Trapped in Your Comfort Zone? Break Out and Send Your Marketing Skyrocketing

A marketer whose advice I generally respect recently published an article about how to find your comfort zone and stick to it in your business in order to create a more harmonious work environment.

In theory, it makes sense. Most of us have gone into business for ourselves to have more control over our own destinies, financially and otherwise.

In reality, however, settling into a routine can wreak havoc on your marketing, making you complacent with small rewards when taking tiny risks could give you a major business boost.

Small risks can't hurt

Recently a large corporation I did some marketing work for developed a product that was head and shoulders above the anything like it anywhere in the world (really!) in terms of quality and price. We "oohed" and "ahhed" over the product and everyone wanted one.

You'd think the company would want to capitalize on their new winner. But management wouldn't allow any comparisons to the competition in the marketing campaign for this product because it had not been done in their market before.

However, it's a tactic that is proven to work in just about every other market, it's perfectly legal and could easily have been launched on a small scale just to test it. It wouldn't even be expensive. If it worked, it would pay for itself 20 times over and could be implemented elsewhere for a small additional sum.

"No," said Mr. Top Marketer. "We want to have 1 launch because it's what we've always done, and we've been successful so far." So they used the same approach they always had.

And you know what? Despite the fact that their product was phenomenal, they lost the battle. Another brand name now owns that market.

Unless the competitor goes out of business sometime soon (unlikely, since this product rejuvenated their business), the corporation I mentioned will never make it in that particular market. Last time I checked, I couldn't even find a product from this risk-averse company in that section of a department store.

It's easy to see that the corporation I mentioned should have known better. After all, they have a whole team of marketers dedicated to bringing in more business and could have spent minimal money to try a more effective approach. But ...

How do your small business marketing plans fit in?

Although I used a big business example, corporations have no monopoly on making decisions based on how they've always done things. And most decisions to stay with the status quo anywhere are based on one thing: fear of change.

I get lots of requests for help on marketing issues. People want to know how to get more clients to hire them, want advice on an upcoming direct mailing, are frustrated because they feel like they've tried everything and want a new direction for their marketing, and so forth.

But although it seems like a major challenge when you haven't yet achieved success, marketing isn't as hard as it seems. I can think of a few dozen tactics offhand that -- if you used just a couple out of the whole lot following some simple rules -- you would see results almost overnight.

But that's where the word "but" rears its ugly head.

Stop being a "but"!

Some entrepreneurs don't even realize that they are afraid when they say, "But my clients won't respond to that," "But I'll hurt my reputation if I actually ask them to consider buying from me/hiring me," "But I tried that once and it didn't work."

How do you know your customers won't respond? Most good marketing practices are based on fundamental human psychology. Although we love to believe our clients are different, they're still human, just like us, and it's less than 5% of the general population that can't be marketed to.

Are you sure you followed the rules? Oftentimes when you put out a marketing piece on your own, you miss certain critical points. Did you follow a checklist?

Did you have an expert marketer review it before you sent it out? Even just getting an outsider to proofread your upcoming sales letter will often illuminate problems in sales copy.

Did you try this once with 3 people or with 300 or with 3,000? It takes quite a few rejections to get a single "yes" using even the best marketing tactics. And a handful of "nos" shouldn't discourage you. All it takes is one affirmative response to give your bank account a boost!

Turn each "but" into an opportunity

Rather than focusing on the negative, think about what you have to gain by trying. I'll use myself as a guinea pig to show you what I mean.

If I hadn't gotten past my own objections to moving abroad 8 years ago, I never would have had a great career as a creative director/copywriter because the opportunity never would have arisen in my hometown in Alabama.

If I hadn't moved beyond the "But it's a pain to move to another country" excuse when my husband and I decided to move to Los Angeles from Hamburg, Germany, recently, he and I would still be suffering from major health problems due to allergies we don't have here in sunny Southern California.

And to bring this back to the subject of small businesses, if I hadn't gotten past my own fear of self-promotion (which doesn't make much sense, given that I make my living helping others promote themselves, but kicked in for a short while early on), you wouldn't be reading this article today, and I wouldn't be able to help people around the world grow their small businesses.

