American marketing will be the death of small business in OZ

Morning everyone…

I have just got into the office after a gruelling hour in the gym with my PT.  During my torture session he was quizzing me on sales copy and marketing techniques… the techniques he was specifically referring to were tear sheets, faxes, long form sales letters and sending random emails… also known as spam.  He was asking me if they work… here’s the thing… all marketing works, as long as you target it to the RIGHT market and not the wrong market.  Sounds simple right?  Wrong….

This is the 2nd out of 7 steps that I really wish mentors, business coaches and so-called “experts” understood…“Don’t give them a whole load of rehashed american concepts that have NOT been tried and tested in this market”

The amount of times I have been to a “business workshop”, a “mastermind class” or even had a conversation with an “expert” who has tried to resell me the concepts of some of the great Frank Kern’s or Ryan Deiss’ marketing techniques has been phenomenal… and the best part is – they never change.  There is always the same formula for sales copy, there is always the process of landing page with a special report followed by autoresponders then there is the free stuff you give away… then the social proof then finally you sell something… I have to say, I get this process… most of us do… then the question that begs to be asked is… why is it not as successful as when the Americans do they same thing?

This is something I have thought about, tried and tested, and watched others in the market place do… not very successfully I might add… and the answer was staring at me in the face… for the same reason that American Sales techniques don’t work here in Australia…. we are a completely different breed.

So if this is the case, surely I am not the only one to notice that these methods are having limited success here in Australia… then why do the people we go to for expert advice keep rolling out the same rehashed version of marketing techniques….  Why can’t they come up with an awesome and rocking Australian Sales Copy formula… keep the sequence… but “Aussie it up” a bit.  Why do these “so called” experts recommend sending tear sheets out… when the Aussie market are known sceptics and “why oh why” are there people out there suggesting to their clients to send faxes to cold leads?!?!?   Seriously guys… lift your game!

Marketing to the Aussie market can be an absolute blast… all you need to do is think outside the box… have a little fun and be really comfortable and most importantly proud of what you are sending out to your list… and remember – have an open mind with different forms of marketing online, offline and social media – you will always have the best outcome when you employ all three in your marketing strategies.

So… Aussie it up folks… be proud of our quirky sense of humour, our healthy scepticsm on overall our ability to laugh at ourselves.

Cheers

N

Sick of hearing…”No… that’s not a niche!”

Happy Friday Everyone…..

I absolutely love Fridays… for it means that I can complete the admin stuff for the week, have a 5.30pm meeting with the girls at Happy Hour at the wine bar next door, and of course… take some time out to write a blog.

Last week I started talking about what some mentors, business coaches and so called “experts” are saying and doing to their business owner clients… and quite frankly, its not all good!  I also highlighted 7 areas in which I think I have discovered what the Australian Business Owner truly wants from their chosen “mentor”…  Here is a reminder…

1. Someone who is willing to understand them and their business – not create a business for them that they don’t actually feel connected to. For example…. instead of being dismissive and saying “NO…that’s not a niche”… work out how their passion could be a niche!  Sounds simple right?
2. Don’t give them a whole load of rehashed american concepts that have NOT been tried and tested in this market
3. Understand when online marketing works… and more importantly when it DOESNT!
4. They want the tools of HOW to do things… not just theory…
5. They want you!  That is why they signed to be with you, to learn from you, to find out the strategies that worked for you and most importantly they want the systems that you have… so give it to them…. That’s what you are being paid for!
6. They want you to deliver what you promise… if you promise small classroom sizes and access to you… then don’t put them in a room of 35 and give them a “bees dick” amount of time with you… they want someone who “means what they say, and says what they mean!”
7. Their business isn’t just about marketing…. they want your professional opinion on all areas of the business… this means they want you to get a little more in-depth than just “What is your ideal day”

I wanted to have a closer look at point 1… “Someone who is willing to understand them and their business – not create a business for them that they don’t actually feel connected to. For example…. instead of being dismissive and saying “NO…that’s not a niche”… work out how their passion could be a niche!  Sounds simple right?”

It is very rare that a person will wake up one morning and say “I am going to start a business today!”… normally it has been on their mind for sometime, it has been a small urge that has manifested its way through the skin until it bursts out and says “Yup… I am finally going to do it…” – which means it is also very rare, that someone doesn’t know what kind of business they want to run.  It may be a cafe, it may be a coaching service it may be a software development company… whatever it is, that person has been thinking, contemplating, dreaming and weighing up the risks about owning this business for a while – that in itself deserves respect.

I have had too many people come to me recently and say “my last mentor said…NO… that’s not a niche, find something else”… which I can understand to a point… but definitely do not endorse this disrespectful behaviour.  Sometimes business owners do get overly excited with their passion, or an idea… and forget to do their due diligence and find out if there is a market for their actual business idea or not…. Please note…. just because your idea may not have a market… doesn’t mean it’s not a good idea for a business… you may just need to tweak certain elements, talk about certain topics and pain points and hit the right markers to find the market you are after….

