Heather, Author at Write Approach Marketing

Back on track

A little over three months ago, I made a promise to myself (and on here so that I was accountable) that I would try to publish something once a week on my blog.

A little over a month ago, the first week of ‘too much else going on’ happened and I let it slide. Then, the next week something else… and the next… Each week, something was happening. I made excuses (in my head) for not posting.

And now, here I am feeling like I’ve let myself down, wondering whether after all these weeks it’s worth it. I’m wondering how to start again and feeling like I’ve failed.

Then I came across this quote – or perhaps more appropriately, it found me at just the right time.

It's not too late. Keep going. Be kind to yourself. kindness quote

So, rather than continue to berate myself for this one thing I’ve not done to my own rather strict standards, I thought I would take heart from this message and take stock of the things I’ve managed to achieve, even though I didn’t do this one thing.

In the last 5 weeks I’ve:

Hosted a wedding on our farm
Spent time with my children on school holidays
Completed a rather large amount of customer work
Supported friends going through some tough stuff
Taken some photos I’m really proud of (my creative outlet)
Planned some future business activities
Volunteered at my kids school
Taken some down time

I could go on, but even this list is making me aware that there is so much more to life than work and business, and that is not a bad thing.

What I’m attempting to do is to learn to be kinder to myself when things don’t go to plan and acknowledging that other things also hold tremendous value.

Back on track

Even though I recognise that my time ‘away’ has not been wasted, I am still keen to get over any procrastination that’s happening and get back on track with my goals.

There’s no time like the present – and obviously since I’m writing this – it is something I’m getting onto NOW. It’s going to take some time to get this habit on track, and it has to start soon.

There’s not much more I have to say this time, except that if you perhaps have not been meeting your goals or hitting those targets, be kind to yourself. Everyone is on their own journey. Don’t judge yourself against others. Don’t be negative about your own achievements when you may have missed one goal, yet accomplished many other things.

Have a good one, and see you next week.

PS. Next week I’m going to give away the book I promised to give away months ago. Stay tuned and consider getting in the running by reading this post and commenting at this Facebook post.

Change a culture

Video credit to the amazingly talented Nic from The Baking Tray –
changing the world one cookie and cake at a time.

It seems somewhat appropriate on this #InternationalWomensDay to talk about how we can change the culture.

Listening to a panelist on the radio this morning, her figures indicated that if we continue at the rate we are going, gender balance might be achieved in 200 years time.

I don’t know about you, but that doesn’t seem soon enough for me. I’d quite like to see it while I’m alive, to be honest. If we can’t get it right for my daughters before they move into a workforce I’ll be very upset.

But how can we change the culture?

Firstly, let’s acknowledge that there isn’t ONE culture. There are many. Pick the battle.

Then find the others who believe in the culture you want to see. If we’re talking gender balance, we have to find the people for whom it matters. Whatever the change you want to see, find the others who want the same thing.

Culture in motion

There are two things needed to make major change. Strategy and action.

It takes an understanding of what culture is, where we would like it to go and what actions we can take to change it.

And if we think of culture as ‘who we are’ rather than something we do, it’s about our collective ‘us’ taking action.

Pick one thing. Do one thing. Change one thing.

The collective ‘us’ all doing that one thing will make a difference. The word will spread. A culture will be created, changed or renewed.

We can teach our children to do things differently than the way we learnt them. That it’s healthy for young boys to show emotion and not bottle it up. Teach them what to do with their emotions.

What if we teach our young girls that to be strong, fierce and independent does not mean you have to be a bitch. That gossip is different to friendly chatter. That kindness and empathy are not character flaws.

Teach all of them that there is always more going on for others than our limited perspective allows us to see. Help them to see others with empathy.

One bite at a time

If we imagine that we have to teach the whole world how to be kind, it looks like a massive task. If we believe we have to tackle all bullying, rather than the one example in front of us, we’re defeated already. If we imagine that to achieve gender balance, we have to have the whole business/town/country/world in agreement, we’ll probably never get started.

Start with one child, one person, one colleague, one friend… make a difference to one.

The networking effect takes place as those we cared about enough to make this change, pass on the new ‘culture’ that they see as normal.

If we care enough to change a culture, we might just change the world with just one little thing we do.

