Everyone who followed this forum for a time will probably know a lot about what I am going to summarize here. Success is no accident. It is the result of logic and persistence. It follows specific rules and these rules can be learned.
Many years ago, when I started my first full-time business in Germany, I got in contact with business strategy (I live in Ireland at the moment). Ever since, I have been interested in strategy and studied it whenever I could. I soon figured out, that at the heart of all the different successful strategies are 3 simple steps.
These are fully what MJ DeMarco describes within the books he published. With the hope, that an overview might be helpful to some, especially to those who are new to this forum, I summarize here what I learnt over the years. It is also a way of giving back for all the gold nuggets I got from this forum.
Every successful business starts with a specific target group. People are the centre point of every business; at least it should be that way. I understand that others might be very successful in approaching things differently, but here is a bulletproof system. Start with real people. Find out what problem they face and create a solution. Simple, but effective. 1st people, 2nd the problem 3rd the solution.
Since this follows common laws based on cause and effect, they can be approached systematically – just like physics and biology. That’s why we have something like a business strategy. Every move you make echoes into the market; only if it resonates with people out there, there will be movement to your advantage.
Real people are the fixed point in business strategy; the centre around which everything else turns around. They are the ones with the money in their pocket and the ones who vote for your solution by giving it to you.
Why people and not hot technologies or fancy products?
As long as people exist, there will be problems and therefore business. Technologies and products are only valuable if they are the answer to a problem. Problems change and that’s why businesses have to move too. But technologies and products do as well. What was hot yesterday might be gone tomorrow. Where are the world leaders for horse buggies, vinyl records or floppy disks? While the desire for transport and music always remains, the product and technology may become obsolete. Align your business with people’s fundamental motives.
What is strategy?
Strategy is the art of using your limited resources wisely. “Wise” in this sense means, to achieve the most toward your specific goal. If your time, attention and finances are endless, a strategy would not be needed.
Strategy decides where your attention will get you your greatest return. It is setting your path to your goal but in full knowledge of what tools and resources you have at hand. While you can learn from the strategies of others, you might not be able to copy them 1 to 1. Why? Simply because your resources are different, even if you are in the same business and the same situation.
Four principles are worth keeping in mind. Here they are:
1) Businesses exist because there are problems that need to be solved. There will always be problems and therefore always room for business. To offer value is more important than profit because value can always be turned into profit. To grow a business, you simply have to offer more value and profit will follow. You increase profit indirectly by offering greater value. The modern big companies prove this. Many of them made no money for a long time but became an essential part of so many people.
2) Your resources are limited and therefore should be focused. Don’t try to do everything. Trying to start 5 businesses at the same time will cause you to fail in all of them. You also have to limit yourself, because there are endless possibilities out there. A bullet is only deathly because it centred all the force in one small place. Using the same amount of energy on a volleyball will probably don’t harm any animal. Professional athletes who stick to one discipline are always better than someone who tries to be good in all. If you want to be successful, put all you have into one thing.
This does not mean to risk all your finances, but simply that you have to focus. Start very concentrated and specialize. Afterwards, you can expand. This also means that your target group should preferably be a “small” defined group of people.
3) Goldratt introduced the theory of constraints (or bottlenecks). Every organism (a plant as well as a business) will naturally grow until a constraint is reached. This will prevent further growth. For example, a plant needs light, water, air (CO2) and nutrients. If there is a stop in growth, it is important to first figure out what the problem is. Don’t try to fix symptoms, get to the real cause. If there is a lack of water, it does not help to increase any of the other 3 necessary things – they would only make things worse. A business works just the same way. Try to figure out what the bottleneck of the customer/client is (there is always only one main one at a time) and solve just that. This is where you can provide the most value and make big money.
At the same time, it is also a good habit to name your current bottleneck. This one must become your highest priority.
4) Every material thing is preceded by something immaterial. First, you have the vision, then you work to make it a reality. It teaches us that learning is more important than revenue. Even when you fail, you make progress when you learn from it. Knowledge will always help you to start all over, while a sudden stop of revenue will leave you stranded – if this is all you had. Your brain is therefore more worth than money. You can always start a business with brain and no money, but you will never be successful with money and no brain. The knowledge, the know-how and the experiences are the true assets of companies. The more you know your customers, the better off you are; just like the best hunter in the county. It is not necessarily the one with the best shooting skills, but the one who knows all about the local animals and their behaviours. That’s why you need to know your customers, hopefully better than they do themselves.
