of success.Sound completely airy-fairy? We understand the
response. But in reality, marketing consists of a set of specific
actions or practices. And only you can decide whether you wish to
tackle them in angst, or with value and truth (i.e., as a "spiritual
practice"). Once you learn how to apply this practice to your
marketing, you'll make more money, attract clients truly right for you,
and feel exponentially more satisfied.
HOW IT WORKS
We know
that it is unlikely in the first 20 years of a business to have the
experience to know which strategies will work and that it's virtually
impossible to have the objectivity needed to create a clear, concise
marketing message for oneself.
1. Define your marketing messages.
This is precisely one of the steps in the "spiritual practice": if you
struggle with marketing you can quicken the process and stay on course
by defining your messages and getting professional help to learn which
strategies will work for your business now, and over time.
Remember
when Coca Cola actually used to sell the taste of its product, rather
than the image of the drink as a hip, cultural accoutrement? A dozen
years ago, I helped Honda build an image that appealed to the "laid
back California" market. How times have changed: now the company9;s
messages promote safety and reliability to attract "serious" buyers
across the nation.
Let a marketing professional help you define
your key marketing messages or write your promotional materials: they
are trained to clarify your offer to attract those who need what you
sell. Your ideas will be defined and refined into clear, convincing,
compelling information that will get your audience to react. And when
you use "Marketing as a Spiritual Practice" to guide you, your writing
will delve into your deeper wisdom, product offerings, how you can help
clients solve their problems: No jargon, no gimmicks, no trickery. Just
a deeper "wisdom" in your marketing.
2. Attract clients who are
right for you. Once you are on purpose (or "in spirit") with connecting
your valuable products or services with those who value them, you will
attract the clients or customers who are truly right for your business.
You won't need to "trick" them with clever marketing gimmicks or spam
(which we're all completely fed up with, anyway). Instead, your
judgment and wisdom will guide you to follow the practice outlined
below. Of course, if you're one epiphany short of a great concept, give
us a call!
CLARITY
3. The root of spiritual marketing is
clarity. If you are clear about what you want and what you offer, you
will make it easier for people to do business with you: Your
prospective customers will instantly know whether you offer what they
need.
It doesn't matter if you sell computer software, handbags,
or coaching services. The fact is, companies often describe what they
offer with far too much complexity. Thus, it becomes that much harder
for people to make a decision to purchase what they sell. Achieving
this clarity – this unwavering perception of how to do self-promotion –
is typically the biggest challenge for companies of all sizes.
Another
related business challenge: offering complex products at varying price
points, through multiple distribution channels. This scatter-shot
approach confuses people. As a result, they must work even harder to
un-clutter or 'clarify' what your company is selling in order to buy.
4.
Make it easy for people to find your prices. Consider this: if you
don't put prices on your services, and people have to ask what they
cost, you will probably lose sales. Far too many of us instantly recall
the axiom that states, "if you have to ask how much, you probably can't
afford it."
FAITH
5. If you don't have the faith in what
you are doing, or confidence in your abilities, you'll have a harder
time selling your product or service. You won't be able to stick with a
plan or follow through on a marketing campaign long enough to generate
worthy results. I see this failure most often in businesses in their
first 10 years. They jump from gimmick to campaign, and don't do the
all-important follow-up (which is where most sales are generated).
More
importantly, it's simply not a "spiritual practice" to put stuff out
there without making personal connections. That is the true reward.
Deep joy is only achieved through honest, real connections; not with
marketing hype that preempts the development of true, lasting
relationships. (See more on this concept below)
WISDOM
6.
All world, business, and spiritual leaders seek wisdom. We are only
human; obviously, we cannot have all the answers. It is imperative to
our business and to our personal growth that we seek the knowledge
needed to continually improve our business (and in turn, our lives). We
must never be too proud (or too foolish) to request help from experts
when needed.
By sharing the wisdom of successful business owners
and marketers, you will find inspiration and enlightenment. You can
choose from a full breadth of writings, classes, and consultations (or
even meditation, if you're so inclined). In addition, you can learn
from the mistakes of others, and share in their lessons learned. Hey,
it worked for Buddha ... why not us business owners? After all,
Knowledge is Bliss.
TAKE ACTION
7. Once the vision of your
business has been defined, and you have the wisdom, clarity, and faith
in your ability to deliver, you must be a devout marketer. You must
take action to gain the clientele you have prepared to service, and
which you deserve. Without the action, there will be no results. Using
this method for marketing will allow you to pursue your action with
integrity, confidence, and even joy.
WHERE CAN YOU FIND HELP?
8.
Inspiration comes from many sources: classes, reading, or working with
insightful and intuitive professionals who can offer guidance and take
action with you. A great marketing pro should have teams of writers,
designers, publicists, researchers, and website experts use specific
guidance processes to help get companies on target, plan their
marketing using proven methods and inspired techniques that work, and
develop creative, thoughtful promotional materials and/or publicity
campaigns. That's what we do.
CONNECT TO REAP REWARDS
9. We
believe that deep connections with our clients and our community are
what make a business really work. It's a mystery to us ... but we find
that if you invest in the spiritual aspect of your business, you will
reap many unanticipated rewards, both financially and by gaining joy
and bliss in your company.
Allison Bliss Consulting, the creator
of "Marketing as a Spiritual Practice" method, rebels against
misleading, pushy, spam-filled marketing offering Fortune 500 companies
and entrepreneurs an integrated range of do-it-yourself marketing
products & customized marketing strategy, plans, promotional
materials, websites, and hands-on services. Clients include United
Airlines, Honda, ABC-TV, Hewlett Packard and hundreds of smaller or
entrepreneurial companies.