Have you got half a marketing funnel?

Lots of people have created a lead magnet to help to grow their list, but that’s it.  There is so much more to a good marketing funnel than a lead magnet and a list.  That is literally the tip of the ‘iceberg’!

Getting people signed up to your list is just the first step - but then what do you do with them?

Deliver more value

You need to nurture them, so they get to know you are going to deliver great information and they are always ready to open your emails and get great value from everything you send them.

The first step once someone signs up to your list is for them to receive a series of useful emails - maybe over the 2 weeks following their sign up.  It’s not just a ‘thank you’, but some useful information.  This can include:

• A reminder to read the document they’ve received
• Additional tips around the subject of that document
• Reminders regarding some of the content in the document and how it can help them
• Signposting to additional material on the same subject

This does two things - it creates reciprocity and it establishes that they’re getting great value from you and, so far, it’s all been free.

You’re building a fan base!

The next step in the process is to offer something that is low cost.  This could be a book (you have written a book haven’t you?), a webinar, an e-course, a set of tools,  

Low cost is generally considered to be anything up to £50.  I find that something that costs between 1-10% of your high cost items works well.

When you’re planning this email campaign, remember that this will all be done using autoresponders so that, regardless of when someone signs up they will get the same series as someone who signed up six months earlier.  That means that anything you offer cannot be something that happens on a specific date at a particular time.  It has to be evergreen.  If you’ve got a webinar as your low cost offer, it will need to be pre-recorded so it can be watched at any time.

Not everyone will buy

Of all the people who originally signed up for a free download, only some will put their hands in their pocket and buy something.  This may be for all kinds of reasons.

1. They don’t think it’s relevant to them
2. They’re not in a buying mood
3. They can’t afford it.

There are issues behind each of these:

1. If the material is congruent with the original free download, it should be relevant.  You need to think about your funnel’s progression when you plan it.  The lead magnet needs to attract your target audience - and anything else you offer needs to build on that.
2. The point at which they open your email may not be a convenient time for them to take the offer on board.  They may be just about to go into a meeting, their train may be arriving, they may get a phone call.  There’s nothing you can do about this - except ensure you make your offer more than once!
3. If they can’t afford your low cost item, they won’t be able to afford your higher cost products or services so you can safely ignore them - they’re not your ideal clients.

Deliver even more value

When someone purchases your low cost item, you need to do more nurturing - add more value so they feel that their purchase has been well worth the cost.  

You’ve now got a list who has put their money where their mouth is and demonstrated that they value your material, expertise and have, effectively, ‘bought’ you.  This means they’ll be open to other offers.

That doesn’t mean you should spam them with sales messages, but you can offer them more great things to buy, if you get the tone of your emails on target.

The next offer will be to something at the next level - maybe a subscription to a group where there is lots of value - a course they can join, a process they can follow with tangible results - it’s up to you.

And some of these people will become valuable premium clients who are happy to pay you a substantial sum for your expertise delivered 1-2-1.  Now your marketing funnel is running on rocket fuel!

Are you a thought-leader?

Press releases are so ‘yesterday’!  And not very productive either.

Whatever you think your story is, it’s often difficult to convince an editor that it has ‘legs’.  However, there are better opportunities to get PR coverage in the print (and digital print) media.

Step 1 - draw up your hit list

Identify a list of a dozen or so publications that your target audience reads when they’re looking for information around your area of expertise or for general business know-how.  This might include their own industry press if you service a particular industry or publications dedicated to a particular type of manager - e.g. HR, Facilities, Marketing, Finance, etc.  Or it might include more general publications for small businesses, management, etc.

Step 2 - know what the editor wants

Read a few issues of the publications you’ve identified.  Get an idea of the kind of articles they publish and get familiar with the tone and style of writing. 

If your target publication is mainstream, conservative, fact-based and formal, a chatty, conversational style piece won’t have any chance of getting published.

Although the editor will probably give you a maximum word count, it’s good to have an idea of how long their articles run to.  Submitting 1200 words, when articles are typically half that won’t win you any prizes.

Step 3 - prepare your pitch  

As an expert you can pitch your take on something related to your business expertise.  This is known as a thought-leader article.  The pitch will require 2-4 headlines with a short summary of what the article content will cover.