With these four principles in mind, let's move on to the strategy.
But before we come to our target group, there are different approaches on how to define it. Most of this depends on the type of business, the personality of the entrepreneur and probably some other reasons. Practically, it is most often a mixture of different steps.
But first of all, let's start with something simple that will help you to define your niche.
Communicate value, not characteristics
Most inventors are very technical, most business owners are very proud of the different characteristics of their product or service. But do you know, the customer does not care. Not really, unless he/she understands what you are talking about. It is very important to come down and communicate at a level where potential customers understand you. Test it with your grandma. If she gets it, it is just right. Who knows what 5 GB of storage in an iPod is? It is nothing that a normal human being can relate to. That’s why Steve Jobs said, it is “1000 songs in your pocket”. Sell the result, not the tool; the holes and not the drill.
Translate your points to value. List down the characteristics and translate them into value. Why is it important? Why should someone care? What does it do? In short: what is the benefit for the user?
How does it change the day or the life of the user? Don’t sell cars, sell fun, safety or prestige. Does the car have 8 airbags? Good, it will bring your you and your family safely to where you want to go, even in the worst situation.
Even the entrepreneur, who is working on the business and not in the business, is striving for the most value for his customer: the future buyer of his business.
A good understanding of the value you provide will get you closer to defining the group of people who may need your product.
Strengths are overrated
Many business coaches try to start with your strengths and then try to find those you might help. This could work, but is often not the best approach. If you want to be a solopreneur or have a business with many expensive machines, this might be the right path to take.
Everyone who builds a business can do so without having specific strengths. They can be learnt, outsourced or simply hired. An entrepreneur is supposed to be working on the business, not in the business anyway.
No one wants to know what great a person you are. They only care about themselves (sorry). They want to know what you can do for them and what value you provide. All that counts is the result; the outcome you create. Yes, they want to know that you can deliver on your promises, but the proof is not diplomas or papers. It is the result you achieved for someone like them.
How do you start? By finding someone whom you can help. Even if you do not get paid, you get a testimony you can use to find someone who does pay.
People like you
The easiest sale is to people who are like yourself. People buy often from people who are like them. Backed up by recent discoveries of how our brain works, this approach starts with you and is especially for all businesses that involve intense client communication.
What moves you? What is the primary motive behind your most important decisions in life? From there you continue to define who your dream customers would be. People you enjoy working with. Those who share your visions and emotions; those with whom you are on the same wavelength.
Again, it is much better to have real people as models, than just imaginary customer profiles.
What defines a target group are not demographic characteristics. The most important ones are emotions, together with vision and dreams. We buy because of emotions and use logic to justify it afterwards. People do not buy primarily because of their age, gender or location. Even when you sell a car, not everyone is looking for the same. Some want safety, some comfort, some prestige. There are emotions behind it, that you need to address. Focus on those.
Have you ever seen an internet forum for women between 30 and 50? I didn’t. Why? Because it is nothing that unites them. This Fastlane forum covers all ages, genders and locations and yet (most) have the same desire. A vision and an emotion unite us: to escape the slow lane and become unscripted .
How to find your target group
The best possible way is, that you are a part of your target group. While we all tend to look for something spectacular out there in the unknown, we simply overlook the great potential in front of our very own eyes. Start with you, your family and your tribe of people.
If you are not a part of your target group, you should at least have very close contact with some of them. As we go on, you will understand why it is so important to understand what moves your customers.
Since it is impossible to make it right for all people, your target group should be small in the beginning. In theory, it should be about 10 times bigger than your possible yearly revenue. This is achieved by filtering your industry through several steps of demographic and emotional criteria. The goal is the become the number one for your target group as quickly as possible. To “own” a niche is more important than revenue itself. The closer you are, the faster and better you can adjust and perfect your service. Even big companies started with a “small” group. Amazon was selling only books and grew from there. Facebook started with the students of one specific University.
Remember, a target group exists because of shared feelings and dreams. Nevertheless, it is also important to check if there are other decision-makers involved. It is quite common in some companies to have two leaflets for their single IT services. One for the Head of IT and one specifically for the CEO. Their desires are different and therefore have to be addressed differently. Sometimes you even have to sell to someone who is not the paying customer, but part of the decision process. That’s why hearing aid companies should target the family members of those with bad hearing and why McDonald's targets children.
