Marketing Action Club BLOG » Small Business Marketing Strategy

Elevator Speech Examples – How to Gain Attention Right Away

admin — Wed, 14 Jul 2010 02:39:03 +0000

http://www.30secondElevatorSpeech.com Elevator Speech Examples – How do you make sure you gain the attention of your audience quickly? Make sure what you are saying grabs that attention immediately

What are you trying to achieve with an elevator speech as a networking and marketing tool?

Not selling, not dazzling the audience with your brilliance or command of the language, not make them laugh necessarily (although that can help) and certainly not to bore them into submission. You are looking to GAIN THEIR ATTENTION so that you can move to the next stage of the marketing process.

It’s that simple, and that complicated. The most common mistake that prevents you getting the attention you deserve is trying to appeal to as wide an audience as possible. Here are some examples of how this sounds:

"We are a full service agency for all your design needs"

"We work with anyone who wants to manage their finances better"

"Our company coaches people looking for more success in their lives"

"We help companies from the sole proprietor to the Fortune 500"

Now, it may be that your company can indeed provide a wide range of services to a varied client base. However elevator speech examples of the above type do not grab attention. They are too broad and force the listener to:

a) Figure out how and if they are included and

b) Conclude that you are either a generalist, or are trying to appeal to as wide an audience as possible and don’t really have the focus.

Remember that being focused and specialist is generally perceived to be a good thing by your prospects. You are more likely to understand them and their issues, more likely to be passionate about what you do and arguably provide better customer service as a result.

Most importantly though, they will understand whether your services are a good fit for them or someone they know. When they conclude that they are, you will have their attention and they will likely engage with you. Your elevator speech has achieved your goal.

So, how do you do this?

The key is to embrace the mindset change. By appealing to a core, well defined audience you will actually be more likely to gain attention AND those that do engage will be the clients that you want. Defining up front who those clients are will get attention fast. Define this in detail, without being verbose.

For example:

"We help small businesses owners and independent professionals who started their business in the last 12 months"

"We are focused in doctors and dentists based in Beverley Hills"

"Our company helps medium sized, fast growing service based companies who need IT support"

Of course this isn’t the total 30 second introduction, but defining who the subsequent message is aimed at is huge in terms of gaining attention. Spend some time on this! Who was your company set up to serve and who makes your BEST client – those you love to work with. Think about attracting more of them.

The added bonus of this focus is that people outside your immediately defined target will come up to you and ask you whether you can also help them, even though they are outside the niche you defined. Then you have a decision to make!

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Elevator Speech Tips – The one thing you MUST do!

admin — Mon, 12 Jul 2010 23:32:53 +0000

http://www.30secondElevatorSpeech.com Elevator Speech Tip – if you were to chose one thing to focus on for elevator speech success – what would that be? It’s a mindset and you can develop it!

Elevator Speech, 30 Second Introduction, 30 second infomercial – whatever you call it, you are essentially looking to introduce yourself simply, succinctly and memorably. Perhaps most importantly, you need your listener to quickly grasp what you do so they can identify themselves as a potential client, or introduce you to someone who may be that prospect.

Easy enough right?

Well, bear in mind that everyone is busy. Asking someone what they do is a polite conversational gambit – there may be limited interest at first. At a networking event you may be the last to introduce yourself so they have heard numerous introductions already and are suitably fatigued by the whole thing.

There are many things you can do to standout out but there is a central mindset you need to plug into to ensure you maximize your chances of successfully grabbing attention. It stems from this thought:

"People are primarily concerned with one person – themselves". Of course, that doesn’t mean people are entirely self-centered and lack any thought for others, charities or some concept of "the general good". However it does mean they process what they hear (especially in business) in terms that matter to THEM. Their life consists of challenges and problems to overcome and solve, as does everyone else’s.

So here is the mindset tip that runs through everything:

"Your Elevator Speech needs to be about THEM, not about YOU"

That may sound obvious but think about 30 second intros you have heard recently. Most talk about the company, how long the company has been in business, the range of services, the great customer service, where the office is located and so on. All of that isn’t about THEM it is about YOU.

Change the focus. Think about the challenges you or your company is set up to solve for your clients. Tell your listener:

WHO you work with (target market)

THE CHALLENGES they face

WHAT they get (the benefit) from working with you

That’s it. Stay focused on them. When they ask you for more details ask them back what they are interested in. Keep it about them – you will get a chance to talk about yourself eventually but now is not the time. This is how you will stand out – people will recognize you are talking to THEM and that is very powerful

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Simple Small Business Marketing Ideas Often Work The Best Including This One

Kevin Dervin — Sat, 16 Jan 2010 00:34:14 +0000

Have you ever noticed how many times the simplest small business marketing ideas end up working the best?

