How To Market Effectively Even If No One Understands What You Do
So how do you effectively market your product or service when one knows anything about them because you’re in a new and emerging industry? How can you expect to get customers if no one understands what it is that you do?
If this is your situation then a big part of your marketing strategy will need to be educating consumers about what you do. If yours is a field that is relatively new, or perhaps misunderstood, adopting an education strategy can help consumers understand the benefits you provide and feel more comfortable with the idea of purchasing your products or services.
Educational marketing is best done through vehicles where you have space or time to fully explain your product or service and the benefits it provides. Or perhaps even to debunk some common misconceptions.
Publishing a newsletter or Ezine, or writing a regular newspaper or magazine column are great ways to educate and generate positive awareness.
Make sure your web site content clearly explains what you do. Provide free Special Reports so prospects can learn more.
Conduct free seminars or teleseminars, or provide consultations so prospects can meet you and hear more about how your product or service can help them.
Your marketing goal should be to get as much educational information out to your prospects as possible. Once they begin to understand what you do, they will be more open to your product or service.
They’ll also appreciate all the information you’ve provided. And, you will have earned their trust. People tend to do business with those they know and trust, or those who help them. So odds are if they are in the market for a product or service in your category you’ll be the one to get their business.
(C) 2005 Debbie LaChusa
Debbie LaChusa created The 10stepmarketing System to make marketing your own business as simple as answering 10 questions. Learn more about this unique, step-by-step system and get a free 10-week Marketing E-Course when you subscribe to the free, weekly 10stepmarketing Ezine at
http://www.10stepmarketing.com
Boost Headline Believability With Specifics
Don’t use vague generalities in your headlines. Be as specific as possible. For example, you may want to put a date into your headline, or a profit increase of some specific percentage, etc. When you use something specific, like a date, an exact dollar amount, or an exact quantity in a headline, it suddenly becomes more believable.
Using specific numbers makes the reader believe that you really know what you are talking about, you have researched the information, and that you can document what you are saying. Hopefully, that is all true. You never want to lie, it will ruin your credibility and eventually destroy your business.
But, having said the above, you may sometimes want to understate your claim. The truth may seem like hype, so you may want to tone it down.
Which headline is more believable?
“Using This Long Lost Secret, Our Business Grew By Leaps and Bounds!”
“Using This Long Lost Secret, Our Business Really Sky-Rocketed!”
“Using This Long Lost Secret, Our Business Grew by 973% in 65 days!”
The last one is the most believable, isn’t it? Why? Because it appears to have been measured and it is very specific. An exact percentage in a very specific number of days.
“Using This Long Lost Secret, Our Business Grew over 900% in a little over two months!” while better than the first two, still is not as believable as the one that is more precise.
Or how about these sub headlines…
Special Price to End Soon, Buy Now!
Special Price Ends at Midnight, 1 April, Get Your Copy Now While It Is On Your Mind!
Only 37 Copies Left, At This Rate We Expect To Be Sold Out In 43 Hours, Get Your Copy Now! Don’t Lose Out, When They Are Gone, They Are Gone.
Aren’t the last two more believable that the first?
Here is what Brian Keith Voiles, a master copywriter, has to say about being specific in your headlines:
“Using specifics in a headline make it almost irresistible to your prospect to not continue reading. You need to use exact numbers: hours, minutes, # of days, evenings, dollars, ways, types of something.
Specifics always out-pull generalities. They mean more to our prospect, and they create intrigue about what you’re going to tell them in your ad or letter. They draw the reader in.”
Let’s take a look at a couple more comparison examples. The first example is targeted toward marketers who want to grow their mailing list.
“Over 30 Quick and Easy Ways You Can Grow Your List In One Month or Less… Guaranteed!”
“33 Quick and Easy Ways You Can Double Your List In 30 Days, Guaranteed!”
Which one attracts you more? The second one I’ll bet.
Now let’s look at a comparison that focuses on people who want to lose weight.
“Over 20 Quick and Easy Ways To Lose Weight In Less Than A Month…Guaranteed!”
“21 Quick and Easy Ways To Lose 10 Pounds In 25 Days… Guaranteed!”
Do you see the difference? Specifics create believability.
So, be as specific as possible in your headlines to increase your believability from the very start of your sales letter or ad and draw your readers further into your sales copy.
George Dodge is owner of the http://www.Headline-Creator-Pro.com website where you can download software to save you time and effort required to quickly create powerful headlines with push button ease.
