In the last decade or two the old marketing rules in the world has been re-written in many ways.
The old ways simply does not work anymore, and yet, 1000’s of business owners still try and use those “old rules” as their only marketing option.
Today, in the 21st century, business CEO’s have brilliant marketing tools & strategies to their disposal that they never had before.
One of these tools is the Internet.
Now unfortunately, contrary to popular belief, the Internet is not a magic wand as many people may think it is.
But it is a magic tool, the same as what a PC or Laptop is, if they learn to use it in the right way.
Obviously, there are many ways, in which we can use the Internet as a marketing tool, but there is one very specific way that no business owner should ignore.
Firstly – before you even start thinking about marketing, create an online presence.
This means “a properly manage website” that will tell your existing clients and your future clients who they are doing business with.
Secondly – you want to use your website to build a list of potential clients.
These are people or companies you hope to do business with in the future. This is your first step to create a sales funnel for your business.
Simply put, you want to create a way that will allow you a “foot in the door” with potential clients, so that you can introduce yourself and your company’s products and services to them at a later stage.
Your ultimate aim here for you will be to implement a marketing strategy called Permission Marketing.
Seth Godin is the “father” of the Permission Marketing principles as we know it today and it is one of the best marketing strategies any business can follow – in fact, it is the only marketing strategy available and recommended for the small entrepreneur, right now, in the 21st century.
The opposite of permission marketing is interruption marketing. Interruption marketing would typically be a television or radio advertisement.This is where a scheduled progamme (like a news broadcast) is interrupted to air an advertisement.
Permission Marketing is where marketers (companies) obtain permission from a potential client before they move to the next step of sending an advertisement to the potential client.
This form of marketing requires that the prospective customer give explicit permission for the marketer to send their promotional message (e.g. an e-mail, sales letter or catalogue request).
The 3-steps of Permission Marketing:
Turn strangers into friends;
Turn friends into customers and then
Turn the customers into your salespeople.
Permission marketing is thus the privilege (not the right) of delivering anticipated, personal and relevant messages to people who actually want to get them.
It recognizes and understands the new power of the customer – the power to ignore interruption-marketing messages. It realises that treating people with respect is the best way to earn their attention.
In other words, you want to use the Internet as a tool to help you to get PERMISSION from 1000’s of potential clients, locally or from around the world, to market your products and services to them directly.
Here is a checklist of questions you need to ask and answer yourself:
Do you need to GROW Your Client Base to sell more products/services?
Do you want to implement a New Income Stream for your business?
Do you want to start a New Business from scratch?
Do you want to IMPROVE the Branding of Your Business and Trademark?
Do you want to EXPAND your business nationally or globally?
Do you want to learn new skills to INCREASE your business assets?
According to a number of marketing experts, 2015 will be remembered as the “Year of the Split ” – this is the year where a “permanent split” will take place and separate the winners from the losers.
