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Small Business Marketing Monthly “Simple, affordable, practical small business marketing”
August 2018
Content Is King How to Find Unique and Engaging Material for Your Marketing
Let’s face it: Marketing has hit a wall. Everyone is looking for the next unique way to engage the broadest demographic possible, but they just can’t break through. Do you want to knowwhy? Go to the websites of startups, mid-sized businesses, and massive conglomerates. What do you see? They all have the same aesthetic, the same content, and the same tone—each packaged just differently enough to make them look unique. Audiences want new content faster than marketers can provide it. Just as social media embraces trends, businesses market to consumers. Once a company strikes a chord that resonates with the masses, everyone jumps on the bandwagon until the marketing strategy is wildly overused and therefore ineffective. Rather than businesses dictating how they market to consumers, the pendulum has swung so that marketing strategies are in the hands of the consumer. The quick progression of technology in recent years could be a cause of this shift of power, but the reason matters less than the result. Businesses are left to either try to create the next big marketing trend or ride an existing one until it’s out of gas. But it doesn’t have to be this way. Every business is sitting on a gold mine of content-driven marketing; they just haven’t tapped into it. The biggest resource for a company to market is its leader. One strategy that has gained a significant amount of traction in recent years is the personal branding of companies’leaders. But just as other marketing has become standardized and generic, so has personal branding. Owners and CEOs have become robotic in what they say and how they act. It’s as if they’ve all gone through the same media coaching. Leaders are so concerned with slipping up that they won’t take risks. But when did being authentic become risky? Here’s the truth of the matter: If you’re a business leader, people will listen to you. Most people are drawn to the same qualities that
IT’S RESPECTFUL In many cases, highlighting your personality with branding will end up garnering more respect from your customers than just going through the standard marketing motions. But if you’re not careful, this strategy can also go wildly astray. The companies who have failed in this respect are well-documented, and their sales have suffered. Clothing retailer Abercrombie & Fitch’s CEO, Michael Jeffries, once said he only wanted“cool, good- looking people”to shop at his store and that“a lot of people don’t belong”in his company’s clothing. As a result, the retailer’s sales swiftly dropped by $60 million, and Jeffries was forced to retire soon after. It’s important to remember that being authentic doesn’t require you to share your darkest secrets, political views, or controversial opinions with your customers. But it does require you to support causes you care about, answer questions honestly, and be genuine. When push comes to shove, you have to choose your business. Do you want to blend in with the masses or do you want to build a business that stands out by genuinely engaging with consumers? The decision may seem easy, but“playing it safe” by using tired and overused marketing strategies is precisely that — safe. You won’t step on any toes, you won’t alienate potential customers, and you won’t cause rifts in the business community. But you also won’t stand out or stay relevant. The choice is up to you.
make a person successful. But the second you begin heavily regulating the way you think, act, and feel, potential consumers are going to turn away. If you’re considering using authentic content in your marketing, here are three reasons to reassure you that it’s a good idea. IT’S ACCESSIBLE Marketing is all about creating a dialogue. Take a moment and think about the most significant conversations you’ve ever had. Did any of them begin with you using a formula of how to engage someone? Odds are the conversation resulted from sharing a genuine moment with someone you value. If your business is truly seeking to have meaningful dialogue with customers, the best way to do that is to treat them like you would a neighbor or friend. All good communication takes is a sender, a receiver, and a medium. If you open up a deliberate channel, you’ll be more accessible to your audience and have a greater opportunity to create new ideas and strategies with them. IT’S UNIQUE Every business tries to cultivate distinct and engaging content, but no one wants to take a big risk and be rejected. The problem is that most companies tie unique selling propositions (USPs) to the features of their product or service rather than focusing on what is truly special about their business: its leader. If you want to distinguish yourself by using a USP, try marketing your individuality. You may find that people want to be a part of something more genuine than formulaic.
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A Helping Hand Why Business Leaders Need to Ask for Help
“Can you give me a hand?”
broadening the awareness of your name and brand at the same time.