How do you eat an elephant?

PS. International Women’s Day coincides with my son’s birthday. Every year on this day I am reminded of the balance issue. That ‘one’ thing I can do is raise him in a culture of balance, respectful of women, while ensuring that he is also respected and valued. It is about balance, not raising one up to push the other down.

The stories we tell

Do you remember buying your first car? The stories you told yourself about what was important about that first car? Did you want a red car (because they go faster)? Was it important to have a bull-bar (because you drive on a road with kangaroos)? What stories did you tell yourself about what was important?

Back in 1995, when I bought my first car, this purchase was heavily influenced by my Dad. He told me that the best cars were Japanese cars. The top three (in his view) were Toyota, Mazda and Subaru. Although I trusted my Dad’s judgement on what made a good car, I bought a Honda. I liked it’s sleek sporty two door look. It suited the image story I told myself. The salesman, sensing my doubts over Dad’s list, reassured me that the Honda was also built in Japan.

In my view, based purely on the upbringing from my Dad, Japanese cars were built better, would last longer and be more reliable. That story didn’t help me when the clutch failed on my (new to me) Japanese built car after the first two weeks of owning it.

Changing stories

I needed that car to get myself to my job and I had to sort it out. The car dealer had the opportunity to contribute to the next part of the story. They wouldn’t admit it was a warranty issue. They implied that because I was a ‘girl’ I probably didn’t know what a clutch was meant to feel like. I was 24 at the time (yes, a late bloomer as far as buying first cars go) and had been driving manual cars since I was 16 or earlier. I’d used a clutch or two in my time…

I had to fight long and hard for the dealer to fix the clutch under warranty. I was without a car for months, and I had to tackle an inconvenient public transport system. The whole experience changed everything for me. For a good long while the story I told myself was that used car dealers were sexist and that they sucked at customer service. (I have since worked in retail car sales and I know a lot of very decent, honest, caring people in that industry. I would never want to tar them with this story brush. Others, though, I would paint in high-vis fluoro to alert people to the danger lying therein – pardon the pun. But I digress…)

We all have frames

Red cars go faster ... or is that just a story we tell ourselves?

Maybe the story is not that we want a red car because it goes faster, but what it is that the red car says about us.

Perhaps we tell ourselves that a red car allows us to be perceived as unique.

Maybe what is important about the bull-bar is not only about the Kangaroos, but about how we feel that extra bit protected with an extra lump of metal between us and the car in front.

The stories we tell ourselves frame our existence. If our view is that ALL used car sales people are jerks, we’re unlikely to go and buy a used car from any of them. Some of us believe the story that says we’ll get a better deal if we buy a car privately. Others hold the belief that a vehicle purchased with warranty is always a better risk.

When it comes to how we do our marketing, it doesn’t matter whether you agree with the story I believe. It only matters that you believe that my story matters to me. That you have empathy for what my experience is. You may not agree with it. It may not be your experience. But that you say “I see your story. It’s not my story. I don’t believe what you believe. And that is OK.”

Which frame will you choose?

The way I see it, there are two options:

“I have this product/service to sell, I’ve worked very hard to make it, I have a lot invested in it. You should buy it.”

“I see you. I realise that you may be nervous about this. How can I help you move past that fear so that you can know what I know and experience what I experience?”

We can appear over-eager, or even desperate. It can feel like all that matters is making the sale. Or we can make the choice to be kind, supportive helpful people who are here to serve rather than just to make a buck. Very few of us don’t need to make a buck, but it’s our choice whether we do it in a way that lifts others.

To do that, we have to see the need – those deeper, more hidden underlying stories that people tell themselves. It means having empathy for their perspective and determining how best to help them, to make the choice to serve with empathy.

If we choose the right frame our approach changes. It moves from being one of desperation and entitlement to one founded in kindness and generosity. The world needs more of both of those things.

What stories do your customers want YOU to know?

PS. If your customer stories seem more like a mystery novel, give me a yell. I’d love to help you see your customers in a whole new way.

What do people want?

It’s the age old question isn’t it? What do people want?

It can’t be summarised in any two word sentence or buzz phrase unfortunately. You’d like to hope ‘World Peace’ would be up there, but hey, even that is not for everyone. Sadly.

