Get people’s attention!
Sounds simple enough.
Except, most businesses don’t understand how.
Imagine you’re at a train station. It’s rush hour. There are people everywhere.
You’re meeting a friend, and you spot them in the crowd.
How do you get their attention?
You. Shout. Their. Name.
This is logical because humans have been trained since birth to respond to their name being said.
When you hear your name, you naturally turn around to see who said it.
Your marketing message is no different.
Think how many advertisements and bits of marketing you see daily.
You probably cannot recall how many you see.
They. Are. Everywhere.
It’s a constant onslaught of businesses vying for your attention.
Your marketing needs to cut through this.
It isn’t easy.
Yet, most businesses make this harder on themselves.
They all follow the same model:
They start their business.
They see what others are doing.
They copy it.
They make some minor changes.
Most say who they are, how long they’ve been about, and that they’re the best.
They just sound like every other Dick, Tom, and Harry.
Do you think that marketing messages look different to 50 years ago?
Shockingly, not all that different.
They may be mainly online now, but they look the same.
You have your own business because you are good at a certain skill.
You didn’t sign up to be a marketer.
You do what others do and think, “if it works for them why not for me?”
You need to draw on what other industries are doing successfully and use it in your own.
Take McDonalds drive thru for example. They took it from pharmaceutical companies.
Whenever you see an ad, think, “how could I use this in my industry?”
How can you leverage your business knowhow to get more customers then?
You need a ‘Unique Selling Proposition’.
Put simply:
Don’t say what everyone else is saying.
Say something that makes people sit up and pay attention.
Make it clear to your audience that you understand their problem.
For example, if you’re a chiropractor, your ad should say “does your back hurt?”
Speak to people by addressing their problem head on.
Once you garner their initial attention, then you can explain that you understand their problem and that you can help them with it.
Let me be clear.
Avoid the following like the plague:
- “We are the best”
- “We have been in business for 50+ years”
- “We are honest”
- “We are transparent”
Nobody cares.
People care about themselves.
We are hardwired to be selfish.
You may feel as if being direct goes against what everyone else says in their marketing.
You may think that it could turn people away.
It only turns people away who are not interested in what you’re selling.
Every business appeals more to certain people.
For example, if you sold blow torches your main demographic are adult men.
That is not to say that some women won’t buy blow torches. It is just to say, most people who will buy are men. Hence, it makes sense to market them for men.
Likewise, if you sold curling irons and hair extensions the biggest group of consumers are females.
Again, you are likely to get some men who buy them. However, most will be women, so if you want more sales, market it for women.
You reach people to the extent that you turn others away.
Do not aggravate other people.
But talk to your ideal audience. It is the only way to cut through the clutter.
If you sell to everyone, you sell to no one.
Look at your message and think, “what would my ideal prospect think about this?”
If they’d say “ah, they understand me, they get my problem” then great.
If not or you think you need a hand with your marketing message:
Feel free to get in touch for a FREE marketing consultation