3 Most Common Marketing Mistakes Young Entrepreneurs Make (and How to Fix Them)

 

 

You’ve heard it before: the vast majority of businesses fail within a few years.

Now… let’s think about this for second.

Why do smart, hard-working people with good intentions crash and burn? It’s often a combination of factors, from co-founder conflict, to funding issues and execution struggles…

But at the core of it, businesses fail for one fundamental reason: they can’t sell their stuff.

That’s the bottom line.

And one of the root causes is that most entrepreneurs don’t truly understand marketing. You might be super passionate about your product or service, have a tremendous work ethic, and a wonderfully designed website…If you’re not highly skilled at marketing and selling, chances are you’re going to fail. Sorry to break it to you.

Now if you’re thinking,“oh I took a few marketing classes in College, I’m good.”… Think again.

I personally have a marketing degree and an MBA from 2 reputable universities, and when I started my first business… I was in for a rude awakening.

I quickly realized that marketing in the entrepreneurial world is a whole different game than what I learned in the classroom. Business schools tend to focus on Fortune-500 type marketing, they don’t allow us to interact with real customers, and they’re years behind when it comes to online marketing. If you’re committed to building a world-class business, you have to be willing to saddle up and learn “real-world marketing”. Take online courses, read books, get out here, experiment relentlessly, and get excellent mentors to help you build your marketing skill set.

If you’re willing to do that, sky’s the limit. You’ll develop skills you can use to be successful in any business endeavor for the rest of your career.

Today, I want to share with you the 3 most common marketing mistakes you’re likely to be making right now, and how you can effectively solve them for good.

Mistake #1: Trying to Serve Everyone

The blessing and the curse of many entrepreneurs is that they’re good-hearted, and really want to make world a better place.

The blessing part is easy to figure out… but the curse? By trying to help everyone with their product or service… They often end up helping no one.

Having too broad of a target market is probably the single most common marketing mistake people make. In order to stand out in the crowd, you need to be really specific with which sub-segment of the population you’re targeting. The narrower your niche, the better.

Now you’re probably thinking… “Ahh, but what about all these other prospective customers I’ll be giving up on?” I get that.

You have to think about it the other way: get excited about how well you’re going to be able to serve the specific customers you’re going after. By focusing on a specific group, you’ll be able to serve them much better and have a more profound impact on their life.

Let’s go concrete with this. When you’re describing your ideal customer, you should be able to get highly descriptive of that person, both on a demographic and psychographic level.

For example, “Men between the age of 25 and 40” is a lousy target market. Instead, it should be something like “Professional men between 25 and 40 who live in major cities, are passionate about the outdoors, who struggle to find time for their hobbies, and are afraid that their best years are passing them by”. Now we’re talking. This is a target you can really help… and make a lot of money in the process.

Solution: Write down the main characteristics of your ideal customer. Describe their frustrations, fears, and aspirations. Get as deep and as personal as you can. You want to able to put yourself in their skin and feel what they feel, think what they think.

Mistake #2: Building Without Customer Validation

Many entrepreneurs have a weird fantasy. They envision themselves spending a few months in a basement/garage/cave, building something extraordinary, emerging from their confinement, announcing their creation to the world, and becoming a massive success.

Sounds cool pretty cool indeed… Only problem is that it’s NOT how the real world works.

It’s very hard to accurately predict what your customers want. Conversely, it’s very easy to get carried away with an idea, without seeking validation along the way…

…and then fall face first when you realize that no one actually wants it.

In business and marketing, you should take on a “scientist” mindset: always experiment and test your assumptions, and have as much contact with your test subjects (customers) as possible.

Now in order to do this, it’s important to keep your ego in check. You don’t always love the feedback you’re getting, but that’s ok. It’s only data. Don’t let your emotions get the best of you.

Here’s why: If your idea isn’t good, you’re much better off finding out about it now, instead of 6 months down the road, when you’ve already sunk thousands of dollars into the project…

Test, test, test. That’s what all successful marketers do. Because it works.

Solution: Before you even build anything, you should spend time interviewing potential customers to discover what they want (and learn their frustration, fears and aspirations). Then, build a prototype and test it to get customer feedback as fast as possible. From there, go back in the lab, incorporate the feedback, and test again. Repeat this cycle until you have something that customers reallylove, and for which they’re willing to pay money.

