Copyright © 2008 Judy Murdoch
Last week I attended the Colorado Independent Publisher's Association's monthly meeting. At one point in the meeting I was chatting with Jen, an author who told me how frustrating she found marketing.
When I asked for more details, she told me that after publishing her book, she sent emails and postcards to "everyone she knew." The postcard announced that her book had been published, gave some details about the book, and told them how to buy her book on the Internet.
She got a few nice notes back congratulating her on publishing a book. Sold one or two to friends. And that was it. From this experience Jen concluded that marketing didn't work. Or that she was a terrible marketer. Either way, she was discouraged. Then I told the Jen something that surprised her.
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What Went Wrong?
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I told her that her strategy to announce her book to everyone in her contact list was very sound marketing.
Why? It was inexpensive, she was getting in touch with people who wanted to support her, and she wrote a friendly, informative offer with clear steps on what to do next.
So what did Jen do wrong?
Simple: she made only one attempt to contact prospects.
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Rule of Seven
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I talk with small business owners all the time and this is one of the most common problems I hear.
Fortunately, the solution is simple.
Just repeat the offer to the same audience over time.
How many times? Seven times. For how long? A minimum of eight weeks, preferably more.
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People Need Reminders
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When I say this to small business owners guess what they say? "I don't want to annoy people."
Of course you don't! But unless your product or service is addressed at solving an important, urgent situation, people will not act on your first offer. They may not even act on your second, third, or fourth offer.
This doesn't mean they're not interested in buying from you. It just means they're not ready to buy NOW.
In Jen the author's case, people reading her announcement, probably thought, "cool, Jen published her book, I'll have to check it out" and went back to whatever it was they were doing.
I bet you can relate.
If they stop getting reminders they will forget.
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Keys to Creating Effective Reminders
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#1. Send Offers Once a Week or Every Other Week
When you send an offer once a week or once every other week, you are reinforcing the message over time. Each time they get the message, your prospects are a little more likely to remember and more importantly to ACT.
#2. Add Value with Each Offer
Keeping your offer consistent is important for reinforcing your prospect's memory.
To keep their interest, however, you want to include a new piece of information that adds a bit of value.
For example, Jen could send new, relevant information with each offer by including a section in the email that she could change each time the offer went out.
In the first offer she could included a paragraph about what inspired her to write the book. Over the next six weeks, she could used the section for reader testimonials, to tell a success story, to share information about support groups, and so on.
In this way, she reinforces the offer but keeps it from getting stale by including new, useful information.
#3. Create Urgency
Never underestimate the power of inertia when you create your marketing. This is especially true if your product or service is about preventing a problem from happening or has a payout that's more than 3 months in the future.
How? - Early registration discounts with clear deadlines
WARNING: Make sure your urgency is based on truth. If you haven't sold a single seat, don't advertise your seminar as being "75% full."
The message you want to give is this "if you're thinking this product, service, etc will help, take action. I really want you to get the support you need."
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Bottom Line
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When it comes to marketing, once is not enough. To get results from your marketing you MUST:
1. Make the same offer seven or more times over a period of 8 to 12 weeks
2. Add value each time you make the offer
3. Create urgency to counter natural inertia.
About the Author:
Judy Murdoch helps small business owners create low-cost, effective marketing campaigns using word-of-mouth referrals, guerrilla marketing activities, and selected strategic alliances. To download a free copy of the workbook, "Where Does it Hurt? Marketing Solutions to the problems that Drive Your Customers Crazy!" go to http://www.judymurdoch.com/workbook.htm
You can contact Judy at 303-475-2015 or judy@judymurdoch.com
