Magnetic Marketing Series: What’s Your Higher Purpose and Why Should I Care?

In his bestselling book "The Purpose-Driven Life," author Rick Warren starts out by making the bold yet powerful statement “It's not about you”. In other words, “Well hello ‘ego’. I hate to be the one to tell you but, it’s not about you” – wow what a blow to our egos that is! And you know what? I wholeheartedly believe Rick Warren is right. Now while he appears to be referring to the purpose of our individual lives, I believe that his statement is equally as important and true for our businesses as well.

Simply put, “Your purpose must be bigger than you!”

So then let me ask you… Why are you in business in the first place? Why are you taking up space? Now if you answered something like… to earn a decent living and support my family… I’m going to take a guess that all you’re getting out of your business is a decent living and just enough to support your family. You put your intention out there and the Universe responds accordingly – that’s the Law of Attraction.

Now I’m not here to pass judgment on you however I do feel that the Universe intends abundance for all of us and may I be so bold as to say that the only limitations we have are the ones we place on ourselves.

Additionally, your purpose of earning a decent living and supporting your family does not inspire me to take action to do business with you. Yes, I dare say it, I want to be touched, moved and inspired by your purpose and I’m sure your target market wants the same.

All things being equal who would you rather do business with, company ‘A’ who never discusses their purpose and just blends in with everyone else or company ‘B’ whose larger purpose is one that you can identify with and care about such as ending world hunger or, helping others live lives of abundance and prosperity. I think the answer is obvious – people prefer doing business with people they like and can identify with.

So let me ask you the same questions again but let me rephrase them… What’s your higher purpose? What’s your calling? How will your business add value to this planet?

Take the time to think these through and document your answer. Then so long as you are coming from a space of authenticity and not manipulation, don’t be afraid to share your higher purpose with your target market. I believe that you’ll be pleasantly surprised how this can magnetize you and draw like-minded, supportive people to you. People just love to be part of something big, something larger than life… So why not become a conduit for that to happen? In essence, use your marketing to share your higher purpose so you can ultimately make a larger contribution to the higher good.

This will at a minimum differentiate you from your competition and magnetize you so you begin to draw your perfect Clients toward you.

Keep in mind though that your target market must be able to relate to as well as appreciate your higher purpose. Once again it must not be blatantly self-serving and it must be bigger than you.

So in closing, take the time to clarify your higher purpose; then scream it from the rooftops to your target market and enjoy the abundance that it can create for all.


© 2006 Online Marketing Muscle -- All Rights Reserved.

Liked this article? Want to use it in your eZine, blog or web site? You have my blessing so long as you include this complete blurb with it (including links).

Online entrepreneur Dean Mercado, "The Motivational Marketer", is creator of the acclaimed 'Pumped Up Networking' system geared to explode your business through professional relationships.  To learn more about it and to sign up for his FREE eZine the 'Marketing Minute' – a weekly multimedia eZine designed to give you a jolt of marketing wisdom in less than 5 minutes, visit www.OnlineMarketingMuscle.com.

Magnetic Marketing Series: Even Though It’s Business, It’s All Personal

Did you ever hear somebody say, “It’s just business, it’s not personal”? I know I certainly have. Well my answer to that statement is baloney, who were they trying to kid? It’s kind of like a sugar-coated way of saying “I’m sticking it to you, but don’t get upset about it” – Am I right or what?

No business happens without affecting people in one way, shape or, form. So how could it not be personal? As a matter of fact I’m of the opinion that when the personal is taken out of any business, it becomes sterile and institutional – in other words, BORING. And worse yet, those businesses are usually on their way out.

So here’s a million dollar tip for you… business is very personal and don’t let anybody tell you differently!

Now as a, well I guess you can say, marketing expert, two of the most pressing questions that small businesses ask me all the time are:

1. How do I attract better and more clients?


2. How do I differentiate myself from the competition?

My approach in answering these very important questions is quite simple. I believe it’s safe to say that people prefer doing business with people they like and can identify with – don’t you think? So based on that, I take an approach that leverages that premise and I’ve coined this approach the “Power of Personal”. In a nutshell the “Power of Personal” marketing approach caters to the personal side of your target market by putting a personal spin on your marketing – looking to make your communications with your target market more authentic and magnetic.

Let’s explore this approach a bit.

The Power of Personal is magnetic!

The law of attraction dictates that like attracts like so if that’s the case, I believe it’s safe to say that the more personal you are in you business and in your marketing, the more you will attract like-minded, better-fitting Clients.

