Like it or not, businesses that want to grow need to connect with more people in a way that helps them go from potential customers to paying clients.
And there are more ways to market your product or service than ever before.
So why do most business owners dislike marketing so much?
If that's you, it's probably because you were taught that there are only a small handful of ways that marketing is done in your particular industry.
The good news is that it isn't true, and the more willing you are to do things differently than other businesses in your industry, the more likely you are to stand out to your ideal customer.
On May 31 we are teaching a special one-hour workshop on how to create a more authentic marketing strategy, and it will support you whether you want to grow your business based on referrals, networking or through social media marketing.
You will leave with a template you can use again and again to prepare content and connect with your potential clients in person or online.
>> Sign up here to attend live or catch the replay <<
3 Marketing Mistakes You Might Be Making
That brings us to the first and most common mistake we see businesses make when it comes to marketing.Mistake #1: Following the crowd (or just plain copying).
When you see something that you believe is working for your competition as a marketing technique, it seems tempting to want to replicate it, especially if you feel like your own creative well is dry.
But from the perspective of a potential client who may be shopping around between you and your competitors, seeing the same thing over and over again becomes forgettable at best and, at worst, a question of whether you are ripping off another company.
The fix: Stop paying attention to or getting "inspiration" from your competitors. Unfollow them all and unsubscribe from their emails. I know this is counter to what many people teach, however the only way to tap into your own authentic creativity and connect with your ideal customers is to stop trying to mimic what other people are doing.
The Authentic Marketing Workshop will set you up with a template you can use to come up with your own original content for your marketing, so you can find perfect fit customers and stop looking to other people's marketing for your strategy.
Mistake #2: Ignoring marketing channels that your clients are on.
I remember early on getting some blanket advice from an "expert" in my industry who said that podcasts weren't a viable marketing channel for people at my stage of business. Her intentions were good, in that creating a podcast is much more work than writing a blog post or creating an Instagram reel. She probably didn't want us newer business owners to become discouraged if we put in 10 episodes of content, production and launch work and didn't create any new client revenue, so she said, "No podcasts until you know your niche and have made a lot of money".
However, something about starting a podcast felt right to me and I knew that the people I wanted to work with listened to podcasts on their daily commute. I also knew I wanted to find my voice and start providing tools and insight to people so that I would be top of mind when they were ready to hire a coach.
At almost 250 episodes in, The Superabound Podcast has gone through two name changes, a complete change of niche from relationships to business and I have acquired a co-host in my husband Steve for the past year or so.
It wasn't smooth or tidy.
But using the podcast as a major marketing channel has allowed me to build connection and relationships with people from all over the world and most of my private clients were listeners long before they decided to hire me.
To me, this is the best form of authentic marketing because Steve and I can be with people in their car or on walks and talk them through the ups and downs of their own lives. I am so glad I didn't ignore this marketing channel, because it is where many of my ideal people are.
The fix: Write down all the marketing channels you know your customers use. Are there any you have been ignoring? Are there some that you use often that don't yield great fit clients? Consider giving yourself a specific window of time to measure new leads or sales via one platform you know your people use and purchase from.
Apply the template you learn in the Authentic Marketing Workshop to that platform and track your results.
Mistake #3: Speaking differently in your marketing than you do in your sales and product delivery.
The way you speak to people in your marketing matters. If you use uber-sophisticated industry language in your marketing and then have a frank, down to earth demeanor when you are with your clients you will likely have some unhappy customers.
Some people think good marketing means that you put the shiniest version of yourself and your company forward. In our upcoming workshop you will learn that the best form of marketing is authentic marketing and why it is such a relief to market in this way.
The fix: Drop the notion that your marketing needs to focus on you looking like perfection at all times. Instead focus on what you and your business can do to best support your customers. And if you provide a service, let your potential customers get a sense of your vibe so they know what they are getting when they hire you.
