When it comes to marketing mistakes, this is the #1 biggest one that just about every business owner makes. Are you making it as well?
I know what you’re thinking: What’s with the dog?
I’ll tell you. Do you see how happy this little guy is? Everything about him – his eyes, his smile, his trot – exudes nothing but joy, positivity, and excitement. There isn’t a resistant, stressed-out, or grudging bone in his furry little body.
How often do you feel those feelings – joy, positivity, and excitement – when you’re marketing your business? If you’re like many, then perhaps not too often. And while this might sound crazy, when you force yourself to market your business in ways you don’t enjoy – in ways that might even be painful – it comes across. It shows up. That lack of energy, lack of inspiration, and lack of love for what you’re doing leaks into everything you’re putting out into the world. And while people may not consciously realize this, I promise you they can feel it in one way or another.
So what’s that one huge marketing mistake?
It’s marketing your business from a place of “This is icky” or “I don’t want to do this” or “I hate selling” or “Nobody cares” or [fill in the blank].
And when we figure out how to market our businesses in a way that feels true, authentic, positive, and even joyous? When we market our businesses from a place of positivity, gratitude, and pure love? That’s when the magic happens.
So how do we get to be like Fido up there, galloping through the grass with delight? Consider the following five tips and you’ll be on your way to shifting your mindset – and your message. Stop making that marketing mistake and turn it all around.
1) Start with gratitude.
A few weeks ago I was sitting down at my computer to write an issue of my weekly email Short & Sweet. And for some reason on this particular day I was experiencing, shall we say, some resistance. “I have nothing important to say,” I thought to myself with a sigh. “And probably nobody’s going to read this issue – people are so busy this time of year. I’m just bothering them with one more email.”
Then suddenly, something occurred to me.
I’d recently began a morning and evening gratitude list practice, and experienced firsthand how expressing gratitude could shift my mood and mindset in a matter of minutes. So I gave it a try. After realizing and acknowledging how thankful I am to have the opportunity to send something of value to 700+ people, and what a privilege it is to be able to add a little brightness to so many people’s days, my mood shifted. And before I knew it, I was excitedly typing away at my keyboard.
Get centered in gratitude, and everything becomes easier.
2) Get excited!
Do you recall the last time someone got you talking about your business, and you were positively fired up, yapping away with no end in sight? If possible, the next time this happens, have someone hit the record button because you were probably spitting out pure gems a mile a minute! Whatever you’re excited about in your business right now, talk about that in your marketing and you can’t go wrong.
3) Get to the fun stuff.
What is your absolute favorite part of what you do? Is there a way you can incorporate that favorite activity into how you market your business? I’ll use myself as an example. My favorite thing about being a web designer is when I create a design for a client and they tell me I’ve captured the aesthetic and message of their business beyond what they could see. And so, often when I launch a website, I will post a screenshot of the new site on social media paired with a quote from my happy client. I feel great doing it, my client gets some free publicity, and other people get a glimpse into how great I am at what I do! It’s a win-win-win.
4) Always remember the DELIGHTED clients.
When your clients or customers tell you how awesome you are, and how you drastically improved their life or business in a truly meaningful way, remember that! You help people. Lots of people. And quite honestly, if you don’t tell the world about what you do and how you help, you’re denying all the people out there who desperately need you the experience of finding you, working with you, and finally being relieved of their enormous burden and/or pain. The more you can approach your marketing from a place of wanting to ensure you connect with those who have been tireless searching to find you, the more authentic and effective your messaging will be.
5) Do what you love.
Surely there’s something you love to do that could be used to market your business. Do you like to write? Tell stories or jokes? Interview people? Take photos or videos of others – or of yourself? Design graphics? Create quizzes? Have conversations with new people? Speak to roomfuls of people? Lead groups? Give some real thought to what activities you enjoy, and find a way to use those activities to market your services. If it’s unconventional or if no one’s ever done it before – all the better.
Recently a friend of mine gave me some amazing advice. She told me that if there’s something in my business that I absolutely loathe doing, I have four options: 1) Eliminate it, 2) Automate it, 3) Outsource it, or 4) Continue to suffer with it.
Sheer and utter brilliance if you ask me.
After you figure out the parts of marketing that you can coach yourself to love and enjoy – get rid of the rest! Whether that means skipping it, automating it, or hiring someone else to do it (delegate = elevate), whatever you do, don’t continue to suffer. It’s not good for you, and it’s not good for your audience either.
In Closing
You love what you do. When you’re in the flow of your work you’re ignited, inspired, and passionate. So lose that huge marketing mistake that everyone makes and figure out how to bring that same passion to how you market your business. You’ll never think of marketing the same way again.
Ready for more mistake perusing? Also from Janelle (that’s me!) at Ellanyze, you might enjoy The 5 Biggest Website Mistakes or better yet, My Favorite Website Mistake