Mistake #3: Shouting from the Rooftop

Now that you’ve clearly established your ideal customer and that you’re building exactly what they want, the next step is to communicate with them effectively.

The key to that is to speak to each customer as though you’re talking directly to that person. One-on-one. Not one-to-many. This distinction is so critical, and so often overlooked.

When you’re writing directly to one person, you can speak to their frustrations, fears and aspirations. You can make them feel understood. Which in many ways is the magic sauce of marketing.

Eben Pagan, one of the best marketers of our time once said “the moment you make your customer feel understood, magic happens.”

When they feel like you get their problem, they will automatically assume that you have the solution. Once that happens, selling becomes easy. And fun.

Solution: Every time you create marketing material, write directly to your ideal customer. Put yourself in their shoes, and ask yourself “Does this really speak to me? Do I feel understood? Does this inspire me?” If the answer is not a resounding “YES!”, go back to the drawing board.

Conclusion

Since marketing revolves around human psychology, and the human psyche is a complex system, many nuances and subtleties that go into becoming a world-class marketer.

But to become excellent and shine in your niche is not as hard as you think. Simply by focusing on the solutions to the 3 common mistakes I’ve outlined above, you’re likely to outperform your competition within a few months.

To recap, here’s the magic recipe:

1) Get crystal clear on who your ideal customer is.

2) Regularly interact with live customers and build exactly what they want.

3) Communicate with them in a “one-on-one” way, and make them feel understood.

Apply these 3 principles and you’ll be well on your way to beating the odds, building a very successful business, and actually making the world a better place.

Create a Business and Lifestyle You Love

 

 

Your University days are over. Your cap’s flying somewhere up in the air and your degree is in your hand. Now what?

Get a job? It seems obvious considering you just donated 4 years of your life studying for a career.

But, what about that little spark of desire within you that wants to do more. You’ve been locked up in study halls and tiny dorm rooms for so long; you don’t want to transfer that limitation to a cubicle. You want to live a little, see what the world has to offer and return in a couple of years to the corporate lifestyle you feel you have to sign up for.

But do you?

What about if you took the travel and then upon return created your own dream lifestyle, businesses focused completely on what you love and are good at? You know one where YOU made the rules. For most, the fear of missing out and falling further behind the corporate ladder race is too much, so they head for the nearest job interview. This is the wrong fear to pay attention to.

The fear that you should be paying attention are global financial crisis, stock market crashes, and corporation downsizing as jobs are outsourced to those who can work from anywhere with a lap top and internet connection. It’s actually exciting, opportunistic times for you. You can create a business and lifestyle you love.

So, do you go start up any old business, go back to college to learn how, or take up that travel dream and learn how to become an entrepreneur at the same time?

15 years ago I chose the latter, without even realizing I was choosing it. Not only was the journey amazing fun, but it taught me the skills and mindset needed to create my own dream lifestyle and be successful with it. Let’s look at what travel teaches you:

 

How to live your passion everyday

When you travel long-term you have a lot of downtime to do what you love. Is it hiking in the mountains, sketching, surfing, writing, or strumming on a guitar? Travel gives you the outlet to live your passion every day. There’s no one demanding you stop the doodling and get back to work. It’s the doodling that often leads to the creative ideas. Businesses that work usually evolve from the founder’s passion.

 

How to value freedom and use it as a motivating force

Jobs don’t offer enough scope for freedom. You have set rules, schedules, meetings, policies and office hours, and limited vacation time. You hit the travel road and the only thing demanding of your time is the odd flight schedule.

Your choices are based on wants: I want to sleep in tomorrow, I want to eat lunch on the beach, I want to hike that mountain, I want to hit the local bar on a Wednesday –a school night—just.because.I.can.

Entrepreneurs are fueled by this intense desire for freedom: the ability to say where, when, why and how. Creating your own business doesn’t take away hard work; it just means you control the output to suit your lifestyle.

 

How to become aware of your strengths

Travel is an amazing journey of self-discovery.

You often only have yourself to rely on as you organize, plan, cope with loneliness, and deal with challenges that arise and leave you with no back door. You’re more often than not experiencing new things, and with that, talents you never knew you had.