The problem
Everyone has problems and every business has to deal with constraints. You should get so involved in your target group that you can take a walk in their minds. What are their thoughts? What keeps them up at night? Or what bothers them? What makes them mad? What do they hate? What problem is burning under their fingernails that you can solve for them?
Gather as many as possible. Every problem could be the entry to a real gold chamber. Don’t rush through this, take your time. Here is where real entrepreneurs show their strengths.
Go through your list and sort them. Sort them according to the weight of the problem and if you are able (by doing it yourself, outsourcing or hiring) to solve it.
This can become tricky and a lot is gained by trial and error. Speak with as many as possible to make sure that they are interested enough to pay for your services. I wrote “speak” but really, I meant you to ask and listen. Allow time for silence and don’t step in. Ask and ask again and wait. This is crucial.
While you might be tempted to note down their answers, it is more important to read between the lines (or should I say listen between the sentences?). Under what situation are they willing to pay you? What are the doubts they have? Where are possible difficulties?
Starting with something completely new, you can even offer to work together with them to create your product or service. Offer it to them at a discount or even free if they help you and give you the chance to test it (case studies).
Once you have your problem, start to create a solution. I prefer to use the word Innovation. It is not Invention. Innovation is creating something new, even if you use stuff that already exists. You do not need to start with your competition, often it might hinder you. Start fresh, start new and do things differently.
Innovation is getting a package together that the customer can not refuse. Create something where everyone is worried that the competition might get it first. This is the reason why you have to deal with the other two steps first: you need to understand them, better than they do themselves. Offer something for every doubt they might have.
If you doubt that they might buy it, ask yourself what had to be done or changed so that they would. Make sure it is uniquely packaged exactly and only for your specific niche. Make this obvious and communicate this. Show why you are the No. 1 for this niche and problem.
If you come across a service that would make your product stick out and you are at the moment unable to provide it: remember, that you can still outsource it, create a partnership or hire someone. Think about your product or service as a package, existing out of different components. Deal with each component individually and sell the package.
It could happen (and sometimes quite often) that you run into a death end as you process from Steps 1 to 3. This is normal. Just go one step back and start again from there until you end with a promising solution.
These 3 steps are essential, before moving on to marketing.
Don’t skip and haste through them.
Marketing is nothing else than picking up the current thought in the mind of your customer and continuing it. Know their emotions and address them. Speak about their pain points and you will get their attention. Communicate clearly, with a language that everyone in your niche understands. Address as many of the five senses as possible. Make the customer feel like they are the expert.
So, let's get into some of the marketing strategies. I just give here a short overview of what I consider to be the most important ones.
Cooperation/Partnership
The basic question behind this is: who “owns” already your niche? Or at least people that would fit in there. Make sure that every partnership is only going to last if there is no danger of competition. This means, that your partner must be specialized enough, just like you. Since they already have the contacts, it is easy to start at full speed.
Just as a side note, this does not include influencers – although they too could be a great way to reach your niche.
Positioning
Positioning is needed because we are often dealing with an over-communicated market. The goal is to become the No. 1 in the minds of the people. The one they will think about first when they need a service you provide.
Be that first one. If you are not, create a new category where you will be. Everyone remembers the first pilot crossing the Atlantic Ocean (Captain John Alcock and Lieutenant Arthur Whitten Brown). While most do not know the second one, they do remember the first solo flight (Charles Lindbergh) and the first lady (Amelia Earhart). If you can’t be the no. 1 candy manufacturer, be the no. 1 in candies with vitamins.
Emphasize the difference. Funny enough, often this does not need to be a real difference. People just have to believe it is. Positioning therefore has mostly to do with how they perceive you. Set and communicate the criteria for how a smart person would make a good decision. Afterwards, proof that you are the only one fulfilling them all.
Interestingly, the extreme ideas are the ones that have the highest success rate. Evolution proves this. Mediocre is the safest way to fail.
Sales Strategy
Always start with the problem they are facing. That’s when you get their attention. That’s what arouses their interest.
Start with listening and ask. Yes, guide the conversation with questions. Try to get to the bottom of their desires and speak as a simple adviser. If you convince them, that you understand them and you become their most trusted adviser you will make the sale. Sell what they think they will need. Use their words and examples and adjust your words to their emotions and dreams.