Well how can you make your business and your marketing more personal? You can start by openly and readily sharing your story. How did you get to where you are today and why are you doing what you do? Give your target market a way to get to know you and a reason to trust you.


So with that being said, what’s your story? What makes you interesting and possibly even unique?

Now if you want to take it up a notch and really leverage the Power of Personal, along with allowing your target market to get to know you, take the time to get to know them more intimately. Intimately enough to clearly understand things like, what’s important to them, what challenges they face, how they want to be helped, and so on and so on.

Once you do this, you can leverage that knowledge to strengthen your marketing message and your relationships with your target market.

The Power of Personal is strategic!
Talk about a simple yet excellent approach to differentiating yourself from the competition. You are a unique individual – we all are for that matter. Stand behind your uniqueness and leverage it in your marketing.

One place you can start with this is by taking a hard look at your unique selling proposition or more commonly known as your USP. Look to strengthen it and leverage it more effectively in your everyday marketing.

The Power of Personal is just plain good business!
Remember the Golden Rule, do unto others as you would have them do unto you. Being authentic and personal in your marketing is simply good business. It takes the uncertainty out of it and empowers all to make better decisions. Ultimately, it tends to make business fun and isn’t that what life is all about, having fun?


So in closing, I just want to reiterate that:

The Power of Personal is magnetic!
The Power of Personal is strategic!
The Power of Personal is just plain good business!


© 2006 Online Marketing Muscle -- All Rights Reserved.

Liked this article? Want to use it in your eZine, blog or web site? You have my blessing so long as you include this complete blurb with it (including links).

Online entrepreneur Dean Mercado, "The Motivational Marketer", is creator of the acclaimed 'Pumped Up Networking' system geared to explode your business through professional relationships.  To learn more about it and to sign up for his FREE eZine the 'Marketing Minute' – a weekly multimedia eZine designed to give you a jolt of marketing wisdom in less than 5 minutes, visit www.OnlineMarketingMuscle.com.

The Secret movie Teachers on Larry King Live again Thursday November 16

Be sure to tune in to (and/or record) the Larry King Live show Thursday November 16 for more wisdom from more of the Teachers from The Secret movie - http://thesecret.tv "Beyond Positive Thinking" is the second of a 2 part series . Thursday night guests will be more of our favorite teachers:

James Ray - http://www.jamesray.com
Jack Canfield - http://www.jackcanfield.com
Dr. Joe Vitale - http://www.mrfire.com
George Pratt - http://www.drgeorgepratt.com
Jayne Payne - http://www.theintensiveprogram.com

This show reaches millions of people with the message of The Secret movie. Check here for air times or check your local listings. http://www.cnn.com/CNN/Programs/larry.king.live/.

When Part 1 aired on November 2nd, the feedback overwhelmed the staff at CNN... they received nearly 7 times the normal amount of email, and it's still coming in! Send Larry King your feedback and let him know that you want to see more shows with positive impact from the media. http://www.cnn.com/feedback/forms/form5.html?12

Regards,

Dean

Magnetic Marketing Series: If Like Attracts Like, Then Who Exactly Is Your Marketing Attracting?

Let me ask you. Could it really be possible that the types of prospects that your marketing is attracting, is simply a mirror image of how you’re showing up in the marketing messages you’re putting out there? Well according to the universal Law of Attraction, that’s a big “yes” – you are attracting the mirror image of your marketing.

So is your marketing attracting those who you deem as perfect prospects – Perfect prospects being those that express the characteristics and behaviors that you prefer in a Client – your ideal Client so to speak – Clients that make your life easy, lucrative, and fun?

If so, great; whether knowingly or not, you are most likely properly leveraging the Law of Attraction in your marketing!

However if don’t seem to be attracting that ideal client, or enough ideal clients, then obviously something’s not right. And what I’m going to suggest you take a look at is not your typical mainstream marketing advice – I’m going to for the sake of this conversation assume that you’ve got your traditional marketing bases covered. You’ve properly considered things like your target market and the marketing medium you will use to communicate your message. You’ve done your marketing due diligence and logic states that your marketing should be working – but it’s not. At least not to the level you need it to.

So what am I talking about here? Brace yourself and listen with an open mind here as this may be the most important marketing advice you will ever hear.

I’m talking about being more authentic in your marketing – authentic as I’m describing here meaning the real you. Give yourself permission to open up and genuinely share yourself with your target market – let them in to your world. It’s okay to be human. Share your ups, your downs, your likes and your dislikes and you’ll be amazed at how the Law of Attraction kicks in and begins attracting those who are more aligned with you, to you.

