Are you doing marketing all wrong?
Urgent announcement.
Put down your coffee. Close your other tabs. (Joking – closing all my 16 tabs would make me panic too.) We need your full attention for the next few minutes, even if you do fly often.
Marketing is not what you think it is.
Forget everything you thought you knew about marketing.
Which is probably along these lines, right?
I’m not good at marketing
I don’t like marketing
Marketing is hard
I wish I could just focus on my actual thing and not have to worry about marketing
Marketing is so salesy and yuk
Marketing means selling my soul
If I’m amazing at what I do, I shouldn’t have to do marketing
I don’t have time for marketing
People don’t want to hear from me
People will think I’m being pushy
I have to know everything about SEO and Facebook advertising and lead generation automation to be good at marketing
Sound familiar?
You won’t hear us say this very often, but it’s happening right now… You’re wrong. Or, at least, you’re not entirely right. (Sorry if that sounds harsh – bear with us. We’re full of compassion.) These types of thoughts are often fear-based, not reality-based. Or you’re having them because you simply haven’t thought about things any other way. Because why would you?
Most people starting up a small business, especially when it’s just them going solo, are not marketing experts. They’re experts at what they do – at graphic design or nutrition or accounting or dog walking – but suddenly they’re hurled into a world of websites and content and networking and copywriting and email lists and social media that’s not just funny chihuahua videos (Ruby’s personal fave).
Look, even the word ‘marketing’ can feel a bit gross and off-putting.
When we created LaunchKit, we actually thought about using an alternative word, but that probably would’ve been a bullet train to confusion.
My (Ruby’s) mum, an amazing psychologist, established her own practice a number of years ago and initially found the marketing part pretty daunting. So I encouraged her to stop talking and thinking about the things she was doing as ‘marketing’ and instead talk and think about them as ‘business growth’ or something similar. It was a subtle shift but she found it really helped.
But whatever you want to call it, you gotta do it. If you want a successful business, that is. And by successful, I mean whatever that looks like for you. That might mean raking in the cash, it might mean transforming people’s lives, it might mean being able to get out of bed at 9am every day. But those things won’t happen if your potential clients can’t find you.
A fresh look at marketing
We have our own definition of marketing that’s not quite the standard definition. It’s not about selling and promoting.
It might be different from how you’ve always thought of marketing. But maybe it’s time to take a fresh look at things?
We say:
Marketing is helping people get what they want. Not convincing people they have to buy from you.
Doesn’t that feel so much better?
Go back and read it again. We’ll wait.
And maybe once more for good measure. Go on. Let it sink in.
You see, people want what you’re offering. They have problems and they want solutions. They have questions and they want answers. And they need to know where they can find those answers. So marketing is simply letting them know.
Marketing isn’t about spamming, annoying or tricking people. It’s not about blasting out your message to the world through a megaphone. It definitely shouldn’t be aggressive or icky. It shouldn’t make you feel uncomfortable.
It’s opening a door for someone, shining a light, making something new possible and creating change. It’s about making promises and then keeping them.
It is simply this: bringing your service or your idea to someone who needs it.
Truthfully, if you’re not getting yourself out there, sharing your message, letting people know you’re here, you’re letting down the people who need you.
How to change the way you do marketing
And now, because we always want to give you practical value, here are some things you can do to change your love-hate relationship with marketing (or is it hate-hate?) to a love-love relationship. Or at least a ‘yeah you’re okay I guess’ kind of relationship. Like the one I have with my dentist but only because he offers ‘twilight sedation’ for procedures.
Whenever you’re doing something ‘marketing’ – writing a blog post, sharing something on social media, creating an ad, meeting with a potential client, writing website sales copy, networking – think less about yourself and how you’re feeling, and more about your potential clients and how they’re feeling. Move the spotlight from you to them. It’s a subtle but powerful shift.
If the word ‘marketing’ doesn’t do it for you, just stop using it. Think of it as business growth or business development or connecting or whatever works for you.
Instead of asking yourself, ‘how can I convince people to buy from me?’, ask ‘how can I help solve my target clients’ problems?
Instead of thinking about what other people are doing in their marketing and what you think you should be doing, think about what your potential clients are doing, and how you can reach them, connect with them and help them.
Think about what you’re really good or what you enjoy when it comes to marketing. It might be writing or meeting new people or designing things or hosting events or podcasting. And then make that a key part of your marketing. Play to your strengths. Of course you’ll have to do things you don’t love too, but you can shape the way you do your marketing to suit you. It’s not a one-size-fits-all thing.
Now get out there and shine a light for the people who need you. They’re waiting!
Join us in the comments
Tell us – what’s one thing you reeaalllyyy don’t like doing when it comes to marketing? And what’s one thing you’re going to do differently or think about differently, having read this post? We’d so love to hear!
Need more help?
Ready to make peace with marketing but need some help?
We made LaunchKit for you. It steps you through everything – from building a rock-solid brand foundation to sharing your biz with the world. It also includes a simple marketing plan, a social media guide, website writing templates, real-world examples, handy templates and tools, and so much more.