Over 80% of entrepreneurs make this mistake. And they can lose the same amount in business. What have they done? They’ve confused marketing with selling!
You Have to Market BEFORE You Sell
By [http://ezinearticles.com/?expert=Dawn_Ferguson]Dawn Ferguson
What is one of the biggest mistakes that you can make with your business that will drive away potential clients, cash, as well as those much needed collaborations? Is it undercharging? No this will just keep you working long hours for little pay. Is it over delivering? No, this will just attract clients who love to take without giving (and what you give will never be enough for them). Is it trading dollars for hours? No, this will just limit the size of your business to the small numbers you can serve individually.
One of The biggest mistakes you can make in your business is confusing selling with marketing! Selling is an exchange of money for a product or service. It involves an agreement between you and the client regarding your process and details. Marketing is a message directed at a specific audience, addresses their top of mind painful problem, thereby attracting the listener to you, and your business, for their solution.
What happens when you sell instead of market? Your audience feels you are pushy, that you’re not listening to what they need, you’re only in this for yourself, and you really don’t care about them. What happens when you market instead? You deliver a message that you care because you understand what your audience is going through. In turn this sets you up as the expert and specialist who people want to work with and/or refer (even at much higher fees). And all of this is accomplished with you feeling great about what you do and who you serve!
Selling has its place because it appeals to the conscious mind. This is the part of your client’s mind that retains data as well as makes rational decisions. The conscious mind operates through short-term memory, this is why it is best to have everything spelled out in writing for your client, that they can reference later. The most important thing to know about the conscious mind is that it engages after the subconscious mind has been activated.
The subconscious mind is where all your clients buying decisions are made. And those decisions are based on emotional needs getting met, not data, or processes. Very important, the subconscious mind is home of lasting memories. Plus, the subconscious mind loves dealing with exact information through symbols, such as a client avatar. If you use phrases such as; everybody, somebody, anybody, the subconscious mind does not have a symbol for those words and will thereby disregard the message.
So, let’s look at an experience many entrepreneurs and salespeople go through if they use network marketing meetings to build their business. A business person stands up, states their name, what they do, and what type of referral they are looking for (yawn). Does any of this stir up emotions? Is there any type of painful problem mentioned with its corresponding avatar that the subconscious mind can lock onto? Is there any reason for the subconscious mind and its long-term data storage, to retain this information? No. So the business person must rely on the repetition of meeting after meeting after meeting, before their message does its job delivering clients, cash and collaborations.
In fact, let’s look at sales numbers for the average salesperson: 3%: this is the amount of people looking to buy your product or service right now. The client has researched answers to their painful problem and is ready to invest in a solution. So was the sale you just made really based on your marketing expertise or did you just happen to be in the right place at the right time?
17%: this is the amount of people who are either ready to buy from you or give you a direct referral within the next 30 days. These are the clients as well as collaboration partners who are looking for an answer to their pain or their client’s pain. You can see an immediate overall increase in sales of 17% by moving your message from selling into marketing.
20%: these are the people that will never do business with you. For whatever reason, whether it’s your personality, your product, or them, they are not your client. Quit chasing them! 60%: This is your area of extreme growth in your business. These are the clients who are experiencing a challenge they rate as an annoyance, which will soon become painful. What will move them to take action is a marketing message that addresses their painful problem that they are experiencing.
Remember, the subconscious mind makes all that buying decisions based on emotion. Design your message around the resolution of that painful problem and you will experience greater sales as well as referrals.
Your Plan of Action:
1. What is your client avatar?
2. What painful problem are they experiencing?
3. Is this problem top of mind for them?
4. Is this problem urgent?
5. Are they willing to pay for the resolution to this problem? Questions three, four, and five all need to be yeses.
Market to engage your audience and move them into action. Sell when someone is ready to invest in their solution through you.
Dawn Ferguson is a Certified Hypnotist and Business Coach who teaches the Psychology Behind Selling. She has a FREE gift for you; a Hypnosis Audio designed to help you reach greater heights of Success with less effort. Go here to claim your audio: http://www.fergusonhypnotherapy.com
Article Source: [http://EzineArticles.com/?You-Have-to-Market-BEFORE-You-Sell&id=8300939] You Have to Market BEFORE You Sell
