One of the things that I have to constantly emphasize to my marketing consulting clients is that it’s not about who NEEDS  what they sell, it’s about who WANTS it.

That difference is huge, because your typical client might need your product or service, but you ideal client wants it, and want is a much more powerful motivator than need.

Prospects may or may not buy what they need, but they always buy what they want. If you know how to find your ideal client — the one who really desires your service — you can dominate your market.

Here’s what you need to know:

All customers and clients buy based on emotions, and wants are emotion-based. Needs are logic-based. When your product or service matches what your prospects specifically want, you will immediately begin to attract your ideal client.

Why you need to know this:

Your ideal client makes you the most money. In fact, if you are like the overwhelming majority of business owners, 80% of your revenue is generated by only 20% of your customers.

Those are your ideal clients. They love you and what you provide to them. They buy from you and you alone, and they will buy again and again. They sing your praises from the highest mountaintop. They send you tons of referrals and they give you unsolicited testimonials.

These are the folks who will make you rich.

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Way back in the day (a year ago, to be exact) it was a comparatively simple proposition to rank your pages in Google’s search engine results. Optimize the pages, have quality, unique content and create a slew of backlinks to them.

Unfortunately, that’s no longer the case!

Google has raised the bar, and in addition to making sure we are still managing to accomplish the majority of the above named items, we are now expected to have a viable and thriving social media presence as well! What this means is complete social profiles, daily or more posts, and interaction with your peeps on a regular basis.

What in the name of Instagram are we supposed to do?

Here are three simple methods for you to increase the level of engagement with your brand, expand your prospective audience, and favorably increase word of mouth concerning your business.

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Do Your Marketing Emails Work on Mobile Devices?

April 2, 2013

Contrary to what some so-called experts assert, email is still a solid marketing tool — provided you know how to use it correctly.  While traditional email open rates have fallen over the last few years – and will likely continue to decline – consumers are opening email more than ever on mobile devices.
Yet, even though [...]

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Control Your Online Reputation, Or Someone Else Will!

March 24, 2013

It was a disaster.
A friend of mine who started a faith-based business network called in a panic to ask my help in addressing a crisis threatening to destroy his new but rapidly-growing group: A disgruntled former member who had been asked to leave the group based on unacceptable personal behavior had proceeded to torch the [...]

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How to Mix, Match and Multiply Your Marketing Impact

June 14, 2012

When I go to social media conferences and other similar events, one of the things I find amusing (and, okay, I’ll admit it, sometimes a bit frustrating) is how often the discussion focuses solely on social media tools.
Don’t get me wrong, I am a HUGE proponent of using digital tools on the social web for [...]

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Content is King, So Dust Off Your Crown!

April 6, 2012

“Content is king.”
Open virtually any marketing book or peruse any marketing or sales oriented website and you will probably run across that phrase.  It has become something of a mantra in marketing and sales circles, and for good reason:  Marketing and selling — especially for services firms –  relies on building trust-based relationships, and the [...]

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How Successful Businesses Fail

April 4, 2012

I am a huge Jim Collins fan.  I have read just about every one of his books (Built to Last and Good to Great are his best in my view) and have gotten an immense amount of value from them – value that I have been able to pass on to colleagues and clients.
In his [...]

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In Less Than 20 Minutes, Some of the Best Strategic Communications Advice Ever

March 28, 2012

When I saw this TED Talks Presentation recently (even though it was actually delivered a few of years ago), I was floored.
Simon Sinek encapsulates in one short talk what I have worked to communicate to clients, colleagues and friends for years. My shorthand has long been that the key to strong messaging [...]

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Why (And How) You Should Ramp Up Your Use of LinkedIn NOW!

March 10, 2012

Those who know me know that I LOVE LinkedIn. By far my favorite social media network, I love teaching business and professional people how to use it (in fact, if your group wants to host me for a FREE workshop on how to use LinkedIn to turbocharge your marketing, sales, donations or job search, [...]

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What Savvy Social Media Marketers Can Learn from Steve Jobs

December 22, 2011

Note: This post also appears in my strategy column in the latest edition of Social Media Marketing Magazine.
Let me add my voice to those thousands who have lionized the late Steve Jobs, one of the greatest business leaders, innovators, and visionaries ever.
While several have noted his near-maniacal devotion to product perfection, his uncanny ability [...]

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