Marketing is a relationship – one between you and a person with a need. We are all marketing something. How can we learn better skills?
Marketing does not come from a book. Many MBA programs will have a marketing concentration but some of the best marketers in the world never took one of those courses. Some have built very large businesses on delivering on their promises without finishing college.
So, how do you learn to market? By doing!! Sell something. Ask for donations. Help your favorite author drive up their sales. Create an on-line business.
First, build a story that connects you to others creating a relationship. Sure, you can cold call and you will sell something to, oh say, 1% of the people you meet. OK, everyone who loves to cold call raise your hand. OK then, how can we improve our effectiveness?.
We all would rather buy from someone we trust. When you buy a car or have one worked on, who do you go to? My guess is that you go to someone you have worked with before and have had good results or you go to someone who was referred by a trusted friend. That’s how it works. Have something you believe is valuable, work with your network, and find people who need what you have. Then, when successful, ask for a referral to talk to someone they know.
So, marketing is about believing in the value of what you have, creating a story to help others understand that value, and then providing them the opportunity to get that value delivered by you. And then networking your way to the next encounter.
Let’s go! Your homework is:
What are the five reasons that they should
a) Buy what you are selling
b) Hire you
c) Use the service which you provide
What are the five critical needs you know you customer has? Can you match them up with your five reasons? What will change for them? How will their business grow? What will be easier?
Now, go talk to them and close the deal. Ask for the donation, the sale, the job. Go do it now.