Many small business owners (heck, large businesses blow this too) forget how powerful Education Based Marketing is to sales success. I learned about education based marketing as a speaker over 10 years ago and have implemented this strategy with all my clients. Many people say: “that’s great, but when do we get to the selling part?” That’s just it: with education based marketing you are selling, without being slimy.
I did a little video offering some tips that are not in the written post:
Here are some additional tips so your education based marketing is not “vanilla”:
1-make the tip, the blog post, the point valuable ALL on its own. If the reader/watcher can say, “thank you, that was really helpful,” then you have created a great education based tip.
2-share tips and insights that relate to what you DO or sell in your business, but also around what you do or sell. For example, you might sell soap but offer education based marketing about why certain kinds of soap are good for children, spa days, essential oils in your home, cold weather tips, etc.
3-speak to your target market when you write your tips. If your market is work form home moms, they have a unique voice different than 40 + woman with no children. When you speak in their voice, they know you understand them.
4-let education based marketing stand alone, without a sales “pitch”. If you have clearly branded what you do and offer, the education will lead to the sale!
What is an education based marketing tip you can offer in your business? (warning don’t sell me-I’ll call you out!)
Ann M. Evanston is a “Chief Breakthrough Officer” teaching other Business Warriors how to slow down, and find the most unique part of their business that makes them stand out among the crowd. She has been named one of the top marketing consultants by About.com, is a guest blogger for Showcasing Women and takes pride in moving you from “blah, blah, blah” to “BOOM, BOOM. BOOM!”
here is one that i use for my travel business…
“Love to sing in the shower? Don’t do it abroad or you could get sick from the water. “
Here is one I use for my local tutoring business:
“Think your over-achieving, straight-A student won’t benefit from a tutor? Think again!”
My percentage of remedial vs. ‘advanced’ students’ is 30/70. Quite amazing really since most people connect the word ‘tutor’ with dumb.
Great review of everything SNCC is all about.
Want to keep your teens safe online? Keep computers out of the bedroom and in the family areas!
Oh boy – I had better not called out now my own coaching site is about to launch! Hehehe
plus! the EMF’s are not so great in a sleeping area. Actually they are not so great anywhere, but particularly in the sleeping area. LOVE and support this one!
I love that your EBM actually got a comment from a designer!!
Me too 🙂
and as the real me…..
Here’s mine:
Don’t carry those work stressors into the weekend! Write for just five minutes about this week’s worst moment and watch your stress level drop.
(Enjoy hearing about this and recognizing the message you are sending.)
Surrounding yourself with beauty helps you feel good. When you feel good, you are better better balanced and able to affect your world!
Yes, I certainly don’t want to be vanilla! Perhaps a bit of espresso to help pick up the pace…hmmmmmm have to think about that one
“Feeling unsure about your future comes from not having a plan. Create a plan and put it into action and watch your fears fade away.”
Love the comment – “finding out who you are in what you do”. Find your ‘rocky roadness’…or your ‘baseball crunchness’. That message comes through loud and clear.
Darcie
Find a mentor or a group who has done what you are thinking of doing before moving to a new country. You will be better prepared and will have more realistic expectations.
Sharon Hiebing
Follow Your Dream Compass
http://www.wealthships.com
Treat your digital camera like film, “develop” after every 24, after an event, or once-a-month.
Really, who would choose vanilla, in a world full of chocolate?!
Not sure what to write about your photo? Who, what when where, why are the questions. Have some fun with it!
Why go vanilla when you can choose tutti frutti!
“Experts agree that successful party planners begin by taking the time to create a detailed timeline.”
It’s always good to hear this advice loud and clear again: To focus our message squarely at our target market.
BTW, I’ve always thought “vanilla bean” was a perfectly good flavor, same as “chocolate fudge” and all the rest. Maybe more on the pale pastel side and less robust, but a unique flavor nevertheless. Good to pair with some of the more “in-your-face” flavors we enjoy these days. Sorry to hear Bascom-Robbins concluded it’s not popular enough to stock anymore.
Robbie- not the point of the post- vanilla bean is a perfectly good flavor but it doesn’t SELL, that’s the point of the post!
Thanks, Ann. I misunderstood your point. Let me see if I got it now. You’re saying don’t take all the distinctive flavor out of who you are and what you offer, in an attempt to target and please everyone. I’d become simply another a face in the crowd, and that just won’t SELL.
Sorry, I thought you were disparaging the vanilla flavor. Missed your point completely.
Ann – this is by far and away my most favorite post and video of yours! I love, love, love what you say about if you take the flavor our of your business = nothing.
I have never been a big vanilla fan — mostly something rich creamy and full of chunky pieces of different pieces of candies…lots of flavor.
We cannot be afraid of the niche! Rachel
My tip is – do not wrinkle your molded cup bra, otherwise you defeat the smoothing purpose of the bra.
Here’s mine…
Upon waking up while you are still in bed…before the overwhelm hits you with the long list of “to dos” you feel you have to accomplish…keep your eyes closed, give yourself a big hug and love yourself. Feel it in ever part of you that you are enough and that you are loved. And know whatever you get done is what needed to be done that day 🙂
Here is something I want every woman to know about taking care of their cars:
“If you love your car and want to keep it healthy and reliable, the best thing you can do is stick faithfully to the maintenance schedule your trusted shop recommends.”
I actually like vanilla sometimes, but it has to have chocolate syrup and maybe nuts all over it, too!
A thourough evaluation of your childs international immunizations will ensure they are accurate, up to par, and complete.
Be brave and go flavorful (pistachio almond nut…yummmy!)…..NO vanilla!
“Take a Stand, Show Up and Declare You Matter!”
That runs through all of my teachings with Split Second Perceptions, super important in marketing for Speakers 🙂 When I share tips online, they are often very concrete (how much to pace on stage…) and always relevant to the business of leading a speaking biz…
Brandy Mychals
Speaker, Author, Communications Coach
Creator of Split Second Perceptions
Pick something you’ve been procrastinating on and take a tiny step towards it today. Watch the momentum grow overnight.
(talking to myself with this one!)
Fiona Stolze
Inspired Art and Living
http://fionastolze.com
Thank you Ann…that was really helpful. Education-based marketing feels natural to me. I see myself as a problem-solver and generously give my clients information, instructions and processes that they can implement immediately.
Rachel Lavern
Personal Transformation, Enlightenment and Development Coach
“Live without limits because nothing is impossible to you.”
Great post Ann! Like anything else, the more I hear it , the more I ‘get’ it.
If you start to think a different way, you’ll start to see a different way and then you’ll be seen a different way.
Talking ’bout buying decisions & ice cream… Am I the only one who choses only on colour?
When you find your mind drifting while in a meeting, attending a lecture, watching a webinar, or listening in on a call, pull out a piece of paper and doodle. Studies show that doodlers will retain almost 30% more information than someone who simply tries to listen. Yes, it’s true, no matter what your grade school teachers told you about putting down your pencil and paying attention.
Ann, thank you, thank you, thank you for the reminder about EBM. I intend to do it more in my posts and messages. Reminds me of the saying “you don’t need more information, just do what you already know.”
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