Becoming Essential   How marketing really works.

Ask 100 marketing professionals “how do I make my product or service stand out from the rest?” 99 will recommend that you use or improve your use of one or more message delivery tactics:

• “Spend more money on search engine optimization.”
• “Improve your advertising.”
• “Get yourself a good PR agent.”
• “Establish a stronger brand identity.”
• “Spice up the look and feel of your website.”
• “Build and use email lists.”
• “Seek out sales alliances and cross-selling opportunities.”
• “Consider product placement.”
• “Target through social networking websites.”
• “Focus more on Google AdWords.”

And on and on…

But this is only a small part of the three-step process of REAL marketing. The first step in marketing – and, by far, the most important – is designing products or services that are dramatically different and dramatically beneficial. The second step in marketing is being able to – with laser focus – articulate the difference and the benefit. If you nail these first two steps, you increase your chances of a sale at each opportunity by up to 1500%. Yes, 1500%. After completing these first two steps – and only then – should you be even considering discussing message delivery tactics.

More simply put:

First you create an amazing offering. Second you develop your marketing message. Third, you strategize about how to get the word out. If you don’t have an amazing offering, putting a positive spin on its value and efforting to get the word out is not going to be effective. Perhaps more importantly, it’s going to feel disingenuous and suffocating.

Even MORE simply put:

Marketing is about creating something dramatically different and dramatically beneficial – something ESSENTIAL – and then telling the truth about it to the right audience.

Let me repeat that: MARKETING IS ABOUT CREATING SOMETHING DRAMATICALLY DIFFERENT AND DRAMATICALLY BENEFICIAL – SOMETHING ESSENTIAL – AND THEN TELLING THE TRUTH ABOUT IT TO THE RIGHT AUDIENCE.

The first challenge for every one of my clients – one that can utterly transform their business – is being honest about their offering. Is it dramatically different? Is it dramatically beneficial? In other words, is it ESSENTIAL? If not, our first project together is re-engineering or replacing their offering.

Send me an email and tell me about your product or service and we can figure out what the next step might be working together.

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Let’s look at the three steps of marketing in more depth.

Marketing – Step 1 – Product Development

Develop products and services that are 1) essential [adj: absolutely necessary; indispensable] to your customers - dramatically beneficial, 2) dramatically different, and 3) about which you will be personally and naturally passionate.

This is by far the most important part of marketing. Why should someone buy your product or service if it isn’t needed, is just the same as competing products, or is something that you, the maker or seller, don’t care about? They shouldn’t. Period.

You may ask: “Well, what if my product is simply ordinary?” You have three options. Change your product, go into a different business, or go out of business. If you maintain the status quo, you are being disingenuous; you are asking someone to purchase your offering for no good reason. And you are putting your business in a position to fail. Ordinary “commodity” products only sell when the economy is on a high.

If you don’t address and succeed at Step 1, there’s no point in going on to steps 2 and 3.

Marketing – Step 2 – Message Development

Figure out how to 1) articulate your offering’s dramatic benefit and uniqueness, 2) prove your credibility, and 3) give your customers a chance to sample the benefit for themselves. It has been proven in hundreds of marketing studies and meta marketing studies that these are the three most important aspects of marketing message development.

Marketing – Step 3 – Message Delivery Tactics (Do not do until steps 1 and 2 are FULLY complete).

(See list above.)

So, if you desire to really transform for the better your products, your bottom line, and the pleasure you get from being a business owner, ask yourself the following questions:

“Is your product or service something that your customer feels is essential?”

“If not, are you willing to really bear down to develop and re-engineer your product or service so that it BECOMES essential?”