Who ever said small business marketing has to be hard?

I’m constantly amazed at just how powerful some of the simplest concepts are. There are many small business marketing ideas that cost next to nothing and really require little to no additional extra work to begin bringing in more business every month.

Unfortunately, the problem with simple marketing ideas is that many small businesses are so quick to excuse them. Intelligent small business owners and independent professionals just like you mistakenly believe a marketing idea has to be sophisticated and intricate to be really valuable.

WRONG! In fact, it’s completely the opposite that’s true. The more complicated the idea, the less chance you have of making it work. Simple doesn’t mean well thought out. It just means not complicated.

One of the simplest small business marketing ideas I’ve ever come across is also one of the most powerful. Many successful professionals have shared that this one technique has been primarily responsible for completely filling their business pipeline.

Even though most people know about this powerful method, it’s surprising how few people actually use it consistently. Perhaps because it’s just too simple and small business owners are always looking for fresh, new, and more sophisticated (i.e., perceived to be higher value) marketing ideas.

After all, if the simple, easy ideas really worked then wouldn’t everyone be using them? Well you would think, but even the simple solutions take some work on your part to be successful. And too often, people want the results without having to do the work.

Simple does not mean you don’t have to do the work. It just means not complicated.

So what is this simple yet incredibly powerful idea that can help you generate significantly more business?
Commit to sending out personal hand-written notes – Thank You notes or Cards.

The reasons to send personal notes including “thank you” notes are practically endless.

* When you make a new contact at a networking event
* When you get a new clients
* When a client takes your advice
* When a client recommends you
* When a business contact recommends a new resource.

Taking time to hand write notes is a lost art in the world of business anymore. Even though personal attention is always more effective, email and voice mail are just so much quicker and therefore make it ineffective in some peoples’ minds.

Consider How To Put This Small Business Marketing Idea To Work For Your Business…

Effective small business marketing is more than just a bunch of ideas and tips. Follow a step-by-step approach to plan your small business marketing strategy. Visit http://www.GetMoreGreatClients.com to learn more.

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Marketing to existing customers

Jerry Smith — Tue, 29 Dec 2009 19:34:42 +0000

I have heard the lines at the returns counter are longest right after Christmas. This is when all the unwanted or incorrectly thought out gifts are returned of course. I came across a great example of how this provides you with a way to market your core values to your customers or clients at this time – it’s an online example and, whilst not a small business, provides a great lesson.

The business is Amazon. For reasons that are unimportant in their details, suffice it to say it wasn’t Amazon’s fault in any way, a gift for delivery in time for Christmas failed to arrive at all. It was returned to Amazon. On contacting them they got back to me quickly with an apology, a full refund and an offer to waive the shipping cost to ship the items to a different address.

It’s a good recovery, and it’s above what was really required. Remember this isn’t their fault, but they are acting as though it was and making amends accordingly. This is from a large organization, one that you may think wasn’t too bothered by a small order like mine.

The lesson here is that it is never too late to make a good impression. Amazon’s business model is set up to be automated, but of course, things can always go wrong – human error for example. At these times a great opportunity arises to fix it, and actually create a better impression in the minds of your customers and, guess what? They will tell others about it. How are you fixed to create this impression with your clients?

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Small Business Marketing’s VISIBILITY Factor

Kevin Dervin — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 14:32:24 +0000

If you want to get consistent results from your small business marketing, you need to stay visible to clients and prospects. But, how do you do that?

It’s not going to do you a whole lot of good if you produce a bunch of great marketing material but nobody ever views, reads or hears it. And, it’s pretty hard to keep the ball rolling if someone hears about you once and then you disappear after that.

Lots of small businesses are “getting the word out there.” You’re working hard to get that all important first visibility through networking, doing presentations, handing out business cards, and even getting a visit to the web site. But too often, there’s no way to maintain the contact.

The best way I’ve found to maintain this kind of visibility is with a “stay in-touch” strategy. A stay in-touch strategy is designed to keep you top of mind with clients and potential prospects.

Keep in touch with your clients and prospects over time, and you’ll build more mutually beneficial relationships.

And, the key to making this work – ignored by virtually all small businesses – is to focus on providing information of value. Simply calling every four to six weeks just to “check in” and “see how things are going” won’t get it done. You want to stay visible, you just don’t want to become a pest.

It’s Easier Than You Think.

Start a blog,
Start a newsletter,
Start an email eZine,
Start a YouTube channel,
Or start sharing hints and tips with your clients and prospects.

You can get started today!

You don’t even necessarily have to be the creator of all that valuable information. You could simply be the provider to stay top of mind with your clients, prospects, referral sources, and alliance partners.

