The “Word-of-Mouth” Paradox
Here’s a fun conversation I have with small business owners. It usually goes something like this… ME – “..so how much of your new business comes from referrals and word of mouth?” SMALL BUSINESS OWNER – “We get around 70-80% of our clients from referrals” (note – any good company gets a tonne of referrals…it can range anywhere from 50-100% depending on the industry) ME – “How much of your marketing budget do you allocate for word of mouth and referrals?” SBO – “Huh? What? What do you mean? I guess, nothing…they just happen.” ME – “Amazing. So, 80% of your business comes from referrals, and you spend all of your money chasing the other 20%?” SBO – “Doh.” The moral of this story? Maybe its time to invest some of your hard earned marketing dollars into a form of marketing THAT ACTUALLY WORKS FOR YOU. (Sorry…I’m a little passionate about this). : )
Here is the original post:
The “Word-of-Mouth” Paradox
DNA – The Evolution of The Unique Selling Proposition
In the 1940′s, advertising legend Rosser Reeves developed the term ‘USP’ or ‘Unique Selling Proposition’. Many sucessful businesses develop a USP as the basis of their marketing campaigns. Well, I say USP’s aren’t good enough anymore…with so many companies, products, brands, and a bombardment of media, being ‘unique’ isn’t unique enough. A classic example of a USP was the Domino’s 3o minute guarantee. Fantastic. But how many other pizza joints offer a time guarantee now? Is it truly unique? Saying that you’re the fastest or cheapest or biggest might work, but what truly makes you different – not only from your direct competitors, but from EVERY company? I developed the term DNA, or ‘Distinct Natural Advantage(TM)’ to describe this process of becoming truly unique. We all know what ‘DNA’ means in terms of science and heredity. Its what makes each of us ‘one of a kind’. I propose that, in business, to succeed in the long term, you need to be ‘one of a kind’ as well. I’ve created a process to help a business develop their DNA using what I call the Seven P’s… (1) Purpose (2) People (3) Pain (4) Promise (5) Proof (6) Positioning and (7) Packaging. In future articles I will go into more depth for each topic. Stay tuned!
Read more:
DNA – The Evolution of The Unique Selling Proposition
Copycat Marketing: The Sequel
The other major ‘copycatting’ mistake I see is that small businesses look to big businesses for advertising ideas…and they end up using ‘awareness’ advertising. Listen…your marketing budget is not $100,000,000 (if it is, give me a call…lets talk!) Which means that every dollar you spend should be tracked. If you do ANY form of advertising you should be able to calculate the return on investment. And now with all the online options like pay-per-click advertising you really have no excuses to create an ad that says ‘Here’s my company name, here’s a pretty picture of what we do, and here’s a life size replica of our company logo’.
The “Word-of-Mouth” Paradox
Here’s a fun conversation I have with small business owners. It usually goes something like this… ME – “..so how much of your new business comes from referrals and word of mouth?” SMALL BUSINESS OWNER – “We get around 70-80% of our clients from referrals” (note – any good company gets a tonne of referrals…it can range anywhere from 50-100% depending on the industry) ME – “How much of your marketing budget do you allocate for word of mouth and referrals?” SBO – “Huh? What? What do you mean? I guess, nothing…they just happen.” ME – “Amazing. So, 80% of your business comes from referrals, and you spend all of your money chasing the other 20%?” SBO – “Doh.” The moral of this story? Maybe its time to invest some of your hard earned marketing dollars into a form of marketing THAT ACTUALLY WORKS FOR YOU. (Sorry…I’m a little passionate about this).
Here is the original post:
The “Word-of-Mouth” Paradox
Voicemail Messages are Part of Your Brand!
Who would have thought that leaving a voicemail would impact your reputation?! This morning Kim @ Bike Virginia commented that my message was the easiest for her deal with because I left my name and number twice at the end of the message. Kim takes care of the customer experience and handles loads of calls every day. That my message elicited a comment prompts me to get back online and share the experience with you. When you are asking someone to help you, make it as easy as possible for them and you’re more likely to be at the front of the line. Duh! I know.