Mar 13, 2013
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Exactly What I Needed
I attend many networking events from Salt Lake City to St. George each month. Some are Chamber of Commerce lunches, some are Corporate Alliance breakfasts or lunches and some are just masterminds with multiple business owners wanting to get together and chat.
One of the most powerful things I have gained from going to these events, is what I call marketing moments. At nearly every event there are marketing moments.
What I define as a marketing moment – A nugget you get when meeting with others that reveals a marketing hut button that you need to key in on.
Simple Case Study
I have so many examples of this but the most recent one I had was at a lunch event. A this lunch event I said to the group –
“At Innovation Simple, we do marketing managed. Marketing managed is the idea that we can manage the marketing of a small business and do it in such a way that it creates results while making life easier for the business owner. We handle all types of marketing but what makes it all so special is how we use our RobustReports system to track, measure and report on marketing successes. RobustReports gives our clients a 360 degree view of their marketing.”
I have given that elevator pitch so many times before, but without the following verbiage, “We use our RobustReports system to track, measure and report on marketing successes. RobustReports gives our clients a 360 degree view of their marketing.” What I noticed this time as I shared that was that the interest and feeling about what I was saying dramatically increased as I shared that piece. In other words, that was the marketing hot button that I needed to key in on.
Takeways
Targeted and Persuasive Messaging
Finding out what will snap your market out of Alpha mode (subconscious) and into Beta Mode (conscious thought) is what you need to find. Find out what they need to hear to get them to want to learn more (be sincere and honest though). In this example above, we found that even though response to our product and pitch was successful in the past, we got a BETTER response by keying in on one piece of that equation that meant more to the market.
Begin with the END
If you were telling them a story about your brand, what would be the punch line? What is the capstone concept of your brand? Can you tell your co-workers what it is that the market loves hearing the most about your product or service?
The reason why is that the piece that they need to hear to become interested and keep paying attention can’t be the last thing in the presentation or pitch or you will never get them very far. You tell them the hot button, punch line or capstone idea which gets their attention and engages them, and THEN you tell them the story of why and how you got there.
Split Test It
Not many small businesses have money for market research. This is understandable. However, the case study that I gave is an example of local market research on the cheap. You are likely already a member of the Chamber of Commerce or other local networking organizations. Leverage that time spent by split testing your message and asking for honest feedback.
Take the time you have in local events to slit test different messages to your potential audiences. Construct your elevator pitches and find out which ones work the best on which target audiences.