Don’t sell over the price. Communicate value first and how much that would be worth for them. If they press for discounts, rather increase the value. If price is the only or main reason you sell, you do need a different strategy.
Overcome your fear, clients will notice it. Rather be truly proud of what you sell. Rather go to the other side and make it clear that your service or product is limited. Everyone wants to have what they can’t. Don’t sell, make them buy. Create urgency and the fear of losing out.
Remember, after each sale, you hopefully gained their trust. They know you and you have already a foot in the door. What else do they need? What other problem can you solve for them?
Storytelling
We all like stories. We like to hear them and we like to tell them. We remember them. While just listing all the value points you provide, you can make them unforgettable by explaining them with an interesting story. A story addresses and communicates emotions. The more emotions you stir by telling your clients successes the further the story will travel. Tell value, we all like to be entertained. If your story is dry, it is useless.
Make sure that your customer is the hero of your stories because your business is not about you. It is about them. Their problems and their emotions. They want to succeed and you just help them. See yourself as the Mentor and put your customers in the centre. Follow the pattern of successful movies: Your customers with their doubts and problems are facing a challenge. Show what is at stake. In their despair, you step in as a mentor and bring them to the path to victory. While on his adventurous journey, he faces many difficulties that you help them to solve. In the end, you have a brave hero, who grew and learnt while gaining a new level and quality of life.
Part of storytelling is also to come up with clear descriptions that create pictures in our brains. Donald Trump is very good at this. Remember “Sleepy Joe”? Even people who hate him, will probably never forget the image Donald Trump successfully created in their mind.
Customer experience
Under-promise and over-deliver. Surprise them and they will talk about you. Give them the feeling that you care about them. Make life as easy as possible for them.
A good way to do this is to check the whole path the customer takes. Every point of contact. How easy is it for him/her? How can you make their day and make them feel great? If people would put as much care/attention and money into this as they do for advertising, many businesses would do way better. This is what creates “word of mouth”, the most trusted advice. People share their experiences, especially if connected in a small niche. The world became very small through instant communication all around the globe. Use it to your advantage.
Let me end here. We all know: Knowledge is just potential power; we all have to act upon it.
Now, what did you like and what do you want to implement today?
Many years ago, when I started my first full-time business in Germany, I got in contact with business strategy (I live in Ireland at the moment). Ever since, I have been interested in strategy and studied it whenever I could. I soon figured out, that at the heart of all the different successful strategies are 3 simple steps.
These are fully what MJ DeMarco describes within the books he published. With the hope, that an overview might be helpful to some, especially to those who are new to this forum, I summarize here what I learnt over the years. It is also a way of giving back for all the gold nuggets I got from this forum.
Every successful business starts with a specific target group. People are the centre point of every business; at least it should be that way. I understand that others might be very successful in approaching things differently, but here is a bulletproof system. Start with real people. Find out what problem they face and create a solution. Simple, but effective. 1st people, 2nd the problem 3rd the solution.
Since this follows common laws based on cause and effect, they can be approached systematically – just like physics and biology. That’s why we have something like a business strategy. Every move you make echoes into the market; only if it resonates with people out there, there will be movement to your advantage.
Real people are the fixed point in business strategy; the centre around which everything else turns around. They are the ones with the money in their pocket and the ones who vote for your solution by giving it to you.
Why people and not hot technologies or fancy products?
As long as people exist, there will be problems and therefore business. Technologies and products are only valuable if they are the answer to a problem. Problems change and that’s why businesses have to move too. But technologies and products do as well. What was hot yesterday might be gone tomorrow. Where are the world leaders for horse buggies, vinyl records or floppy disks? While the desire for transport and music always remains, the product and technology may become obsolete. Align your business with people’s fundamental motives.
What is strategy?
Strategy is the art of using your limited resources wisely. “Wise” in this sense means, to achieve the most toward your specific goal. If your time, attention and finances are endless, a strategy would not be needed.
Strategy decides where your attention will get you your greatest return. It is setting your path to your goal but in full knowledge of what tools and resources you have at hand. While you can learn from the strategies of others, you might not be able to copy them 1 to 1. Why? Simply because your resources are different, even if you are in the same business and the same situation.
