Stop buying into the hype of the latest marketing tools.
These aren't the answer. Tools alone WILL NOT move the needle in your business. There is something way more important that you need FIRST.
Like Obi-Wan says in Star Wars "these aren't the droids you're looking for".
Making your first marketing funnel doesn’t guarantee more leads and sales. It isn’t a given. Buying the latest 'tool' will not get you the results you want. There are no guarantees in life. Regardless of what you are told.
The trouble is we all get suckered in by the latest technological wizardry and hype. This tool will change your life. This software will revolutionize your marketing.
To be honest, I’m fed up with it. Seriously, it drives me to distraction.
Because people pay me to advise on the latest and best techniques and practices I find myself down the rabbit hole more often than most. Sussing things out, feeling my way around. I’ve grown accustomed to it. And occasionally I get suckered in too. Hey, I’m only human.
Wow, this looks cool. It can do this, and I can save time here, get more sales there... You know how this goes.
Then I am tied into paying for more software that does bugger all for my business. Sound familiar?
Quick show of hands if you have fallen into this trap. Come on. You are amongst friends you can be honest here.
Or, worse still. The tool has great promise, but it’s too hard to use the damn thing. It’s sold as DIY, but they may as well be selling a freaking DIY surgery kit.
The problem as I see it is that businesses, like humans, are complex creatures.
Your marketing prayers cannot be answered by just subscribing to Leadpages, paying for ads on Facebook, or buying the latest tool because the "gurus" tell you to.
Sorry to disappoint.
You may be surprised to learn that successful marketing is much simpler than the "gurus" would have you believe. You only learn this AFTER you have bought into their sales hype and signed up for their service or expensive programs.
They make it all look super-easy on the pre-sale demos and in the expensive marketing copy.
Click, click, click... Click BOOM! (a la DJ Jazzy Jeff and The Fresh Prince - Boom Shake The Room)
Sure, they have onboarding videos and help guides, but they rarely help YOU with the exact things you need to know RIGHT NOW.
The thing is. It is not the fault of the software/tools companies or even the "gurus".
They do a fantastic job of describing their piece of the puzzle. Of explaining how it works. It is not their fault. But it is still not enough.
The trouble is, as much as they try and have you believe otherwise. In reality, it is just one piece of a much larger puzzle.
It is not your fault either. You have many things on your plate every day running your business.
However, if you are serious about getting more leads and sales, cast aside your current thinking just for a moment. What I am about to share with you will not only SAVE YOU TIME. It will get the RESULTS you want FASTER.
What I am about to share is like one of those fast-track passes you get at the theme park. The fast-track pass is free. But you will only get your pass if you are open to a NEW way of thinking.
If the fault doesn't lie with the marketing software companies, or you, then who the 'eff' is to blame?
Sign up for Leadpages. Create a landing page. Make it live. Link up your email autoresponder. That's all action, right?
Sure, you have done something. But usually, when you focus on the pieces like this you rarely see any results.
You’ve got your hands dirty, cracked some eggs, but not an omelet in sight.
All these moving pieces but no sense of how they all fit together [HINT: This is important].
Building pages, and working on pieces of the puzzle in isolation never works on its own.
This is where the RIGHT ACTION comes into play.
What is the RIGHT ACTION? Well, this is dictated by your STRATEGY.
Boom. And there it is. Strategy.
Going at this like a bull in a china shop because you are stretched for time and need to make this work yesterday is NOT the answer.
You must first assess where you are. Once you are clear on that, you must set out a clear vision of where you want to be. Vision is woven into your why and your niche in the market.
When you know these two things, you can devise a plan that will take you there. A strategy. Tactics flow from the strategy and are what you DO day-to-day to help you achieve your goal. Make sense?
But wait, it is not quite as simple as that either.
In my best Yoda voice from Return of The Jedi: "No, there is another..." One is even more important. Come to it shortly we will...
Gary Vee talks about clouds and dirt. Buying the latest tools and software and trying to cobble something together is working in the dirt.
Nothing wrong with working in the dirt, per se; but ONLY when you have first spent time in the clouds. When you have clarity of where you wish to go. Wouldn't you agree?
Both of these go hand in hand. Can you see the link? Can you guess what the piece we are still missing might be?
Take James as an example. James has a strong offline business as a management consultant. He goes to three networking events each week to drive new business and is feeling drained from it all. He wants to alleviate some of the pressure by starting to get more leads from the interwebs. Who doesn't?
He reads that he needs a clear call to action. So he puts a book a consultation button on his website. Beautiful and proud on the homepage. With a grin, he closes his laptop and waits. And waits...
Nothing. Tumbleweeds...
Puzzled as to why people weren't flocking to book consultations he reads somewhere that he should have a funnel. So he signs up for Leadpages and creates a landing page.
Book a free consultation is his call to action. In his mind, more leads are his 'clear' goal. All sounds good. I don't see any problems here.
Guess what happened next?
Nothing. Crickets...
James has his landing page. Linked the form on the page to his email service provider (ESP). He even created an email that said hello and gives instructions on how to book the said appointment.
Now he has a "funnel".
Still nothing.
He has created this stuff but feels he is wasting more and more of his precious time because it is not working. He is seeing the apparent success of others around him, and he furrows his brow in frustration.
What am I doing wrong? He asks himself.
He has spent time in the clouds. He knows what he wants. He has a strategy. He dove into the dirt and carried out the work. Heck, he is covered in dirt.
Click, click, click, and still no boom.
Why doesn't it work? It is because of something I call MARKETING MYOPIA.
Marketing Myopia
Marketing myopia is something EVERYONE suffers until their eyes are opened.
Re-read the above sentence slowly and let it sink in. It is the key to getting your 'fast-track pass'.
Now the 'other' Yoda referred to is more important than James [read: YOU]. More powerful. And can make or break your business.
The 'other' is your client.
James has done NOTHING wrong.
The people coming to the landing page and website are simply not ready to book a consultation. They don't even KNOW James.
Still, James insists on proposing marriage! He is asking for too much too soon.
99% percent of your website visitors are just not ready to make a purchase [https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/stop-missing-out-on-your-website-traffic].
To get the results you want from your marketing efforts you need to understand how and why your clients decide to make a purchase.
You must work first and foremost to get to know them, and for them to get to know you in a way that builds a relationship.
James with his 'Book A Consultation' (which is an entirely acceptable goal) is missing important stages of the journey his clients go through BEFORE they become a customer.
So what should James do differently?
James needs to provide content and information that establishes the know, like, and trust factors that are essential to the buying decision.
These come long before the 'Book A Consultation' button is ever pressed.
Jay Abraham calls it the Strategy of Preeminence. Robert Cialdini refers to it as Pre-Suasion. I call it VISIONARY MARKETING.
This is where the real magic of marketing happens. This is where you need to focus your precious time and effort.
Once James became aware and could see his MYOPIA problem (pun intended), he was able to appreciate and act with the bigger picture in mind.
He started using the tools to drive results, rather than chasing results by buying tools.
Then lo-and-behold, results started coming. Thick and fast.
After implementing the new approach in his marketing, James gets 3-4 leads every single week coming into his business.
If you want to know more download the free guide below that walks you through the process of applying visionary marketing in your business.
I am NOT sharing this with you so you can give it a try and repeat your old pattern. But so you can take ACTION that will actually move the needle in your business. As Yoda says: "Do or do not, there is no try".
