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Business is tough all over. Companies large and small are going out of business at unheard of rates. Many outfits are laying off even some of their most valued employees. It's an absolute jungle out there!
When you ask most business owners what the cause of all of this is, they'll give you a bunch of excuses. They'll say things like...
"It's the economy."
or
"My competition is killing me."
or
"Everybody's prices are lower than mine."
or
"The government should create laws to protect my industry/company."
And on and on and on.
Know what I think? I think it's nothing but excuses. (Heck, I'll bet you've even used some of them yourself.) I know it's tough. Business (and even entire industries) is going away like never before. Some industries are never coming back.
But I also think it's possible to survive and even thrive in today's economy. But it may require a shift in your thinking.
Do yourself a favor and take this quick test to see if you're making any of these mistakes in your marketing.
1. Not knowing what business you're in. You're not in the widget making business or the house cleaning business or the software business or the publishing business. First and foremost, you're in the marketing business.
2. Not being unique. You must know what sets you apart from your competition. You can't afford to have a "me too" business.
3. Being boring. This marketing sin is very close to #2 above. Bill Glazer, a very successful marketer and author of new book "Outrageous Advertising That's Outrageously Successful", says one of the worst sins you can make in marketing is being boring.
4. Not creating a "herd" and taking care of them. Dan Kennedy, publisher of the "No B.S. Marketing Letter," says that you must create a herd of customers and build a fence around them so your competition can't steal them.
5. Creating barriers to sales. Some companies actually make it hard to do business with them. Do you do that?
There are plenty of other mistakes that companies make in their marketing but those are some of the worst.
So now that you know about these mistakes, what do you do about them? You've come to the right place. Your first place to start is by visiting my blog. Then sign up to download my e-book. Comment on the blog. Let's get to know each other. And let me introduce you to a fascinating world, a world that will take your business to new heights, the world of guerrilla marketing. |