Start with Why
In the ever changing world of digital marketing, some key marketing foundations still exist. One of the most critical being why you do what you do.
Now, Simon Sinek has a great TED talk on this very subject which I highly recommend you listen to when you have a chance. But for now I will give you the basics and what it means for you.
100% of businesses know what they do and can communicate this with ease. Ie: we help with your accounting, we take photos, we make amazing coffee. This is so easy to communicate but it is also even easier to get lost in the crowd when you communicate in this way.
The next thing many businesses know is how they do it, this is your unique selling point, what makes you different from your competitors [you hope].
What many people don’t know is why they do what they do. By why I don’t mean, to make money, to have financial freedom etc. I mean why do you do what you do for your customers.
Simon Sinek makes this example very easy to understand by using a company everyone knows – Apple.
If Apple were like everyone else, a marketing message from them might sound like this: “We make great computers. They’re beautifully designed, simple to use and user friendly. Want to buy one?”
Does this method of advertising sound familiar? You hear it everyday…
Simon goes on to say this is how Apple actually communicates. “Everything we do, we believe in challenging the status quo. We believe in thinking differently. The way we challenge the status quo is by making our products beautifully designed, simple to use and user friendly. We just happen to make great computers. Want to buy one?”
See how they entice you into wanting to buy their products?
This message is in everything they do be it phones, computers, iPads etc.
You might think you are too small to have the marketing budget and reach that Apple does but think about it, do you want to market the same way all the other small businesses do or do you want to market the way the large successful businesses do? No matter what the size of your business you should always aim to be a premium brand within your marketplace.
Look at brands such as Tiffany’s, Virgin, Apple and even Lady Gaga in her prime. They are the premium brands within their industries, they sell emotions & experiences rather than products or services. No matter what their budget is at the time, they consistently portray the exact same message day after day.
People don’t buy what you do, they buy why you do it. If you want to build trust and loyalty regardless of your marketing budget you need to know your why, once a customer believes what you believe they are sold.
Have a think about three brands that you admire and do well within their industry. What is different about them? What emotions do you feel when you experience them?
Now think about your own brand, what emotions do you want people to feel when they buy from you? What do you need to change to make this happen?
By deciding on your why and working out what emotions people should feel when they have any contact with you, you are making creating your marketing strategy so much easier. By having this little piece of information sorted, creating your ideal customer, business strategy and communications strategy are much easier.
I will warn you now, as I avoided this too, it does seem ‘boring’ and not that important compared to all the fun social media stuff and content creation but by doing these more boring tasks you will set the foundations and make it even easier to do the fun stuff and you will get results much quicker.
If you get your foundations right, it won’t matter if you get sidetracked or lost along the way, you will always have a great base to come back to.
So, this week, I want you to dedicate some time to work out your why, and feel free to send it through or share it in the private facebook group here.