Remember people love doing business with people they like and can identify with so don’t hold back. Holding back tends to lend an air of mystery that in business can either scare away perfect prospects or make you look just like everyone else – BORING.

And if you happen to outsource your marketing, be extra careful here. Are you sure that the messages they create on your behalf, whether in an advertisement, a brochure, or any other marketing materials are properly capturing your authenticity? Do yourself a favor here and be sure that they are.


So in closing, sometimes we have to look a bit deeper to find the root causes of our successes and failures. And those searches can sometimes take us out of our comfort zone and into more abstract areas. It’s when we are bold enough to play full out and stay in the game long enough that we uncover the real gems of our success.


© 2006 Online Marketing Muscle -- All Rights Reserved.

Liked this article? Want to use it in your eZine, blog or web site? You have my blessing so long as you include this complete blurb with it (including links).

Online entrepreneur Dean Mercado, "The Motivational Marketer", is creator of the acclaimed 'Pumped Up Networking' system geared to explode your business through professional relationships.  To learn more about it and to sign up for his FREE eZine the 'Marketing Minute' – a weekly multimedia eZine designed to give you a jolt of marketing wisdom in less than 5 minutes, visit www.OnlineMarketingMuscle.com.

Marketing Methodology: The 180° Marketing Method

Let me ask you a couple of point blank questions if I may – First, why would your target market choose you over your competition? And second, what are you doing to ensure that you stand out long enough to get noticed and ultimately hired?

For most of us, there is already a glutton of people and businesses out there who do what we do. There are tons of Financial Planners, CPA's, Internet Marketers, Business Coaches, Real Estate Agents, and so on. Bottom line, there’s a lot of competition all around you vying for a piece of the same pie – your pie!

And too many businesses today, like lemmings play follow the follower – only to be left in bewilderment wondering why they are not achieving the success they feel they should in their business. They take a “me too” approach to their marketing and expect ever increasing market share. The reality here is that this approach tends to blend you in with all others who provide similar products and services – positioning you to compete on price alone. And believe me, unless you’re moving tons of quantity, you do not want to be in that position.

I have to say that one of the greatest gifts that my master's degree in business administration has given me was the idea to study and leverage what I needed from world class companies in different industries. Although at the time I didn’t quite fully understand the extent of the significance of doing that, many years later I look back and WOW, what a gift! That gift has provided me with the basis for a marketing methodology that I call the 180° Marketing Method. The root idea of this methodology is simply to look at what your competition is doing and do something else – look into other industries and pioneer their successful marketing tactics and strategies in your industry.

Now I’m not telling you to stop doing a specific marketing tactic or strategy that works for you just because your competition happens to use the same one – Heck, leverage that one for all it’s worth. You may want to however put some thought into how to tweak that one a bit to help you stand out. Additionally though, I’m recommending that you employ other marketing tactics and strategies that your competition may not be using. Expand your horizons, look at other industries – How do they market, sell and deliver their products and services?

So how do you go about applying the180° Marketing Method? Well here are a few ideas to get you started:

1. Really know your target market. What’s important to them? How do they prefer to be communicated with and marketed to? Identify what works as well as what doesn’t work for them.


2. Really know your competition. Exactly how do they market and position themselves to your target market? If possible get on their mailing lists to stay abreast of their marketing efforts.


3. Look for great marketing and create a “swipe” file. If your challenge is marketing, what expert, business, or industry in your opinion does a great job at it? How do they effectively market themselves? Can you leverage their approach to use with your target market? Gather samples of their effective marketing copy as well as any other copy that you feel you can use to inspire your own.

So in closing, take note that doing the same thing your competition does just because that’s what everyone else does in your industry comes from a survival mindset and can be fatal. Want to skip that fate? Then I challenge you to adopt an abundance mindset and dare to be different by employing the 180° Marketing Method in your business today!


© 2006 Online Marketing Muscle -- All Rights Reserved.

Liked this article? Want to use it in your eZine, blog or web site? You have my blessing so long as you include this complete blurb with it (including links).

Online entrepreneur Dean Mercado, "The Motivational Marketer", is creator of the acclaimed 'Pumped Up Networking' system geared to explode your business through professional relationships.  To learn more about it and to sign up for his FREE eZine the 'Marketing Minute' – a weekly multimedia eZine designed to give you a jolt of marketing wisdom in less than 5 minutes, visit www.OnlineMarketingMuscle.com.