My Mom makes the best chicken soup on the planet (well, maybe I’m just a little biased). She doesn’t cook it often these days, so I was especially delighted to have it again last week while I was visiting her for Rosh Hashannah, the Jewish New year.
During our Best Business Minds Mastermind Group this week (http://themagicofmastermind.com/join-a-group), we
were discussing the variety of marketing activities now available to any business professional, such as: speaking,
article marketing, social networking, in-person networking, e-zines, blogging, contacting former customers, and many others. One of our Mastermind Group Members remarked that she’s feeling rather overwhelmed, and is having a tough time figuring out just where to begin and what marketing activities to choose.
That’s when it hit me that creating a Marketing Plan is just like making chicken soup. There are certain basics that every good pot of soup must have: in this case, water (or broth), chicken, some vegetables and spices to add flavor, and matzoh balls to make it special for the holiday. [Mom makes them SO light and fluffy -- if you've never tasted home made chicken soup with just-cooked matzoh balls, your life is not yet complete!]
The proportions and quantity you use of each ingredient, how long it cooks, when you add your spices, how far ahead you prepare it before serving, how much fat you skim off the top — these and other factors determine the unique flavor of the soup.
So it is with Marketing.
Which ingredients are the basics of YOUR special soup? How will you stay in touch regularly? What proportion of in-person to on-line networking? Will you speak? Write? Present teleconference programs? How will you make a memorable impression that differentiates you from others so people will want to be part of your ‘tribe’? Where will you stay within your comfort zone? Where will you stretch? With what new ingredient will you experiment? How much time will you spend on consistent marketing activities? What’s highest priority and what’s optional?
Perhaps you’re someone who’s easily distracted. You might choose only a few activities and dedicate your marketing time to ‘going deep’. Easily bored? You may need to figure out how to get some variety without going into overwhelm. Shy about in-person networking events? What strategy can you develop that will help you work around your challenges and have a successful outcome? Resisting Social Networking? Perhaps its time to make a commitment to yourself to play with it regularly so that you can learn how to make it work for YOU.
Once you develop a plan, your marketing efforts become an automatic part of your schedule. There is no need to re-invent the wheel, no more wasted time figuring out what to do and trying to squeeze it in to an already crowded calendar. You’ve developed your basic recipe. You may vary the proportions, try new spices, adjust the cooking time. However, the basics will always remain the same.
So, what are YOUR basic ingredients? How do you like YOUR marketing chicken soup?
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No matter what your product is, you are ultimately in the education business. Your customers need to be constantly educated about the many advantages of doing business with you, trained to use your products more effectively, and taught how to make never-ending improvement in their lives.
– Robert G Allen
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