The truth is, if we want to start our expedition into the territories of what people want, it’s going to take a bit of time and some good tools. Pack a bag. We’re in for a hell of a trip.

Which people?

If we’re delving down into what people want, we’d better narrow down who we’re talking about. There are a lot of people out there and they all want different things.

So, who do we choose? Or maybe a better way to think of it is, who chooses us? If we have a message to get out, we have to know who it it IS and ISN’T for. It’s not for everyone, that’s for sure. There are always going to be people who aren’t picking up what you’re putting down. And that’s OK. Everyone is different.

A great place to start is with your existing ‘best’ customer. You know the one. They LOVE your work. They talk about you to ALL their friends. They come back to you time and time again. And if they’re like my best customer, they pay their invoices on time. (And as your ‘super’ customer, you make sure you know how much they you value them. Right? Great!)

“But, woah up there,” I hear you say. “Aren’t we talking about new customers? You’re talking about one I already have.

Well, yes. And no.

Build your ‘dream customer’

The dream client/customer you already have is a great way to work out how to reach the others that are like them.

Your existing customers give you great insight into potential new ones. You already know how they like to operate, you know (or can find out) how they found you. You may even have had some in depth conversations with them about the things that matter to them. They may have shared some concerns with you. All this helps build your knowledge of who they are. Knowing who they are helps us understand what they want.

Demographics vs. Psychographics

Knowing our customer demography (age, gender, religion, ethnicity etc) gives us a small piece of the puzzle. Psychographics give us deeper insight. These allow us to see our customer’s WHY. (And we all know how important our WHY is, right?)

When we know our client/customer’s values, beliefs, behaviours and culture, we can better understand WHO they are.

If this still seems a bit vague, let’s get specific and talk about an old friend, Jolene.

Demographics	Psycho-graphics	Psycho-graphic Type
Female	Outgoing, cheeky	Personality
Aged 20-25	Doesn’t care what people think	Opinion
Red Hair	Believes flirting is harmless	Beliefs
Single	Loves getting her nails done	Interests
School Drop Out	Sneaks extra cigarette breaks	Behaviour
Bank Clerk	Loves Country Music	Passions

We know a lot more about Jolene by adding her psycho-graphic traits into the mix, than by merely understanding her demographic ones.

From these traits, we can make some assertions about what Jolene wants. It may well be way more than that she wants a man. She may want affection, belonging, control or fun. She might value health, good looks and luxury. She may desire power, romance or even revenge. (Maybe she had her eyes on Dolly’s man WAY before Dolly even knew him. )

The example may be a little wild, but the key thing is starting to understand what goes on for our customers and clients that makes them tick.

Meeting people’s needs

Once we can see the kind of people our customers really are, we can begin to understand what it is that drives them. From here it’s our opportunity – and some might say responsibility – as ethical business people and marketers to help our customers achieve what they want.

If we come to understand what matters to our ‘dream customer’ (and yeah, I know Jolene may not be IT for you), then our goal as marketers is making our customer’s dreams come true. If being skinny is what matters to your customer, understanding that it stems from longing to be accepted may change our stance on how we communicate to them.

A customer’s desire to have the most unique birthday cake for their child may be based on a desire to show or maintain perceived status amongst their friends or to feel that they have done a good job as a parent. A customer’s desire to start saving money might be because they want to buy a house – or it could be that they are looking for security, a sense of control, peace of mind or respect.

If we choose to see our customers as human beings with hearts and emotions, rather than a set of statistics, we’ll get to the heart of what people REALLY want. If we can fathom that, then the way we communicate to our customers is much more nuanced, more human and more caring.

This is marketing we can be proud of.

Don’t do what I do

In a group of similar people, it’s often tempting to ask others how they do things. It’s a comfort to feel a sense of ‘sameness’, knowing that we’re not alone. Surely if others have succeeded then we may be able to repeat their formula and do the same.

Some things are pretty straight forward: how to install a software package; how do I register a business; how do I set up an email address?

With marketing, each of our customer and client scenarios are unique, because our people who matter are unique. We are dealing with real humans. Everyone we deal with – from the CEO of a large company down to the work at home Mum trying to run a side-hustle – has worries, hopes, fears, memories, desires and needs.

