Saturday, October 26, 2013

Honorable Intentions?

I walked into the room and instantly my eyes met hers. I felt the connection. It was love at first sight. As I took my seat, I could feel my heart beginning to pound. Third grade was going to be fantastic!

I knew we were perfect for each other. All I had to do was get her to notice me, but the best I could come up with was to fall out of my seat. It worked! Everyone laughed. She looked at me and rolled her eyes. She definitely noticed me.

We never did get married. I guess there was still a lot I had to learn about establishing a relationship. In hindsight I can see that I could have made a better first impression. I never really spoke to her; instead, I just tried to get her to notice me. And I was never clear about my intentions.

I’m much older now, but I still see marketing efforts that use that tried-and-true third grade method of establishing relationships. Or worse yet, they go for the adult method and don’t quite tell the whole truth. It may work at first, but for a long-lasting relationship clear communication is the key.


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THE BOTTOM LINE:

Principal 1: Increase your sales and response rates by clearly stating what you want your customer to do. Don’t assume they understand your intentions.

Principal 2: Marketing is about establishing and building relationships – not 15 minutes of fame.
Principal 3: Your time, money and effort are pointless if you don’t have what your audience wants. It won’t do any good to get noticed if you don’t get results.

Saturday, October 19, 2013

How many CEOs does it take to Change a Light Bulb?

It had been a hard week, but the weekend had finally arrived. My wife had taken care of everything for me, just so I could relax. (I don’t mean to make anyone jealous, but my wife is awesome!) I was lounging around when I thought, “I’m finally going to fix that light that’s been bugging me.” (It doesn’t hang quite right.)

I got up from the chair grabbed my toolbox and turned into “Handy Man”.
(I have no particular super powers, but I do have a couple of tools and a really sweet hammer.) I’m capable of fixing anything. My awesome wife looked at me and smiled. She suggested we call a professional. “I am a professional!” I said, “I can do anything.”


An hour (and a couple of choice words) later my wife was still smiling – I wasn’t. “It’s not my fault.” I said, “The bracket keeps slipping and the screw has some kind of weird head that none of my screwdrivers seem to fit.” That’s OK. I’m creative. I can think of something.

So, the project was finished and I was feeling pretty proud of myself as I watched the Drywaller patch the ceiling. True, I wasted the weekend, but I’d made it work. By this time my wife had stopped smiling. It’s possible she had something different in mind for our weekend.


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THE BOTTOM LINE:

Principal 1: What appears to be incredibly simple can become a nightmare without the proper tools.


Principal 2: Just because you can do something, doesn’t mean you should.


Principal 3: Time is valuable. Use it wisely. It may save you money in the long run.

Saturday, October 12, 2013

The Power of Pink

In 1976 my mother became a Mary Kay consultant and my life changed forever. My world turned pink. It wasn’t long before we were driving to my football games in a pink Cadillac. (You have to be tough to step out of a pink Cadillac and onto the football field.)

As I watched her business grow, it became obvious that she sold much more than a product. She sold a company, a philosophy, and a lifestyle, but mostly she truly cared about people. I witnessed incredible transformations take place, and I’m not just talking about before and after pictures either. Women didn’t just become customers; they became members of her unit and sold for her.

Not every Mary Kay consultant has the same success, but they all have the same products. There must be more to sales than a product or a service.

I see companies everywhere that don’t successfully implement their marketing strategy; they don’t value quality materials, or can’t seem to leverage existing business assets. The result is they may have a lot to offer, but don’t have much appeal. The other extreme are businesses that are all “flash and glitz” but lack substance. Finding the proper balance of image and content in your marketing will bring out your business’s natural beauty and confidence.

I would love to help your business transform, and I promise not to use pink; unless it’s your color.


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THE BOTTOM LINE:

Principal 1: Sales is never just about the product. If you sell “the right way”, your customers will sell for you.

Principal 2: Successful marketing is finding the proper balance between looks and substance.

Principal 3: Don’t become so focused on your own business that you stop paying attention to what you can learn from others.

Saturday, October 5, 2013

Why Buy the Cow

Remember the good old days when NetZero pledged that free internet service was our right and Napster made music sharing free. (Are you old enough for these references?) Even banks were offering everything for free – free checking, free ATM transactions, free BillPay service. Oh, those were good times. We were so close to finally achieving a Utopian society.

Wait, everything is still free, right? But haven’t we really always known that free was too good to be true? If it’s free, there must be a catch. Will we ever be able to trust the word free again? Lookout, our perfect society appears to be coming apart at the seams.

Wasn’t the point of all of that "free stuff" to create loyalty? Instead, we’ve created a monster by using and abusing marketing’s most powerful word. When did we stop working hard to get what we want, or waiting for the right time to buy? Now, we buy things we can’t afford; then complain about interest payments.

Someone please set the alarm. We need a wake-up call. There must be a better way to get new business than to give it all away and hope that you don’t go bankrupt. Businesses, you must challenge your agency to come up with an idea, a benefit, or a solid strategy for growing your business rather than resorting to cheap gimmicks or bribery.

Maybe we all should get some self-respect. Maybe we should start to play hard to get. Maybe then people will buy the cow and quit expecting free milk.


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THE BOTTOM LINE:

Principal 1: Free is the most over-used and abused word in marketing.

Principal 2: Free is killing loyalty and results in selfish behavior and greater expectation without commitment.

Principal 3: You place greater value in the items you purchase or earn.