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‘If You Build It, They Will Come’ Doesn’t Work in Marketing We Know a Faster, Smarter Way to Get New Clients TITLE NOVEMBER 2020
the Newsletter
Say you want to connect with someone who loves to work out at the gym. Which of these methods do you think would work better? Method No. 1: Build a shrine of free weights, resistance bands, and shaker bottles at your house and hope that they stop by for a visit.
Just about everyone is hanging out on Facebook right now. According to Statista, in the second quarter of 2020 there were 2.7 billion monthly active users on the platform. It’s also the most-used social media platform across all age groups according to 5W Public Relations. A whopping 65% of those surveyed admitted that they check the site daily. By getting your content onto Facebook and the other major social networks — LinkedIn and Twitter — you can meet your customers where they are and direct them back to your website. There, they just might convert to customers and make you money. That’s why having an Active Social Presence is ranked No. 4 of the 7 Credibility Markers . The truth is that one of the hardest things to do in marketing is make people change their behavior. Still, that’s what companies are trying to do when they focus on search engine optimization (SEO). It doesn’t work to build relationships. Instead, we’ve found that for high-relationship sales businesses like yours, meeting people where they are — what I call “sphere of influence optimization” — beats out SEO dollar for dollar every time. Since you’re a MySMARTblog customer, we’re working behind the scenes to make sure you have an active social presence on Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter every day. Our automated system gets your high-quality blog content out there in front of people on their social media feeds, making it easy for them to
get back to your website. This constant activity also makes your company seem up to date, relevant, and professional. These traits draw in clients, and our customers at MySMARTblog see direct results. Because of our automated social media posting systems, one pool skimmer company we work with now gets regular inquiries on its social channels from people looking to purchase their product. These customers don’t even feel the need to go to the website — an active social presence can be that convincing! Odds are, none of those sales would have been made without this credibility marker. Like I said, you already have an Active Social Media presence included in your MySMARTblog package. However, you can do something to take it to the next level: respond! When people comment on or share your posts, it’s important that you interact with them. A simple reply or quick thank-you message can go a long way, and it’s easy to monitor. Just toggle your account settings so you get notifications on your phone, and address them when they pop up. Hopefully this tip will help boost your business during the coming holiday season. From my team to yours, happy Thanksgiving! –Mikel Erdman 1 www.MySMARTblog.com
Method No. 2: Go to the gym.
Method No. 2 is obviously the better option, but an unfortunate number of business owners go with option No. 1 when it comes to their marketing. They focus all of their efforts on their website, for example — the equivalent of their home shrine — and cross their fingers that their future clients will stop by. When the rare person does visit your website of their own accord, this works, but it’s much easier to catch their eye if you go to them at the place where they already hang out. Then, you can direct them back to your free weights. For weightlifters, that hangout is the gym. And for your prospective clients online, it’s social media.
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In a Digitally Focused World The Power of Direct Mail
In an ever-growing digital landscape, one disruptor in advertising and marketing stands out: direct mail. That’s right — classic print and paper mailers shipped directly to your customers’ doors are pushing beyond the noise to give consumers an outlet they actually pay attention to. It may be brash to endorse direct mail marketing on a newsletter that we directly mail to you , but your reading of this article should be proof enough: Direct mail works, and you need to try it. If you’re still not convinced, allow us to explain why this is a secret we just have to share. In a world where most of us work and attend meetings, classes, family gatherings, church meetings, and other get-togethers through our screens, don’t you want to be the voice that stands out and appears in their mailbox instead? We have screen fatigue, and people likely aren’t paying too much attention to the advertisements they have been seeing for months. In business, you have to change and develop new marketing tools. Experimenting with direct mail or special offers may cost you some money, but the returns could be well worth the investment and time spent in developing the route. As an entrepreneur, though, the only risks you can take are calculated ones. You have to be sure there will be some reward, no matter how small.
Direct mail marketing is nothing new, yet it has been proven to work time and time again. Why? When you boil it down, direct mail marketing works because it’s based on an idea that has always stood the test of time in business: the power of relationships. In order to reel consumers into your brand, you need to reach them in diverse ways. Enter direct mail marketing. It disrupts the noise from your digital platforms while connecting with people in a real, personal way. Today’s consumer takes months before making a purchase. When your voice has been consistent, loud, and diverse, you’re more likely to stand out. And today’s target millennial audience is
also looking at print and direct mail before making a purchase. In fact, more millennials learn of products through direct mail, even in a digitally focused world. The digital world is still very influential. We may be tired of staring at our screens, yet we find ourselves pulled to social media, streaming services, and blogs even after we log off work. Businesses need to have a diverse online presence, whether that’s on social media, a blog, or your website, but you don’t have to adhere to one platform over the other. In fact, it’s best if you use direct mail to disrupt your online campaigns and use your online campaigns to disrupt your paper marketing. Relationship marketing that directly targets your consumer works every time. Direct mail has always disrupted the flow of standard marketing, and if you’re focusing your efforts solely on the digital platform because of the pandemic, then you’re making a big mistake. Direct mail is one of the easiest ways to connect with your consumers and stand out while doing it.
