The New Rules of Marketing

For many years the traditional methods for building a brand and getting the word out about your products or services consisted of spending a lot of money on advertising campaigns and even more on a public relations firm to pitch the media on your behalf and hope for the best. Well my friends, the rules have changed. Today you have much more control over your message and who you are able to reach.

Consumers appear to have little patience with traditional advertising such as billboards, television commercials, newspaper ads and messages that pop up in taxi cabs, movie theatres and bathroom stalls. But now you have a tremendous opportunity to publish great content and connect with like-minded networks of people online to build your own buzz, establish yourself as an authority in your industry and attract more clients than ever before.

Never has there been a better time to harness the power of the Web and “Word of Mouse” to propel a brand to seemingly instant recognition and success. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying that you can easily turn into a household name overnight, even though to others it might appear that way. As we know from Malcolm Gladwell in his book, The Tipping Point, trends that seem to come out of thin air were actually manufactured in a very strategic manner by people working diligently behind the scenes.

The new rules of marketing put the power back into your hands. You have before you an incredible opportunity to tell your authentic story the way you want it to be told. You have the ability to reach thousands, if not hundreds of thousands or even millions of people who want to hear your message. Understand these new rules and you’ll be well on your way.

• Static vs. Fluid The traditional methods of telling your story were static – a marketing brochure or pretty website with information about you and your company. To survive in today’s overcrowded marketplace, your marketing needs to initiate a conversation. Videos, blogs, Q&A’s, interactive tools etc. all get the conversation started between you and your target market. If you aren’t fluid enough to engage your market quickly, you will lose them to others who offer more flexibility, content and interesting options.   

• Print vs. Electronic Gone are the days when we get all of our news and information from the newspaper and morning show. Everyone has moved online, including all of the media giants. Claim your online space now and make sure people will want to talk about it.   

• Advertising vs. Authenticity Unless you are Coca Cola or Apple, which have established name recognition and substantial advertising budgets, it doesn’t make sense to allocate your hard-earned dollars to advertising when there are other, more effective ways to get noticed. Today’s consumer is so overwhelmed by information, that the first thing she turns off is the advertising messages. What she’s really looking for is authenticity. If your story is compelling and you are able to touch her in a meaningful way, then you are much more likely to count her among your tribe.   

• Networking vs. Connecting While you still may be attending a weekly networking breakfast at the Chamber of Commerce and are probably making some great connections through your non-profit board, it’s just as important today to spend time connecting and networking online with groups of people who can help you take your brand and your message viral. New marketing is about moving beyond hundreds of people into the thousands, if not hundreds of thousands. Resources like Facebook, Twitter, Squidoo and millions of blogs make this possible.   

• Expert vs. Authority Anyone can call themselves an expert. However, there has never been a better time to plug into the power of the Web to go beyond the expert realm and establish yourself as an authority with your message. The powerful combination of Web content such as blog entries, videos, article submissions and more, plus a network of people to share and pass along your message, will quickly spread like wildfire to create a viral storm.   

• Word of Mouth vs. Word of Mouse Having other people tell your story creates a domino effect to success. The power in “Word of Mouse” is in both the sheer volume of people that your message has the capacity to reach as well as the speed in which it can be delivered.   

Even though the Web and all of the options available can appear overwhelming, don’t be intimidated. It’s really a matter of just starting somewhere. Pick something that resonates with you, whether it’s blogging, submitting articles online, adding video to your website or setting up a page on one of the social media sites, and just start there. It’s a learning experience for all us and it’s much more fun when we’re doing it all together. As Martin Luther King Jr. said, “You don’t have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step.”

©Liz Dennery Sanders 2009

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How To Get More Referrals

If business feels a little sluggish and you’re not attracting as many clients as usual, here are a few tips to grease the wheel:

1. You’re not going to get many referrals if you don’t ask for them. Mention to friends and family that you have the space to take on a few more clients/accounts. Send out a letter to 100 people you know letting them know exactly what you do and how you might be able to help friends of theirs. Enclose five business cards for them to pass along.

2. Send referrals to others. If you haven’t already, create a rolodex of great product and service providers and become a reliable resource for great talent. What goes around comes around.

3. Make a big deal of someone when they send you a referral. Send a hand-written thank you note with a gift card to Starbucks, Barnes & Noble, or The Container Store. A tin of homemade cookies or box of fudge brownies works well too.

4. Focus on becoming viewed as an authority. Write articles and submit them to article submission sites, offer a signature talk for local events or make friends with a few of your local media and become a valued resource.

5. Stay active within a non-profit or organization that means something to you. Take on a volunteer or leadership role and show up at events each month.

6. Now that you are building your tribe of people who know, like and trust you, make sure you stay in touch with them on a regular basis. Write a bi-weekly newsletter, send birthday cards and quarterly mailings and never eat lunch alone.

