John Jantsch’s latest ‘Duct Tape Marketing’ Newsletter article titled “Get Abundant – Mastering the Marketing Mindset” is reprinted here. [Article]


John Jantsch’s latest ‘Duct Tape Marketing’ Newsletter article is reprinted here.

<centerGet Abundant – Mastering the Marketing Mindset

Owning a business is the world’s greatest path to freedom, to growth, to abundance and wealth. Owning your own business is the best way to get off the treadmill of working in fear of the next paycheck. Owning your own business is the secret to having the life you were meant to have – full of passion, profit, purpose and pleasure.

If you’re still with me you know in your heart that what I’ve said above is the promise, it’s the way it’s supposed to be, right? So why isn’t it true? Sure, you’re free, free to work any 80 hours a week you choose, but that’s about it.

Why is it that this business, the thing that promises to be the key to freedom, is actually starting to feel a bit like a jail cell?

I think I have the answer. After working with thousands of small business owners I’ve come to the conclusion that the greatest single reason that most small business owners never fully achieve what’s possible through their business is a mindset that is drenched in a subconscious fear of marketing.

Now, I’m not simply talking about business failure due to a lack of marketing. I’m talking about something I think is actually more painful to witness. I’m talking about a business owner whose business crawls along making just enough money to get by, year after year, never able to achieve any meaningful level of sustainable growth due to fear of fully marketing their business from the heart, from an abundant point of view.

I actually think many small business owners can blame this fear of marketing on their parents. (Like they need something else for us to blame them for) Many people were taught not to be good at marketing from the time they could talk. Somewhere they were told that marketing, self-promoting, was a bad thing.

So, this fear of marketing I’m describing manifests itself in the business owner who claims, ‘I’m just no good at marketing’ or ‘I hate marketing’ or ‘I not very creative’ or ‘it feels unprofessional to promote myself.’ Or, they simply relegate the business to compete on price, rather than getting paid what they’re worth. (But then maybe you own some confusion about what you’re worth too.)

If any of these thoughts sound like you, I’m here to warn you that this marketing mindset or blueprint will hold your business back more than any other single business dynamic.

The prison of marketing fear

The fear of marketing or a lack of an abundant marketing mindset acts like a prison for the small business owner who hides behind it. The tyranny of the same marketing routine, year after year will eventually rob you of any real joy that comes from owning a business.

No matter what your business does. Marketing (a customer) is the engine that makes your business a business. You can’t “not like” marketing and really achieve your potential. You can’t be “no good” at marketing and expect much from your business. You must wipe those thoughts from your brain.

Effective marketing is the way to achieve wealth and happiness in your business, but only if you’re willing to fully accept this fact.

See, there’s a universal natural law at work here that you simply can’t fight. You can’t have a successful business without successful marketing and you can’t have successful marketing it you don’t like to market – you can’t have what you hate.

I’ve come to discover that I can give a business owner every marketing tip, tool and strategy I have and it won’t make much of a difference until they decide to adopt an abundant marketing mindset. Don’t expect some magic marketing silver bullet to appear and save your business from mediocrity. Only you can do that, only you, equipped with a completely new point of view about what marketing is and what it means to your success.

If you’ve been taught all your life not to toot your horn, you need to get over it. Here’s how. If you know in your heart that you have something, a product or service, that can really help someone get what they want, transform their life, or move to the next level, shame on you for keeping it to yourself.

You can ethically, professionally and honestly toot your horn with an abundance mindset. And, you can accomplish it in a manner that you are proud to be a part of. Holding back on your marketing may actually be a sign that you don’t really believe in the value you have to offer.

There are a few new habits you must ‘get’ in the coming year if you intend to replace your current marketing blueprint with an abundant marketing blueprint.

What you must do today

Get Uncomfortable! – Your wealth, your marketing success, will correspond directly with the size of your marketing mindset. Get in front of an audience and speak, write for an industry publication, start blogging, network with prospects, write personal thank you notes. You can’t grow unless you are uncomfortable. Write a book. Start a radio show. Create a podcast. You are so much bigger than you are allowing yourself to be. Reach.

Get and Give New Skills – Read everything about marketing you put your hands on. (Perhaps starting with Duct Tape Marketing!) – Read your direct mail, watch infomercials, read magazines that cover marketing and – this is a big one – look for ways to teach others how to market and promote their businesses. Become known in your industry for your marketing expertise and show others how to do it – how to get the marketing mindset.

Get Bigger Ideas – Tear your products and services apart. Look for ways to approach an industry problem like know one else can or will. Your ideas don’t have to really be that big as long as they are world altering. Come up with one idea this year that makes someone say you are nuts – and then go do it.

Get Value – No matter what you offer, it can be better. Heap more and more on your products and services, give stuff that no one expected you to give. Add services over and above what was agreed upon. Makes people talk about how incredible you are.

Get What You’re Worth – If you do the above, you can do this. Raise your prices. Choose to work with fewer clients at much higher rates. Sell based on value, not on time. And, refuse to work with clients that don’t fully appreciate the value you have to offer. You can make more space in your head to serve your clients when you don’t have clients that bring you down.

Taking small steps

Get Leverage – Set goals for this year, this week, today. Make your goals tangible. Make them about things that will allow you to grow your marketing mindset and tangible measurable things that will remind you that you are in the marketing business.

Set goals for public speaking, writing and generally stepping outside your comfort zone. Set goals for the number of leads generated, leads converted, new clients and referrals. Set goals for your price increases, your effective hourly rate.

Get It Scheduled – Make a place to grow your marketing mindset. Create a marketing appointment with yourself every single day. Create a growth calendar and schedule one uncomfortable activity each week. Make a list of the books you plan to devour this year. Make appointments and introductions with new strategic partners.

Take a good, long, hard look at the suggestions above. Think about ways you can start to rewrite your marketing mindset. Get good at marketing, make marketing your primary focus and you will be on the path to much more profit, success, and freedom as a small business owner

John Jantschis a veteran marketing coach, award winning blogger and author of Duct Tape Marketing: The World’s Most Practical Small Business Marketing Guide published by Thomas Nelson – due out in the fall of 2006.

He is the creator of the Duct Tape Marketing small business marketing system. You can find more information by visiting http://www.ducttapemarketing.com

Duct Tape Marketing Newsletter Contents

In this issue:

Resource #1 – Duct Tape Marketing, the book – pre-order bonus offer ends Dec 29th

Resource #2 – Free guide – MailChimp’s HTML Email Guide

Main Article – Get Abundant – Mastering the Marketing Mindset

Resource #3 – Michael Gerber on Marketing Integrity

Resource #3 – Guy Kawasaki on Building a Community

Free Magazine – Free subscription to PRWeek

Featured Reading – The Seven Spiritual Laws of Success- Deepak Chopra

Featured Listening – Love – The Beatles

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*IMNewswatch would like to thank John Jantsch for granting permission to reprint the latest newsletter articles.

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