These are the things that make the most difference for building their business. I can tell you that when you get each of them right you will see your business LEAP forward by an increase of several times more clients for each of the steps
Let's look at "the marketing formula." It says that the number of people who do what you want them to do is controlled by the following: the number of people who see your marketing (and need you) times the conversion rate of your marketing.
# people who see you X conversion rate = # people who respond.
So, until you get your marketing message right so that the conversion rate goes UP and UP and UP it doesn't matter how many people see you or how hard you work at getting a message out there.
That is one of the biggest mistakes that almost all business owners make. They start out working REALLY HARDto get in front of people but their marketing message stinks. So, even if you got in front of thousands and your message conversion rate was zero then
1000 X 0 = 0
With that kind of conversion rate your results are still zero no matter how hard you work. And even with a small conversion rate, it's a bottleneck to letting your hard work turn into successful clients faster.
So, let's start off by working on the marketing message. That'll open that bottleneck so that our work will more quickly turn into a FLOOD of new clients.
1) Getting Your Marketing Message Right
Marketing is NEVER about you, your products or service. It should ALWAYS be about the most important thing in your prospect's lfie or business. So, here's how to do that.
Far too many business owners are saying "I am a ______" [they label themselves. I am an insurance salesman] in just about everything they do or say in their marketing.
When someone meets you at any event and asks you "What do you do?" Don't make the mistake of answering that question, at least not like you've done it before by telling them "I am a [your label]" or actually telling them what you do, "I sell insurance" or whatever it is.
Keep in mind that marketing isnot about you (Hi, I'm Alan Boyer), or your products or services (I'm a coach), or what you do (I meet people once a week . . . blah . . . blah . . . blah . ..). if you have, or are, answering the questions about what you do that way you are boring them to death. You can't bore them into buying from you.
What is the RIGHT message that will get attention? It's about "getting their attention", mention the pain you fix, giving them a picture of the Ultimate Outcome, and the VALUE of that outcome. You'll have them jumping into your shopping cart.
When I use this approach
- As a 30-second elevator speech in a room where my target is, about 30% of the room will want to talk afterward.
- In a postcard . . . 5% to 10% will respond.
- In a sqeeze page on the internet, about 40% to 60% will respond.
- On one of y main website pages 5% to 10% will respond.
- In one of the many articles I write . . . about 30% will respond.
Here's how to develop that message.
- Call your target market by name. I call it a "Hey You" statement because you will call out to them by naming who they are. Something like this "Struggling business owners . . . can't get enough clients no matter what you've done?" [use your own target market here]). If that was YOU reading that wouldn't that get your attention? It does by the way.
- Make it more emotional. Hit them where it hurts by digging for what it feels like. ("Many are about to GIVE UP and go back to work because they are eating into their children's college fund.)
- Give them an ANSWER with a VALUE of that answers (I help business owners make their FIRST $100K in the next 2-6 months).
2) How to get in front of the most people with your marketing
Don't just wait for someone to walk in --Actively FILL the pipeline with the Ideal Market.
Actually, our goal isn't to get in front of the MOST people that we can get in front of. We want in front of the most of the RIGHT people. When I started off in business I was sure that I could help ANYONE ANYWHERE ANYTIME. Yes, I heard others say, Find your ideal target market, but waht did they know. I was thinking, "They didn't know what I do or how."
Let's look at how many retail stores do it as an example. Most open their door and WAIT to see who walks in. (No real active marketing to get get 'em. They depend on the sign out front to bring them in. Passive marketing.) After a while they get somewhat desparate. But eventually $5 walks in . . . and they POUNCE. They don't want that $5 to slip out of their hands. They are DESPARATE now for anything.
They've also developed a sense that "there just aren't many people out there so their waiting for the next $5 to walk in becomes somewhat anxious, desparate. They had been exciting when they decided to start this business, but now it's turning to frustration, fear, and desparation.
But, here's the thing. It's just as easy to go after a $10,000 sale as it is a $5 sale, maybe even easier if you have an active marketing plan that gets the RIGHT marketing message out there, and in front of the right number of the right people.
In fact, we'll go out there and FILL THE PIPELINE with the larger sale by using the marketing formula that will.
The Biggest Mistake Almost All Small Business Owners Make
Back to the marketing formula:
# of people who see your marketing X conversion rate = number of calls you get.
Now, focusing on the "number of people who see your marketing" once of the biggest mistakes almost all small business owners make is "trying to save money with their marketing."
The important thing about your marketing isn't the up front cost, it's back end cost, the cost to acquire a client that matters.
Stop! Aren't those both the same" No, not really.
I could spend $1 to send out a letter and get a 0.1% response rate due to a poor marketing message. That would mean that I'd have to send out 1,000 letters at a $1 each before getting even one call. That one lead would cost $1,000.
Of, let's say that my marketing message works a lot better, and I spend as much as $5 for each letter that got a 10% response rate. I would have to send 10 letters at $5 each to get the first call. That lead would cost me only $50.
Or, as most small business owners do it, I could spend a theoretical $0, go networking that cost me no up front fees, and spend the next 1,000 hours, or half a year before maybe getting a prospect. What did that cost me? Let's see, ifyou were charging $250/hour for what you do, every hour you spend marketing instead of doing what you get to bill for is costing you big time. Let's say that that one prospect you got after 6 months of networking actually bought, and many of them don't. But, let's say they do. And you make a $5,000 sale, and it took you about 20-40 hours to produce it [doing what you do]. Your total cost was
500 hours in marketing + 40 hours of doing whatyou do, to make $5,000. That's less than $10/hour.
So, don't be misled with the upfront costs, always look at "what it costs to acquire the client."
Now, let's say that you
- Get your marketing message right . . . which turns your marketing efforts into more clients faster.
- Then get your marketing message out there to the right number of the right kinds of prospects.
- And have a dozen or so a month actually CALLING you, instead of you setting there frustrated at not having more than a new client every few months. What would that do for you?
To Your Business Success
Alan Boyer