Spend time on developing attention grabbing headlines - as you not only need to get your audience’s attention, but also the editor’s.

Step 4 - make it personal

The best way to get published is to develop relationships with the editors of your chosen publications.  That doesn’t mean you ring them up and pester them, but talking to them about what they want and the best way to communicate with them is a great start,

You won’t always need to speak to the Managing Editor - some publications have other editors for specific subject areas.  Make sure you’re talking to the right one.

Step 5 - stick to the brief

When you write a thought-leader piece under a headline the editor has agreed to, make sure your article is focused on the title you’ve provided and fulfils the promise of the summary.  

Aim to put over some original ideas, don’t just regurgitate what other people have said.  What’s your take on the subject and why?

Don’t try and sneak any sales pitches into your copy - that’s the fastest way to ruin your relationship with the editor.

When you’ve finished your article check you’re within the correct word count and proof read (or get someone else to) for typos, punctuation, spelling, grammar, etc.

Step 6 - Deliver on time

If the deadline is 6th of the month, deliver on 5th.  If you’re asked for a 50 word biography, a photo or anything else, ensure they all go along with your submission.  If you’ve submitted before, don’t expect them to dig out previous versions - just deliver what’s required, when it’s required.

Step 7 - Promote

When the article is published share the link on your social media and tag the publication.  It shows you’re a thought-leader and gets brownie points with the publisher.

Newsletters: For or against?

Do you like newsletters?  Do you read the ones that arrive in your email inbox?

We send out a newsletter twice a month, but it’s not really ‘news’, in the sense that it’s not about what’s going on in our business.  Nobody cares about what we’re doing, only in getting something that is, potentially, of value.  That’s why I share tons of useful information on the areas in which we’re experts.

If you’ve got a new product, have written a book or are launching a new programme or something similar, that’s news - to a few people.  It’s information that could be useful to them.  However, most businesses don’t have that kind of news very often.

So, if you’re going to write a newsletter, check out what your list are most interested in and deliver that.

How often?

This is very much a ‘how long is a piece of string?’ question.  There is no right or wrong about frequency.  If you’re delivering great content and getting good open rates a weekly newsletter may work.  If you’re busy and don’t have time, there’s no rule that says you have to send out a newsletter weekly, monthly, quarterly or at some other interval.

In fact, if you find it tough to come up with content, there’s no reason why you should have any kind of schedule.  There are people who successfully send out newsletters at random intervals, so they only communicate when they have something worth saying.

Some people get bogged down in the schedule - and worry if the newsletter is late.  The truth is that few people will notice!  Most recipients of newsletters are not sitting in front of the screens anxiously awaiting your next missive.  They aren’t counting the days!  If it usually lands on the second Thursday of the month and one month it’s a few days late, most readers won’t even realise.

How long?

Say what you have to say - and then stop!  Items don’t have to be any prescribed length.  If it’s a short one paragraph piece of information then that’s fine.

If you feel your newsletter will look sparse, maybe create a structure that has a number of sections - so tip of the week, latest blog, this month’s offer, odd fact, etc.  This will also make writing the newsletter easier as you’re not facing a blank screen, you have at least a subject to trigger ideas.

Do you need a newsletter at all?

If you’ve invested time and effort in building a list you need to stay in touch from time-to-time, or they forget you.  

Your list is valuable because they are people who have chosen to subscribe and, in doing so, have said ‘I’m interested in your stuff’.  If you don’t communicate regularly, the memories of whatever they signed up for will fade and you’ll disappear into the sea of other people who do what you do too.

Your list is marketing collateral as you can market to them when you have anything that they may be interested in, given that they’ve self-identified as interested.  I’m not suggesting spamming them with sales pitches, they’ll just unsubscribe.  However, a good value newsletter is a great way to keep your list warm.

Social media is a two-way street

As a business owner it’s tempting to see social media as an excellent way to promote your products or service, but there’s more to it than that.

If you operate on a broadcast-only strategy people will rapidly get bored and stop reading your posts.  There are a few boxes that social media posts need to tick.