Four principles are worth keeping in mind. Here they are:
1) Businesses exist because there are problems that need to be solved. There will always be problems and therefore always room for business. To offer value is more important than profit because value can always be turned into profit. To grow a business, you simply have to offer more value and profit will follow. You increase profit indirectly by offering greater value. The modern big companies prove this. Many of them made no money for a long time but became an essential part of so many people.
2) Your resources are limited and therefore should be focused. Don’t try to do everything. Trying to start 5 businesses at the same time will cause you to fail in all of them. You also have to limit yourself, because there are endless possibilities out there. A bullet is only deathly because it centred all the force in one small place. Using the same amount of energy on a volleyball will probably don’t harm any animal. Professional athletes who stick to one discipline are always better than someone who tries to be good in all. If you want to be successful, put all you have into one thing.
This does not mean to risk all your finances, but simply that you have to focus. Start very concentrated and specialize. Afterwards, you can expand. This also means that your target group should preferably be a “small” defined group of people.
3) Goldratt introduced the theory of constraints (or bottlenecks). Every organism (a plant as well as a business) will naturally grow until a constraint is reached. This will prevent further growth. For example, a plant needs light, water, air (CO2) and nutrients. If there is a stop in growth, it is important to first figure out what the problem is. Don’t try to fix symptoms, get to the real cause. If there is a lack of water, it does not help to increase any of the other 3 necessary things – they would only make things worse. A business works just the same way. Try to figure out what the bottleneck of the customer/client is (there is always only one main one at a time) and solve just that. This is where you can provide the most value and make big money.
At the same time, it is also a good habit to name your current bottleneck. This one must become your highest priority.
4) Every material thing is preceded by something immaterial. First, you have the vision, then you work to make it a reality. It teaches us that learning is more important than revenue. Even when you fail, you make progress when you learn from it. Knowledge will always help you to start all over, while a sudden stop of revenue will leave you stranded – if this is all you had. Your brain is therefore more worth than money. You can always start a business with brain and no money, but you will never be successful with money and no brain. The knowledge, the know-how and the experiences are the true assets of companies. The more you know your customers, the better off you are; just like the best hunter in the county. It is not necessarily the one with the best shooting skills, but the one who knows all about the local animals and their behaviours. That’s why you need to know your customers, hopefully better than they do themselves.
With these four principles in mind, let's move on to the strategy.
But before we come to our target group, there are different approaches on how to define it. Most of this depends on the type of business, the personality of the entrepreneur and probably some other reasons. Practically, it is most often a mixture of different steps.
But first of all, let's start with something simple that will help you to define your niche.
Communicate value, not characteristics
Most inventors are very technical, most business owners are very proud of the different characteristics of their product or service. But do you know, the customer does not care. Not really, unless he/she understands what you are talking about. It is very important to come down and communicate at a level where potential customers understand you. Test it with your grandma. If she gets it, it is just right. Who knows what 5 GB of storage in an iPod is? It is nothing that a normal human being can relate to. That’s why Steve Jobs said, it is “1000 songs in your pocket”. Sell the result, not the tool; the holes and not the drill.
Translate your points to value. List down the characteristics and translate them into value. Why is it important? Why should someone care? What does it do? In short: what is the benefit for the user?
How does it change the day or the life of the user? Don’t sell cars, sell fun, safety or prestige. Does the car have 8 airbags? Good, it will bring your you and your family safely to where you want to go, even in the worst situation.
Even the entrepreneur, who is working on the business and not in the business, is striving for the most value for his customer: the future buyer of his business.
A good understanding of the value you provide will get you closer to defining the group of people who may need your product.
Strengths are overrated
Many business coaches try to start with your strengths and then try to find those you might help. This could work, but is often not the best approach. If you want to be a solopreneur or have a business with many expensive machines, this might be the right path to take.
Everyone who builds a business can do so without having specific strengths. They can be learnt, outsourced or simply hired. An entrepreneur is supposed to be working on the business, not in the business anyway.
No one wants to know what great a person you are. They only care about themselves (sorry). They want to know what you can do for them and what value you provide. All that counts is the result; the outcome you create. Yes, they want to know that you can deliver on your promises, but the proof is not diplomas or papers. It is the result you achieved for someone like them.
How do you start? By finding someone whom you can help. Even if you do not get paid, you get a testimony you can use to find someone who does pay.
