Elton John wrote a song titled: “Sorry Seems to be the Hardest Word” that reflects the frustration and anxiety many new business owners feel when attempting to market their product or service. He sang: “What have I got to do to make you want me? What have I got to do to be heard?... It's sad, so sad (so sad). It's a sad, sad situation. And it's getting more and more absurd.” The marketing process makes many people sad and even angry over the absurdity of spending thousands of dollars on marketing but getting little or nothing in return. In some cases these people are actually banging the table or crying in their pillow saying: What have I got to do to make you want me? What have I got to do to be heard? Hopefully, the following information will help relieve some of their frustration.
When designing a marketing campaign most new business owners believe they have to move people emotionally in a way that makes them believe that they "need" their product. The problem is that may have worked for 100 years but it doesn’t work anymore. There was a time when you could pay thousands of dollars to broadcast a commercial that got people’s attention and moved their emotion. The primary reason that doesn’t work any longer is because you are broadcasting. You are casting a broad or wide net to position yourself in front of people who don’t want your product. Instead of learning where your ideal customers are and communicating with them there you have wasted money talking to people who don’t want what you are offering and who are now angry with you for interrupting whatever they were viewing.
There is a difference between marketing and advertising. The purpose of advertising is to generate awareness not sales. The only reason to broadcast an advertisement is to make everyone aware that you exist as an alternative or option to their list of solutions. The problem is people are turned off by advertising. They seem to innately understand that in French and Spanish respectively (avertissement and avertencia) the English word advertisment means “warning”. This makes them very cautious about receiving or trusting marketing messages presented through advertising.
I perceive that people subtly receive the message: beware of advertising every time they lift the lid of their washing machine. I perceive that people are subconsciously aware that the word advertisement is a combination of the words: adversary and enticement. Thus, they don’t watch advertisements anymore if they don’t have to. They DVR their favorite TV programs so they can speed past the commercials or if they are like me they mute the TV and pick up their phone whenever a commercial comes on.
Marketing on the other hand is a process of identifying and communicating with the people who want your product or service. These are the people who once they are aware that you have what they want they will search for you to get it. Once they find you they want to feel you talking “with” them not “at” them. Then, not only will they buy from you but they will tell others about you.
These people are what some call “early adopters” because they adopt you early in your marketing process as the go to solution for the problem you are solving. So, the key to marketing is to get your customers to reproduce. That is, identify the group of people who really love what you do and lead them to help you market to others like them. They will use the internet and various devices to communicate with people who are like them. Your job as a marketer is simply to figure out where they are and what devices they use so you can be where they are.
Once you have found your market you must stop trying to sell and start building trust. The best way to build trust in the internet age is to create a knowledge based product related to your product or service and give it away for free. Most people do this by creating YouTube videos, PDF down loads, or over FaceBook and Instagram live broadcasts. Post this content on your website or everywhere you can on the net. Use the proper tags to help people who are searching for this knowledge find it easily.
If you execute this properly, you won’t have to find customers they will find you. If you talk with them not at them, you will seem more like a friend than a sales person. Then, they will begin to trust you as a credible source of knowledge or a viable solution to their problem.
Remember, this too: the marketers who build trust most quickly and effectively don’t use pushy sales tactics when offering free content. Simply post your website URL on the video, in the blog or in the PDF as a subtle invitation. If they want more information they will go there automatically.
Going to your website is akin to walking into a store. Nobody wants to be bothered by a pushy sales person as soon as they walk in the door. So be sure your site is clean, visually pleasing, and quickly provides the information the customer needs to lead them to make a purchase. I am personally not a fan of “up sale” techniques. It feels like the person selling is being greedy or trying to take advantage of me. I think it is better to ask for their email in exchange for free information, exclusive discounts, or limited offers.
