Last night I had a gentleman call me who owns a "Do It Yourself" wine making business.
It's a very cool business concept.
People come in and actually create their own wines. They also get to design their own wine labels and choose the type of bottles for their wine.
He was asking me about how to get more referrals for his wine business.
I gave him one specific idea that was somewhat aggressive, but VERY effective.
His immediate reaction was, "My customers are upscale people. I can't do that."
Well, this isn't the first time someone has told me that. In fact, I often get that reaction.
The Marketing "Comfort Level" Continuum
I then proceeded to explain to the caller a concept I call the, "Marketing Comfort Level Continuum."
Picture a continuum.
Passive Aggressive
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0 5 10
On the left of the continuum you find marketing activities that are very passive in nature such as writing articles or sending a newsletter (like this one).
On the right of the continuum you'll find aggressive marketing activities such as cold calling and door-to-door sales.
All marketing activities fall in between these two extremes.
When to use which marketing activity depends on your comfort level, what you're marketing, and the type of person to whom you're marketing.
When to Use "In Your Face" Aggressive Marketing
Most business owners in general, I've found, don't like to use aggressive marketing strategies.
They think that it will get their customers upset and, of course, that's the last thing they want to do.
But from my point of view, if you're not getting someone a little unraveled or upset, then you're not marketing hard enough.
Here's a great example of "In Your Face" marketing that is very bold and aggressive (and very effective!).
And it's being used in the accounting software industry, of all places.
---> http://url123.com/xc6y9
(copy and paste the link into your browser)
This ad goes straight for the jugular vein.
It's pulls no punches.
It's hard hitting and very bold.
It let's you know that they want to steal Intuit customers.
Notice the use of the word, "Defector." That's a very strong word. And it even places a number on the defector. Ouch!
So When Is It Okay to Do Aggressive Marketing?
The answer to that question is...
...WHEN IT WORKS!
You see, if people are giving you money in response to your aggressive marketing, they are essentially voting with their wallet that they want what you have (and that they trust you).
And you can't have got them too upset, or they wouldn't be buying from you.
This holds true even in the corporate professional world.
Yes, even those :"white shirts" put their pants on one leg at a time and they DO respond to aggressive marketing techniques, when they solve a bad problem that the "white shirt" is experiencing.
Never Be More Concerned About Your "Reputation" then Your Pocketbook
I'm going to catch some serious flack for saying this but here goes...
Too many business owners are worried about what people think of them than making sales.
I can't tell you how many times I've heard someone say, "We want to keep our good reputation. What you're telling us to do sounds, "hokey."
Because of this silly thinking, I've known a lot of good, hard working, honest professionals who have had to close down their business and go back to the corporate world simply because they were "too worried about their reputation" and weren't willing to be more aggressive in their marketing.
Now, I'm Not Saying at All that You Should Do Something Dishonest or Unethical. Not at all....
...what I'm saying is, you should test more aggressive marketing tactics and if they work, go with them.
If they don't work, then drop them.
Don't let your ego stand in your way of success.
Stretch your comfort zone.
Be a little daring in your marketing and you'll discover that most people will respond in a positive way.
Hope this helps you in some small way.
In Your Face Marketing - To learn more about this author, visit David Frey's Website.
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David Frey
(Visit David's Website)
David Frey is the author of the
best-selling manual, "The Small Business
Marketing Bible" and the Senior Editor of
the "Small Business Marketing Best
Practices Newsletter
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