Marketing 101

The Critical Steps To Take BEFORE Marketing Your Business – Marketing 101

Are you an independent professional who needs more customers? You don’t need a large marketing budget to generate sales for your product or service. But you will need to take some important steps in order to “position” yourself in the marketplace. Here are 7 steps you won’t want to skip:

Identify your ideal client and claim your niche. Hone in on the type of person or business you can get the best results for. Get clear on the market segment and type of problem you solve. Get really specific, don’t be afraid that you might be eliminating 90% of the population because the more specific you get, the easier it will be for them to recognize that your products or services are the right choice to help them solve their problems.
Pinpoint their pain. One of the most important parts of marketing 101 is to pinpoint the things that keep your ideal clients worry about that your product or service can help them resolve or eliminate. People buy when there is a need. The more urgent the need, the faster and easier it is to make the sale. Recognize their pain, hit a nerve and help them understand that they need to solve it and you’re halfway there!
Understand what their customers really want. What are the results that your ideal clients are looking for? What are the REAL reasons they’ll want to buy from you? Avoid talking about features here; concentrate on the results they’ll get from working with you and the things that will motivate them to buy (make money, save time, feel better, etc.)
Get clear about what makes you different from your competition. Another key element of marketing 101 is to refine your unique selling proposition or USP, which gives your prospective customers a reason to say YES by helping them understand why they should buy from you rather than your competition.
Create a compelling values proposition which explains who your customers are, what they struggle with, how you can help and what results they will get. Use this in all of your marketing communications – your website, business card, sales letters, brochures, sound-bites etc.
Develop a powerful message. And make sure that your message matches your target market and customer, and your market matches the medium (the vehicle you’re using to reach your customer.) This way your message will hit the people who need you the most.
Position yourself as an expert problem-solver. Write articles, do workshops and seminars, publish a newsletter, anything that gets you out there in front of your target audience and lets them that you’re the person or company who will best help them solve their problems.

Once you’ve taken these 7 critical steps, you’ll have a compelling marketing message that will help you attract the customers your business needs.

Want to learn more? Find out how marketing coaching can help your business.

"Susan taught me how to think about my law practice as a business. She helped me to build confidence in my role as a business owner and boss, showed me how to use my financial records as profitability tools and focus my marketing on a select target market so I attract more of my ideal clients and cases. I would highly recommend Susan to anyone who wants to run a profitable, sane and productive business. Thank you Susan!" -Lisa Eisenberg, Immigration Attorney

"I am one of two partners in a small law firm. When I started working with Susan, I was completely wedded to the idea that I was a "practicing attorney" rather than a small business owner, which meant that I often failed do any long range business planning or to maintain solid control of my firm's profitability and finances. Susan cured me of that and has helped me create a business plan for myself and for my small firm, and the results have been dramatic." Erica Bell, Esq., Weiss, Buell & Bell

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"I had been running my own business for about three years with mixed results. While I had a great client base, I had trouble managing employees and was terrified of growing too much too soon. I was putting in way too many hours with little result. With Susan, I've reduced the amount of time I devote to management issues, so that I'm working less and enjoying it more. Now I can devote more time to providing better service to current clients, and have the confidence to let my business grow again!" Ean Murphy, Moxie Bookkeeping

"When I started to work with Susan I did not have a coherent marketing strategy or proper marketing material. Susan helped me re-conceive how I presented my service to potential clients. And it worked. Within a few months I was getting more business as a direct result of the actions she recommended that I take." -Edward Antoine, Antoine Education

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"Before working with Susan, I did all of my business online, never feeling comfortable enough to pick up the phone and speak directly with customers. Her sales coaching helped me helped me get out of my shell, to understand the difference between sales and marketing, and the importance of reaching out and focusing on people. Because of our work, sales are up, I'm more comfortable dealing with clients and new prospects and profits have increased 50%." -Martin Cross, Patent Translations

"Before I hired Susan, my business was suffering because I didn't know what to do next or how to do it. After working with Susan, and through her gentle but firm support and holding me to my goals, I have moved forward by leaps and bounds. My subscriber list has more than doubled ...I've produced a new product, re-designed my web site and have more balance and confidence in the future." Dale Kurow, Career Coach

"It's one thing to have services to offer. It's another to understand how to shape those services into a viable business. And Susan has helped me in every aspect of developing my business - from big picture tasks such as financial planning and maintaining client relationships to dealing with day-to-day challenges. She's perceptive, candid and intuitive, and has provided support that I can count on. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend her to any friends looking for business assistance."-Richard Staub, Richard Staub Marketing Services

"During the course of working with Susan, my approach to business has changed. She helped me to refine my professional and personal goals, and I've been able to deal with problems that had long gotten in my way. In a few months, I've seen my business and my confidence grow significantly. Thank you Susan." -Ruth Seidler

"Business Coach Susan Martin has helped me to manage my time, build structure and become more disciplined. Because of our work I have more business, improved relationships with clients, and learned how to better balance my work and personal life. If you have any doubts about the benefits of working with Susan, please don't hesitate to call me." -Carl Navarro, JCI Graphics

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