Chasing

“They’re in trouble now, they’re merely chasing the game,” said the soccer announcer. He was describing the underdog taking the match to the big dog and the big dog getting desperate to get back into the game. Watching this soccer match reminded me of a client’s situation. (Given enough time I think I can create a sports analogy for just about any situation.)

You see in business and in soccer, success revolves around creating a strategy and although modified due to game situations, executing the strategy to the desired end, i.e. winning. Sometimes though things can go badly and the plan goes out the window and we end up scrambling. Due to the economy this first half of 2009, a lot of companies were scrambling and the marketing/sales strategy wasn’t executed.

When chasing the game in soccer, it means making longer passes and taking longer shots that have less chance of success. In marketing and sales, the same thing can happen “chasing” after the market and trying to gain success with an isolated tactic. Often such tactics are devised because we see the competitor doing it...not considering that the competitor might be chasing the game as well.

Better to step back and assess the situation, reconnect with the plan and determine which parts are still advisable in the new situation. As mid-year is here, this is a great time to take a breather from chasing and consider what the plan should be for the second half of 2009. If you’d like some help doing that, email me and let’s set up a time to talk, or visit www.geniusmarketing.com

SLE

One Big Idea

“I think it’s a great idea!,” he said. I had no reason to disagree. It was new, it was fresh, it could be the next big thing.

“What about your current tactics?,” I asked, concerned about the size and scope of the new activity.

“I think I’ll be able to cut back on the rest of my marketing tactics,” he replied.

What was this great new marketing idea that this business owner was pursuing? Doesn’t matter. It could be one of a dozen or so things I’ve heard about throughout my career. They were all new. They were all fresh. And they all promised a big return.

The cost? Varied. Sometimes it’s cheap and easy. Sometimes it is more of a commitment. Yet none of that matters. You see business owners, especially the truly entrepreneurial sort, love new ideas. They love the promise of the next big thing. That’s what makes them take the risk of getting into business. The dream, the vision, the passion.

It can also create a blind spot. One the old proverb calls “counting the cost”. You see, understanding what a new marketing tactic will cost, not just in dollars, but in time, energy, people and commitment is critical to evaluating the addition of that tactic to the marketing mix.

It is always a red flag when you hear that this new (a.k.a. untested) tactic can replace much of the current marketing mix. Once in a long while that may happen. Still worthwhile to be wary and to maintain a mix of traditional and new media tactics...at least until that “big thing” really is all that.

If you need help assessing how a new idea can add to your marketing mix, email me to set up a time to talk or visit www.geniusmarketing.com

SLE

Connecting the Dots

From where do sales come? How do you get sales? If you needed one sale in the next 24 hours what would you do?

These are all questions I’ve asked to business owners. They seem to engage the conversation more than something esoteric like, “What is your marketing and sales process?”

Either way, for many businesses the answer is somewhere between hemming and hawing and grasping for straws. “Mostly through referrals...” “We run some direct mail...” “We buy leads...”

None of these responses answers the question. It points to the fact that most companies don’t really understand what is working for them. They try different things and through some unseen amalgamation of activities sales result.

That’s fine as long as times are good and the sales keep coming. However, what if the organization wants or needs to grow? What marketing and sales activities should be increased? Is it always “Add another sales guy!”. How can sales be maximized with the current marketing budget and sales staff?

This is where understanding the processes and measuring what is working becomes meaningful. By developing a systematic approach to marketing and sales, the process can be tested, refined and maximized to be as effective as possible. Then added investment in marketing and sales activities wouldn’t be such a “seat of the pants” experience. Dollars, time and effort could flow to the most productive activities and indirect marketing elements (PR, social media marketing, etc.) could be utilized for what they are: supporting activities that are used to fully shape the marketing mix, but not necessarily create direct response.

We focus on process in the Marketing Coach. That focus on process uncovers issues that are keeping you from maximizing sales. Email me your process questions or set up a time to discuss maximizing your marketing process.

SLE

Comparison Shopping

Sometimes providence just hands you one... I received two emails back-to-back in my inbox. One from a chamber of commerce, the other from a trade association. I have been involved, or at least attended events, at each organization. (See the two emails below.)

I happened upon the first email, saw it was from an organization I know and clicked it open. It began “Good Afternoon Valued Friend,”. “Really?”, I’m your valued friend? Funny, I don’t recall your name or ever meeting you! Next came four Yes/No questions about potential problems in my business. (An aside...don’t ask Yes/No questions unless your goal is to eliminate prospects from reading on. You see, if you give them the opportunity to say, “No,” some will, and stop reading.) From there, the email tried to convince me that all my woes as a business owner could be solved by attending their upcoming event. The email was signed by the Business Development and Marketing title at the organization. It couldn’t have screamed louder, “I JUST WANT TO SELL YOU SOMETHING.” And what was the call to action? Come to a 90 minute sales pitch for our organization. Are you kidding me? Wow, I couldn’t wait to get out of that email.