You discover who you really are and where your strengths lie. Once you hone on this, and combine it with your passion, you have a business that can sky rocket you to success and change the world.

 

How to develop effective and empathetic negotiating skills

Bartering is a normal part of life in many countries. You go back and forth with a local merchant until you settle on a win-win price.

This is how businesses work. You’ll be negotiating your own prices, terms, content, contracts, marketing plans, and employees. You’ve got to know how to have a conversation that doesn’t give away too much, but gives you enough room to move so you can benefit.

With travel you are often bargaining with those who are far less privileged than you, which helps you to develop empathy. Empathy is important in negotiation as it prevents you from being cut throat. You think from the other person’s shoes, which brings sharpness to your negotiation, but also humility to ensure you both walk way smiling.

 

How to plan, implement and solve problems

Travel costs, schedules, itineraries, time, money the list goes on with what you will be planning when travelling.

How do I get from Ohio to Sierre Leone? Is it better to do five months in Africa or 3 months in Europe? What are my travel goals and how do my plans fit with them?

With travel you are continually planning, re-evaluating and learning how to be resourceful.

What do you do when the wheel of the ute you are travelling on falls off on a dusty road in the middle of Africa? Or, when you lose your passport or you arrive in Dublin with only $70 in your pocket?

Dig deep and find the solution. Travel puts your back up against the wall, a position you’ll often find yourself in in business. Lucky for you, you can rely on those skills you learned in Africa to pull yourself out of trouble.

 

How to budget, spend wisely and learn new work skills

Travellers are incredibly sharp at budgeting and stretching their dollar further. They know how to find deals, how to get more bang for their buck, and find ways to bring extra cash in. They are not afraid to get their hands dirty and try something new.

For example on my travels around the world, I have taught in elementary schools and English as a foreign language, worked in bars and restaurants, tutored a monk, done door to door sales, and did hard labour working on a pearl farm. All of these have given me skills I can now apply to my own business.

 

How to become flexible and adaptable

Travel is one constant movement where every day is different. One minute you are in Germany, the next in Thailand. You have to quickly switch your thinking to a new language, customs, climate and road map.

I know I can be dropped in the middle of Siberia and I’ll find my way around- travel has given me that level of confidence to be flexible and to adapt.

In your business, things will be always moving that you have little control over. You have to quickly adapt and move with it in order to survive. Technology rapidly changes in the business environment, travel will help you to easily and willingly let go of the old in order to master the new and improved.

 

How to improve networking skills and your ability to read people

When you are travelling you are often communicating in gestures, smiles, and funny impromptu games of charades.

Who said you needed to speak a common language?

Despite being a whole lot of fun, these interactions help you sharpen your ability to read another person. You don’t need words to understand what lies behind a person’s eyes, the way they move their body, their facial expression and energy.

What a gift in business to be able to read the other person without hearing their words. It will help you to feel who is best to work with and who should be given “Not this time but all the best.”

 

How to be courageous and confident

Travelling the world can be scary (until a few weeks in and you realize it so is NOT).

You have to learn to take risks and be confident that you can handle the outcome no matter which way it falls. And if it is not the way you want it, you have to get back up and improve.

Going out into business by yourself can be extremely scary. Think how both are so similar. It is just you and your dreams. There’s no escape plan or anyone who can catch you when you fall.

Travel first and learn how to be courageous and confident. You will need these two traits if you are going to survive in business.

 

How to open your mind and think in new ways

You can’t be a black and white thinker in business. You have to be open to learning new ways and taking on new ideas. Otherwise progression will be difficult.

Likewise, you won’t last long on the travel road if you don’t journey with a mind that is open to learning and accepting. Opportunities abound for lubricating your mind—sometimes in extreme measures.

You’ll also learn that while the new way of thinking might not be something you wish to take on, it can be something you can respect, and perhaps learn something from.

When you go into business for yourself, you will have to take on the ideas from other people, particularly those who you will be working with.

You will also have learned so much through your own travels that some of these new ideas you have been exposed to will help you to innovate and stand out from your competition.