Mathematically speaking

Let’s say you’re a maths tutor.

Your customers might be parents, between the ages of 30-50, above average income, two cars, a mortgage and children aged 9- 14.

All of that may be correct – and useful – if you’re doing some kind of demographic targeting. Psycho-graphics give us an alternative view on these people, so we have to ask different questions.

What matters to these people? What does it give them if their children improve or succeed? How does it improve or maintain their perceived status?

It might be that your customers care deeply about their children not falling behind in school. It may bring back memories for them about the failings of their own education. Alternatively, those parents may have been high achievers at school. It may be important for their own sense of status to ensure that their children have the same experience.

Whatever the stories that our clients/customers tell themselves, what matters is that we are helping them achieve what they want to achieve.

Marketers make change. We change people from one emotional state to another. We take people on a journey; we help them become the person they’ve dreamed of becoming, a little bit at a time.
THIS IS MARKETING – Seth Godin

If we frame our marketing this way, it becomes less about how our cohorts are doing it and more about finding the best way to connect with the people who seek the change we’re offering.

Not doing what I’m doing is what is needed

Don’t do what I do because it might work for you. Do the things that WILL help others become what they want to be*. With care and commitment it WILL work for you.

*Stay tuned – next week I’m going to delve into one of the most frequently asked questions… ‘what do people want’! Follow my Facebook page for more info.

If you want to get started on building the strategy that can reach and connect with your customers, get in touch here.

The inner critic returns

I knew it would happen, and I’m not surprised that it’s sooner rather than later.

It’s Wednesday. I’ve created a routine of posting new stuff on my blog on Thursdays, so as I started thinking of what to write this week, a nagging voice in my head started at me.

“Ohhhhh! You’ve got nothing to say! Already! And we’re only a few weeks in. I knew it wouldn’t last.”
Nasty, nagging little voice in my head

Well, excuse me nasty nagging little voice in my head, but since WHEN have I not got something to say? Plenty of people I know would say I’m never lost for words...

Taken aback with my instantaneous comeback, it started on the deeper, crueller taunts:

“Yeah, but who are you to say that stuff? Why would people read what you’ve got to write? You’re no expert.”
Bitter, twisted, cruel inner voice in my head

My resolve was not so strong on this one. I’ve had this inner argument plenty of times before. Not matter how much I try, it doesn’t want to let go.

That’s the tough bit. It’s a story I’ve believed for a good while – that I’m not good enough. There are others out there better qualified, bigger, more successful, higher up the food chain or whatever. And of course, there are.

But it’s not the point. This inner critic of mine comes from the past, and surely I can grow past this (and – of course – in some ways, I already have).

So, I fought back…

Maybe you, nasty inner voice in my head, don’t get to dictate to me what I can and can’t do. You’re not the boss of me!

In fact, those who have known me for a long time would say that a surefire way to get me to do something is to tell me that I can’t. Tell me something is not possible and I’ll do my darndest to prove you wrong. I can be an obstinate (some might call it determined) so-and-so when I’m inclined.

And I AM inclined.

You know why? Because you’re wrong. You, cruel, taunting, inner voice in my head ARE wrong and I need to stop giving you so much credit because you come from the past. Things have changed. What you’re saying is not true and you’re not just undermining my confidence, you’re trying to take stuff away from people who might actually find it quite useful.

I know people are reading what I write. And even if it’s not lots of people, there will be one. (Her name is Sarah, and she’s my greatest cheerleader! xx)

And even if it’s only one and just one person gains an insight, gets a giggle or takes a leap into some new adventure or challenge, then that is going to be perfectly okay with me.

So, there you go, nasty inner voice in my head. You don’t need to tell me that I’m not enough, or that what I do doesn’t matter.

Because I don’t believe you. I am enough. Helping people matters.

The inner critic skulks off to the corner. I’m not naive (or brave) enough to believe her gone forever, but for now I’m standing tall in the belief that what I share here is authentic and real and done so with the hope that we can all DO and BE better when we share what we know.

PS. Take that, inner critic, you’ve even motivated me to get this blog post done ahead of time.

PPS: This one’s for any of you who may not quite be feeling good enough.

