More Clients - the Online Marketing Newsletter
for Independent Professionals
from Action Plan Marketing
and Robert MiddletonIn This Week's Issue: How can you turn marketing hell into marketing heaven? It depends on your point of view.
Marketing Heaven
There's a saying I've always loved: "Everyone wants to go to heaven, but nobody wants to die." and there's a parallel saying for business: "Everyone wants lots of clients, but nobody wants to market." (And for many business owners, marketing is a whole lot worse than dying!)
There are many people who've had an after-death experience who know longer fear death. It's just not an issue for them anymore. Or people who've had an enlightenment experience who no longer see death as a bad thing. These people have realized their own personal vision of heaven and the sting of death disappears.
Yeah, I know this is kind of a heavy analogy for a marketing eZine, but stick with me here!
It's not unusual to say, "when I get enough of a client referral base, I won't need to market anymore." That's a lot like saying, "When I amass enough possessions I won't need to die." Well good luck but it ain't going to happen!
The point I think is that we have many irrational, unexamined fears that prevent us from living completely in the present. And the fear of marketing actually pushes us away from the joyful experience of working with clients.
Is there any practical application of this philosophy?
Well, yes, there are several but I'd like to highlight one today. I recommend taking your eye off the marketing struggle and putting your whole attention on your clients.
Here I'm defining a client as anyone you are working with or may work with in the future. So if you are talking to someone who is not yet a client, interact with them as if they were a client. You may discover that marketing as an issue disappears (even though you might actually be doing some marketing activities).
Let me give you some concrete examples.
Writing Articles. - I've talked many times about the value of articles as a marketing tool. But I suggest working on an article (that you may give away for free) as if you were being paid a high fee by a client to produce it. Wouldn't you come at it differently?
Giving Talks. - The same thing really. As you're giving a talk to potential clients at a professional organization, imagine that they have paid you a few thousand dollars to present. Wouldn't a certain kind of effort disappear? You would be striving to provide value, not worrying if anyone liked you and was going to buy your services someday.
Networking Events. - As you met new people and introduced yourself using your Audio Logo, imagine that the people you talked with were already clients who were paying you on retainer. Wouldn't you be more helpful with ideas, information and resources as you spoke to them? Wouldn't you be less worried about the initial impression you were making and trying to say the perfect thing to get them interested in your services?
I'm sure you can come up with other scenarios on your own.
Now I'm not telling you to throw out all your marketing techniques, strategies and principles. That isn't necessary. All I'm talking about is a shift in your point of view: There is no separation between working with clients and marketing.
What would it be like if you saw everyone you interacted with as already a valuable client instead of as a prospect? Wouldn't the sting of marketing lessen considerably?
I call this being in Marketing Heaven.
More on "Marketing Heaven" in Marketing Flashes below.
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Marketing Message Workshops in Los Angeles and San Francisco
Last year after completing my two-day Marketing Mastery Workshop in San Francisco, I swore I'd never conduct an "information-intensive" workshop again. I'd been doing them on and off for 20 years and I was just tired of the format.
Information-intensive workshops are where you tell everything you know about a subject in a short amount of time, hoping the participants will absorb enough to be able to implement what you've taught. Sound familiar?
But it just doesn't work that well. People go on "information overload" and end up forgetting the majority of what they've learned and implementing even less.
So I've been thinking for almost a year about how to create a workshop that was different from this format - very different - completely different. And finally I came up with it.
I'll be doing two of these new one-day workshops in both Los Angeles and San Francisco in March. For complete details, just click on one of the links below.
Los Angles (Airport Area) - March 12
http://www.actionplan.com/wkp/lawkp.htmlSan Francisco (Airport Area) - March 26
http://www.actionplan.com/wkp/sfwkp.htmlP.S. If you enroll early you get $30 off the regular tuition.
InfoGuru Marketing Manual and Home Study Program
Finally, the InfoGuru Marketing Manual has been married to the 12 CD audio program of The Marketing Mastery Workshop for a complete InfoGuru Home Study Program.
You can still get the InfoGuru Manual separately (with or without hard copy manual) but now you can deepen your understanding of marketing as an Independent Professional by listening to the subtle nuances and distinctions of what works and doesn't work to attract more clients.
The Marketing Mastery Workshop on CD is actually more valuable than the original live workshop because it won't put you on information overload. You can pick the marketing area you want to learn more about and just listen to that CD - over and over again if you like - until it really sinks in.
You can then review the information on that topic in the manual until it really gets into your pores. That's why I call it the Home Study Program. With the two dimension of reading plus audio you'll get a whole new understanding of how to market yourself successfully.
Get the InfoGuru Marketing Manual and Home Study Program here:
http://www.actionplan.com/infoguru.htmlIf you already have the Manual, you can order the 12 CDs here:
http://www.clientmagnet.com/infoguru#home
The ActionPlan Game - Free Virtual Mastermind Group
This free program is for people who want to use the support of a group to achieve their marketing goals. It's a do-it-yourself program where you get weekly email guidelines to help you put a specific marketing plan into action. I call it a game because it's all about winning new clients.
It may not be free forever, so take advantage of it while you can!
http://www.actionplan.com/actionplan.html~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Marketing Flashes on "Marketing Heaven"
Since you need to do marketing anyway, why not enjoy it fully instead of resisting it? Here are some tips to get you outside of your current marketing mindset.
* Start with the marketing activities you like the best (or resist the least). You want to do things where you can have a win instead of doing marketing activities which you tend to resistant. Try one little thing and go for a win.
* Create a mastermind group. Get together with like-minded people and support each other in creating and implementing marketing plans . You might even want to check out my ActionPlan Game which is currently free to subscribers: http://www.actionplan.com/actionplan.html
* Bring a friend to a networking event. You won't feel so isolated. Support each other in meeting new people and then introduce the people you've met to your friend. You can create some momentum this way and have a lot more fun.
* Call up a client you know and like and take them to lunch. Tell them you'd like to get to know them outside the regular work environment and kick around a few ideas (no charge). Often you'll leave meetings like these with more business and a few referrals.
* Volunteer your expertise to a worthy cause. You'll feel you're making a difference and at the same time you're likely to meet other high quality people who will turn into valuable business associates - sometimes clients.
Check it out today: http://www.actionplan.com/actionplan.html
Until next week, all the best,
Robert Middleton
ACTION PLAN MARKETING
Helping Independent Professionals Attract More Clients~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
210 Riverside Drive
Boulder Creek, CA 95006
831-338-7790© 2004 Robert Middleton, All rights reserved. You are free to use material from the More Clients eZine in whole or in part, as long as you include complete attribution, including live web site link. Please also notify me where the material will appear. The attribution should read:
"By Robert Middleton of Action Plan Marketing. Please visit Robert's web site at http://www.actionplan.com for additional marketing articles and resources on marketing for professional service businesses."
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