Henry Ford is widely regarded as
one of the greatest entrepreneurs
in history. When you hear his name,
you automatically think about how
he innovated the use of assembly
line techniques to revolutionize the
automobile industry. Listen to what
Harvard Business school professor
Theodore Levitt wrote about Ford:
“We habitually celebrate him for the
wrong reason, his production genius.
His real genius was marketing. We think
he was able to cut his selling price and
therefore sell millions of $500 cars
because his invention of the assembly
line reduced the costs. Actually he
invented the assembly line because he
had concluded that at $500 he could sell
millions of cars. Mass production was the
result, not the cause, of his low prices...
He was brilliant because he fashioned
a production system designed to fit
market needs.” (Author’s emphasis)
Ford understood an indispensable key
to successful marketing: the needs
and desires of your target market must
dictate the products and/or services
you provide. That should be obvious.
Unfortunately, many businesses work
hard to sell what they want to sell (their
latest invention or a gadget they think is
really cool) instead of what the market
wants or needs to buy. Those businesses
fail.
Now, let’s look at this point from another
angle. What did Henry Ford himself
say about his market? “If I’d asked my
customers what they wanted, they’d
have said a faster horse.” Doesn’t that
negate what we’ve said thus far? Far
from it.
Nobody wanted cars, it’s true. But they
did want to travel more quickly. So Ford
did manufacture and sell what people
already wanted; it just came in a different
package than they expected.
I think there’s an important lesson here.
According to another Harvard professor,
Paul R. Lawrence, all the decisions we
make are based on 4 basic drives: to
1) acquire/achieve, 2) bond, 3) learn/
comprehend and 4) defend. If you
think about it, everything you purchase
satisfies at least one of these motivations.
For example, I may buy a Rolex watch to
acquire the admiration of my peers. Or,
maybe I’ll get the Timex to defend my
bank account.
Of course, these drives are unique for
everyone. That’s why you have to dig
deep and really get to know your ideal
clients. What drives are dominant in their
decision-making process? What shape do
those drives take? What stimulates those
drives?
Creating your ideal customer profile is
great, but make sure it’s rooted in reality,
not your imagination.
GIVE ‘EM A REASON
Having a product people want usually
isn’t enough to make you successful. We
see companies with great products or
services fail all the time.
Think about the multi-million dollar ad
campaigns we saw during last year’s
presidential election. Neither Obama nor
Romney were just “trying to get their
name out there.” They beat up the other
guy and presented themselves as the
better choice with specific “evidence.”
(Whether or not their statements were
true is another conversation entirely.)
Remember Paul Lawrence’s 4 Drives
theory. Your sales and marketing
messages should communicate the
specific ways your offer will address these
deep-seated desires in your audience.
How does your product satisfy their desire
to acquire something they badly want?
How will they come to learn something
they desperately need to know by
working with you?
Just being the better choice won’t get
a candidate elected; it certainly won’t
convince people to buy from you. You
have to let them know. Paint an accurate
picture of life as they know it, then paint
one showing what their experience will
be like after they get their hands on
your product. The more vivid the image,
the more compelling it will be.
Back up your claims with proof: scientific
evidence, testimonials, awards, case
studies, etc. Make it real for them.
Once prospects see themselves
enjoying their new life, making the
purchase is the next natural step. This
usually takes work (research, writing,
rewriting, testing). So does filing
bankruptcy if you can’t get anyone to
spend their money with you.
OH, AND ONE MORE THING
People generally won’t buy from
someone they don’t trust. It is of the
utmost importance for entrepreneurs,
marketers, and salespeople to gain the
trust of their prospects and customers.
Rather than writing about earning trust,
allow me to refer you to an interview
I did with a third Harvard man, bestselling author Charlie Green. During
our 30-minute interview, Charlie talked
about: why trust is critical to you success
in business; specific ways you can
build more trust in your relationships;
mistakes you might be making that
can sabotage your efforts to gain the
trust of your prospects; common myths
about trust; and how long it really takes
to start building (or rebuilding) trust.
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