How to avoid the Spray-and-Pray approach to your marketing strategy
I had a interesting experience at a networking and business building event a few days ago. We met over breakfast and there were various activities designed to get to know each other and to support each other in the development of our businesses.
One of the exercises we did was a group hot seat, where one of our fellow business owners presented himself and his business to the group and asked for help with his greatest challenges.
The business owner in question, let’s call him Adam, told us about all the amazing projects he’s been involved in and how smart the solutions were that he implemented for his clients.
But Adam also shared that he sometimes found it difficult to find new clients.
So we asked him who his ideal clients are, how we would recognise them if we tripped over them and how we could introduce him to them effectively.
Designing solutions for the challenges
In response, Adam, told us he’s worked with government departments, global machinery manufacturers as well as dog kennels and everything in between. He told us how he sits down with business owners and gets to really understand their businesses and challenges, designs solutions to resolve those challenges and implements the solutions for them.
All very well of course, but it didn’t help us much in our quest to support Adam. Most service based businesses do exactly that, they find out about the challenges a client has and then they offer a solution. But we never really got any further with Adam. Every time we asked him to get more specific he gave us more details of the wide range and varied types of clients he’d worked with. Although Adam left us impressed with his experience, his knowledge, and his expertise, at the end of the 15 minute hotseat, the group was no closer to understanding how we could help him find more new clients.
How can we help you?
In the end we left Adam to ponder the following question:
“Let’s say someone wanted to help you, really help you, and they were prepared to set an hour aside today, to do exactly that. Further more, let’s say that person had database of 6000 direct connections in LinkedIn. All business owners, largely in Australia and most of them in Sydney. Amongst such a database, it seems likely for there to be 5 or 10 people who are actual prospects for Adam.
Obviously, it’s not possible for such a person, to send a direct email to all 6000 people in a kind of “spray and pray” marketing outreach. So the question we left Adam to ponder was: How can such a person go about identifying those 5 to 10 perfect introductions for you from amongst the database of 6000?
Because you see, Adam really struggled to answer that question. Adam couldn’t tell us how to filter out 5 or 10 people in such a database of LinkedIn connections.
And I think most of us have that challenge. We don’t actually know how to identify our prospects.
Who are my prospects?
I find it difficult in my own business as well sometimes. I’ve thought about it a lot and often, and the best I can do is this:
- I’m looking to connect with business owners
- In Sydney
- That are in design (Architecture, Interior design, Graphic design) technical services (IT, Communications, Software and Web development) or trades (Building trades, Motor trades, Hospitality trades)
- With between 3 and 20 employees
- And that have operated the business for 2+ years
Confronted with the same question we left Adam to ponder, using the above criteria I could narrow the search down a little and have a slightly more focused list, but there’s probably still a lot more than a 100 people in that database of 6000 that meet all the criteria.
A direct introduction strategy is very powerful but it can only work with a very limited number of people.
Who cares?
So why does it matter?
Well, I do want to help Adam, he’s a good guy and very good at what he does, and as it happens I do have a database of 6000 direct connections, but I simply don’t know how to help him.
And what’s more, because Adam isn’t clear on who his clients are, he can’t craft a clear marketing message himself either and he can’t focus his own messages on the right people.
If Adam isn’t clear, his prospects won’t be either.
Most of us face that dilemma.
For me, it’s clear that small building and trades contractors, builders, electricians, plumbers, painters, carpenters, architects and engineers are absolutely the people I should to be talking to. Those kinds of people are right in my sweet spot. So if you know any of those, I’d love you to make an introduction, and I’ll send them my weekly tips.
But how would you answer the question we asked Adam to ponder?
Download my free 12 Question Cheat-sheet to help you find your next Coach.
Let me help you
I suggest you get a pencil and paper and write down the answer.
And when you find the answer, I make you this proposal:
Send me your criteria. The definition of your perfect clients, and I will spend some time searching in my database for one or two great introductions for you.
Getting totally clear about who your perfect clients are will totally change your marketing approach… I promise you.