What I see next is the most concerning of all…. once these “mentors” have disrespected your feelings, trampled on your ideas, and squashed the passion out of you… they then recommend a few niches that you should go into to make money.  Great… go into a new business idea with no passion, no sense of belonging and no real connection to the new business…. how do you think that is going to work for you??  Not well at all…. then comes the inevitable confusion.  ”I thought I wanted to run my own business, but I don’t really like what I am doing”..”I’m not sure I really have a clear vision of what I am doing…”…”I am completely confused as to where to start” – ring a bell with anyone out there?

This is what happens when a business idea or niche gets forced onto someone.. You don’t need to be someone else in order to have a successful business.  All you need to do is work to your strengths, think about what it is you love to do, then find what the market wants as a solution and provide it….

It seems so logical and simple, yet this is something I face nearly everyday with people coming to me for help in their businesses…

I am curious, what you your opinions are on this subject?

Have a great day all

Cheers

N

What business owners really want….

Afternoon folks…

My two last blogs around mastermind groups have certainly got people talking, people calling, people reblogging and most importanting people THINKING about what it is that they actually want as business owners.  There seems to be common themes running throughout, and that’s why it has baffled me somehwhat that there are still business coaches, mastermind groups and the likes there of… that still don’t get it!

I recently had a client come to me from a business coach, who was advised to change their whole branding to become a character that simply isn’t them…. they were advised to have the word “chick or gal” in their business name, even though this person is a mature woman who wants to approach corporates…. ummm mismatch much?  It seems that these coaches and mentors are forgetting the fundementals here… your clients wants you to understand them, work your magic around their businesses and not create a business or brand that fits your needs and agendas….

So lets take this a step further… what is it that business owners want from a business coach, a mastermind mentor or “an expert”?

Here is what I have found that they want….

1. Someone who is willing to understand them and their business – not create a business for them that they don’t actually feel connected to. For example…. instead of being dismissive and saying “NO…that’s not a niche”… work out how their passion could be a niche!  Sounds simple right?
2. Don’t give them a whole load of rehashed american concepts that have NOT been tried and tested in this market
3. Understand when online marketing works… and more importantly when it DOESNT!
4. They want the tools of HOW to do things… not just theory…
5. They want you!  That is why they signed to be with you, to learn from you, to find out the strategies that worked for you and most importantly they want the systems that you have… so give it to them…. That’s what you are being paid for!
6. They want you to deliver what you promise… if you promise small classroom sizes and access to you… then don’t put them in a room of 35 and give them a “bees dick” amount of time with you… they want someone who “means what they say, and says what they mean!”
7. Their business isn’t just about marketing…. they want your professional opinion on all areas of the business… this means they want you to get a little more in-depth than just “What is your ideal day”

I think these 7 items have been the most requested and complained about in regards to mastermind groups and business coaches… so what I thought I would do, is over the next week – is write a little bit of information on the importance of all these areas…

If you think I have left anything out, please let me know… dead keen to give as much info to you business owners out there… and who knows, maybe even some coaches and mentors!

Cheers

N

Making Mastermind Groups Brilliant!

Morning all….

I have to say I have been blown away with the response and the amount of readers to my last blog about “Are mastermind groups worth the time and money?” – it is clearly a very hot and contentious topic at the moment.  We had some fantastic responses ranging from those who have had bad experiences, to those about how mastermind groups should be run…

This topic is very close to my heart, as we at Nexus run a similar concept group called Sales Club, which is why I guess, people feel comfortable coming to me and talking about their experiences with other mastermind groups… now I wouldn’t be congruent with myself if I didn’t follow up the last blog with a “what makes mastermind groups brilliant” type of post… because there are some fabulous groups out on the market and it is unfortunate that they get “over looked” simply because of their unethical, uncaring, profit hungry compatriots..

So if you have been in a mastermind group, sales club or other organisation that has really “floated your boat” and allowed you as a business owner and entrepreneur to learn, get motoivated, ensure your success then we want to hear from you…

What made your group, club or organisation absolutely brilliant?

Cheers

N

Are masterminds groups really worth the time and money?

Afternoon all……

As a small business sales and marketing expert, I am always surprised at the amount of people the come to me complaining about mastermind groups around the globe… which made me think… are “mastermind” groups really worth the time and money you spend on them?

I think in order to answer this question we need to first explore a) what a mastermind group is and the objective of being part of a group, and b) what are the complaints?

In my opinion, and from others  I have spoken to, the term “mastermind” originally started as a way to hang out with someone who’s really successful, has the key to help other to be successful, is willing to teach their success strategy as well as having the ability to around a small group of other business owners in similar circumstances.

So if this is the case… then the complaints that I am hearing are making a load of sense…”there were over 30 people in the group”, “I didn’t feel I got any of the mentor’s ‘mind space’”, “It was clearly just a money making strategy that had very little ethical standards”, “the mentor didn’t have my best interests at heart”, “the program was over sold and under delivered” and finally.. and probably the most concerning of them all “participants seem to have quick success and not necessarily sustainable success”.  These are all people who have paid upwards of $25,000 a year for the privilege.

Does this mean that business owners and entrepreneurs who are ready to take the next step and be as successful as they choose to be, are now left in the lurch as there are so many poor mastermind groups out in the market place that they are all getting a little sceptical about the concept?  Or does it mean that mastermind groups need to wise up and get a little more “ethical and user friendly” about the way they deliver these programs…. surely they are a great idea when executed properly?

Would love your thoughts…

so close to Friday champers…. woohoo!

N