This is a guest post from Proven Marketing for Professionals Inc.
(Member since 2020)
Do you ever get confused about the whole marketing thing?
I mean, everyone and their dog thinks they can do marketing. And they’re all going around telling you what to do.
“Social media!” “Funnels!” “Pay-per-click advertising!”
Wouldn’t it be great if you could cut through all the noise to find a clear way of thinking about this marketing stuff?
Well, it becomes a lot easier to understand marketing and make good decisions when you understand marketing principles.
Remember, a principle is a fundamental truth that serves as the foundation for a system of belief or behaviour, or for a chain of reasoning.
You have to lay a foundation before you can build upon it.
So here are four marketing principles for professional practices. I hope they bring clarity to your efforts:
Marketing is a top priority. The reality is that intake/sales/conversations (whatever you want to call it) is job #1. No intake equals no business. If you have someone in front of you who is ready to hire you – that’s great – but the truth is, that’s an unusual situation UNLESS you have effective marketing systems that deliberately funnel these people to you. Marketing is job #2. It’s a priority.
Be interesting. Some people don’t like to hear this: The easiest way to build a successful professional practice, or business for that matter, is to use a personal branding strategy. That means using pictures of you and sharing your thought leadership. You see, people like doing business with people, not faceless organizations. Are there other strategies? Yes. Can they work? Yes. But to avoid commoditization, you at least have to make your business interesting with messaging that sets it apart.
The role of marketing is to start a conversation. There is no “buy now” button for most professional services. To evaluate whether your marketing is working, you need to consider whether you’re getting initial calls and appointments, and whether these initial calls and appointments are with quality leads. If you’re getting calls and appointments with quality leads, but fewer conversions than you would like, your marketing may not be the problem (*cough* sales *cough*).
Being “the best” in your profession or field is not a marketing advantage. Being the best at what you do is a great thing, but generally, your clients or patients can’t tell whether you’re the best or not. They can tell if 1) you appear to be an authority 2) they like you, and 3) they feel well-taken care of. If you know you’re darn good at what you do, that’s all the more reason to use smart marketing strategies to your advantage. There are people out there who need you, so you’d better help them find you!
If this article about marketing principles resonates and you’d like to learn more about our approach to marketing, email Hello@CatherineCrosbie.com to request a free mailed information package.
I suggest it will bring more clarity.
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