or desires, they are each affected in uniquely different ways.
The challenge for you will be maintaining patience and diligence in understanding the differences and putting a marketing system into place that will work to your advantage. Within the broader spectrum, of a Targeted Audience you will find your Ideal Clients. They will be a specific type of person and the relationship you build with them will help them know they have met a match. They will hear your message. They will receive it. They will be drawn to you like butterflies are attracted to lilacs. a question I get asked a lot: Is marketing Business 2 Consumer (B2C),.the same as marketing B2B (Business 2 Business). There is a difference, but there are some similarities as well. . Even though rapid growth on the Internet is bringing about a welcome change, most small business owners are not well-equipped to market to both consumers and businesses simultaneously. Research your market, define your Ideal Client, and stick with it. When the profits start rolling in (and they will) …then you can diversify! So here we are, back at my beginning statement; "a crucial part in building a successful business is in building the right Audience." If your database is not growing with the right people, then your business is not going in the right direction. If you’d like to improve the quality and quantity of your database…Let’s Chat! Our primary goal is to help you grow your Ideal Client List. We help small business owners and burgeoning entrepreneurs clearly define the profile for their Ideal Client and convert them into paying customers. It's a New Year and your business may be heading in a new direction. Is there a special topic you'd like to see covered in the DonPaul Marketing Newsletter? Please make a comment below and we'll feature your question in an upcoming blog! Week 2 - Know Your Audience. Know Them Well. You need to know who your audience members are, what they like, and what problems they face. This shouldn’t be guesswork — research your audience to create a detailed target customer persona. Whenever I meet a new business owner I ask them to describe their ideal client. Whenever they start the description with “Anyone” or “Everyone” my heart sinks a little. There is no product in existence that’s suited for EVERYONE. There is no service in existence that will please ANYONE and EVERYONE. Even the very air we breathe, which is an essential element to EVERYONE, can cause problems for some.... depending on the geographical area. Creating a clear profile description for your target audience is an important step in growing your business.
It takes time, patience and care and sometimes it takes revisiting. It’s okay to get wrapped up in your own passion and it’s natural to be driven in your desire for success, however getting your message in front of the right people is imperative. Taking the time to research and reach out is well worth the effort, and learning to let go can be a benefit as well. The right tools play an important role in developing your ideal audience. Putting a robust CRM (Customer Relationship Management) system in place can be a powerful and yet affordable asset for a small business owner. Your system can work for you 24/7 sifting and sorting, delivering and testing for the right people, and at the same time, your CRM system can politely keep informed those in the audience who may not quite fit your profile. Best of all, your system will allow you to monitor your audience, identify those who are ideal and allow those who are not to quietly slip away with no bridges burnt in the process! Whether you are just starting to build your audience or you have an established database that needs revitalization, we can show you some great steps to reach your goals. If you are uncertain of the next steps to take, let's talk. In our last two messages we talked about taking you into this New Year with a FOCUS on success for growing your business to another level
3. Focus on sending clear, consistent messages across all of your business platforms Are you finding it challenging to stay focused on being consistent?
Let’s chat about it. Together we can make a plan for bringing your business back into focus and keeping it client ready. 1. Ensure your efforts are aligned. It is crucial to remember that every decision and action you take should contribute to accomplishing a greater purpose for your business. Every business operates like a machine, and whether it works efficiently or not depends on the stability and smooth function of every one of its parts. 2. Define your brand – and stick to it! As creative entrepreneurs, it’s understandable that we get bored using the same brand elements every day. But the truth is consistency is critical when it comes to your visual brand. Constantly changing your colors, images and fonts can make your brand appear unprofessional and even untrustworthy. Forbes Magazine suggests that solid branding differentiates your company from the competition, but if you don’t consistently live up to the promises your brand delivers, customer loyalty is massively reduced. When you study the actions of powerful brands all over the world, you can see that they are highly consistent in both strategy and implementation, and any changes are few and far between. 3. When you make a plan, see it through. Let’s be honest. If you do not commit to following a specific plan of action, you can put yourself in danger of generating high amounts of debt, or even going out of business. Every time that you choose to change your plans too early, you are likely to rack up the costs without receiving any benefits from your prior initiative. A startup or a small business cannot afford to make terrible financial decisions based on inconsistent actions, or the company may sink quickly. 4. Analyze the results of your efforts It is crucial to remember that it often takes time to see the results of your efforts. If your business processes, sales, and marketing efforts are inconsistent, you receive wavering results. For example, running an ad for a day or two won’t give you much insight into how successful the ad is, but using it for a set period can provide a great deal of insight into if a particular marketing strategy is working. If you end a campaign before it has a chance to gain traction, you may be sabotaging your own efforts. 5. Consider how changes affect your clients Consistency in the interactions that you have with your clients allows your business to build a loyal customer base and provide a memorable customer experience for all. Understanding what customers want and giving it to them every time is important. Whether you are establishing your brand or determining the course of your sales and marketing strategy, you have to recognize the power of consistency. Give yourself an advantage over fickle competitors by becoming consistent in how you operate your business, and what you present and offer to your customers. So what do you think? Does the thought of ‘consistency’ make you antsy? Or do you recognize it as the missing link in your business strategy? --------------------------------------------------------------- Resource: The Good Alliance, an expert team in brand building says “Consistency in your business is far more important that you can imagine. Being consistent allows you to establish awareness, build trust and deliver your services efficiently and profitably. Without it, your business is more likely to fail. Here’s some advice to help you show up a little more consistently…” #17 - Marketing Around COVID-19. Step 2 success strategy for 2021 We've talked about the first focus to take you into the new year; “understanding your client's problems and providing solutions.” Now let's look at step two: “Keeping the communication channels open, following up and relationship building.” There is a long running theory that business owners should take a break around the holidays, step-back, relax, because sales are not going to be good anyway. I do not recommend that theory to my clients … at least not my clients who are looking to grow their business in the coming year. Today one of my clients said to me: “I awake each day and work on my business as if I’m hungry …and trying to earn income for my next meal.” That statement was so powerful to me, I will never forget it. And while I can’t and won’t advise a business owner on how hard they may need to work to reach their goal, I can attest to knowing that achieving some goals will not be easy. However, for the resting part, there is a formula, and it is pretty simple. You know it’s time to rest when: You have all the income you want, and you have all the free time you want, then it’s okay to rest. Otherwise, you should put the pedal to the metal! Consistent communication is KEY to forward motion.
Let’s take a look at where you are now: You have identified your target audience and their problems …and you've determined that you have the solution. As you position yourself, remember, not everyone will become your client the first time you communicate with them, but they may REFER others to you, and that's more likely to happen if you communicate consistently with your database. No .. I’m not recommending sell, sell, sell; after all if you truly have a solution and if you are sending your messages to the right people, then all that’s required is patience, continuing to build your list, and a sincere desire to solve their problem. So it's more about "telling" them how you plan to solve their problem, and not so much "selling" them on the tools you'll use to do the job. BE honest and provide genuine answers. By the time my next letter arrives, it will be a New Year! I’ll cover the final step in my three-step strategy for a successful 2021 in your business. If you want to get a head start, there's no need to wait, schedule a chat on a day and time that's good for you. |
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