No matter how good your products and services, your business will surely fail without a proper marketing plan, which is the foundation on which all your success depends. Unfortunately, a common and fatal mistake is made too often by many companies:
They focus too much on their products and services and not enough on the needs of their customers.
You must always put in your best effort and take great pride in your work, but it’s also important you take the time to understand what your customers want and need from you so that you can communicate with them in a way that gets their attention.
Market Research is a Must
Market research is a great first step when your goal is to understand your customers, and it’s not as hard as some might think. In fact, learning what your customers expect from you can be as easy as asking them. You can place a comment or suggestion box on your website and offer a small prize or coupon to anyone who fills it out.
You can also search online for questions your customers are likely to ask when looking for a solution; this will help you discover forums where your customers go to talk to one another and share advice. Although you want to learn about the solutions for which they are seeking, you must also pay attention to the words and phrases they use when describing their problem.
A common and fatal mistake made too often by companies is that they focus too much on their products and services and not enough on the needs of their customers.
After you learn about the problems your customers are experiencing, you need to take an honest look at your products and services to determine if they meet those needs. If they don’t, then you have some work to do before you can expect to experience your success. If you cannot effectively solve your customers’ needs, then they will simply find a business that can. Tailoring your business to meet the needs of your customers might take some time and effort, but the investment will surely be worth it.
Solutions, Not Mission Statements
Once your business model is focused on providing real solutions for which your customers will pay money, you might think your job is done, but it’s not. It’s now time to take another look at your marketing and sales letters. You might not want to hear this, but your customers don’t care much about the history of your business or your personal mission statement. Although these things matter to an extent, your customers are far more concerned about the solutions you can offer them.
Refer to your market research and zoom in on the most common problem your customers experience and center all of your marketing communications on it. Write your content using the same words and terminology that your customers use when describing their problem, which will build trust. Only mention details about your business that are relevant to your ability to offer solutions to the issues your customers face. You must only do this after you grab their attention by expressing your understanding of their problem.
Inability to connect with and understand your customers is the number one worst mistake you can make in marketing. If you can’t relate to your target market on a human level, then the game is over. You will make fewer sales, and your business will experience a high risk of failure as a result. On the other hand, taking the time to understand your customers and to relate to them will enable you to get more sales and to experience more success than you once thought possible.