Want to learn how we produce our direct mail campaign? Just ask!
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‘Dare to Lead’ With Brené Brown’s Bestselling Book
How many leaders do you know who will admit to their mistakes openly and honestly to their team? How many leaders have you heard ask their team for direction? How many leaders are willing to step aside so someone else can shine? Chances are if you know that leader — or if you are that leader — then you understand the future of leadership, according to author, researcher, and teacher Brené Brown, Ph.D., author of “Dare to Lead: Brave Work. Tough Conversations. Whole Hearts.” In this book, Brown details her seven years researching and gaining a better understanding of leadership. She interviewed business leaders at both small and large companies, asking questions that revealed what great leadership looks like. Together with her research team, she learned why certain workspaces thrive and grow while others, with seemingly just as powerful of ideas, wither and die. And it all boiled down to one thing, Brown says: courage. In “Dare to Lead,” Brown examines the four pillars of courageous leadership and how business leaders today can practice and perfect it. Brown teaches the four pillars through her consulting work and has seen radical changes in organizations that practice courageous leadership. Brown offers examples — from well-known CEOs and
within her own business — to walk readers through real-life applications of courage and how to create stronger teams through vulnerability.
Brown exposes how business cultures that don’t practice vulnerability are ineffective as a result. She theorizes that often, these workspaces are filled with fear, uncertainty, and scarcity. To remove these negative traits, Brown offers leaders a road map to build their courage while practicing vulnerability and creating happier work environments. Brown has spent the past two decades researching and breaking down emotional concepts into tangible goals for her readers and followers. She is the owner of The Daring Way, a consulting firm that helps businesses develop vulnerability in leadership and the workplace. She is also the host of the podcast “Unlocking Us” and has one of the most-watched videos of all time, “The Power of Vulnerability.” You can learn more about Brown’s work and find “Dare to Lead” at BreneBrown.com.
Be I N spired
How a Thanksgiving Dinner Mix-Up Led to the TV Dinner
The year was 1953. That fall, the frozen food company C.A. Swanson & Sons drastically overestimated how many Americans would want a turkey as the centerpiece of their Thanksgiving spread, leaving them with about 260 tons of extra turkey packed into 10 refrigerated railroad cars.
Swanson salesman Gerry Thomas had a winning idea. He suggested they package up the remaining turkey with a few sides as frozen dinners that would be ready to eat after being thawed. The twist? They would be served in compartmentalized aluminum trays, much like airplane meals, which were the inspiration for Thomas’ idea. Additionally, they would be marketed as “TV dinners,” with their packaging designed to look like a television set. As the TV rose in prominence in American living rooms, the TV dinner’s popularity increased exponentially. Swanson sold nearly 10 million of them during the first year of production. By 1959, Americans spent half a billion dollars gobbling up TV dinners.
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Inside This Edition
1.
Why ‘If You Build It, They Will Come’ Doesn’t Work in Marketing
2.
Want to Stand Out in a Digital World? Focus Offline
3.
Researcher Brené Brown Helps Leaders Find Their Vulnerability — and Succeed How a Thanksgiving Dinner Mix-Up Led to the TV Dinner
4.
Filmmakers’ 3 Tips for Video Calls That Don’t Suck Mastering the Video Sales Call With Filmmaker Expertise
As we continue to adapt to a half- digital, half-physical world, one thing is certain: This is our new normal. And in the business world, you adapt or you die. While in-person sales meetings and lunches will never be a thing of the past, mastering the video sales call to present yourself, your company, and your product is vital. After all, you want the most memorable part of your call to be the product you’re pitching — not your cluttered background or the tinny sound. To appear like a pro, try these three tips from filmmakers to make your video calls the envy of your competition. Tip No. 1: Use what you have. While moviemakers, vloggers, and podcasters have advanced equipment to make them look and sound great, you can provide a professional video call without blowing your budget. Start with lighting. Shine a lamp toward the wall facing you, and turn on a light behind
you to softly illuminate your face while creating background light for depth. Good sound quality can be just as simple to achieve. Rather than rely on your computer or laptop’s microphone system, plug in your AirPods or headphones. These items have built-in microphones that better capture your voice due to their proximity to your face. Tip No. 2: Get the camera angle right. Aesthetically speaking, one of the worst angles for a camera is pointed upward at the subject being filmed. However, you’re often looking down at your laptop or monitor’s camera. Instead, stack your laptop on books or risers for meetings, or purchase a separate camera to mount at eye level or just above you. This is a much more flattering and commanding angle. Tip No. 3: Look again. In the moments leading up to a video call, remember to do two things. For
starters, quickly scan the background behind you. Will your prospective clients see anything unflattering or unduly distracting? A simple background, like a plain wall or a bookshelf, is great for bringing attention to you and not what’s happening in the background. And before you join that meeting, rehearse looking into the camera as you speak, not at the screen itself. That will create eye contact for those in the meeting. You don’t have to be an Oscar-winning filmmaker to master these techniques. All it takes is a little practice to upgrade your video sales call.
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