1: Deliver value

It’s possible to post great value for your customers AND promote your business at the same time.  Think tips, advice, guidance, free giveaways, links to longer articles (like this one) that give the reader useful information.

It doesn’t have to be a tip, it can be a case study, explaining the problem (that other people with similar problems will relate to), outlining the solution and showing the results.  It doesn’t do any harm to add the customer’s testimonial at the end.

If you’re thinking that this falls into the category of promotion, you’re right - but it also demonstrates that there is a solution to problems that many people experience and that has value.

However, offering a free download that might be a checklist, a tips sheet, a mistakes to avoid piece or simply a ‘How to …’ document all offer value - and put your company’s name in the reader’s hands too.

2: Share stuff

It’s not all about you and your business - you’re not the only expert around.  If you follow particular people who inspire, motivate, entertain and inform, don’t keep them to yourself.  Share their blogs, videos, posts with your followers and you’ll be not only giving them great value (see item 1), but also positioning yourself on their level by association.

Sharing good material adds lots of brownie points for you.

3: Engagement

This is the holy grail that everyone chases for their social media posts.  If you’re posting and don’t get any likes or comments, ideally both, you probably wonder ‘What’s the point?’.

However, engagement isn’t just about posting something that people respond to, but it’s also about YOU engaging with them.  If someone likes your post and comments, respond to it.  Add your own comment, give a bit more information, add another thought.  

There is, of course, more to engagement.  The secret of engagement is posting the kind of posts that people engage with.  Each platform is different and you are more likely to get engagement with business subjects on LinkedIn, while the same post will be completely ignored on Instagram or Facebook.  They’re different platforms and need different content.  Do your research and see what people engage with and how you can emulate that kind of popular post.

I’m not suggesting you post cute cat videos, but find out what people respond to on different platforms in your category and then get creative!

What does this mean for your social media activity?

Engagement is about engaging with others too.  So don’t forget to look at the home feed and your favourite pages and see what’s going on, react, like and comment. Follow other people, connect with them - especially your current and former customers and anyone who is on your ‘I wish they were my customer’ list.

Whatever time you allocate for social media activity needs to include research, reading, engagement, creation as well as posting.  

Remember it’s not all about you - don’t be a broadcast-only social media poster.

Give your reputation a polish

Everything you say and do influences what other people think about you - and what they say to others about you.  Does that mean that you should censor everything and go around in a permanent state of worry in case you say something people don’t like?  Definitely not.

You should always be authentic or you’ll be heading for at best an uncomfortable existence and at worst the world discovering you’re not who you say you are.  

We all want to be liked and respected, especially in business, so what can you do to build that reputation?

Firstly, not everyone will like you.  There are people you click with and some who are just not on your wavelength,  That doesn’t mean they won’t respect your expertise.

Secondly, if you don’t show up and be visible, few people will know you exist.

So what is the recipe for polishing your reputation to a fine shine?

1. Network - both online and offline.  The more people that you meet, the more who will know about you.
2. Be able to explain who you help and how succinctly.  Having a memorable one liner that sums up your services and who they’re for will make it easy for people to make connections for you.
3. Share your knowledge freely.  It’s not about giving away all your ‘secrets’, it’s about being helpful.  This might be by writing a ‘how to’ blog, giving a useful tip in a social media post or by answering requests for help in a group.  The more people know how well you know your ‘stuff’, the more likely they will be to want to be your customer and to recommend you to others.

This is the positive approach to polishing your reputation.

On the other side of the coin, never say/post anything you wouldn’t want your best client to hear/read.  One thoughtless comment can come back to haunt you.  That applies to comments that you may make in what appears to be a private conversation - people repeat what they hear.

I’ve had students argue that on their private social media they can say what they like - that’s their choice, but there’s no such thing as private when it comes to anything you post online.  Anything you post can be seen - if someone wants to find it.  

People have lost jobs, contracts, friends and business associates because of something they posted in a heated moment online.  Get the habit of pausing before you post.  Wait fifteen minutes, re-read your post and think about the impact - on the people who can influence your business.

Plan to be positive and polish that reputation so you’re the first name that pops into people’s heads when asked for a recommendation.