Asking for help is a simple request. Most people do it every day, whether they’re getting a second opinion on a paint color or asking a stranger to hold the elevator. Asking for help is important; the ability to work as a team is one of mankind’s greatest strengths. But if the act of asking for help is so essential in our lives, why do entrepreneurs have such a hard time with it? This struggle often comes from pride, the idea that if you admit you can’t do it all, then you can’t do anything. But this mindset often leads to ruin. In a survey by 99 Design, most entrepreneurs claimed the worst mistake they ever made wasn’t a poor financial decision or bad planning — it was simply not asking for help early in their careers. Having to ask for help isn’t a sign that you’re unable to achieve what you set out to do. In fact, when you ask for help in business, you may find you’re able to achieve more. This is because asking for help is a form of networking. You’re actively reaching out to experts, learning how other people solve problems, and
If you struggle to ask others for help when you need it, start by changing your mindset. You don’t have to do it all; you’re just one person, and sometimes one person needs to delegate tasks to others to get more done. Asking for help is also easier when you know what you want to ask for. If you are overwhelmed by a big project, take a moment to write down your goals for that project, along with a list of action steps and resources needed to get there. Then think about who you can reach out to in order to tackle these steps. If you’re still uncomfortable with asking for help, make a point of helping others when you can. Being helpful changes the way you perceive receiving help and builds a positive reputation with others. When you are viewed as being helpful, other people want to help you in return. Asking for help means admitting you can’t do it all alone. But why should you have to? Doing it all alone can be pretty lonely, and asking for help means you have a team to support you wherever you go.
When Life Gives You Lemons ... 4 Business Lessons FromYoung Entrepreneurs
Lemonade stands are rumored to have originated with New York
journalist Edward Bok, who, as a kid growing up in Brooklyn, sold ice water on hot summer days to thirsty passersby. When other water salespeople tried to move in on Bok’s profit, he got creative by adding lemon juice and eventually sugar to the mix. The result of this innovation? Sales soared. Lemonade stands continue to be a popular summer pastime for burgeoning entrepreneurs, and there are a few things we can learn from these humble business endeavors. 1. BE ADAPTABLE. Warren Buffet has had business on the brain since birth. During his childhood, when he noticed that a friend’s house got more foot traffic than his did, the future tycoon moved his lemonade stand to the prime realty. Buffett obviously benefited from this innovation; the jury is still out on his friend. 2. GO ABOVE AND BEYOND FOR YOUR CUSTOMERS. When Ann Handley’s daughter and her friend opened up a lemonade stand, they found a way
to connect with their demographic. The location of the stand was frequented by many French- speaking Canadian customers, and since the friend was born in Montreal and spoke French, the girls greeted each customer in English and French. More conversation makes more sales. 3. ASK FOR REFERRALS. Megan, kid entrepreneur and owner of “Dr. Megan’s Mad Mango Lemonade” in Louisiana, knows a thing or two about the value of word-of-mouth marketing. Megan makes sure customers have an easy time spreading the word about the refreshing lemonade. In her second summer running the stand, Megan says, “I advertised through Facebook and word of mouth. I created my own business page. I shared it with friends, family, and the community. ArkLaTex Horse Rescue advertised my stand, and I posted advertisements to many local Facebook groups as well.” 4. BUILD YOUR BUSINESS AROUND YOUR VALUES. Have you heard of anyone starting a million- dollar lemonade stand? There’s one person who
has, and her name is Alex. She was diagnosed with cancer as a young girl, and her determined spirit motivated her to fight back. She started a lemonade stand to raise money for other kids with cancer. The message of the stand with a purpose spread, and Alex raised $2,000 in a single day. Sadly, Alex passed away when she was 8, but her legacy continues to thrive through her family, who turned Alex’s Lemonade Stand into a foundation. It’s raised over $127 million for cancer research.
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Three Questions to Answer Before Allowing Your Business to “ Get Political ” Are you considering having your business take a public stance on a divisive political issue? Answer these questions first. To that end, I propose that you ask yourself the following three questions as
There have been a number of stories in the news recently about small, local businesses who have been caught up in our increasingly divisive national politics. These businesses have either taken a public stance on a controversial topic or have taken some type of action related to such a topic, and subsequently have had their stories “go viral” in the national media. Perhaps the two most prominent examples of this are Masterpiece Cakeshop in Lakewood, Colorado and The Red Hen in Lexington, Virginia (if you aren’t familiar with these stories, a simple Google search on the name of either business will quickly enlighten you).
