You are here: Home / Archives for Marketing

The One Sentence Challenge

March 31, 2011 By 4 Comments

one sentence description of your businessCan you distill the purpose of your business, latest project, or your career into a single sentence?

A single sentence brings clarity to your purpose, helps you communicate that to others, and sets a foundation for how you’ll achieve your purpose. Most importantly, the process of crafting a single sentence forces you to define precisely what you want to achieve for your business, project, or career.

Scan the New York Times Bestsellers List and you’ll see how novelists condense the plot of a book into one sentence (One-armed juggler races against time to uncover the mystery of his Mother’s terminal illness.)

Don’t talk about yourself in that one sentence, but emphasize what you’ll achieve for others (Project Life Raft creates new educational opportunities for underprivileged children by recycling computers and books formerly owned by others.)

Try to limit your sentence to 20 words or less. Pyramid Consulting helps clients land more profitable customers at a lower cost of acquisition.

Strive to be specific. For example, The Rain Group says “…we help companies with complex products and services develop an army of rainmakers – top performers who drive robust revenue growth.”

Few things bring your business or project into focus more effectively than a single sentence description. You can build your project plan, marketing plan,  or career plan around that 20-word description.

I’ve never met anyone who doesn’t struggle to get that single sentence exactly the way they want it–myself included. Still, it’s worth the effort to try.

What’s in your sentence?

 

Filed Under: Business Life, Managing Your Business, Marketing Tagged With: , , ,

If You Are Really Different, Why Aren’t You Differentiated?

March 23, 2011 By 3 Comments

mwmclaughlinMost consultants I know believe they are different from everyone else in the market, which makes sense. After all, who thinks they are just like every other service firm out there?

If everyone believes they have unique abilities, why do so many service firms look exactly alike to prospective clients? I can think of two reasons.

First, copying the practices of other companies in the services business runs rampant. People search for “best practices” and competitive intelligence to piece together how they want to communicate with the world. Instead of using that information to build a unique spot in the market, they “borrow” the ideas of others. The result: most service firms look identical to clients.

Second, in an effort to reach as wide a market as possible, lots of service companies generalize the description of their service offerings to the point that all meaning is lost. Think consultants who “manage change” or “design business strategies.”

Granted, what many consultants actually do for clients is similar. Web designers, for example, offer similar services to their clients. The same holds true for marketing strategy firms, cost reduction specialists, and copy writers.

So, what’s the source of differentiation in a crowded market of me-too companies? For a rich source of differentiation, consider how your business does its work.

Clients are usually in the market for a core service like a training program, an operations assessment, or a new marketing strategy–with the hope of achieving a desired future state. And most consultants’ marketing communication does a good job of highlighting core services.

But most clients also value the distinctive benefits of working with a particular consultant. Those extra benefits present opportunities to differentiate any service offer.

Consultants have more options for differentiating their core service offers than channels to watch on TV. For instance, some clients will appreciate your twist on designing a blogging strategy, but they may really value how you create self-sufficiency once you leave. Or, your prospective clients may like your hands-on approach to rolling out a training program, but they also value your quarterly follow-up program to measure results. The possibilities for finding points of differentiation are endless.

As you look at how you’ve differentiated your business, ask yourself three questions:

  1. Is my service offer just a me-too one? You can review the web sites of other service providers as one way to answer this question.
  2. What are the unique ways I serve my clients? What are the aspects of your work that your clients value? Your approach to projects, how you interact with others, and the way you deliver your services offer lots of opportunities to differentiate your business.
  3. What one new thing could I do to differentiate my offer? Start with something small and build it out. Begin with one area of new value that you can describe to clients.

Keep in mind that there is no such thing as a commodity service, as long as you clearly communicate to your prospective clients all of the things you do for them–and how you do it.

Filed Under: Managing Your Business, Marketing, Selling Tagged With: , , , ,

Sales Proposal Challenge: Don’t Shoot Yourself in the Foot

March 18, 2011 By Leave a Comment

It’s pretty rare for a sales proposal to be a riveting read. But, having read (and written) more sales proposals than I care to remember, I have a low tolerance for poorly constructed ones.

Usually, it’s the dumb, avoidable mistakes that cause the biggest problems with sales proposals. When you get ready to write a proposal, it’s easy to get tripped up by any of these three common mistakes.

