Life Lesson

Many don’t want to do the hard work of marketing because it requires that one turns off a default setting we have when making an argument.

We all know that it’s tough to convince someone of something if we merely share why we believe in it. The worldviews don’t align that way. It keeps us disconnected to share only our opinion, but we keep the satisfaction of personal authority when we tell it how it is.

That’s the default setting. And it almost never works, not in the long-term anyway.

Marketing done right is marketing done by listening; by setting our worldviews aside to have empathy; by telling ourselves the story the person we’re talking to is telling themselves.

It feels uncomfortable, like we shouldn’t try–like it’s their story, not ours.

It’s better they come to our side, right?

It’s not that marketers aren’t trustworthy, it’s that they (you know, the great ones) are so empathetic that it’s often hard to know exactly where they are coming from and why you feel like you trust them and how you can feel so understood by someone.

It’s scary and a bit uncomfortable, but that’s vulnerability and how you know they actually care.

When you can meet another in their field, what you have to say ceases to be an argument and becomes an epiphany that you each can bond over.

Far more powerful, in my opinion, then there being a winner and a loser.

 

Stay Positive & Arguments Are Passé Anyway

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You don’t need to wait until you have a signed contract or estimate to begin thinking.

You don’t need to wait for “the next big thing” to happen either.

Nor do you need to wait for your business to get on the latest social platform.

Your thoughts are your most powerful tool to get all you want: promotion, client, business…

Don’t wait until it’s in front of you to start thinking about it.

Start now so that when it is in front of you, you’re already ahead of it.

Whether it’s in your job title or not, you’re being paid to think.

Whether it’s 9:30 p.m. at night or 4:30 a.m., you’re being paid to think.

You might not see it reflected in your bank account now, but you will.

 

Stay Positive & Think More, Deeper, Smarter

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Believe it or not, this is the easiest part.

What you thought was a struggle yesterday or what you think is a challenge this week … it’s not the hardest part.

The feedback you’ve recently gotten? You’ll be given harsher feedback in the future.

The gap you leaped last year? This year’s gap is even wider.

It never gets easier. Not as long as you’re pushing yourself to be better.

The beauty of the real work is that it hasn’t started yet. It’s both a blessing and a curse.

All the more reason to not let the trips and criticisms slow you down now.

 

Stay Positive & Consider It Practice For What’s To Come

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When it comes to your staff–if they’re not as passionate about your story as you, they’re not doing you any favors.

In fact, they’re lowering the bar of your business. Your value is suffering.

If you have to close your shop for a few days to find the right person to hire. Do so.

It’ll hurt you more to hire someone on a whim so you can stay open.

Worse yet is hiring someone for the long-term who isn’t excited by why your business exists.

The worst salesperson for a carpet company is the one who says that they leave their carpet at home filthy and buy the cheaper stuff from the other guys.

The worst bartender you can hire is the one who tells customers “I don’t like beer.” (Literally experienced this at what was supposed to be a stellar craft beer bar in Chicago this weekend. Think I’ll be going back? Nope.)

You don’t need to find the Miss America of staff, but you do need to find someone with a spark of care, of generosity and of passion … then help fuel it.

Just as there are customers you shouldn’t keep as customers, there’s staff you’d be better off without.

 

Stay Positive & We Need You To Choose Better Staff More Than You Need The Staff

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Some trends are obvious why they’re happening.

Others, not so much.

Ever wonder why Sriracha is a trending sauce?

How about why people buy a small instead of a medium when a medium is only $.05 more?

Why are more people buying record players again?

It’s important to notice trends, but the marketers and brands that excel and leverage the trends are the ones who dig deep to understand how they became a trend in the first place.

It’s about the why. Always has been.

 

Stay Positive & Dig Deeper

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Our default way to read an email is that we’re wrong.

We’ve made a mistake and someone is pointing it out.

Even when it’s a compliment, we’re hesitant to accept it.

“What do they actually want?” “Is this because I did poorly before?” “It was nothing. Really.”

Chances are its the default setting of the person you’re sending an email to, too.

Perhaps it’s time to act and shift the way we communicate to others. It needn’t be a complete 180, but putting more time to face-to-face conversations can make all the difference.

The default way of reading a communication when it’s person-to-person might still create some concern, but ultimately it feels more authentic, helpful and like you care.

 

Stay Positive & The Chance Of A Better Perception Makes All The Difference

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Allow me to riff for a moment …

Who is the logo for? It’s certainly not for you, right? It ought to be for your target to see and feel an emotion when they do. Please remove yourself from the equation and focus on the impact your audience desires, not the impact you want to make.

How big is it? Turns out size doesn’t matter in regard to people remembering it. Although, it might help tell your story better to have a smaller logo if you’re in a niche market or a large logo if you’re a global business. The size of the logo should tell the brand story, not merely be made large so it gets noticed.

When should you redo your logo? If you’re changing your story. Otherwise what makes your logo stronger is that it’s consistent. It shows up every day. Your logo builds trust over time. I’d even push back on changing the logo when you change your story unless it’s a true 180 and your current logo has baggage.

How much are you willing to spend on a logo? The price one paid for a logo is never the story of the logo; it’s irrelevant. Have a friend who cares about your story make you one. It’s almost always nonsense to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars for a logo. Consider this: The money you spent on the logo could have been put into the business that will define how people see your logo.

I spoke to someone recently who had two designers and spent thousands of dollars on their logo. At first glance, it means nothing to anyone. They can guess the industry it involves, but beyond that, it’s everything else this business does that gives the logo meaning. The conversations they have with customers. The stories they tell on their website and packaging. The flavor of the coffee once you finally taste it.

There are so many things you could better spend your time on than a logo. By all means, be smart about it, but understand there’s a line when you’re hurting yourself more than helping your target.

 

Stay Positive & Next Up, Let’s Talk Brand Names (Pretty Much Read Everything Above)

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