I never realized that travelling the world for 15 years would eventually lead me to this place where I control how my life looks. I signed up for travel because I wanted the adventure. In the process I learned an incredible amount about myself, what I am capable of, and just how easy it was to turn my passion into a profitable business.

HOW TO STAND OUT WHEN YOUR COMPETITOR IS BIGGER, BADDER AND STRONGER.

Welcome to 2013 the absolute worst time in history for those looking to do something unique. Long gone are the days when to “matter” we just had to create something “pretty good” and scream at the top our lungs about it. Now there’s a sea of “us”. And they’re all doing exactly what we’re doing…or what we want to be doing.

It’s depressing. And it’s noisy.

Questions:

• What are you supposed to DO when you come up with a great idea, but your competition is bigger, badder and richer?
• Is there even a point in pouring your heart and soul into an idea that’s already been done (in some way/shape/fashion) by someone else before?

-       Should you just curl up in a ball and die?

-       Should you find another idea?

Don’t answer! Those are rhetorical Of course, rhetorical means that I’m going to answer you. But first, let’s dig a little deeper.

THE MYTH ABOUT CREATING SOMETHING “NEW”

Here is a little story i think can help out;

Nwams is a member of TAP and she’s the CEO/Co-founder of a Houston-based startup that helps women (or men?) find the best prices on hair weaves and extensions by connecting them to hundreds of sellers and comparing prices. Ever been on eBay and compared prices on two nearly identical products, then chose the one that had the best value? Easy Weave is just like that but for hair. Awesome right?

But….as usual, there’s a problem…

The main idea behind EasyWeave is not a new concept….not by a long shot. And the competition is as stiff as possible. Nwams has 4 main competitors: Alibaba, Etsy, EBay and Amazon.

Ever heard of those guys before? Yeah, they are global wrecking crews. All of them move millions and millions of dollars worth of hair weaves/ extensions every year.

At a cursory glance, it pretty much seems like EasyWeave is dead in the water. Nwams’ competitors are bigger, stronger, wealthier and much more well known. They’ve got it on lock. It’s like that crazy basketball game in Space Jam where Michael Jordan had to go up against those freaky 12-foot bodybuilder aliens. With odds like that, most people just curl up and hope for death.

“Please, just make it quick and painless.”

-       How can Nwams still give her startup a chance at succeeding? Is there even a point in continuing when EasyWeave is a mosquito in a room full of vultures?

 

-       How can Nwams even have the audacity to think that she’ll make money when there are so many bigger players out there doing the exact same thing she’s doing?

Most startup founders run into this wall and get scared. We immediately try to think of a new product we can make that will be drastically different than what’s already on the market. We don’t just want to reinvent the wheel. We want to reinvent the car, the streets and the stop signs.

We’re searching for something NEW to differentiate ourselves because we’re scared the competition will gobble us up if we don’t create something unique.

But that unique product isn’t a new product at all.

It’s your personality.

YOU: YOUR UNIQUE SELLING PROPOSITION (USP)

Let’s face it – when we’re first starting out, the competition will be better armed, more visible and in many cases, they will have the ability to undercut us on price point.

In Nwams’ case specifically, the first thing I noticed is that her market (hair weave) is flooded. Most people get discouraged by a saturated market. I don’t. To me, it means she made a smart move. A flooded market means that her concept is solid. People want what she’s selling.

A flooded market gives you the opportunity to rise to the top because although there’s a ton of competition, 98% of them will be doing the WRONG thing. The majority of businesses can’t really sell what they make. That’s why they go out of business.

The second thing I noticed is that EasyWeave’s market is saturated with faceless online retail giants. You don’t have a connection to an Ebay or Alibaba when you buy from them. You are just purchasing what you need – and if you can find a reason to purchase somewhere else, you will. There’s really no loyalty involved.

So we need to give people a reason to buy from EasyWeave that outweighs the blind reflex to just look for the lowest price.

Nwams has a reason: herself.

Remember this: You don’t always have to be better, or cheaper, or faster, or more high tech than your competition.

Oftentimes, just being yourself is enough.

You can create a brand around yourself, with your personality and story as the USP (unique selling proposition).

Let’s zoom in here a little bit and think about the psychology behind why we buy.

WHY WE BUY (VS WHY WE THINK WE BUY)…

When you buy a new piece of clothing, a new convertible…or even a bottle of wine, what are you really buying?

