Once at an industry lunch, I sat beside a very successful print executive. This was at a time when digital was on the rise and print companies were vanishing. His company was flourishing. I was convinced he had the secret to success so I asked him:
“What works for you in marketing to bring in more business?”
I remember him smiling and responding with: “Nothing and everything.” He went on to explain that his company did many things; inbound and outbound calling, hiring many salespeople, placing ads through different mediums, sponsorships… and even a special Italian bread that they sent out to clients during the holidays. However, he could not pin point the one thing that consistently worked. It was the accumulative effect of all those small pushes that kept them busy. Sometimes something would work and then stop, while other methods would simply surprise him.
If you are like most marketers, you know your product is excellent, your pricing is fair, you are innovating, evolving, and your service is excellent. In theory, all of the qualities above should convince people to buy from you.
However, many companies struggle to get a constant flow of new business. Contrary to what ad salespeople and other promotion marketers claim, there is no one that has the secret to success. The market is fluid and fickle and what works now may not work
continuously for reasons beyond us. In the end, it’s not one thing that will be the savior but through the process of trial and error, something will click. Instead of focusing on what works for others, trust in your experience and intuition.
continuously for reasons beyond us. In the end, it’s not one thing that will be the savior but through the process of trial and error, something will click. Instead of focusing on what works for others, trust in your experience and intuition.