First, some consultants believe that every proposal must follow the same template, no matter what. Sure, every proposal has common elements, like objective, scope, value, timing, staffing, and fees. But the most successful proposal efforts begin with the assumption that every client situation is different, even if you’ve done hundreds of similar projects. Make sure your proposal structure meets the client’s needs for clarity of purpose, not your desire for convenience.

Second, proposal writers have a tendency to “bury the lead,” as journalists say. Too many proposals take too long to get to the point–which should be the client’s issue and how you’ll address it. Your buyer wants to know immediately how you can help, not how great you are. Include a qualifications section in your proposal if needed, but focus first on what the buyer wants to accomplish.

Finally, some proposals are just sloppy about grammar, spelling, or formatting consistency. This may seem like a minor point. But when clients spot sloppy work in a proposal, they immediately wonder about the mistakes you’re likely to make during the project.

Simple mistakes in a sales proposal can unravel a lot of hard work you’ve done during the sales process. So really check every proposal one last time before handing it over to your client. It may make the difference between a win and a loss.

Filed Under: Client Relationships, Marketing, Proposal Writing, Selling Tagged With: , , , ,

Perspective

March 16, 2011 By Leave a Comment

What's your perspectiveI’ve never met a client who said, “Just get me any consultant in here.” Clients want a trustworthy person who knows their industry, business, and the issues they must tackle. In response, most professionals make a critical mistake in communicating their expertise. They focus only on what they’ve done, not on what they think.

You can show a prospective client a laundry list of relevant past clients and summaries of the projects you’ve completed. Showing clients what you’ve done is a good start, but it’s not enough. You also have to demonstrate how you think.

One way to capture your client’s imagination, and differentiate your business, is to show clients how you see the world–to express your particular point of view.

Often, that perspective is about where your client’s industry (or business) is headed in the future. Instead of resorting to clichés like “the rate of change is accelerating,” offer a definite view about what your clients can expect in the future. Make a logical and believable case, based on extrapolation of facts and trends, about how your clients’ businesses are likely to change next year, in five years, or in a decade.

You don’t have to rely only on forecasting the future. It’s equally powerful to have a strong view on how clients should be doing things in the present. Maybe you focus on three key challenges your clients are grappling with now. Create a point of view that defines those issues, points out the implications of maintaining the status quo, and offers a general approach for addressing those issues.

Whether you’re talking about the present or the future, be specific. Avoid generalizations like “succession planning will become more important in the next three years than ever before.” Instead, tell clients where and in what ways succession planning issues are likely to be most acute.

Don’t tell clients that leadership skills will be in short supply as baby-boomers retire. Tell them which skills they will need to lead their organizations in the future and how to cultivate those skills.

A bold, forward-looking perspective can engage clients in a dialogue about their issues and your ability to help them. If you want to convince clients that you know your stuff, few things work better than a thoughtful perspective on what matters most to them.

Filed Under: Client Relationships, Managing Your Business, Marketing Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Ann Handley on Content Rules

February 25, 2011 By Leave a Comment

I interviewed Ann Handley, author of the fast-selling new book, Content Rules, How to Create Killer Blogs, Podcasts, Videos, Ebooks, Webinars (and More) That Engage Customers and Ignite Your Business.

Ann is the Chief Content Officer of MarketingProfs, which provides strategic and tactical marketing know-how for hundreds of thousands of marketing and business professionals through a full range of online media. We talked about the concepts in her new book, with an emphasis on the specific tactics any of us can implement to build a more effective content.

Filed Under: Books, Managing Your Business, Marketing, Podcasts Tagged With: , , , ,

Clueless Consultant Makes a Video

February 22, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Have a listen below to the continuing (Mis)adventures in Consulting starring Stanton Newhouse III, senior partner at Marginal Profit Partners.

Filed Under: Clueless Consultant, Managing Your Business, Marketing Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Clueless Consultant on Marketing with Twitter

February 18, 2011 By 5 Comments

Don’t get me wrong–I really like Twitter. It’s a great platform to learn from others, share ideas, and, in some cases, waste a little time.

As I’ve witnessed how some people use Twitter to build their businesses, though, this short parody suggested itself to me.

Hope you enjoy it.