a business owner now and consider carefully how you would answer them. Question #1: Is your business being asked to do something that you feel would compromise your moral values? I list this question first, because I think that a person’s moral values get to the core of who they are, and as business owners our brands are, to a certain extent, an extension of ourselves. So, if your business is being asked to do something that you feel would compromise those values, it might very well mean that you must refuse in order to avoid compromising your personal integrity. But…on the other hand…one could argue that a business also has a
In both of these stories, as well as several other similar stories that have appeared in the news lately, the owners of the businesses had no intention of becoming the center of national controversies. They were simply, as the owner of The Red Hen put it, making “uncomfortable actions and decisions to uphold their morals.” I will make no statement here as to my own opinion regarding the actions of these business owners—that is not the purpose of this article. I do feel, however, that in
my role as a marketing advisor to small business owners, I should provide some guidance related to this topic--because if one thing is certain, taking a public stance on a hot-button political issue will have consequences for your business. Just as with any other decision that will have consequences for your business, you need to make it in a thoughtful manner after careful deliberation—not in the heat of the moment when confronted with an unexpected situation.
The Duct Tape Marketing Network is a worldwide network of small business consultants specially trained to deliver the famous Duct Tape Marketing system. To learn more visit www.ducttapemarketingconsultant.com.
My name is Kevin Jordan, and I’m a Master Certified Duct Tape Marketing Consultant and the owner of Redpoint Marketing Consultants, a small business marketing agency based in Christiansburg, VA. I publish and distribute the Small Business Marketing Monthly to help keep local business owners up to speed about topics related to marketing and management. I hope you find the content informative and useful.
Last month I went on vacation to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area in Minnesota. Because of production deadlines, I am actually writing this before my vacation. So, I’m going to be optimistic and say that this month I came back after a great trip refreshed, recharged, and ready to get back to my business!
moral obligation to provide for their employees and customers. If taking a public stance on a hot-button issue compromises your ability to do either of those things, then the decision is not as clear-cut. You will then have to decide which moral obligation you feel is more important to you. I would strongly suggest involving your employees in this decision-making process, since they will be the ones who will have to deal with whatever public response/outcry/backlash occurs as a result of any public stance you take. Also, I think it is important to acknowledge that there are some things that, while you might not like to do them, don’t rise to the level of “compromising your moral values”. In that case, I would suggest that it might be better not to take a public political stance—depending on your answer to the next two questions. Question #2: Will having your business take a public stance on a hot-button political issue help or hurt the cause that you believe in? Other ways to ask this question would be: Will your business’s actions move the needle in the direction you want it to move? Will they even have any impact at all, other than making you feel like you’re “doing something”? Are there possible unforeseen consequences that could end up having the opposite effect than what you intend? In some cases these questions might be difficult or impossible to answer, but in other cases they aren’t. For example, putting up a sign outside your business that you don’t serve Democrats (or Republicans) will almost certainly not move the needle at all, and will make a lot of people very angry with you. On the other hand, putting up a sign outside your business stating that your business is a “politics-free zone” and banning any piece of clothing, button, sign, etc. that makes a political statement might help make people feel safer doing business with you. Or, it could get you sued by someone who feels like you are
somehow violating their right to free speech (whether or not that lawsuit would be successful, I have no idea). The point is that if your answer to the first question is that your moral values are not in danger of being compromised, and your answer to the second question is that taking whatever stance you are considering will not move the needle, then I think it is pretty clear that you shouldn’t do it. Question #3: Are you prepared to deal with the consequences? This is the most important question on the list, because if the answer is “no”, then your answer to the other two questions becomes irrelevant. You must be prepared to deal with any consequences that arise from your decision to have your business take a public political stance. There are some consequences that are very predictable—like negative comments on social media, people leaving fake reviews on your business’s profiles, and— sadly—threats (credible or not) to your personal safety and/or the safety of your employees and physical place of business. Less predictable consequences could include having a story about your business on the front page of every major newspaper in the country or appearing in a case before the United States Supreme Court. Those consequences might not be likely, but they are possibilities, and they are possibilities that you need to think about before taking whatever action or stance you are considering. While I will not make a blanket judgement as to whether it is good or bad when a local business takes a position on a hot-button political issue, I think that doing so without careful consideration is bad and should be avoided.
