What does the new movie ‘Contagion’ have to do with marketing?

It is my understanding that this upcoming action film is based on a threat posed by a deadly disease.

It is my belief that there is a deadly disease that is permeating many business owners’ minds. I call this ‘thought contagion’. Thought contagion is the unproven view that because something is popular it’s true or at least justified.

Let me give you a real-life example. There are companies right now that have bought into marketing what they do by having a web-site. Yes, this is popular, but I believe it is very ineffective. At least by the way many appear to be designed and worded.

Why do I say that? It is because all of the sites look alike. The have their company name at the top of the front page and then they speak eloquently about how long the business has been in existence or how good they are. They are so focused on themselves that they have forgotten about the potential customer. This is due to their effort to appear special or unique.

Is your focus on your business instead of the potential customer in any of your marketing?

What does it mean for a business to become unique?

Being unique to me is being without equal.  

I believe that being unique is surprising the customer by showing you are different than they thought you would be. It means being out of the ordinary. Being unique is an action, it is not just talk. It means creating a service or product for the customer that they would thoroughly enjoy, but never anticipated.

This is all about ‘going the extra mile’. It is adding something that they would never have expected. In fact what you are adding usually doesn't cost you much, but the perceived benefits for the customer are valued highly.

Can you think of a business that did that for you?

What can you do today for a customer that goes beyond what they have expected?

Does your business need to get better or become more unique?

It takes a rebel to argue against any business planning. 

The challenges is that is most businesses look at what they did last year and want to do provide the same service the next year and also get a double digit percentage increase. This is when you need to give your head a shake! If you continue to do what you’ve always done, you’ll continue to get what you’ve always got. There is no possible way to get a double digit percentage increase by doing the same thing as you did before.

Due to this it is far more important to become unique in your field and more people will come to your door. I say that because the curiosity factor in the market place will increase. Also when you decide to become more unique, you become more focused. You become focused as you look at all the processes you do in your business and start to tweak them to make yourself more unique. By becoming more focused on what you do well, you won’t be following what everyone else is doing.

By being unique or distinctive you will automatically increase your business because potential clients will see the difference in what you offer and be more interested in what you do.

Doesn’t this make sense?

What is the first step in service marketing?

I believe it is to improve your service. The reason for that is - you don’t want to attract more people to a flawed service company. Secondly by improving your service you will also improve your understanding of what specifically you do as a company.

You may be saying, “But our service is good.” My question is, ‘How can you tell that?’ Remember that most people have given up complaining, they just move on to another provider or retail outlet. The challenge for all of us is that we think we are far better than what we are.

If you continuously think your service needs improvement, it will force you to improve.

What would be wrong with that?

Are you at the end of your rope?

Would you agree that you are leading a life that is very complicated and involved?

In business we find ourselves working on many items at the same time which increases our stress level. When you are stressed many of your decisions are not as good as they could be.

I know that when you are not focused enough big problems occur. Let me give you an example from Success Magazine.

NBA Veteran Magic Johnson started a retail sporting goods store in 1990. In anticipation of the opening of the retail store he went to a sporting goods conference and bargained for the products he planned on selling at the store. The mistake he made was not doing research about what his customers would buy. If he liked something, he bought it. Within the year the store closed and a lot of the goods he had originally purchased were still in the store.

In Magic Johnson’s book ‘32 Ways to be a Champion in Business’ he suggests the following;

• Have a Mission – this is the reason your company exists. It should communicate the company’s focus and what is being provided to the customers. It should be written in less than 10 words.
• Be Humble, and
• Handle Your Weaknesses – we all have weaknesses, so which one(s) will you admit to need help with?

When it comes to handling your weaknesses, you need to look for people that know their subject matter very well and can produce results for you.

Marketing is an area that has the greatest impact on your business. It is also an area that I have been able to help numerous businesses all over North America. To take advantage of my expertise, give me a call today at 519-539-2267.