Everyone is a marketer

Wait! What?

Did I really say that?

Yes, everyone is a marketer.

If the idea of being a marketer makes you uncomfortable (or makes you want to procrastinate with a long list of other things) it’s time for a rethink.

Think of the marketing that’s been ‘done’ to you. Do any of these ring a bell? (Hopefully not a door bell..)

Unsolicited emails for pills you don’t need.
Ads on TV that you’re never interested in.
Cold calls from people trying to sell you something – how did they even get your number?
The well-meaning – but annoying – charity collectors who block your path and then try to guilt you into donating.
The skin care salesperson who stops you to ask what you’ve been using on your skin, as if they wish to have a conversation. You soon work out that their reason for stopping you is only to imply that whatever it is isn’t doing a very good job.

Most of those are quite unappealing, annoying and verging on rude.

So, of course, you don’t want to do that.

The NEW marketer

When you talk about a subject that means a lot to you, you’re a marketer.

When you communicate with people, you’re a marketer.

Fundraising for a cause you care about is marketing.

If you’re coordinating a group of people, you’re a marketer.

When you create a product or service that meets the needs of another, you’re a marketer.

Supporting what you’ve provided is marketing.

If you’re spreading ideas, you’re a marketer.

Bringing hope to people is marketing.

Building relationships is marketing.

When you bring something you care deeply about to others, and share it with them, you’re a marketer.

If you relate stories to people who want to hear from you, you’re a marketer.

YOU are a marketer.

And so you need to know your purpose so you can best serve the people who need you. And you must be sure that what you share with them is both welcome and ethical.

You have the choice – and opportunity – to do your best marketing for those you seek to serve.

Let’s do it.

PS. I’m still keen to know how I can support you in your marketing, so head over to this post on Facebook and let me know.

I’m giving away a copy of Seth Godin’s book “This is Marketing – You can’t be seen until you learn to see” to someone who gives me great feedback.

Better marketing – first things first!

Ignore the ghost of marketing past

If we want to do better marketing – marketing we can be proud of – first we have to recognise what it is, and what it isn’t.

In the past we’ve been led to believe that our marketing has to reach the maximum number of people. They’ll just have to see what we’re offering so that they’ll take it. If we tell (or sell) them enough features or benefits, they are bound to snap it up, right?

For some people, that’s true… it will be right for them and they may relate and sign up or purchase what we’re offering. That’s normally a pretty small number if we’re mass marketing though, because we’re yelling our message out at a whole lot of people who aren’t ‘our’ people. The effort (and expense) is wasted, and actually rather annoying, making people even less likely to engage with us in the future.

We can do better marketing than interrupting people when they are watching their favourite TV show. — The way we were: outdated, interruption style marketing.

I first studied marketing more than twenty years ago. The “Four Ps” – Product, Price, Promotion and Place – were everything. If those things were ticked off on our ‘marketing plan’ then we were sorted. We shoved our message in front of as many people as we could and hoped that if we annoyed enough people our sales and (more recently) our click-through rates would cover a multitude of sins.

We’re not in Kansas anymore, Toto

Fortunately, in the era of technology and innovation we’re in, we don’t have to operate that way. With the resources we have, we are able to put our message in front of people we want to see it. More importantly, we can (and should) put it in front of the people who choose to see it.

If we continue to pursue the narrow definition of marketing we had in the past, we are relegating ourselves to the definition of crazy. You know the one “if we keep doing what we’re doing, we’ll keep getting what we’ve been getting”. Changing the flavour (or the tactic) used to annoy someone – no matter how new and shiny it is – will still annoy them. We’ll continue to be frustrated by our lack of results and have to live with marketing that we’re not proud of.

Marketing changes when we come to the realisation that we are here to serve others and to help them solve their problem (whatever that may be). To do that, we must know who they are, where to find them and then have their engagement and permission.

If we re-frame marketing starting with why we’re doing what we’re doing, it gives us a compass for what we do and how we do it. “Why am I providing the service that I am? Why am I selling what I’m selling?” What is it that truly drives you, gets you out of bed in the morning, or gets you the most fired up*?

If we know our ‘why’ and can define our ‘who’ then perhaps the new marketing mix starts with ‘Purpose’ followed closely by ‘People’ and what they give to us: ‘Permission’.