Stay in touch to stay visible in your small business marketing.

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Small Business Marketing Responsibility

Jerry Smith — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 15:18:03 +0000

At the end of the day, it is really up to you. As a small business owner you necessarily wear many hats. Not least of which is actually doing the work! Indeed many times owners will make a particular virtue of the fact that they are the ones who will be working with you, particularly when that work involves access to your house. This can be a great selling point.

You also need to be in charge of your marketing. This can cause some introspective thought. As much as you may accept this situation and demand on your time, it may still be uncomfortable – after all, you are not a marketer right? You dodn’t get into this business to market, correct?

Those are mindset barriers to achieving the success you deserve. That is the bad news. The good news is you can push through it, develop the marketing plans and strategies you need to be successful, and really drive your small business or independent practice forward. Ulitmately there are several key points to consider:

It’s your business – you get to chose how to run it. That is one of the great attractions of being a business owner after all. With that comes significant responsibility. To any enployees you may have to be sure, but equally important to yourself and to your life goals. As far as marketing goes, it is down to you. That is a simple point and statement of this fact hardly seems necessary, but it can get lost in the hurly-burly of business and underlies everything else
You don’t have to do it PERSONALLY – responsibility doesn’t imply you have to do it all yourself. There are plenty of resources available to help you define your marketing strategies and plans and many more to help you implement those plans. You still set the overall business plan and drive the marketing, but you don’t have to be the one who actually DOES everything.
Commit, measure, change as necessary, improve – part of taking that responsibility is setting the commitment. However you feel about marketing generally, or how it applies to you specifically, you need to commit to a) devoting energy to it and b) selecting appropriate tools for your message and market. Once in action, you need to measure the results, take action where necessary to adjust to your goals, and make continual improvements.

You have what it takes. Marketing is a key part of any small business – without a consistently applied plan and strategy, consistently attracting quality clients to the business will prove elusive. You drive that and there is plenty of help available to get you there, to develop the skills and implement the things you don’t really want to do. However, as obvious as it may seem, you never lose overall oversight and control – after all, it is your business!

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Small Business Marketing Strategy Tip: Client’s Value

Kevin Dervin — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 17:34:58 +0000

Do you know what it is that your clients value most from your business?

Click here to view the embedded video.

If you knew the answer to this question would it change your marketing strategy? Would you change the way you’re marketing your small business?

Think about it… If you knew what your clients wanted from a business like yours more than anything in the world, it would make marketing a whole lot easier. A foundational key to a successful marketing strategy is to make sure your product or service satisfies a need or desire that your target markets actually have.

So what is it that your clients value the most from your business?

Too many small business owners don’t know the answer to this question. Most just don’t take the time to figure this out for their business when they’re doing their marketing strategy. If you don’t know what your clients want, then how can you ever hope to provide great services to them?

Most small businesses seem to follow one of a few paths on this issue:

(1) Some have created a product or service based on something that they really want to offer. And, they believe that lots of people or businesses will want it.

(2) Others tend to have some general knowledge in a particular area. Unfortunately, what they communicate is so broad and vague that they end up reactively taking whatever business they can get.

Some clients might get what they want, but it’s not a very focused way to run a business.

(3) It seems to me that a much smaller percentage actually tries to figure out what their target market values. Then you could provide a service around that so it fits their needs.

Take some steps to position your business for success that others in your field just can’t generate. It might be just as easy as figuring out what it is they’d love to have from you.

How do you find out what your clients value? Well here’s a novel idea…You could ask them!

One very simple approach is to send your best and most important clients a little survey to ask them for some feedback. I’m talking like may THREE questions here.

What do you value most from the product/service we provide?
What could we do to positively change or improve the service you’re receiving?
When your business contacts ask about this kind of product/service, what would you tell them to be looking for in a service provider?

Think about how powerful it would be to know that information. You’d could literally align your business and your marketing messages with what you learn.

Your competitors are not going to be doing this as part of their small business marketing strategy. And, your clients are going to LOVE your for asking!

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Marketing magic Bullet

Jerry Smith — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 16:02:59 +0000

I suppose it is natural to want maximum gain for minimal effort. After all, it is nice to have success in any walk of life. What is less clear sometimes, when looking at examples of successful businesses, athletes, teachers, doctors etc. is how much effort and persistence went into achieving that success.

Whilst there may be fleeting examples of “overnight success” these are relatively few and far between, once examined further. This is true of marketing a small business or professional practice. You have what it takes to be successful, as long as you are not out there looking for quick fixes or that elusive magic bullet.