The next email I clicked on was also a sales pitch (I’m not naive, afterall), but the tone and content were so different from the first that I ended up reading the whole thing and considering reconnecting with the organization. “Dear Stephen,” it began, “We’ve missed you!...” Now I know that they only miss me because I’m not a paying customer/member, but still, at least they bothered to use variable data to drop my name into the salutation! The email went on to say they understand the economic difficulties small business are facing and suggested coming to their next event (a networking event). And to come free of charge. The email was signed by the president of the organization, under his handwritten signature (HTML email, compared to text name and title in the first email).

What a difference! A free networking event at which I might meet some prospects and experience how valuable this organization is, versus a sales pitch where I hear the staff tell me how important their organization is. Hmmm... Which one is the better offer?

Here’s the punchline: sometimes we can get so excited about what we have that we forget the other side of the transaction...the buyer. We just tell and tell and tell and don’t realize that what we’re supposed to be doing is building a value proposition to entice a skeptical audience. Our messaging must reflect how great it feels to be a customer and entice us to take the first step to becoming a customer.

Maybe I’ll see you soon at an event...guess which one?

SLE

Email 1:

Good Afternoon Valued Friend,

Are you continually struggling to grow your client base?

Have you found yourself "out of the loop" on the latest information impacting your business?

Is your overhead soaring & your bottom line shrinking?

Have you wanted to make a difference as a business leader in your community?

If any of these challenges sound familiar to you, then here is one opportunity you can't afford to miss!

The NAME HIDDEN invite you to join us for a "FREE Informational Meeting" to learn how your business can gain the "competitive edge!"

WHEN: HIDDEN

WHERE: HIDDEN

TIME: 8:30 - 10:00 a.m. * Complimentary Continental Breakfast will be provided

RSVP to: HIDDEN

Once again, thank you for your interest in our organization! We hope to see you this Thursday! If you have any questions, feel free to contact me directly at HIDDEN.

NAME HIDDEN

Vice President, Business Development & Marketing

Email 2:

Hi Stephen,

We've missed you! During these tough economic times we understand the difficulties that small and medium size businesses are facing. Here at HIDDEN we are making strides towards helping companies thrive. As someone with prior relationship with HIDDEN I encourage you to take another look - you can't afford not to!

Start by attending our next networking event at HIDDEN - free of charge! Where there will be a pig roast and bike show. It's a great opportunity to see what's new at HIDDEN, meet the staff, and network with HIDDEN Members. Click here for more information. (in order to attend as a guest, send an email to HIDDEN)

Visit our website HIDDEN and see what's new or call us toll free at HIDDEN. We would very much like to welcome you back as a HIDDEN Member.

Sincerely,

(handwritten signature here)

President

Recession or Something Else?

Talking with a business owner about sales, he said the recession was killing him. Based on what I learned in the conversation so far, I knew that wasn’t the whole story; it sounded like there were several reasons for the slow sales. We were talking because he wanted some new ideas to deal with the recession, and I had plenty, from both Marketing in a Downturn (see www.geniusmarketing.com/Recession_Help.html) and ideas that came up as we discussed his situation. Yet I also knew that new tactics wouldn’t fully solve the problem.

What are marketing tactics? They are the tools that do the work of carrying the message, unique selling proposition, and call-to-action to the prospective customer. They often get the credit (or blame) for the success (or failure) of “marketing”.

Tactics are like the old saying about computers: “garbage in, garbage out”. Much must happen before the tactics will yield their full potential.

For this business owner, the economy was hiding from he and his team some of the reasons that sales were slow. Let’s consider a few:

1. The economy: Okay, the economy does have something to do with it. For this business, the pie was shrinking (see next bullet), the number of potential end users was diminishing. In a bad economy, those prospects remaining in the potential group were fewer and less likely to want to spend the money on this product.
   

2. Smaller market: Because of the nature of the products that this company sold (an add-on to another product system), their market had decreased in size as users were offered more options in base product systems. Yet their add-on’s worked only with the former standard bearer.
   

3. Lack of communication: This company had built its business on an excellent product and great customer support. When the base product system they supported was the market leader, business came to them. Therefore, a proactive marketing communications strategy didn’t develop.
   

4. Process and people: The slowdown revealed some holes in the process (like the lack of marketing communication) as well as some people problems (the way people interacted in the marketing and selling process), which were only exacerbated when the downturn came.
   

So, a lot more in play than just a bad economy! We are now working on better understanding the problems, prioritizing them and working on solutions. One example: developing service packages or other new offerings that can support those former customers still using the product system and our add-on’s. This is a particularly powerful concept as the bad economy will mean users are looking to extend the usefulness, rather than replace, our system.

Bottomline: it is important to understand the marketing/sales process and the moving parts therein in order to be able to navigate accurately in bad times and good. That’s one of the reasons we’re now offering the Genius Marketing Assessment (see www.geniusmarketing.com/GM_Assess.html) piece as a standalone. A key part of the Marketing Coaching process, we are offering the Assessment alone to afford business owners and management teams a new perspective on their situation to uncover the areas on which to concentrate their efforts.

Yes, it’s the economy. However, good times or bad, it’s more about the process. If you’d like to talk more about an assessment, email me at genius@geniusmarketing.com to set up a time to talk.

SLE