I was talking to a business owner the other day and he has a problem.
His marketing isn’t earning its keep. His web site isn’t generating sales leads. His social marketing isn’t getting him anywhere. He sends out emails and it’s like they’re falling on deaf ears. (you know what I mean!)
He spends a lot of time trying to figure out what the problem is. Reads all the guru stuff. Makes changes to his web copy. Listens to webinars.
The result? Nothing. Just a lot of frustration.
There can be a number of reasons why his marketing and copywriting isn’t producing the results he wants but, with a quick fly-by, it didn’t take me long to spot the problem.
Before I tell you what it is, consider the following scenario:
You need to buy a new dress. You usually go to your favorite place but on this day you decide to explore other shops so you head to THE MALL!
You’re ready to buy. You just need to find something you like.
You walk into a boutique that looks like it could have something you want. Before you even get inside, a salesperson comes up to you and says, ‘We sell dresses.’
Now, there’s a useful piece of information, huh? You keep walking and your new friend stays right on top of you as you start working your way down an aisle.
‘We’re having a 30% sale but it ends today,’ the sales person informs you. Great. Pressure. Just what you we’re looking for.
‘You’ll probably be interested in our blah blah blah. They’re going like hotcakes.’ The salesperson might as well being saying, look, why don’t we save ourselves some time here, you look like someone with zero originality. Just follow the crowd.’ What salesmanship. (Lots of people bought Facebook stock too – at $35)
OK. Do you see what’s going on here? This shopping “experience” is being forced on you. No romance. No ‘let me get comfee’. Nope. It’s buy this or buy that.
And that’s the #1 reason I see when I look for reasons why a business owner’s marketing and advertising isn’t generating sales leads.
It’s pushy. It doesn’t offer any value. It’s all about here’s the stuff we sell. You should buy it because we sell it.
Creating a successful marketing approach means making sure you make your prospect the focus.
Very few prospects are ready to buy the moment they ‘meet you.’ They want to look around. Get a feeling for who you are. See if they can see signs that you may be someone they want to do business with.
Million-dollar thought: People want to buy at THEIR own pace using THEIR process.
Your prospects need to sell THEMSELVES on you before a sale can be made.
And their process goes something like this when they visit your web site or blog …
Can these guys solve my problem? (you want to have some kind of a unique promise that catches their attention in the form of a headline)
Do they understand my problem? (let them know you do by writing copy that taps into the pain they pain by having the problem go unresolved…for example, if you’re selling business coaching as a career to people over 50 you might start with “no one knows better than you how scary it can be to start a new career after 30 years in the corporate world)
Have they guys done this before? (testimonials where people with the same problem discuss how you solved their problem)
How do they do it? (copy that details how your process of solving the problem works…many of our customer have no idea how we work. By explaining it, you’re already ahead of 75% of your competitors)
What do they want me to do next? (this is where you give your prospect an opportunity to get to know you better, to warm up to you…a free report or webinar can be great ways to lower sales resistance so they can see you are truly interested – and qualified – to help them.)
By putting your prospect first, your marketing will still suck alright – it’ll be sucking in profits!
I’d love to hear your thoughts on this approach. Please leave a comment.
