You at least have a notion of what’s involved in marketing…a web site, Yellow Pages advertising, brochures, direct mailings, networking, seminars, trade shows, etc.

If you’re like most small businesses, you’ve tried one or more of these things at least to some degree. You may have even experienced some successes now and again. But are you able to make it work consistently for your business? If not, what’s going on?

Put your message and materials to the “So What?” test.

Pull out your most frequently used marketing tool (e.g., brochure, Yellow Pages ad, sales letter). Read it out loud and put it to the “So What?” test.

After you read it out loud, is it possible that your target audience could respond with a big… “So What?”… “Why do I care?”… or “What’s in it for me?”

If your message isn’t clearly communicating what problems, issues, and challenges you want to help your audience solve and what outcomes you want to deliver for them, then a “So What?” response is exactly what you might expect.

Messages and materials that are too much about YOU are likely to fail the “So What?” test. Remember that your target audience wants to know what’s in it for them.

Look out for overuse of these things in your marketing tools:

• Too much about the history of your company
• Endless lists and text about services you offer and why you’re so qualified to provide these services
• Unconvincing verbiage about how you provide fast, friendly, courteous service.

Challenge all of your current marketing materials. Remember, it’s the intended audience that counts. What’s in it for them? Why should they care?

Here is a simple example of applying a “So What?” test. Grab the last marketing or sales letter you wrote. Mark an X every time it mentions your name, your company, or the words “I” or “me.” Mark an O for every time it mentions the prospect’s name, company, or the words “you” or “your.” If the X’s outnumber the O’s, it’s probably a “So What?” letter because there is more focus on you than on the prospect.

If your marketing is consistently generating all the high-quality leads you can handle, then you don’t need to change it. But if not, you owe it to yourself to challenge your current marketing tools by putting them to the “So What?” test.

Additional considerations for putting your marketing to the “So What” test:

• Challenge all of your marketing tools that aren’t contributing to consistently generate leads for your business. Could you improve the message and get a higher return? Put it to the “So What?” test.
• Try gathering up a group of people you can trust to give you very honest feedback. You’re not just looking for proof readers, but individuals who will give you honest feedback on whether your materials pass the “So What?” test.
• Be prepared for some negative feedback. But more importantly you should be prepared to do something about it.Don’t just accept opinions, but try to get down to realistic response. For example: “I think you have too many words on this page.” (opinion) versus “I’m not clear on what you’re trying to tell me in this part.” (response)
• Remember that it is the target audience that counts. If it’s not clear who the message is intended for when it’s received, then how can it pass the “So What?” test.

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When you feel like you’re always busy working on your business but not getting results, it can be frustrating trying to figure out how to get on track. It can easily become a “not seeing the forest for the trees” feeling.

Here are three big barriers small business owners regularly face and how you can overcome them.

1. No Clear Definition of Success

For some, the word “SUCCESS” immediately brings thoughts of lots of clients and big dollars. But, you should be careful about letting this definition be your guiding light in your business. You’ll notice what gets left out is the success your clients will actually experience.

When clarifying your own defintion of success, you should start from your clients’ point of view. What is it that you’re to do for your best clients? What is it that they’ll have or be able to do as a result of using your product/service?

What does success look like from your clients’ perspective? That’s where true success will come from. Focus on delivering high levels of success to your clients and your success will take care of itself.

2. No Clarifying Who Your Ideal Clients Are

Too many small business owners are content to try and get clients from whoever comes their way. It usually results in lots of wasted time, energy and money marketing to the wrong audience.

What does your absolute best, most ideal client look like? When you can clarify who your ideal clients are you’ll begin finding more of them. You won’t have to work with just anyone. You’ll be working with the clients who you get along best with and value what you have to offer them most. You’ll know how to find them and develop messages that will appeal directly to them.

Develop a profile of common demographics, characteristics, challenges and opportunities that describe your best clients in as much detail as possible. This clarity helps you know when you’ve found them, and also helps your best prospects know when you’ve found them.

3. Not Spelling Out Your Unique Value

You must be able to clearly define what differentiates you from your competitors. If you don’t stand out, then why would your prospects buy from you versus all the competitive alternatives in the marketplace?

It’s not that you’re not unique. For most small businesses it’s just that you haven’t spent the time to evaluate and articluate your uniqueness.

What is it that you’re uniquely doing and why does that make a difference for your clients? What do you do that is better, faster, more economically, with higher quality, with lower risk, or simply with a different spin? Don’t be vague here. Be as specific as you can.

Spend some time critically looking at these areas for your business. It will be time well spent. If you find you just can’t see the forest for the trees, don’t hesitate to get some outside help.

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If you want to be more flexible, then you have to stretch your muscles. Do you want to be physically stronger? You have to find a way to workout and build your muscles. Would you like to be a stronger marketer? You’ve got to work your marketing muscles.

It’s just like an athlete who needs to workout to stay in shape. If you want to get stronger at marketing, you need to work your marketing muscles. So how do you work marketing muscles?

1. Read Regularly. There is no shortage of resources out there folks. Find them and begin consuming them. There are books and newsletters and resources all over the web. Don’t get overwhelmed by the volume of resources available. Pick one and commit to consuming it. Schedule a time that works for you and sit down and read that resource. Even if you only find one or two good ideas per resource, doesn’t that make you a little bit stronger?

2. Find Avenues To Write. Writing might be the single most important skill for effective marketing. “But I’m not a good writer” you say. Listen, you are a wealth of information about your business or industry, and writing is the key to sharing that information to attract business. Writing will also help you gain clarity about the value of your own services.

Practice writing regularly. Articles, tip sheets, a blog, your web site content, newsletters, sales letters, and case studies are all examples of things to be writing. Do the best you can and consider an editor or copywriter to review it if you’re worried about it being great. You’ll get better, and stronger, with practice.

3. Increase Your Speaking Ability. Much like writing, speaking is one of the most powerful tools for developing attention, interest, trust and credibility with your potential audience. This is not just standing up in front of an audience to give a presentation, seminar, or workshop, although these are great strategies. You’ve also got to be prepared to stand up and introduce yourself at networking meetings. Or more basically, you have to be prepared to answer that question, “What do you do?”

Confidence in speaking comes with preparedness and practice. Ever been to a networking meeting when someone stands up for their introduction and starts out with, “Um, Ok, let’s see…”? Clearly not practiced and prepared. Spend time preparing for what you want to say when you introduce yourself and when someone asks, “What do you do?”

Just like exercise, even scheduling just a few hours a week to work your marketing muscles will begin to make a difference. Before you know it, you might be a pretty strong marketer.

Great downloadable tools offered via the Marketing Action Club:

• The Marketing Dashboard
• The Marketing Focus Calendar

Are You Ready to TAKE ACTION to Get Greater Marketing Results?
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