That saying "thinking outside the box" is so overused that
most people don't even pay attention to it any more.
Who said there is such a box anyhow?
The way I look at it is; you are completely limiting your
greatest ideas and breakthroughs by being stubborn and
letting your ego get in the way.
I have written about ego being a major problem in marketing
and advertising before... now I want to delve into this even
deeper.
The biggest reason for people struggling in their marketing?
Trying to impress the completely wrong people.
Their spouses.
Their co-workers.
Their competitors.
Their bankers.
Their friends and family.
Their ever-so-fragile ego that needs to be stroked with
praise.
Do any one of those people BUY what you sell?
On a consistent basis?
So, why in the heck does it matter what THEY think about
your marketing and advertising efforts?
IT DOESN'T!
The only people that matter here are your PAYING customers.
If they like your marketing and advertising, they will buy.
If they don't like it - they won't buy.
Simple.
So, how do you find out what they want to buy, and how to
get your message across to them properly?
You can ask them, but they may not give you the true answer.
Many times in surveys and focus groups you get answers they
think you WANT to hear - not actually what they truly think
or would do in real life.
The best way is to test various successful messages with
them.
And how do you find successful messages until you have
tested?
You steal them and distribute them (S&D) to your own market.
S & D is a term I got from Bill Glazer (which you can get
free help from him and Dan Kennedy at
www.DanKennedyRocks.com).
I love that term.
Not to mean you actually steal things from other people word
for word. That is illegal.
I mean you steal their idea and concept and rework it to fit
your business marketing efforts.
You go outside your industry and read their trade magazines,
specialty magazines and newspapers, mailing lists, books,
textbooks, chat groups, blogs, whatever you can find - read
it.
Look for great ideas you can "borrow". If it works in
another industry - chances are good, with some modification,
you can make it work for your own business.
For example:
I love used book stores. I have found some real solid gold
in my local ones - books I never would have found - and I
get them for $4 or $5!
Recently I found:
(1) Be My Guest - The Conrad Hilton Story (yes the Hilton
family that bred that ditz Paris - although, she is a master
at getting PR!). Imagine all the ideas that they use to
create one of the finest luxury hotel chains in the world -
how can you make that fit your business? Selling to the
affluent - how can you make that fit your business?
(2) Advertising Writing - A School textbook. I would never
have thought of decent direct marketing ideas coming from a
branding style textbook. But it is PACKED with them. If I
was stuck in the mindset that "no good direct marketing
advice comes from a college" I never would have bought this
book. Inside there is a 5 part ad series that I have S&D'd
for a campaign I am going to be running. A perfect fit -
from a completely unrelated industry.
(3) Sears Roebuck and Co. Fall 1900 Catalog. A 106 yr old
catalog showing how sears sold millions of dollars of their
products from print catalogs. The ideas are a gold mine -
and they are proven to work. All it takes is a few tweeks
and twists and 'voila' - a new campaign and successful
marketing rollout.
(4) NUTS! The Southwest Airlines Story for success. An
airlines quest to be the best in their field and break all
the 'rules'. They have been profitable since day 1 - and
compete on price - using service to differentiate
themselves. A fantastic read on how to treat your customers
and your employees - advice ANY business could use... no
matter what you are selling.
There are 4 books that I found at the used book store - all
of them held golden words of wisdom. Wisdom that will make
me and my clients a tidy chunk of change.
Look outside of your industry for the big breakthrough
ideas, then find a away to make them fit your business. You
never know what you will find - it just may be the box
breaker that makes you a small fortune this year.
Comments