What’s it all about, Alfie?

Your purpose is to make an impact, you’re seeking to make change happen. It might be behavioural change (educating people to use less plastic, for example), it could be introducing a financial literacy curriculum into schools, or even changing the way a group interacts. That change might seem insignificant or it might be (literally) world changing, how big the change is doesn’t matter. Marketing is how that change can come about.

Marketing is the act of making change happen.
Seth Godin

If we want to do work we’re proud of, we have to understand the change we seek to make and find the people who want to take the journey with us.

Why, why, why…

If we really want to get back to ‘first things first’ then it’s about finding our reason why.

Before we can even start to think about marketing plans and reading the latest ‘how-to’ guides and getting our heads around what the next ‘quick fix’ of marketing is, we really have to understand the true reason we’re doing what we’re doing.

What is the change that you are seeking to make? Who can you help?

Helping passionate small business owners understand how to reach the people who need them and supporting those business owners to do better, more meaningful, ethical and welcome marketing, is mine.

What’s yours?

Write it down somewhere. Stick it up on your wall next to where you work. And please, if you would, let me know what it is – either here or on my Facebook page.

I’d love to know how I might support you to share your why.

*Simon Sinek explains this beautifully and simply in his “Starts with Why” TED Talk

12 months on

"This is marketing" bestselling book by Seth Godin — Seth Godin’s bestselling book, “THIS IS MARKETING” which was compiled based on the seminar I participated in. Feel so grateful to have been a part of it.

12 months ago, I commenced Seth Godin’s “The Marketing Seminar” and 120 or so days later, I finished it.

Except, that I didn’t really finish it… Getting to the end of the supplied content was somewhat aptly called ‘Commencement’ and there’s a good reason for that. It was just the beginning.

It was the start of me seeing things very differently. The most important thing for me to rediscover at the time was that marketing doesn’t have to suck the enthusiasm and life force out of you just to ‘make a buck’, and for me making a buck comes secondary to doing stuff that matters.

It doesn’t have to suck to make a buck.
Heather Smith

Although marketing is how I earn my living I felt like earning it was draining me of my will to live (metaphorically speaking, of course). Each day I felt less and less motivated to do it. I felt fake, insincere, and like I was doing things I really didn’t believe in (because, let’s face it, I probably was). My nasty inner voice kept saying to me “who am I to be telling people how to do this stuff “.

If people want to know, how can I NOT tell them?

The Marketing Seminar changed all that. I had several ‘ah ha’ moments during the seminar, one of which was about the true value of empathy (I’ll talk more on this another day – it’s several topics unto itself). The other most valuable insight was that I was doing people a disservice by NOT sharing what I know, and that by helping people do better marketing I can help them achieve their dreams. I’m not talking about airy fairy ‘buy more shit to fill up my house’ dreams. I mean the kind of dreams that change the world (even on a small scale) or even the kind of dreams that allow you to do your really fulfilling work for the people who need what you’re offering.

That nasty inner voice of mine is wrong, I’m the perfect person to share what I know with others who want to see their change happen. Not because I’m better than anyone else but because I want to help them know what I know. Finding out WHO you need to reach, what matters to those people and sharing your story with them is the way to see change happen.

And that is what marketing really is.

And I can help with that…

The only thing worse than starting something and failing, is not starting it in the first place.
Seth Godin

12 months on is better than never

So, it’s been 12 months since I did ‘The Marketing Seminar’ and this is where it starts, where the rubber hits the road. This is the first of (I hope) 52 blog posts for the year (and email communications if you’re on my email list) because it’s time for me (albeit 12 months late) to make a start on helping you reach the people you seek to serve.

But wait, there’s more…

Like the six free steak knives you never knew you needed, I’ve also got something to offer… I have a spare copy of “This is Marketing” by Seth Godin and I don’t need two of them.

Head on over to my Facebook page and tell me (in a comment on the post for this article) what your biggest frustration is with your marketing. I’ll post my spare copy to the person who I think it can help the most.

No comments to show.

To be or not to be … a jerk

Couldn’t have said it better. Thanks Seth Godin for articulating it so well.

Read this:

The jerk fallacy