Beware the temptations! You will have seen the variations on the snake oil salesmen, and those can be fairly easy to spot and avoid, but pay close attention to the natural tendency to go for the quick success. For example:

Virtually all the marketing tools and tactics you can employ, rely on solid groundwork. Planning in other words. That headline may be beguiling, but most often you will still need to answer the fundamental questions – who is your target market? What is your uniqueness? Why would anyone hire you? There isn’t a one size fits all solution for every business. What works for them may not work for you and you need to understand the basics of your message and audience to figure that out.
Some work is required – it’s tempting to think you can have a successful marketing play without putting in significant, dedicated effort. You can’t!
You have to be the decision maker and the driver – there are many, many resources out there to help you with your marketing. In the final analysis however, it is down to YOU to make it happen. Hiring people to help is a great idea but you need to be in control. It is very common to think: “Phew – now someone is managing my (website – insert marketing tactic here!) I can let them get on with it and all will be well”. You can get close to that if you have the planning taken care of, but you still need to plan, review, tweak, discuss, amend etc. YOU need to – it is your business.

In so many things it is tempting to go for the quick solution. Losing weight is a classic example. The long term results come about from committing to changes in lifestyle and those are long term and take time. It is the same in marketing. That isn’t to say you won’t get some quick results; depending on your business you may well, but the point is you have set the appropriate context, know why those results came about and are in a position to repeat the effort.

Work hard at it, invest time, avoid the temptation to grab at the next unbeatable offer. Applying consistent effort to your marketing efforts will pay great dividends.

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What Marketing Adjustments Will You Make For Next Year?

Kevin Dervin — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 15:06:02 +0000

Now is a great time to reflect on your marketing efforts for the year. The end of another year is fast approaching. Let’s start thinking about how to make next year your best year ever!

Analyze how and where your clients came from this year. You do monitor and track your marketing and sales efforts don’t you? You really should be. How else are you going to know where you could make improvements in your system for next year?

What worked well and not so well in terms of your lead generation and sales conversion systems? The things that worked well you’ll obviously want to do more of next year. The things that did not work so well should be reviewed. Determine where the opportunities for continuously improving results might be.

Don’t just look at the various marketing campaigns and specific lost sales opportunities. Go all the way back to your analysis and preparation work. Good marketing planning and preparation is the underpinning of your entire marketing and sales system.

Could you do a better job of…

Defining your target niche,
Articulating your strategic differentiation,
Creating your attention grabbing message,
Gathering and using your evidences of success, or
Improving the overall marketing and sale flow of your business?

What kinds of tweaks could you make in your lead generation and sales conversion tools?

Maybe you could come up with some better attention getting headlines.
Perhaps there’s room for a more compelling offer.
Or, do some of your tools need a more clear call to action?

Don’t forget about your reselling and referral systems. Are you sure you’re offering your clients all the value that you have to offer?

Take the time to review and plan for next year. I will always be a big believer that the time you spend planning will pay off ten-fold versus just jumping in and doing the things you think should be done.

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The marketing Ah-ha moment

Jerry Smith — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 16:16:53 +0000

Sometimes in marketing, as in life, there comes a time when something just makes sense. When that time comes, you might, literally say: “Ah-ha”. Let’s face it, marketing a small business is often something with which you have limited or no experience when you get into business. Such situations can be fun and stimulating, but they are also often confusing.

However, there are also moments of blinding clarity. These are the times a previously confusing situation became clear. Typically once you get this clarity, it seems so obvious you wonder why you never saw it before!

Without the Ah-ha, your marketing may be less effective than it should be. By way of illustration, here are a few ah-ha statements/issues that can come up in marketing your small business:

I need a system
Understanding my client base is essential to connecting with them
I finally get “give to get” as a mindset
Not every marketing tactic is right for my business
Not everyone deserves to be, or should be, my client

Of course, there are any number of possible moments for such a realization. How do you ensure that they come along with some regularity?

Mindset – tell yourself that marketing, like all skills, can be learned. You will get better the more you….
Practice – Golfing great Gary Player is quoted as saying: “The more I practice, the luckier I get”. Taking some liberties with that quote, the same can apply to marketing and the generation of marketing ah-has. The more you get out there and practice, the more you will learn and the better you will become as long as you …..
Commit to learning – admit to yourself that you don’t know something…yet. The “yet” implies you will learn, get there and accept feedback on the way to ensure you get the most from the learning.
Talk about it – find a partner, mentor, coach, whoever is committed to your success and talk through ideas and learning points. They will give you thoughts and perspective you may not gather on your own.

Keep at it! There are so many opportunities as you get better at marketing and there will always be more. When something clicks into place in your business it is a GREAT feeling. Get out there are seek it!

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