If there’s one thing that many businesses face, it’s finding customers. You could have the best product in the world, and even the best prices in the world; but all of this is moot unless you can find folks who want what you’re selling.
That’s the tricky part, isn’t it?
Gone are the days when you could knock on doors, jump into a phone book and start cold-calling your prospects, and even sliding into strangers DMs. This type of “outbound marketing” can work, but requires (oh so much) effort, a ton of rejection, and the persistence of a honey badger.
(I can almost be pretty certain that you don’t wanna be a honey badger…)
Instead, many of us have resorted to various forms of “inbound marketing”, like managing our SEO a little better, posting a little more on social media, and even learning how to cultivate our professional relationships with fellow vendors. You might even consider paying to be on preferred vendor lists, paying to be listed on The Knot, WeddingWire, and even bridal shows. You might even consider blowing your vacation fund on Google and Meta Ads.
And you know what? I’ll be the first to confess that all of these marketing methods work, because I’ve used all of them with varying levels of success in my 30 years of selling & marketing (yes, cold-calling like a honey badger included). But the question shouldn’t be “Which marketing method will work the best for me?” but rather, “How can I get these marketing methods work the best for me?”
The secret is desire.
It’s that instinct that drives our natural behaviors, such as our primal needs for food, shelter/security, water and mating. This list also includes our desires for social interaction, self-esteem, pleasure, happiness, control, and purpose. We as humans, are all born with most (if not all) of these natural instincts.
And brilliant marketers have been tapping into those desires for thousands and thousands of years
So you might be asking yourself: “Welp. How do I do it? How do I get this ‘desire’ thing to work for me?”
I gotchu fam.
If you want massive desire for your brand, products or services, it’s going to come down to 3 things:
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Understanding who your product is designed for. Regardless of what your mother tells you, not everyone’s going to be impressed with what you’re offering. The fact of the matter still remains: your product was designed for a very specific customer in mind. Learn how to lean into that.
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Understanding your target audience. Like, really understand them. What keeps them up at night? What do they value most in their lives? What’s the problem they’re trying to solve? And while we’re at it…
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Solve a problem. More specifically, solve a problem in a way that’s unique to you. What this means is that your pretty photos and great personality won’t be enough to get you there – because all of your competitors are offering that too. If at this very moment, you believe your pretty photos and amazing personality are your competitive advantages, then you are solving the wrong problem.
And friends, that’s it!
Sounds pretty simple, right?
If you’re ever feeling stuck about understanding your clients a little better, and you wish to tap into their desires a little better – my best advice is to talk to your past clients and ask them why they hired you, outside of your fabulous work and your reasonable pricing. You might be surprised with what you’ll find out!
TLDR;
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Your customers don’t buy on product and price alone; they make purchasing decisions based on desire.
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Desire exists in every human being. You and your customers included.
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Desire cannot be created, it can only be directed towards your products, brands, or services.
If you’re tired of trying to figure out all of this sales & marketing on your own, I can help! Please visit https://benlau.com/education to learn more about how I can help you find your dream clients, set your business on auto-pilot, and book like crazy.