Sure, you’re buying something physical – but behind that physical object is the feeling that you’re hoping to capture by possessing the new object. Even if the feeling only lasts for a second.

-       You’re not buying the shirt. You’re buying the way you feel, and the way others percieve you, in the shirt.

-       You’re not buying the convertible. You’re buying the warm summer breeze through your hair.

-       You’re not buying the wine. You’re buying the buzz and the off chance you might get freaky with that girl you met at the restaurant last night.

Everything we buy is in an attempt to capture a feeling – and we’re hoping that the feeling will stick. Because when it’s all said and done, all we’re left with is our stories.

Human beings connect with stories. And if you’re launching a startup that caters to human beings (umm…this is probably everyone), then you can leverage considerable influence over even the most vicious competitors by creating a more compelling story than them. A story that sparks feelings and emotions in the potential customer.

In EasyWeave’s case, this is really easy because all the faceless giants we named don’t even HAVE a compelling story. They’re just…there.

People will buy from you because they like your story and want to take part in your journey. They feel like they know you. Get this: they actually ENJOY buying from you and PREFER it over somebody that they don’t feel close to. Even if your prices are a little higher.

HOW TO CREATE A COMPELLING STORY (HINT: STOP TRYING TO “COMPETE”)

The first step in creating a more compelling story than your competitors is to make the conscious decision NOT to compete in the same game everyone else is playing.

You have to actively seek out (or create) another ocean for yourself that no one else is swimming in. In order to stand out and really start differentiating yourself, try to answer these four simple questions. They are often overlooked, but if you can answer them, you’ll have no shortage of buyers who want your unique flavor

I blatantly stole these from my good friend….. He’s brilliant.

The questions are:

1. Why you? (as in, you, the seller)
2. Why me? (the prospect)
3. Why this? (your product or service)
4. Why now?

When you answer these question well, others can try to copy but it will be obvious and lame.

 

DEAR ENTREPRENEUR,

The fun thing is that you never know whether you’re on the right track or not. It is living life in small moments and the bigger picture at the same time.

You’re on a Trek : Imagine you’re on a trek. Keep looking at the peak every now and then. Are you nearer to it then you were before? If yes, keep focusing on the path, or make one that seems right. If the peak seems farther that it was before, realize which the wrong turn was and undo it. Ensure your teams stays together, ensure all of them want the peak. Ensure each one of you wants to share the load while making your way to the top by sharing food and water among yourselves equally. The peak is the BIG PICTURE and your immediate path stands for the everyday challenges. Roadblock? Find a way. Thirsty? Find a stream. Leopard in your way? Knock it out (killing is cruel). One team member behaving like a douche? Show him the way down. Douche villager who is rude while showing the way? Still be polite and burn no bridges.

Losing steam? Look at the peak again! Breathe the fringing’ mountain air! Look at your strong legs, look at the clouds, look at the innocent birds chirping happily all around you- the world loves you. You love yourself. And you’re so strong that you’ve made it so far. You chose the mountain. You chose your team. You chose the path- built it, I’d say. You’ve settled in your niche, you know your purpose; you know where you’re headed. LOOK AT THE PEAK! And it will all make sense.

Uncertainty is Natural: Because no one is driving your life but you. You never know that you’re on the right track till the short term goals get fulfilled. Set milestones, they help you know that you’re on the right track. Product reached a certain stage? Good. People/Mentors appreciate the progress? Good. Team still motivated enough? Good. You figure out how you’ll make money? Good.

Believe: Understand the reason why you feel you’re back at Square One. Is it the progress at the project? Is it lack of team cohesion? Is it lack of financial security? If yes, then get things in order. List them, sort them out. Make sure the startup grows slowly but steadily. Is it purely emotional? Speak about it to your family, your better half. Feel loved.

The First Year Is Often Slow It always is, because you’re out in the cold, trying to build something and making tonnes of mistakes. But you learn so much then, that helps you accelerate in the next year and after that. So don’t worry that you’re taking time, you’re learning in the process. But DO NOT get complacent and DO NOT take things as they come. You might need to initiate and lead and create and execute.

