I’ve been talking with a lot of people lately about ‘building your email list.” Rule #1, they say, is give something away for free. Okay, there’s merit in that suggestion I suppose. But quantity does not equal quality. If you want quality subscribers who are more likely to buy whatever it is you’re going to sell down the line, you want people who’ve already shown a willingness to buy from you. You want to charge people on your list for what they get.
Marketing – general
Interview – Target Market Book
My new book Profile Your Target Market is about to come out, and someone’s already interviewing me about it! The always gracious Melissa Smith, a Virtual Assistant Staffer & Consultant, interviewed me for a discussion she was having with her virtual assistant students. If you’re looking for a virtual assistant, or if you’re a VA and want superior working conditions, I highly recommend you contact her.
Why Profile Your Target Market?
When marketing your product or service, you want to identify the people who are most likely to buy your product or service. Not all bald men buy toupees. Not all thirsty women buy Diet Coke. You want to find out what the qualities are about the individuals in your target market that make it more likely they’ll buy what you’re selling.
What Is A Target Market?
Most new sales and business folks think of their market – that is, the people who will buy their product or service – is anyone at all. Anyone at all, given the right price or motivation, could possibly buy whatever you’re selling.
Where Do You Get Your Ideas On Sales?
I used to hate it when people gave me explanations like I’m about to give you. I wanted a magic formula – “Do A plus B, and you’ll skip over the following steps and wind up at Q a wealthy person.” Then I began to realize that people weren’t skipping over steps to keep secrets. It’s those in-between steps that are unique to each of us, that we have to go through ourselves, that help us define what “success” is for ourselves, and how we look at the world in general.
I’m pretty good at sales, but I hate it. Absolutely. I’ve never been able to separate a sales rejection from personal rejection. I began to think about it, and look around at the sales process. In our society, people mostly act on recommendations and (bluntly) snob appeal. If someone recommends an expensive wine, that’s the one we’ll order. It tastes like crap, but we convince ourselves it’s great. We’re looking for a dentist, so we ask our friends. Or a plumber. Or a car mechanic. We ask our friends, and in general we do what they tell us, and we stick with the result unless it’s too painful in some way. “The best salesperson is a satisfied customer.”
So. . . where do I get my ideas? I watch, and I think, and I go through pain of some sort, and I try to figure out how to get the results I want with as little pain as possible. If there’s a formula for me, it’s “Time plus Thought minus Pain = Ideas.” I know that’s not what you were looking for, but I hope you can understand me and where I’m coming from a little better.
Testimonials – Action 7 of 7
Action 7 of 7 – Get people to say positive things about you and your business, then publicize them.
Newest Clients
In the past few weeks, we’ve picked up several new clients. We also lost one client – because the owner retired. Enjoy your time with your family, Chris!
Two places I can mention include:
- Kitty Corner of CNY – a non-profit cat rescue based in Liverpool, NY.
- Dark Raptor Press – publishers of my books
If we can do anything for you, don’t hesitate to ask!
New Provider, New Phone
I dumped Sprint. Their “customer service” doesn’t actually exist. The store where I bought (no – apparently leased) my phone wouldn’t help me lower my bill. “We don’t do that here.”
Target Market Avatar – Action 2 of 7
Action 2 of 7 – create a profile of your target market avatar.
Commit To Your Specialty – Action 1 of 7
Action 1 of 7 – Commit to your specialty.