People like you
The easiest sale is to people who are like yourself. People buy often from people who are like them. Backed up by recent discoveries of how our brain works, this approach starts with you and is especially for all businesses that involve intense client communication.
What moves you? What is the primary motive behind your most important decisions in life? From there you continue to define who your dream customers would be. People you enjoy working with. Those who share your visions and emotions; those with whom you are on the same wavelength.
Again, it is much better to have real people as models, than just imaginary customer profiles.
What defines a target group are not demographic characteristics. The most important ones are emotions, together with vision and dreams. We buy because of emotions and use logic to justify it afterwards. People do not buy primarily because of their age, gender or location. Even when you sell a car, not everyone is looking for the same. Some want safety, some comfort, some prestige. There are emotions behind it, that you need to address. Focus on those.
Have you ever seen an internet forum for women between 30 and 50? I didn’t. Why? Because it is nothing that unites them. This Fastlane forum covers all ages, genders and locations and yet (most) have the same desire. A vision and an emotion unite us: to escape the slow lane and become unscripted .
How to find your target group
The best possible way is, that you are a part of your target group. While we all tend to look for something spectacular out there in the unknown, we simply overlook the great potential in front of our very own eyes. Start with you, your family and your tribe of people.
If you are not a part of your target group, you should at least have very close contact with some of them. As we go on, you will understand why it is so important to understand what moves your customers.
Since it is impossible to make it right for all people, your target group should be small in the beginning. In theory, it should be about 10 times bigger than your possible yearly revenue. This is achieved by filtering your industry through several steps of demographic and emotional criteria. The goal is the become the number one for your target group as quickly as possible. To “own” a niche is more important than revenue itself. The closer you are, the faster and better you can adjust and perfect your service. Even big companies started with a “small” group. Amazon was selling only books and grew from there. Facebook started with the students of one specific University.
Remember, a target group exists because of shared feelings and dreams. Nevertheless, it is also important to check if there are other decision-makers involved. It is quite common in some companies to have two leaflets for their single IT services. One for the Head of IT and one specifically for the CEO. Their desires are different and therefore have to be addressed differently. Sometimes you even have to sell to someone who is not the paying customer, but part of the decision process. That’s why hearing aid companies should target the family members of those with bad hearing and why McDonald's targets children.
The problem
Everyone has problems and every business has to deal with constraints. You should get so involved in your target group that you can take a walk in their minds. What are their thoughts? What keeps them up at night? Or what bothers them? What makes them mad? What do they hate? What problem is burning under their fingernails that you can solve for them?
Gather as many as possible. Every problem could be the entry to a real gold chamber. Don’t rush through this, take your time. Here is where real entrepreneurs show their strengths.
Go through your list and sort them. Sort them according to the weight of the problem and if you are able (by doing it yourself, outsourcing or hiring) to solve it.
This can become tricky and a lot is gained by trial and error. Speak with as many as possible to make sure that they are interested enough to pay for your services. I wrote “speak” but really, I meant you to ask and listen. Allow time for silence and don’t step in. Ask and ask again and wait. This is crucial.
While you might be tempted to note down their answers, it is more important to read between the lines (or should I say listen between the sentences?). Under what situation are they willing to pay you? What are the doubts they have? Where are possible difficulties?
Starting with something completely new, you can even offer to work together with them to create your product or service. Offer it to them at a discount or even free if they help you and give you the chance to test it (case studies).
Once you have your problem, start to create a solution. I prefer to use the word Innovation. It is not Invention. Innovation is creating something new, even if you use stuff that already exists. You do not need to start with your competition, often it might hinder you. Start fresh, start new and do things differently.
Innovation is getting a package together that the customer can not refuse. Create something where everyone is worried that the competition might get it first. This is the reason why you have to deal with the other two steps first: you need to understand them, better than they do themselves. Offer something for every doubt they might have.
If you doubt that they might buy it, ask yourself what had to be done or changed so that they would. Make sure it is uniquely packaged exactly and only for your specific niche. Make this obvious and communicate this. Show why you are the No. 1 for this niche and problem.
If you come across a service that would make your product stick out and you are at the moment unable to provide it: remember, that you can still outsource it, create a partnership or hire someone. Think about your product or service as a package, existing out of different components. Deal with each component individually and sell the package.
It could happen (and sometimes quite often) that you run into a death end as you process from Steps 1 to 3. This is normal. Just go one step back and start again from there until you end with a promising solution.
