Friday, October 24, 2008

"Support Me, Support Me"

Is your idea of marketing your business to contact your friends and relatives and pressure them out of guilt to support you?

Sadly, this practice is very common. Entrepreneurs and network marketers don't realize that by doing this, they end up annoying people and making it even less likely for them to respond favorably.

The truth is, your products and services should sell themselves. Potential customers (including family and friends) should be naturally inclined to want to do business with you. If you have resorted to pressuring people out of guilt to buy whatever you're selling, you're probably in the wrong business.

Find or create a business opportunity that is selling something that people can't resist; something that they really want or really need - or both. You should only be selling products and service that people will buy into without you pleading and begging that they do so.

In addition, develop creative marketing and PR campaigns. Find a book on how to make the most of a shoe string advertising budget. Learn about the wonderful benefits of grassroots marketing and guerilla marketing. Experiment with social media tools such as Facebook, online radio services such as BlogTalkRadio, and even video outlets such as YouTube to help promote your business.

Whatever you do, come up with something better than "I need your support...If you care about me, you will buy something."

3 comments:

  1. This is an excellent article. Most of my business comes from individuals I meet during networking events. I ask for family support in other ways. For example, if I need to attend an event for my business, my husband runs the household, at a moment's notice!

    C Nash

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  2. Given that goods and services should be directed towards meeting the needs or wants of a specific target audience, it says a lot when friends and family can move from saying, "I believe in you," to "I believe in your product."

    Isha Edwards

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  3. From what i've read, and experienced, it seems that those who are willing to offer help and connections for other people, they get the most business and 'kickback'.

    So, it's not only stop saying 'help me', but also starting to say 'how can i help you' . . . by putting you in contact with another, recommending your business etc.

    ReplyDelete