“Having worked with Kevin over the past year I've realized just how knowledgeable he is when it comes to keeping up with trends in both physical and digital marketing alike. Any problem I've had he has been able to solve - he also has provided solutions to problems I didn't even know I had. Excellent choice to help facilitate your marketing goals.” Brian Ross, W.A. Watson & Sons
“Kevin has been an amazing strategic resource. With all the options out there for networking and referral marketing Kevin was instrumental in auditing my local options and developing an effective action plan to help grow my business.” Antonio Guerrero, Systematic Business Marketing
When Your Funds Are Lower Than They Should Be How to Boost Your Retirement Funds
Having money saved is crucial for adults aged 50 or older who plan to retire in the near future. Some people are prepared for retirement, having saved a sufficient amount throughout their lives. However, there are people who, despite having tried to save, come up short in their retirement funds. This can send them into a panic. Women account for the largest percentage of people who don’t have enough money in their retirement savings by the time they reach the age of 50. A survey produced by the nonprofit Transamerica Center for Retirement Studies shows that many women who reach retirement age will not have adequate funds to support themselves. Despite having a higher savings rate, the average amount women have saved at the age of 50 is about $35,000, compared to $120,000 for men. What’s the reason behind this? According to the survey, women often have a large gap in their financial savings at some point in their lives. They are more likely to work part time or stop going to work to take care of family members in need. By working less, women tend to earn less money, which prevents them from putting away sufficient funds for their retirement. This also affects whether or not they are covered by their employer’s retirement benefits, since most employees are required to be full-time in order to receive any benefits.
they offer a 401(k). According to the IRS, those who qualify (i.e., someone who joins the plan and is 50 years or older) can contribute up to $24,500 a year.
To learn more about what options are available, it’s crucial you speak to a planning specialist. By working with someone who understands retirement, you’ll create a solid plan and ensure that you successfully enter and enjoy your retirement.
If you’re nearing retirement age, don’t fret — you still have options available to you. If you’re working, look into your company’s retirement plan, especially if
Have a Break
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“Simple, affordable, practical small business marketing”
THIS ISSUE INSIDE
1 2
The Hidden Gold Mine of Content Marketing
Why Is It Hard to Ask for Help?
What You Can Learn From the Most Successful Lemonade Stands
3 4
Women and Retirement
Entrepreneurship Library: Jay Abraham’s Simple Guide to Success
The Profound Simplicity of ‘Getting Everything You Can Out of All You’ve Got’
What makes Abraham so successful as a business coach for small companies and international brands alike is his practical, methodical approach, which shines through in this book. You won’t find banal platitudes or sweeping summations within these pages. Instead, Abraham uses direct, approachable language to outline clear, actionable steps to get you to “recognize the income- and success-increasing connections that are all around you.” business into its component processes: attracting new clients, increasing the average size per sale of a client, and boosting client retention. These three aspects of success, according to Abraham, hinge on your ability to leverage a “unique selling proposition,” or USP. Put bluntly, a USP stems from the aspects of your business that make it stand out from the competition — what you bring to the table that others can’t. With this workmanlike approach, “Getting Everything You Can” breaks down success in
Jay Abraham’s “Getting Everything You Can Out of All You’ve Got” is one of those evergreen business books every entrepreneur should pick up at some point. Rather than latch on to fleeting business trends or the gimmicks of the early dot-com era, Abraham, a business coach who has spent his entire career solving problems and fixing companies, re-examines the basics of business. By returning to and interrogating the building blocks of growth, he is able to deliver the sort of timeless wisdom most business authors only dream of being able to capture. What makes “Getting Everything You Can” stand out is the simplicity of the ideas it presents. In fact, Abraham’s central thesis is that our tendency to overlook or dismiss the mundane, everyday aspects of our business is what keeps us from seeing its real value. As Abraham puts it, “You are surrounded by simple, obvious solutions that can dramatically increase your income, power, influence, and success.” Finding those solutions is what “Getting Everything You Can” is all about.
Identifying a USP sounds like a simple-enough concept, but as Abraham explains, business owners are often blind to the real value of their company. Seeing what truly makes your brand unique requires looking at old problems in new ways and fundamentally shifting your perspective on the basics of running a business. Finding solutions hidden in plain sight is no easy task, but “Getting Everything You Can Out of All You’ve Got” is committed to getting you there.
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