Filed Under: Clueless Consultant, Managing Your Business, Marketing Tagged With: , , ,

Snarketing

January 14, 2011 By 1 Comment

Snar•ket•ing (noun): Marketing communication with a sarcastically critical, testy edge.

As I was catching up on some reading last week, a print ad for a consulting firm caught my attention. Unfortunately, it stopped me for all the wrong reasons. The ad opened with a blistering (and groan-worthy) indictment of the firm’s competition. Once the ad made its case for the complete incompetence of others, it shifted gears to tell the reader about the subject firm’s value to the market, which was actually well-written, relevant, and engaging.

Problem was, I couldn’t get my mind off the ad’s snarky lead-in. Why would any firm feel the need to use the kind of scorched-earth advertising we’ve (sadly) come to expect in last-minute political ads? The tone of the ad seemed oddly out of place in the consulting world.

When a firm resorts to snarky marketing, or snarketing, readers usually learn more about the ad’s author than about the firm in question. And I’d bet that readers are not nearly as enamored with the firm as the ad writer thinks.

Snarketing is a betrayal of the intent of good marketing, which should be to attract the clients you want to contact you. Make your case to the market by proving your own value, not by trying to diminish others.

Filed Under: Marketing Tagged With: , , ,

Why I Loathe “Hover” Ads

November 30, 2010 By 3 Comments

By now, everyone has seen those “hover” ads on web sites. Usually, a few seconds after you land on a site, the page you’re reading fades to gray, and your screen fills with an in-your-face ad imploring you to buy something, subscribe to a newsletter, or take advantage of a “free” offer.

I have a request for professional service providers using this advertising method: Please stop.

Interrupting your visitors in this way broadcasts two unfortunate messages. First, you’re saying, “I don’t care why you’re here. You will watch my ad because I know better than you what’s important.” Some of your visitors may not want to hear about your free, 92-week e-course on achieving blissful client relationships. Still, you force them to see it.

Second, you’re demonstrating that your immediate intent is to lasso your visitors into your buying process or into your automated marketing system, even though you have no idea what they want or need from you.

Plus, you run the risk of alienating repeat visitors. As a reader, I can tolerate your hover ad once or twice. But I find it annoying–and I’m not alone—when I have to close a hover ad every time I come back to your site.

I know research suggests that the click-through rates on hover ads far exceeds those for traditional banner ads, so web site publishers love to use them. And maybe you think the hover ad seems like a harmless way to get your message out there.

You may believe that your offer is so valuable that everyone must know about it, no matter what. Keep in mind, though, that value is in the eye of the beholder. If the content on your site is truly valuable to your readers, you don’t need to force-feed them with hover ads.

Filed Under: Client Relationships, Marketing Tagged With: , , ,

25 Things You Can Do During the Holidays

November 26, 2010 By 1 Comment

For many of us, the next four or five weeks will be a great time to catch our breath, reflect on the past year, and plan for what’s next. As you start the Holidays, here are 25 things you could do to make 2011 better for your business and your life.

1. Call your clients and thank them for their business, even if you’ve done it before.
2. Get started (or restarted) on that article you promised yourself you’d write.
3. Plan some quality time with your family.
4. Consider a new service offering for 2011.
5. Find an opportunity to volunteer some time to those who need your help.
6. Catch up on your industry reading list.
7. Take a vacation.
8. Ask your best clients for a referral.
9. Scrub your web site of outdated content.
10. Find a new source for publishing your articles.
11. Make a point of meeting three new people within your existing clients’ organizations.
12. Create a concept for that book you’ve been thinking about writing.
13. Ask three clients for testimonials.
14. Draft your 2011-2012 marketing plan.
15. Identify three skills you want to improve on and get to work on them.
16. Assess all the elements of your web presence in terms of what’s working and what’s not.
17. Reestablish contact with three past clients.
18. Set client-specific goals for 2011.
19. Draft some new case studies.
20. Commit to a regular exercise routine.
21. Learn a new productivity technology.
22. Eliminate one bad habit.
23. Plan your speaking strategy for 2011-2012.
24. Start a blog.
25. Stay out of airports.

Filed Under: Business Life, Managing Your Business, Marketing Tagged With: , ,
« Older Posts
Newer Posts »