What’s in an Ad
Print ads generally have four written parts: headline, support ded with nothing but negatives. Others point to the enduring effectivenesscopy, call to action, company name and a visual. Visuals are usually more important than copy because they’re more effective in attracting readers’ attention and can instantly present your product or service in a dramatic and motivating way.
Unless you’re commissioning your own original artwork or photography, the visuals you’ll use will probably be either drawings and photographs from your suppliers or non-copyrighted artwork (clip art) found in clip-art books and scrap-art computer programs. Choose the strongest visual among them, the one that best draws the eye and explains what you’re selling, and then move on to copy.
The most prominent piece of copy, your headline, must not only work with your visual, amplifying its meaning, but also attract attention with a word, phrase or sentence announcing a benefit that appeals to your target market. One expert wrote that a headline is that final, mind-changing, sales-clinching comment you’d make when leaving the office of a prospect that, until then, had respon of the standard headlines “Sale,” “Free” and “Buy now and save.” Collect ideas that are right for you from your salespeople, from the ads in your file and from advertising books. And remember it is not so much the words, but the ideas they express, that sell. Determine your message then find words to convey it.
Below the headline, support copy explains the headline’s premise and adds secondary benefits or any assurance readers might need to dispel suspicions that have been raised by the headline, such as the assurance of “same great quality” when you’re offering a “new low price.” Following this copy, as a sign-off, is a call to action urging the reader to respond – “Call for an appointment today,” or “Remember, sale ends March 21.”. Your company name, traditionally at the bottom of the ad, should include your address and phone number. Make your phone number larger to help stimulate response by phone. Add a cross street to your address (e.g., “5730 Sheridan, at La Monte”) if you’re a new business or if, for other reasons, people might have difficulty finding you.
The next step is to combine all these visual and copy elements into an eye-catching, easy-to-read ad that is formatted to the dimensions stipulated by the publication. It’s best to study the ads in that publication in advance and consider what your ad might look like in order to stand out on the page. Experiment with different layout ideas rendered in thumbnail sketches and then fine-tune your ad to fit the layout you prefer. Obviously, it’s highly advisable, if not imperative, when you’re doing ads in-house, that the person composing your ad has design experience. Not only is skill required to make an ad look right, but the quality of your ad must compete favorably with others appearing in the publication.
It’s also a good idea to prepare your ad well ahead of the deadline. This way, you can put it aside for a few days and then review the ad with a fresh perspective while there’s still time to make revisions. As a final check, lay your ad on a page of the publication where it will appear and make sure it stands out from the articles and other ads on the page.
Everyone persuades for a living. There’s no way around it. Whether you’re a sales professional, an entrepreneur, or even a stay at home parent, if you are unable to convince others to your way of thinking, you will be constantly left behind. Donald Trump said it best, “Study the art of persuasion. Practice it. Develop an understanding of its profound value across all aspects of life.”
Conclusion
Persuasion is the missing puzzle piece that will crack the code to dramatically increase your income, improve your relationships, and help you get what you want, when you want, and win friends for life. Ask yourself how much money and income you have lost because of your inability to persuade and influence. Think about it. Sure you’ve seen some success, but think of the times you couldn’t get it done. Has there ever been a time when you did not get your point across? Were you unable to convince someone to do something? Have you reached your full potential? Are you able to motivate yourself and others to achieve more and accomplish their goals? What about your relationships? Imagine being able to overcome objections before they happen, know what your prospect is thinking and feeling, feel more confident in your ability to persuade. Professional success, personal happiness, leadership potential, and income depend on the ability to persuade, influence, and motivate others.
Kurt Mortensen’s trademark is Magnetic Persuasion; rather than convincing others, he teaches that you should attract them, just like a magnet attracts metal filings. He teaches that sales have changed and the consumer has become exponentially more skeptical and cynical within the last five years. Most persuaders are using only 2 or 3 persuasion techniques when there are actually 120 available! His message and program has helped thousands and will help you achieve unprecedented success in both your business and personal life.
If you are ready to claim your success and learn what only the ultra-prosperous know, begin by going to http://www.PreWealth.com and getting my free report “10 Mistakes That Continue Costing You Thousands.” After reading my free report, go to http://www.PreWealth.com/IQ and take the free Persuasion IQ analysis to determine where you rank and what area of the sales cycle you need to improve in order to close every sale!