Consider these your 2017 Anti-Resolutions…
Yup, it’s that time of the year… when you find all kinds of articles and blog posts from marketing & sales gurus about the kinds of New Year’s Resolutions you need to be setting on how to achieve growth for your business. And while I’m all in favor of starting off the new year by adopting some new ideas, processes and techniques… let me suggest that before you do that, you STOP some of the bad habits you’ve been living with up until now. Here are just a few…
STOP “winging it” with your marketing and sales. Block off some time (now!) and give it some real strategic thought and put together a basic marketing & sales plan to follow.
STOP making the excuse that you don’t have time. If you “don’t have the time” for marketing & sales, then it’s not a priority for you. Make it one!
STOP trying things one time… and then immediately saying “they don’t work.” Running one advertisement or giving a sales rep one month to close a deal are common examples. Good marketing and good selling take time… so be patient.
STOP pretending you know marketing & sales and do something about it… commit to improving your skills and knowledge in 2017. Our blog and eBooks are a good place to start.
STOP limping by on a website that hasn’t been updated in 5 years (or more!). It’s time to update the writing & design, convert it to mobile-optimized, integrate it with SEO efforts and so on.
STOP being afraid of ‘selling’ and commit to doing a few simple selling activities every week… following-up on leads and inquiries, improving your elevator pitch, reaching out to old clients and prospects, etc.
STOP relying on others for your success. Word of mouth and referrals are great… but when your referrer stops referring, you’re dead in the water. Get proactive to achieve your success.
STOP playing around on LinkedIn. Update your profile and photo, publish some posts, join appropriate groups (where your clients, not your competitors, hang out) and participate in threaded conversations.
STOP avoiding content… and write SOMETHING! A blog post, an article, a case study… something to showcase your knowledge and expertise.
STOP behaving like every one of your competitors. What are your true Points of Differentiation? [“We do great work” and “We have great people” are not them!] Don’t have any? Then work on developing them. And once you get them… make them the center-piece of your marketing efforts.
STOP with the me-focused capabilities presentation. Your prospects don’t care about what you can do… they care about what you can do for them. Show them how you can solve their problems.
STOP blaming your lack of marketing & sales by saying it’s expensive. There are scores of smart, creative things you can do without spending much – if any – money. Here’s a starting list:
- Write blog posts… frequently
- Refresh the copy on your website
- Create and send out a monthly enewsletter
- Tweet a few times each week
- Handwrite ‘thank you’ notes after meeting someone
- Subscribe to a free CRM platform
- Commit to making 5 sales phone calls each week
- Schedule in-person visits with the 3 largest sales prospects in your local market
- Create and present a webinar
- Add a marketing message to your email signature
- Set up Google Alerts to track your clients’ and competitors’ names
- Update your capabilities presentation
- Update your bid package
- And I’ll bet you can think of at least a dozen others…
So, as we roll into 2017, STOP thinking about your marketing & sales the “old way.” Get rid of those bad habits (and processes)… then you really can START focusing on the growth of your firm.
Here’s wishing you a very safe, prosperous and Happy New Year!
