News
Marketing Strategy
Mentality: Do You Have It?
--David Eissman, founder of Guaranteed Growth
Systems
Most small business owners and independent
professionals start their business primarily because
they have knowledge and skills that are in demand.
While they understand intellectually that they have
to market and sell, often it does not translate on
an emotional level. Many business owners tend to
look at marketing as a necessary evil, and in many
cases, have negative beliefs toward it. They could
not stand to be hounded by those pesky salesman in
their previous jobs and do not want to “become on of
them.” As a result, the tendency is to focus on the
aspects of our business that were the reason we
chose to go into business in the first place, the
actual application of our knowledge or skills.
What is a marketing mentality and how is it
developed? There are three components that all link
together.
1.) The first component is belief. What are
the underlying beliefs that affect our mentality? It
encompasses our attitudes, thoughts, fears,
expectations, and lack of experience. Our actions
are shaped by what we think about, what we assume to
be true and where we choose to focus. If the
thoughts are negative or avoidance minded then we
will see marketing as undesirable and in some cases
unethical. It will manifest in self talk such as: I
don't deserve referrals, my marketing won't work
anyway; I will look desperate; if my service or
product is good the market will know that; I don't
like networking; etc.
2.) The second component is behavior which is
generally driven by our beliefs. The decisions we
make every day are critical and negative beliefs
about marketing affect the decisions that are made.
For example, how often do we plan for the week and
tell ourselves that on Tuesday we will focus three
hours on marketing. Tuesday morning rolls along and
we receive a client call or an issue or problem with
an employee and then rationalize that the marketing
must be put off because these issues must be dealt
with immediately. The question is how often this is
really true. In my experience working with clients
the answer is rarely. Although we know that the
marketing is important, we let our negative beliefs
affect our behavior. Before we know it the pipeline
is dry, and then some type of marketing activity is
undertaken in an unplanned haphazard manner.
3.) The third component is relationship. In
order to have consistent lead generation and sales
there must be a relationship cultivated with an
adequate amount of prospects. This is the main
function of marketing. It is the adage of people to
do business with those they know, like and trust.
Without a consistent and systematic marketing plan,
there will not be a sufficient lead generation
process.
The linkage is very powerful. The beliefs affect the
behaviors and the behaviors affect the ability to
develop the relationships. The connectivity between
these elements is extremely leveraged in both a
positive and negative direction. When they are
aligned, the results are extraordinary, and when
they are not, the results can be devastating.
So, if you are in this quandary, what can be done
about it? First, sit down and make a list, and
inventory what your beliefs are about marketing. Be
honest and list as many as you can. Then ask
yourself about whether these beliefs are really
true, or just simply a personal bias. Second, are
you absolutely sure what you believe is true, or is
it possible that it is not? Next, evaluate how this
belief affects your behavior and what would happen
if this belief is changed. Try to reconstruct the
thought to a more positive mindset. The next step is
to translate those new thoughts into new behaviors.
One of the best techniques for doing so is to block
out time on your calendar and treat it as if it were
an appointment with your best client. You surely
would not miss an appointment with your best client
to deal with a task that was short of an emergency,
would you? After a short time, these new behaviors
will become habits and the rewards will follow.
If marketing is a struggle, it is absolutely
critical to engage in this marketing mentality
process. Many companies with great services and
products go out of business because they could not
implement a consistent lead generation system. Most
often that failure starts with the lack of a
marketing mentality. The great news is that the
necessary mentality can be developed with effort,
focus, and an open mind. You will be amazed by the
impact on your business.
---Sources: Reprinted
from John Jantesh’s Small Business Articles Duct
Tape Marketing (www.ducttapemarketing.com).
Written by David Eissman, founder of Guaranteed
Growth Systems and the creator of the Growth
Accelerator System (www.GuaranteedGS.com).
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Melissa Data
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