Is Your Small Business Delivering the Right Message?

“Enter the conversation already going on in your prospects mind.” -Robert Collier

Do you know what conversation is going on in your prospects mind?

Most small business owners don’t. They’re too busy shouting from the mountain top about how great THEY are vs thinking about what the RIGHT MESSAGE should be.

They just love pounding their chest stating what they THINK customers care about like “We’ve been in business since 1492.” “We have the lowest prices.” “We’re the best.”

What does having the right message mean?  I’m about to tell you…

Someone thinking of buying or product/service or doing business with you is asking one question and one question only:  “Why should I choose your business/product/service versus any/every other competitive option available to me?”

Do you remember Domino’s Pizza’s selling proposition they used many-many years ago?  It was, “Fresh, hot pizza delivered in 30 minutes or less, guaranteed.”

Think about it.  They didn’t say they have the best-tasting pizza.  They didn’t say they have the fastest delivery service.  No!  They mentioned the benefits of their service.

They said, “Fresh, hot pizza delivered in 30 minutes or less, guaranteed.”

When you’re in the mood for pizza, what do you want?  You want it to be fresh, hot, and you want it NOW.  Domino’s gives you all that in their selling proposition, along with a guarantee!  If it wasn’t fresh, hot, or delivered within 30 minutes it was free.

They were getting the RIGHT MESSAGE across to millions of people who wanted fresh, hot pizza right now.  And they delivered (pun intended, ha)!

In my coffee & smoothie business, I didn’t promote coffees or smoothies. That’s so boring – and people don’t pay premium prices for boring! Plus it just made me a commodity. After all, a smoothie is a smoothie, right?

So instead of a smoothie, I offered a “vacation in a cup!” That’s the RIGHT MESSAGE. The product doesn’t matter at that point. People want it.

So, what kind of message are you sending to your prospects?  Are you giving them a message full of benefits?

Another way to get the RIGHT MESSAGE across to your prospects is to show proof.

How do you show proof?  Well, there are a couple of ways:

• You can ask your clients for testimonials that you can use on all of your marketing materials. The more detailed the better. Example: “Originally, I was with another real estate agent for 6 months without ever getting an offer. I decided to switch agents and go with Jane. She came over and helped me stage my house and what needed to be cleaned/painted and how to make my house “pop.” Then, she had my house sold within 4 days of listing it! I couldn’t be happier because my family was moving to Texas, and I didn’t want to stay behind trying to get my house sold. I highly recommend Jane if you want your house sold today, not tomorrow.”See what I did there? I was detailed. Gave a specific time on how long it took to sell the house and what the agent did to help.
• Say you’re selling a weight loss pill. You can include scientific research results within your message. Show a doctor, and show the analyzed report. Proof is huge. Why do you think Amazon allows users to give reviews on products? Because they know it sells (or, if you have a bad product… doesn’t sell).

Now that you know you need the right message, it’s time to work on your plan of action.

Your Plan of Action:

1. Grab a free copy of my book “Small Business Marketing Made EZ” – it’s lays out the 6 simple steps to get your marketing into action. It will show you exactly how to deliver the right message to the right person at the right time.
2. Develop your message. What kind of benefits does your product/service offer, and how can you include it into your selling proposition?  Remember the question:  “Why should I choose your business/product/service versus any/every other competitive option available to me?”
3. Collect detailed testimonials from your current and past clients. It’s always best to ask immediately when the customer is happy, in the right frame of mind, and can take a minute to get it done before they get too busy. Request permission to share the testimonial. Use it in all of your marketing materials along with their first and last names.