| |
| |
|
Marketing Information |
|
|
|
Marketing as a Spiritual Practice II: Unearthing Your Potential
Marketing as we know it is over. Done. Finito. People the world over are bored and spammed to the brink of tears. But there is good news: There's a better way to connect with precisely those you wish to reach ? and it works far better than traditional, expensive, gimmick-driven marketing. We call this method "Marketing as a Spiritual Practice." Why? Because marketing is actually a process, just like any real spiritual quest. It takes time. There are countless "monsters" (or at the very least, struggles) at every juncture. We learn our lessons through trying and failing. And despair, it seems, is always just around the corner. But this process teaches us invaluable lessons: Experiencing success and failure shows that you are really trying. True, you'll have periods of denial, followed by frustration, and anger. But these will eventually be followed by enlightenment and elation. Marketing really is much more than a task to achieve financial success. It's about unearthing potential-in your business, in the leaders of your company, and in the kinds of clients you attract. And when you learn to market as a spiritual practice, the sense that marketing is a "chore" will vanish. Instead, the process becomes meaningful, so you'll value and enjoy it. Once you break from ho-hum marketing and learn to put your deeper beliefs "out to the universe" (think: "a broader level of promotion"), a remarkable thing will happen: You will attract those who really need and appreciate the products or services your company provides. It's an incredibly simple concept. [Then again, Buddhists say their methods are simple, yet it takes decades for their monks to master them.] Rules for Marketing as a Spiritual Practice If the following rules for this new marketing paradigm sound "New Age," read between the lines of any enormous business success story (even Donald Trump) and you'll find similar guidelines (OK, so maybe #4 would be a major stretch for The Donald!). Listen to Your Intuition When you are ready to refocus your marketing, there are practices you can begin right away. First, consider that when you do not listen to your intuition, things often go very, very wrong. Consider these examples: Case Studies: FedEx and Starbucks Let's start with understanding the value of intuition. Like these successful business founders, you must continually practice "trusting your gut" to make appropriate marketing decisions. Based on his intuition of the market demand and potential for a guaranteed overnight delivery service, Fred Smith wrote a paper for his college professor. Said professor was not encouraging in the slightest. But Smith still followed his gut instinct, did his research and preparation, and developed solid marketing. As a result, his company, FedEx, is one of the world's biggest success stories. A similar intuition struck Howard Schultz. While in a café in Milan, Schultz realized that Americans would pay over $3 for a cup of coffee. Thus did the creator of Starbucks give birth to his company, which has enjoyed phenomenal international growth in the past few years. Obviously, Schultz was correct in following his instinct! Willingness & Risk-Taking Willingness is the state of mind that takes an idea from intuition to creation. But too often, this willingness is defeated by a belief (especially inherent in business owners or entrepreneurs) that "we can do it all ourselves." If you are open to assistance and you have good direction, you will usually reach your goals. Case in point: We worked with a writing firm owner who wanted to return to her roots, doing more journalistic projects. After years of writing marketing materials and web content for technology-based firms, this owner lacked the confidence to approach editors of consumer-focused publications and pitch her story ideas. After a Speed Consulting session (just $180), our team helped her map out a strategy for breaking through her pain-points, and created several simple-to-execute tactics:
In just a week, we convinced two publications to pick up one of her articles. True, few stories are sold this quickly. But we believe that it was the writer's willingness to adapt to the editors' exact needs that allowed her business goals to be realized. In fact, one of the publications has since advised her that they would like her to write a series of articles...so this could be the beginning of an exciting, ongoing relationship for this very talented writer. What is the Value of This "Spiritual" Approach? In Her Own Words ? "After 20 years as a writer, and writing about everyone else's products and services, I found it hard to pitch my own. But Allison helped me to remember that editors are simply another target market seeking a product (my writing) that will meet their editorial requirements, and will be of interest to their readers. What was really wonderful about my consultation with Allison was that she made the process so simple. I had only to accomplish a few tasks, play to my own strengths, and the rest took care of itself. I could never have done this without Allison's immediate grasp of my needs, her very wise counsel, and her help with the pitches. I tell my friends: If you're paralyzed by a bad case of the "buts" (I'm really good at this, but...), and you truly have a willingness to succeed, do yourself a HUGE favor and call Allison! She can get you "unstuck" and back on track in no time, with her intelligent, caring, cost-effective, no-BS brand of marketing" - Owner, Lucchesi Communications More Tips for Implementing Marketing as a Spiritual Practice
We have New Marketing Products Under $15 that will help busy business owners get what they need right away!