In other words, take care of your tribe and your tribe will take care of you.

©Liz Dennery Sanders 2009

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The Four Essential C’s of Personal Branding

Differentiate or Die. Never has Jack Trout’s insightful witticism been more relevant than in today’s overcrowded brand marketplace. One thing is certain: in order to stand out, you have to stand for something. You really have to know yourself. A successful brand is authentic and confident – it doesn’t hide behind false promises or vague innuendos.

Personal branding is not just about building an image to portray to the public; it is about understanding your unique attributes, skills, values and passions and making sure these permeate every aspect of who you are and what you do. Ask yourself, “What is my unique promise of value?”

There are four “must haves” in order to build a powerful personal brand. I call them the “Four C’s of Personal Branding.” Without these, you will have a hard time attracting clients, enhancing visibility, boosting revenue and thriving in a challenging economy:

• Clarity: You must be crystal clear about who you are and who you are not. A successful personal brand is true to who you really are. Volvo is about safety not speed, Four Seasons is about luxury service not affordability and Disney is about family entertainment, not slasher films. If you are outgoing, quirky, creative and high energy, you will not succeed by communicating the attributes of calm, steady, professional and reserved. You also want to pinpoint your target market and figure out what’s most important to them. Before you can move forward in the branding process, it is imperative to spend a good amount of time with this first C, as it will be the foundation for everything you do from here.
• Communication: Once you have a clear understanding of who you are, what you stand for and who you are trying to reach, you will be much better equipped to communicate your message to your target market. Your brand needs to be visible to those who need to know about you. Consider all possible communication tools across multiple marketing channels (both online and off) and select the combination that works best for you. Perhaps you enjoy blogging and writing articles. Maybe you enjoy social media and want to build a strong following on Facebook and Twitter. Or you feel that speaking engagements and workshops are more appropriate for your brand. Whatever the case may be, you will want to put together a communication plan for your brand that puts you out there in front of your target audience.
• Connection: People want to do business with those that they know, like and trust. As a powerful brand, it is your job to make an emotional connection with your target market. How do you do this? It is imperative to focus on benefits and results, not features. Your ideal client doesn’t want to know what you do, they want to know how you can help them and what the results will be from working with you. For example, if you are a financial planner, your client doesn’t want to know what accounts you can open for her or that you’re available 24/7, what she really wants deep down is to know that you can help her put her two kids through college and help her to retire by age 55 so that she can finally take that six month European bike tour she’s been dreaming about for 10 years. If through your unique promise of value you are able to appeal to someone’s pain and passion, then you will have a powerful brand indeed. As you connect with others, remember the acronym WIIFM. The client always wants to know, “What’s in it for me?”
• Consistency: Your brand attributes and values must permeate everything you do. If one of your key brand attributes is “zen personality” and your brand color is purple, then you’re not going to send out a screaming loud direct mail card in bright orange and red. You wouldn’t host a salsa dancing party with flamenco dancers for your clients, but you might sponsor a lecture at a Japanese tea garden. It is imperative that there is a brand consistency with everything – from your logo and collateral materials to how you conduct meetings and how you dress on a daily basis. Always ask yourself, “Does this represent my brand attributes of x, y and z?”

If you take your time with these four essential C’s of personal branding, then you will be well on your way to understanding yourself better, enhancing your visibility, reaching more ideal clients and building a thriving business.

©Liz Dennery Sanders 2009

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Why A Powerful Personal Brand Will Make You More Money

There are many good reasons to spend time building a powerful personal brand, but one of the best is it will consistently make you more money. When you can clearly communicate your promise of value and make an emotional connection with your ideal potential clients, people are much more likely to trust you and open their wallets. If you’re ready to charge what you’re worth and get it, here’s why developing a powerful personal brand is the key:

• A clear message attracts clients, a vague, fuzzy one repels them. When you take the time to define who you are and what you stand for in the world and create a unique message for your target market, the people you are meant to work with will naturally be drawn to you. They will also have a much easier time finding you. A clear message is like sending up a Jimmy Choo flag for fashionistas who love shoes.
• You’ll get right to the results. When you have a deep understanding of the power of your own personal brand, you will easily communicate the benefits and results of working with you. You won’t need an elevator pitch because you embody the attributes, values and passion behind your brand. And people hire those who can get them what they want in life.
• You will be perceived as an expert. And people want to buy from the expert.
  
• When you’re memorable, you’re more likely to get referrals. In a world of sameness and following the herd, when you are truly remarkable, you’re sure to stand out. The Purple Cow wins every time. And is definitely moo’ing all the way to the bank.
• A powerful personal brand creates an emotion connection. People tend to buy from those they know,like, trust and feel a sense of intimacy with. The more authentic you are and are able to share who you are and what you stand for, the more easily you will attract your ideal clients and make more money.

©Liz Dennery Sanders 2009

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