Where Is This Coming From? From numerous conversations I’ve had with fellow business people, my own experience (2 years out in the cold till date), a number of blogs online and wonderful books I’ve read. You’re not alone, but you got do what you have to do to make a difference in life.

THE ONLY WAY TO RAISE YOUR SALARY

The only way you can command a higher salary is to make your employer more money than anyone else who could do your job.

You make money for your employer by producing profitable goods that will be bought by his customers (who are also his employers).

This is why your employer is not your employer, but your employer’s employers.

Who’s Your Employer?

As the saying goes in B2B (“business-to-business”) industries: “Your customer is not your customer but your customer’s customer.” To be successful in selling your products or services to your customer, you need to make your customer successful in selling his products or services to his customer.

As the manager of “ME, Incorporated,” you are in the B2B space. Your customer is your employer. If he doesn’t buy your services, you are out of a job. Your employer’s employers are his customers. If they don’t buy his products, he is out of business... And so are you.

Value Is In the Eye of the Beholder

You buy a product if and only if you prefer it to any other use to which you could put your money. The seller sells her product if and only if she prefers the money to any other use to which she could put her product.

For example, if you buy a computer for $1,000, then you must believe that you will derive a higher benefit from the computer than from the $1,000. Similarly, if I sell you a computer for $1,000, I must believe that I will derive a higher benefit from the $1,000 than from the computer.

One of the greatest revolutions in economics was the discovery that “value” is not an attribute of things per se but, rather, an assessment made by the person for whom the thing appears to be valuable. Beginning with Aristotle, economists believed that “value” was an objective quality such as size, weight, or material composition. This thinking culminated with Karl Marx, who argued that “the labor incorporated in the good” was what made it valuable[CC1] .

They were all wrong.

A computer might be valuable to you because you don’t have one, but worthless to me because I have two. Neither of us is “wrong,” because the computer does not have an intrinsic value; it only has value for a particular person at a particular time under particular conditions. No matter how much effort the producer of the computer put into it, it’s still worthless to me.

The next time someone pleads with you, “But I worked so hard on this!” remember that the labor theory of value is hogwash. If his product doesn’t help you achieve your goals, all his effort has been for naught.

By the same logic, remember that your effort means nothing to your employer unless it helps him achieve his goals.

What Makes You Valuable?

You are selling your labor to your employer. (By “labor” I don’t just mean physical activity, but also everything else you do to contribute to your employer’s goals.)

Your employer buys your labor if and only if he prefers it to anything else he could do with his money—and that includes the labor of any other potential employee.

Your value to your employer depends solely on his ability to derive extra gains from your labor. (By “extra gains” I don’t just mean monetary profits but also everything else that matters to him and his organization.)

Of course, he combines your labor with other factors of production, such as the labor of others, capital equipment, and natural resources, so it is not a simple matter to calculate your contribution to the mix. But even if it is only an approximation, your employer will be willing to pay you only up to the monetary value that your contribution has for him.

A rational employer, one that wants to stay in business rather than overpay you and be undercut by more rational competitors who will bear lower costs, will never pay you more than this; and he will prefer to pay you less.

How much less? Well, how much would you like to pay for a computer? I wouldn’t mind getting it for free; would you? Well, neither would your employer mind getting your labor for free. The less cost, the more profit!

What Makes You Payable?

The upshot of all of this is that being “valuable” does not mean you are “payable.” As I said in my last post, your ability to negotiate your compensation is not limited only by the value of your labor in terms of extra gains for your employer. It is also limited by your employer’s best alternative to a negotiated agreement with you.

Your employer’s alternative is to hire the next most valuable person, where “value” is the difference between the extra gains he could make by hiring her minus her compensation.

So for your employer to hire you and keep you employed, your compensation must be in line with that of anyone else who could do as good a job for him as you can.

This is why the only way you can command a better salary is for you to be more valuable to your employer than anyone else who could do your job. And therefore, the only way to raise your salary is to make a higher contribution to your employer than you are making now.

This means helping him serve his customers more profitably than he currently does.

In the market society the proprietors of businesses, but also of labor can enjoy their property only by employing it to the satisfaction of other people’s wants. They must serve the consumers in order to have any advantage Ownership is an asset only for those who know how to employ it in the best possible way for the benefit of the consumers.