I could tell you another 30 or so other small, but calculated risks (far less scary than international moves, I can attest) that I have made in my own small business promotions just since opening shop a few months ago. And I'll bet you've probably also been postponing a particular marketing activity because of fear and doubt.

The power of "yes"

Whether you believe it or not, every time you say no in your marketing efforts, you're stating in no uncertain terms that you don't want to succeed. What do you have to lose by saying yes?

Trust me, once you've tasted success, it will get easier to make more bold (but calculated) moves and get your marketing on track!

Copywriter/marketing strategist Jennifer McCay helps individuals and small businesses turn their expertise into marketing success stories. She is the publisher of the Avenues to Marketing Success Newsletter, which delivers tips to help you rev up your small business marketing. To subscribe and receive a FREE special report on 7 ways to improve your sales copy, head to http://AvenueEast.com

---

Create Your Own Rumors

A consultant new in the city asked me how I... Read More

Eliminate Your Competitors With 2 Simple Steps

In business, having competitors goes with the territory. There's almost... Read More

How to Magnetize Your Business

Do you ever wonder how some businesses always seem to... Read More

Unleash the Powerful Promoter Within

Dear Friend,You're ripping me off.How? You may be thinking, "We... Read More

Business Postcard Marketing: 35 Ways to Use It

Postcards are an effective way for many business owners and... Read More

Making Your Mark With The Millennials

Generation Y--The second-largest crop of young people in America's history,... Read More

The Building Blocks to Effective Marketing

The Building Blocks to Successful MarketingIt's More than Sales and... Read More

5 Ways to Use Your Business Cards More Effectively

Contrary to popular belief, the best use of business cards... Read More

Attracting New Business on a Shoestring Budget

In a recent marketing workshop I attended, I discovered that... Read More

Preventive Marketing Offers Small-Mid Sized Business Owners An Ideal Way To Maximize Their Results

As the owner of a creative services boutique - I... Read More

Small Business Bonzai Marketing

Do you own a small business? Do you wish to... Read More

Budgeting for a Postcard Mailing

If you've never done a postcard mailing, you're probably wondering,... Read More

Whats Your Marketing Attitude?

Entrepreneurs pay a lot of attention to the mechanics of... Read More

Brochures that Generate Sales Leads (and How to Write Them)

One rule in direct mail is that your letter sells... Read More

The Secret to Adding Credibility to Your Business ? Testimonials!

You may not realize it, but you already have a... Read More

So You Want To Cut The Crap And Get Into The Money?

So, you´ve been around for a while, and maybe even... Read More

How Effective Customer Surveys Will Help Innovate Your Business

Have you ever wondered why the phones aren't ringing the... Read More

8 Proven Ways to Get Referrals

Do you find it hard to ask for referrals? I... Read More

How to Promote your business website using free online resources.

There are many ways to promote your website for free... Read More

Resume Writing Service Marketing

Marketing A Resume BusinessWhen starting a resume business, your marketing... Read More

Everything Youve Ever Learned About Marketing Is Wrong

Everything you've ever learned about marketing and advertising is WRONG.... Read More

Marketing The Real You

I often wonder how the practice began of pretending to... Read More

Marketing to a Critical Mass

In "Developing a Marketing Plan", we covered the first steps... Read More

Two Methods of Marketing Using Joint Ventures

Whether you're a contractor a local merchant with 150 employees,... Read More

Why Do You Need to be in the SERPS?

Why does your business need to be in the Search... Read More

Rising Postal Rates? Don?t Cut Down the Direct Mail

The United States Post Office in the past had some... Read More

Do You Know Where Your Email Address is Today?

Having people go to your website is not always easy:... Read More

Is CRM Technology Living Up To the Hype?

Over the last few years the buzz about CRM (Customer... Read More

Loan Officer Websites: Your Marketing Hub to Magnetize Realtors

Too many loan officer websites look like congested intersections, information... Read More

Advertising Campaigns That Get Results

"Advertising doesn't work." I hear it from my clients all... Read More

5 Print Ad Essentials!

Writing an effective print ad, particularly a classified advertisement, requires... Read More

How to Create a Countdown Marketing Calendar

Just like there are reverse dictionaries, there is a reason... Read More

Beware of Magazine Style Yellow Pages Ad Design.

I have been designing Yellow Page ads for the past... Read More