When it comes to our marketing campaigns far too often do I see folks forgetting the bigger picture as to what’s REALLY important to start putting money back into their pocket.
They often get tied up into thinking, “They can’t start until they get their computer fixed” or they can’t get moving, “Until they have a bigger monitor…”.
You get the idea.
There’s 2 things that need to be really clear if you’re doing what you’re doing to make money…
1. Understand the activities that put money in your pocket.
In 1993 I had my first taste as being an entrepreneur. Looking back I can laugh at myself quite a bit with some of the choices I made.
…but as you’ll see in this blog post, those choices were pivotal for my growth and development as an entrepreneur.
Here’s the short list…
==> I personally paid for several auto ships thinking this new business builder was going to catapult me into a six figure earner.
Didn’t happen, when others don’t pay for something they quickly become disassociated with it – why is it that when our government gives “hand outs” most American (even outside of the US) consumers get pretty pissed…but when we do it it’s OK? Handouts aren’t OK.
==> I had t-shirts made, fliers, business cards, etc. I thought If I just had all of this “marketing” stuff done, I’d enroll new associates and builders a lot easier.
Lesson: Fliers and t-shirts have nothing to do with effective marketing.
==> Hanging out at malls, swap meets & big parking lots.
There’s a lot of ways of building a business – for me, it had nothing to do with convincing others and pulling teeth.
Even on occasion where I would bring someone into my team as a result of talking to strangers, they came and went pretty quickly.
The lesson I learned was talk to people and share your message with folks that WANT to hear it. Pretty simple marketing rule to live by, but we often forget about the basics.
If you want to make money as an entrepreneur, your choices and decisions should steer you towards activities that make you money.
Things like…
Building your list.
Creating a community with your list.
Sharing cool content and value.
Hosting conference calls or webinars.
Those are a few things lead to money in the bank account.
These are revenue creating activities. And that’s exactly what they do…
We’re often so tied up into technology or Apple’s latest gadget we forget about the absolute essentials and how few things we really NEED to have.
Ever feel like you’re juggling 37 different projects at the same time?
It’s OK to focus on several things (entrepreneurs don’t have much of a choice if they want to succeed), but the reality is that one should be focusing on the activities that will put money back in their pocket.
For less than $20 bucks someone can get the items I mentioned above.
Grab a domain name.
Grab a trial over at aweber.com.
Host teleconference calls at freeconferencing.com
Host webinars at anymeeting.com.
One of the most important lessons I’ve learned over the years is that it’s not about who has the biggest bank account…it’s about how resourceful someone is.
When you want it bad enough you’ll figure out a way to make it happen – even without spending a bunch of money.
People typically show you how bad they want something by how they spend their time. If someone says they’re looking to make an extra $500 bucks a month and they’re willing to do “whatever” it takes to make it happen…but they spend 3 hours a night in front of the TV, their actions are telling you what’s really important to them.
How many times have you seen various situations just like this? It happens all the time – someone tells you about their woes and struggles…meanwhile, they’re extremely busy figuring out what who they’re going to be hanging out with this weekend or cleaning their office (which doesn’t pay the bills – I don’t care how clean the office is).
Lesson: Don’t always listen to what your prospects tell you – ALWAYS LISTEN to their choices and actions.
The most effective marketers and closers on the planet aren’t always great speakers, but they are phenomenal “listeners”.
You don’t have to spend big bucks to get your campaign moving, but you need to focus on revenue creating activities and not things that piddle away time.
And…
2. Marketing is not about a single event…it’s about a series of events.
Here’s what I mean…
Sunday was one of the best Super Bowl games in recent history. Regardless of the score, it was great to watch 2 football icons battle back and forth…not wavering an inch and refusing their opponent to take the upper hand.
Whether you were rootin’ for Manning or Brady you likely really enjoyed the respectful rivalry between the 2 organizations and had respect for both clubs…as they marched up and down the field like warriors on a battle field.
It was intense.
Every play counted.
Every throw meant something.
Every running play was meaningful.
Even the smallest mistake could make or break the game and decide who would go home victorious and who would go home thinking about what they should have done better.
It wasn’t a single play or a series of down’s that determined the winner and loser yesterday. It was the development of skill that took several months….and even years to watch the culmination that came together in a 3 hour tug-a-war battle televised in front of hundreds of millions of people.
Marketing is not about a single play either.
Marketing is not about a series of downs.
Marketing is not about one pass or one run.
It’s about never stopping.
It’s about commitment.
It’s about telling the “nay-sayers” to take hike and get out of your way.
It’s about continuing your mission.
Truth be told, it’s your actions and choices that you’re making today that can dictate where your business will be next year.
Don’t worry about messing up and making mistakes. They will happen. If you’re working towards your goals hard enough they’ll take place even more frequently.
Don’t worry about the fumble.
Don’t worry about a pass getting blocked down by a lineman.
Don’t worry about getting sacked.
Focus on the bigger picture.
It’s the battles you lose that lead to winning in the long run.
What are you doing today…right now that will pave the way for a better tomorrow?