About The Author As a former film & television director, producer, and manager, Allison rebelled against misleading, pushy marketing by consulting with businesses on "Marketing as a Spiritual Practice". Clients include United Airlines, Apple Computers, Chevron, ABC-TV, HBO-TV, advertising agencies, and hundreds of other smaller businesses. Allison Bliss Consulting combines an expert team of seasoned professionals from the fields of advertising, promotional design & copywriting, event and television production, who offer Fortune 500 companies and entrepreneurs an integrated range of do-it-yourself marketing products & cusomized hands-on services.
MORE RESOURCES:
Google News |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
7 Simple Marketing Tips Here are 7 simple marketing tips to help you boost your sales and profits quickly. All are easy to use and work for any business. Professional Marketing Have you looked for marketing advice on the internet recently? There is no shortage of self-proclaimed 'gurus' from which to choose. But what kind of advice are they shilling out? Too often, it's over-the-top hype, blatant commercial ad copy and other tips designed for selling an inexpensive product to the general public. Your Marketing Plan - Prerequisite to Success Marketing is a vital aspect of a business' operations. It has been said that, "Nothing happens in business until a sale is made". The A-Z of Exhibiting Overseas Exhibiting overseas is one of the fastest and most cost effective ways to identify the best foreign markets for your products/services. International trade shows and fairs offer opportunities for multilateral contacts and business deals. Is It Time To Kill Your Marketing Program? Ouch . . Marketing Discipline and the Joy of Success Discipline Is Important.I recently read an article about why discipline is important to a marketer. Making Networking Work Several years ago, "networking" was the hot buzzword. Everyone was talking about building their network, because this was the secret to becoming incredibly successful. Loyalty Cards - Tips To Consider Before Committing To One Loyalty marketing has been around for as long as retailing - attractive stores, good service, and a quality product line all contribute to building up a loyal customer base.With the growth of larger stores, a relatively new marketing component - the loyalty card - has been added by many retail outlets. Marketing with Special Reports. 5 Ways to Develop Content Your Prospects Cant Wait to Read So you've decided to start publishing an e-newsletter, or you'd like to develop a Special Report as an added-value for your customers, or maybe you've even decided to teach a teleclass or a seminar as a way to bring prospects into your business.So now you have to decide what you're going to write or speak about. Maximizing Your Yellow Page Investment Yellow Page users are the hottest of all prospects - someone who has made the decision to buy, and now is looking for a place to do it. Does your ad convince them that your business is that place?It doesn't have to be the biggest, although that can certainly help. Eleven Reasons Donors Stop Responding To Fundraising Letter Appeals Donors will stop responding to your fundraising letter appeals for many reasons. Some of which you can manage, but many of which you cannot. Marketing Gurus : Do You Need One? Its become fashionable to bash marketing "gurus" nowadays.There are some for whom the prospect of even looking at someone as a "guru" is a sin. Discover the Winning Marketing Strategy Secrets of Donald Trump Apprentice Wanna-bes The highly entertaining Donald Trump's search for an apprentice turned into a hit reality TV show captured attention of millions of Americans and week after week delivered great insights into leadership, business and marketing savvy.In one of the episodes Trump challenged the two opposing teams of apprentice wannabes (Apex and Mosaic) to put together a bridal gown sale. Creative Online Marketing For Salespeople and Business Professionals New to a sales career? Want to market yourself but don't have the money to do so? Tired of cold calling and prospecting? Wish there were an easier way to get the word out about your services?Does this sound like you? This was what I felt like when I got my first sales job selling copiers ten years ago. My sales manager back then was into the traditional methods of getting new business; that is, prospecting, cold calling, booking appointments, doing product demonstrations, and closing sales. Incentives For Customers? Whats New? Lost & Found for the 21st CenturyHere in the 21st century our lives have become more and more reliant on mobile items. As we go through our days, keeping a mental log of everything we have and where we have it becomes more and more difficult. Effective Use of Promotional Products and Ad Specialties 1. Determine the goals of your promotional products program. Your Elevator Speech - Have You Updated Yours Recently? Do you have an elevator speech? Does it get people's attention? Do they ask you lots of questions when you tell them what you do?Every great elevator speech needs to answer these key questions:1. Who am I? (introduce yourself)2. How to Save Time and Achieve More by Creating High-Leverage Marketing Assets The single biggest, non-renewable asset you have is your time. There are only three things you can do with it: waste it, sell it, or invest it. Increase Sales With Travel Incentives Today's business environment has changed dramatically over the past 10 years, it can be a tough task to make a sale. Just being aggressive doesn't cut it any longer. Peek a Boo - We See You -- 7 Trade Show Tips for Marketing Managers Peek a Boo - We See YouDoes your company have a description for a full-time job that says "Stand in the booth and hand out brochures."?Doubt it.
|
| home | site map |
| © 2006 |