These 3 steps are essential, before moving on to marketing.
Don’t skip and haste through them.
Marketing is nothing else than picking up the current thought in the mind of your customer and continuing it. Know their emotions and address them. Speak about their pain points and you will get their attention. Communicate clearly, with a language that everyone in your niche understands. Address as many of the five senses as possible. Make the customer feel like they are the expert.
So, let's get into some of the marketing strategies. I just give here a short overview of what I consider to be the most important ones.
Cooperation/Partnership
The basic question behind this is: who “owns” already your niche? Or at least people that would fit in there. Make sure that every partnership is only going to last if there is no danger of competition. This means, that your partner must be specialized enough, just like you. Since they already have the contacts, it is easy to start at full speed.
Just as a side note, this does not include influencers – although they too could be a great way to reach your niche.
Positioning
Positioning is needed because we are often dealing with an over-communicated market. The goal is to become the No. 1 in the minds of the people. The one they will think about first when they need a service you provide.
Be that first one. If you are not, create a new category where you will be. Everyone remembers the first pilot crossing the Atlantic Ocean (Captain John Alcock and Lieutenant Arthur Whitten Brown). While most do not know the second one, they do remember the first solo flight (Charles Lindbergh) and the first lady (Amelia Earhart). If you can’t be the no. 1 candy manufacturer, be the no. 1 in candies with vitamins.
Emphasize the difference. Funny enough, often this does not need to be a real difference. People just have to believe it is. Positioning therefore has mostly to do with how they perceive you. Set and communicate the criteria for how a smart person would make a good decision. Afterwards, proof that you are the only one fulfilling them all.
Interestingly, the extreme ideas are the ones that have the highest success rate. Evolution proves this. Mediocre is the safest way to fail.
Sales Strategy
Always start with the problem they are facing. That’s when you get their attention. That’s what arouses their interest.
Start with listening and ask. Yes, guide the conversation with questions. Try to get to the bottom of their desires and speak as a simple adviser. If you convince them, that you understand them and you become their most trusted adviser you will make the sale. Sell what they think they will need. Use their words and examples and adjust your words to their emotions and dreams.
Don’t sell over the price. Communicate value first and how much that would be worth for them. If they press for discounts, rather increase the value. If price is the only or main reason you sell, you do need a different strategy.
Overcome your fear, clients will notice it. Rather be truly proud of what you sell. Rather go to the other side and make it clear that your service or product is limited. Everyone wants to have what they can’t. Don’t sell, make them buy. Create urgency and the fear of losing out.
Remember, after each sale, you hopefully gained their trust. They know you and you have already a foot in the door. What else do they need? What other problem can you solve for them?
Storytelling
We all like stories. We like to hear them and we like to tell them. We remember them. While just listing all the value points you provide, you can make them unforgettable by explaining them with an interesting story. A story addresses and communicates emotions. The more emotions you stir by telling your clients successes the further the story will travel. Tell value, we all like to be entertained. If your story is dry, it is useless.
Make sure that your customer is the hero of your stories because your business is not about you. It is about them. Their problems and their emotions. They want to succeed and you just help them. See yourself as the Mentor and put your customers in the centre. Follow the pattern of successful movies: Your customers with their doubts and problems are facing a challenge. Show what is at stake. In their despair, you step in as a mentor and bring them to the path to victory. While on his adventurous journey, he faces many difficulties that you help them to solve. In the end, you have a brave hero, who grew and learnt while gaining a new level and quality of life.
Part of storytelling is also to come up with clear descriptions that create pictures in our brains. Donald Trump is very good at this. Remember “Sleepy Joe”? Even people who hate him, will probably never forget the image Donald Trump successfully created in their mind.
Customer experience
Under-promise and over-deliver. Surprise them and they will talk about you. Give them the feeling that you care about them. Make life as easy as possible for them.
A good way to do this is to check the whole path the customer takes. Every point of contact. How easy is it for him/her? How can you make their day and make them feel great? If people would put as much care/attention and money into this as they do for advertising, many businesses would do way better. This is what creates “word of mouth”, the most trusted advice. People share their experiences, especially if connected in a small niche. The world became very small through instant communication all around the globe. Use it to your advantage.
Let me end here. We all know: Knowledge is just potential power; we all have to act upon it.
Now, what did you like and what do you want to implement today?
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