Bet Your Car Marketing
 The prevailing marketing attitude amongst a large percentage of Independent Professionals is what I call "Silver Bullet Marketing."
It's exemplified by this story:
A few years ago a subscriber purchased my InfoGuru Marketing Manual. Only a few hours after downloading it I received an email from him that said, "I'd like a refund on the manual. I couldn't
find any silver bullets." (I kid you not!)
A silver bullet is a magical, all-in-one solution that will cure all your marketing ills in one deft stroke. It's what we all want and hope we'll find one lucky day.
Well, sorry to disappoint you, but there ain't no silver bullet!
However there is a marketing approach that is more powerful, more certain, and more reliable than any silver bullet. It's something that we all have the power to implement immediately and it almost always produces favorable results.
I call it "Bet Your Car Marketing."
Most human activities are based on trying. That is, we *try* to produce results. We make an effort. We struggle. We give it our best shot. You know the drill:
"I tried to get that article written, but I'm just not a very good writer." or "I tried to do speaking engagements but nobody returned my call." or "I tried to get my eZine started but the technical part is just too complicated."
Trying includes a degree of effort accompanied by an excuse.
Imagine this scenario instead. You are talking to a friend or perhaps your business coach. (Feel free to substitute any marketing project you are procrastinating about.)
"I'm going to try to get that article written this week."
"Will you bet your car?"
"What do you mean?"
"You've been futzing over that article for weeks. Will you bet your car that you'll complete it?"
"Well, like I said, I'll try my very best. It isn't easy you know, and besides, I have a lot of other priorities I'm juggling."
"Fine, but either you do it or you don't do it. If you're going to commit to writing it, I suggest you make it real and bet your car."
"What exactly does that mean?!"
"It means that you commit to completing the article, and if you don't complete it you forfeit your car. You can give it to a local charity."
"Are you crazy?!#"
"I'm not crazy. At a certain point it takes putting something at stake to get something done. You could agonize over that article for another several weeks or you could just write it. And if you don't, you lose your car. Let me tell you, if you put your car at stake, don't you think the article would get done?"
"I guess it would, I hadn't thought of it that way."
"No, because you're reasonable. And when you're reasonable, you always have an excuse that undermines your goals. Everyone buys into those excuses. But can you honestly say that the
excuses are as fulfilling as actually completing the article?"
"No, I guess not. But what if I make the bet and I don't succeed? What if I lose the car?"
"Well, that's the game you've been playing for years. You always hedge your bets; you never commit; you play it safe. And look at your results. It's time to change the game. Will you bet your car or keep making excuses?"
"OK, I'll do it!"
"Now you're talking!"
I've actually had similar conversations with clients. A couple weeks ago I put the pressure on with a group I'm working with. In that case, they didn't bet their cars, but they agreed to write checks to certain unsavory political organizations if they didn't complete the projects they were procrastinating about.
Guess what? Everyone got their projects done.
Want to produce breakthrough results in your marketing? Want to accomplish things you thought were impossible? Want to step outside your comfort zone and make something happen?
Don't wait for a silver bullet. Bet your car instead.
Reproduced with permission.
By Robert Middleton of Action Plan Marketing. Please visit Robert's web site at www.actionplan.com for additional marketing articles and resources on marketing for professional service businesses. |
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