The 10 Sins Business Owners Commit In Marketing & Advertising That Kill Profits and Close Doors

According to Al Ries and Jack Trout, authors of "Positioning: The Battle for Your Mind," 

The average person saw $376.62 worth of advertising per day in 2001.  To put it in perspective  - -  if you had a yearly advertising budget of 1 million dollars in 2001, you could only afford to spend less than 1/2 a cent over a 365 day period to reach the average consumer.   More  importantly, the other advertisers would spend $376.615 to divert attention from you (odds over 75,000:1).  

By 2018, the per capita consumption of advertising in America is estimated to reach $670.65 according to Statista.   It's been well documented that 96% of businesses fail in the first 10 years.  The ones that have crossed the 10 year threshold are still in jeopardy, if they are ignoring one or more of the below business strategies.  

1.  Understand the lifetime value of your customer. 

How much will your average customer spend with you after their first purchase?  This important number will determine how much you are willing to spend to acquire a new customer.   Most business owners have a fixed budget, usually a percentage of revenue earned, but that's not how a marketing budget should be set.  It's simple math, but most business owners haven't been introduced to this logic.  

2. Understand your market  cycle. 

How often does your prospect need your product/service within a given time period? Not everyone is ready to buy when they encounter your advertising.   What is your step-by-step process to get a complete stranger to know, like & trust you enough to transact with you (do you have one)?  

3. How are you positioning yourself against the  competition?

We live in an over-communicated society; your prospects want to know: a) why should they do business with you rather than a competitor; b) why should they do business with you rather than the alternative; c) why should they do business with you rather than do nothing at all?  Are you giving them a reason to say yes NOW, or are you hoping things "work out?" 

4. Do you know the 20 ways to grow your profits without spending money?  

I'll share 7 with you (normally, I only share the first 3 but I'm feeling generous).  

a) Increase the number of new clients 
b) Increase the transaction value of each one of those clients
c) Increase the frequency of repurchase 
d) Get more residual value from each client (for example, referrals)
e) Acquire new products/services
f) Acquire new markets 
g) Acquire new companies 

 5. Are you using Education Based Content in your marketing? 

At the end of the day, your prospect wants to make a smart buying decision.  A great way to get them to know like & trust you is to offer value first before asking for a sale.   Isn't that one of Robert Cialdini's 6 principles of persuasion (reciprocity)?  Through Education Based Content (EBC), you can make selling superfluous (through your marketing, you can make a prospect want your product/service before you ask for the sale).  

6. Patience! 

"You cannot determine what will or will not work in the marketplace; you have to put everything to an empirical test" ~ Jay Abraham.  This is assuming that your product or service has value to the end user, you can't simply put lipstick on a pig and call it marketing.  Great marketing cannot overcome poor value.  

7. Websites 

No longer can you afford to have a ONE message fits all marketing approach.  Yet everyone expects magic to happen when they send traffic to their over glorified online brochure they call a website.  The web-developer you hired to produce your "virtual business card" may be clueless when it comes to marketing psychology and conversions.  They are just worried about S.E.O., rankings and what you tell them to put on the site.  So the website ends up talking about you, you & you and nothing about the result(s) you can deliver your prospect.  You can pick 100 websites in any niche and you will find more similarities than differences in their online presence.   Most websites are incestuous, everyone bases their strategic agenda by looking at their competition, and the ironic impact is that they end up looking like their competition (when trying to differentiate themselves) in the prospect's eyes.  

8. Multi-behavior targeting, retargeting

Thanks to technology, what was once reserved for corporations with big marketing budgets is now available and affordable to everyone.  The global megaphone to the marketplace is both a gift and a curse (depending on how you use it).  Yes, there is a lot of noise out there, but with the right strategic approach, you can look like a ROCK STAR to your ideal prospects.  All it takes is one click and you can have multiple touch points with your perfect customer, all based on their interaction(s) with your marketing.  Pick your medium or leverage them all: YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, Email, SMS Text, Display Advertising, Video etc. 

9. Do you know the five forces you compete against? 

a) You compete against rivals
b) You compete against substitutes/alternatives 
c) You compete against customer's bargaining power - exclusivity
d) You compete against supplier's bargaining power - AdWords, Facebook (PPC traffic)
e) You compete against threat of entry - someone sees what you are doing and comes in behind you 

10.  Are you familiar with Chet Holmes' principle called the "buyer's pyramid?" 

The buyer's pyramid highlights how a tiny percentage of people, at any given time, are in the market to buy your product/service: 

3% are interested in buying “right now”
7%  are open to consider such a purchase
30% aren’t thinking about it at this time
30% don’t think they are interested
30% know they are not interested

What is your long term strategy or are you not planning to stick around in business for the long haul?  

Hopefully, after reading this post, you never again will underestimate the task at hand when it comes to generating consistent leads online.  As I've highlighted, getting your ideal customer's attention isn't easy.  Why?  Because it's a cutthroat world out there and not all marketing is created equal.  

I know you are bombarded with misleading advertising, confusing claims and simply bad information from super low-prices and high-pressure sales to unqualified marketers and near-worthless methods.  How do you ever find a qualified, competent, professional marketer to help you increase profits in your business?  You start by reading my "Are you too busy earning a living to make real money as an entrepreneur"  guide.  In this fact-filled PDF, you'll discover how to avoid 4 marketing rip-offs, 8 mistakes to avoid when choosing a marketing consultant, and 4 steps to a successful online marketing campaign that will generate leads automatically.  

I wrote this guide to help small business owners and entrepreneurs who are ready for growth; who want to stand out from their competition and who want to translate their unique passion into their marketing.

Now with this information, you can make an informed, intelligent decision.  And if you have any questions about marketing or increasing profits in your business, you're invited to call me at, 717-253-2639.  I've dedicated my business to educating small business owners and entrepreneurs like yourself.  I'll be happy to help you in every way.  

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