There is no silver bullet. There, I said it. I know it’s something no-one wants to hear, but it’s the truth. There is no magic formula or single blueprint that you can apply to be successful, to hit your goals, to grow your business.
That’s why the self-help and smart thinking sections of your local bookshop are overflowing with new releases that explore the same concepts and ideas in slightly different, interesting ways.
There are as many versions of success as there are businesses and people who run them. This means that there are an infinite number of ways to get there, something that’s only achievable when you have clarity on what your version of success looks like.
Is it £1million turnover, is it recruiting a team, is it working from home permanently, is it only working during school hours or term time?
When it comes to sales and marketing, most small business owners are looking for the mythical silver bullet that will defeat every enemy in a single shot, the enemy in this case being an empty diary or order book.
They want the answer to be a simple one-and-done so that they can do something proudly and then quickly return to their comfort zone, never having to think about sales or marketing again.
That’s why so many people resist investing in their sales and marketing practices.
To do so requires them to set aside their hopeful belief in the magic wand.
To do so requires them to embrace change and find ways to embed a series of actions in their business that they can learn to sustain over the long term.
I am not a fairy godmother. I cannot wave a magic wand and guarantee you an eternally overflowing pipeline of perfect customers or recognition as an instant household name after sending one email, attending one event, posting one piece of content, having one phone call.
What I can do, is help you design an effective strategy that works for you and your business and show you how to take the actions you need to execute that strategic plan.
I can show you how to integrate sales and marketing activity into your daily and weekly practice so that over time it becomes another part of how you do what you do.
It’s not a quick fix; it’s a commitment to a way of working that is sustainable over the long term.
There may well be some quick wins, but the real sales and marketing magic happens when you are in it for the long haul, showing up consistently week in week out taking action that moves you closer to where you want to get to.
There’s no one thing or series of things that you must do. What will work for you won’t necessarily work for the business next door, even if they do similar things.
The biggest mistake we see small business owners make, other than not committing to any sales and marketing activity at all, is to look at what their competitors are doing and think ‘we must do that too.’
They rush to implement something that may well work fine for others without really understanding why they’re doing it, whether they enjoy it, have the skill, time and other resources to do it.
They start in a rush of urgency borne out of fear and then quickly that motivation peters out. They start to slow down, then stop. Or they do stick at it and wonder why it’s not working for them as well as it seems to be for their competitors.
There’s so much to unpick there.
Just because something works well for someone else does not mean it is definitely going to work well for you.
Just because something seems like an exciting idea when it’s new and fresh, doesn’t mean you will still be interested enough weeks or months down the line.
Just because a competitor appears to be doing well, you can’t know that for sure without seeing their books, and you can’t know that their apparent success is definitely down to that specific thing you see them do.
Outcomes are not linear and neat. It is rarely possible to attribute any business outcome directly to a single activity.
In most cases, business outcomes are driven by a combination of different activities. The combination is where the magic happens.
Finding the unique combination that works for you is the goal of any investment in sales and marketing, and that’s what we enable our clients to do.
There’s a whole pick and mix of possible sales and marketing activity that can help build your brand awareness amongst your target audiences and help convert that interest into sales. Your job is to try a few, do more of what works and less of what doesn’t.
It’s that simple. But simple doesn’t mean easy. That’s why partnering with an organisation like ours can accelerate your progress getting you to where you want to be much more quickly than working alone.
Get in touch for a free, no obligation chat with our Founding Director to explore how we can become your partners in making the progress you want at the pace you need.
