Is Marketing Really Better than Mastery?
I am going to go out on a limb here and answer a hearty YES! Your marketing is more important than the mastery of your skills and the sum of your expertise. All the credentials you add beside your name, your education and experience means nothing if no one knows about it! You can be the best accountant, attorney, Realtor, dog groomer, life coach, fitness trainer, wedding planner—whatever your business is – but if you don’t know how to get the word out about your business and generate response, you will never create the income you truly desire.
If Steve Jobs had not been a marketing genius, we might still be using IBM computers. Sharing your compelling story with your audience through focused marketing will generate awareness of your brand; when they discover how truly amazing you are, your business will gain preference and the word of mouth marketing from raving fans will spread like wildfire. Now don’t get me wrong, mastery is vital to sustaining your business. You must have the skill to gain the confidence and trust of your client, yet, if you are not exposing your skills and services to the market, who will know about you?
[Marketing Tip] Is Mastery of your Skill More Important than Marketing?
I have talked about this for years – marketing is not rocket science, it is simply using the tools you have available to tell people what you [your business] are doing. If you are doing nothing, then you will gain nothing. If you are involving yourself in and creating activities that promote your business, then you will see results. Get out among the people you want to do business with, involve yourself in the community, then use strategic marketing to tell your target audience about it.
What I am thinking about here is simple: marketing is more important than having a perfect skill set, get out and market your business by sharing your story! There are a myriad of different ways to do this, right? But the key is to select what works for you and be consistent.
Let’s have some fun!
Below is a list of marketing examples:
1) Choose one or more that you have used or been involved with in the last 30 days and write a success story of how it worked to bring you business – post it in your office as a reminder.
2) Select from this list the things you have planned for the next 60 days of marketing, write out the details and put it in a calendar format – you will have the beginnings of your strategic marketing plan!
3) If your chosen marketing method is not on the list, then please add it, generating more ideas you can implement in time. It will be inspiring to watch the list grow with creative ideas!
Marketing Examples (you’ll notice I have old-school marketing mixed in, you always want to diversify!):
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Drop in on your client or prospect (a pop-by)
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Streamlining your brand with a great logo and matching collateral
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Strategic social media posts
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Dynamic website with a blog
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Series of blog posts
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Social media ads (Facebook/Twitter/LinkedIn)
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Mobile text campaign
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Direct mail campaign (print is not dead!)
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Video campaign series
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Email campaign
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Phone calls
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One-on-One (appointment, lunch or coffee with your client or prospect)
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Print ads
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Internet/banner ads
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Press Release/announcement through a PR service (online and print)
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Feature Story or Special Interest Article for Publication
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Billboard
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Signage
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Flyers distributed to a neighborhood
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Speaking/Key Note
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Conduct a seminar for your industry
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TV Appearance to Represent Your Brand
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Educational article or white paper to be published
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Sponsorship
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Networking Group
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Community or Charity Volunteer Work
