IF you're really an independent internet marketer . . .
When someone asks, “What do you do for a living?” there is only one correct answer.
It’s not, “I have a business.” A business is something you own; not something you do.
It’s not “I’m a doctor.” That’s just a profession – not what really pays the bills.
And it’s sure not, “I give investment advice.” Or, “I do landscaping.” Or, “I dry-clean clothes.” Or, “I write sales copy.” Those are just the products and services you sell.
The only correct answer to this most common cocktail-party question is to declare loudly and proudly …
“I’m an independent marketer!”
“My specialty is attracting new customers … persuading existing customers to make ever-larger purchases … convincing them to buy more often … and making sure they keep buying from me forever.”
I’m not quibbling here; the point I’m making is a crucial one. Because your answer to the “What do you do?” question says a lot about how you think about your business or career.
And as long as you define yourself by what you own or by the sheepskin on your wall or by the product or service you sell – as long as you define yourself as anything but a marketer — you are setting yourself up to make huge mistakes in how you run your business that will limit your success as an internet marketer.
Because every business and every non-profit organization is first and foremost a marketing enterprise. Because nothing happens until the cash register rings.
So it amazes me that so many marketers structure their companies upside-down: With MBAs, bean-counters and lawyers at the top and marketers forced to beg for resources.
In good times, that’s a bad idea. In bad times, it’s idiotic.
We’re now staring down the barrel of the worst holiday season in decades. With unemployment surging, wary consumers are pinching their pennies, avoiding all but essential expenses. And all around the globe, businesses are cutting costs like there’s no tomorrow.
But cost-cutting is only half of the equation. In times like these, companies that find ways to introduce new efficiencies into their business process are most likely to survive. And that means we can no longer afford to elevate bureaucrats and relegate the marketing department to second-place.
In times like these, we don’t need CEOs. We need CMOs — Chief MARKETING Officers — running our companies: People who make sure that attracting new customers, selling more to each customer and keeping customers buying longer are the top priorities of every employee — from the business owner right on down to the janitor.
Nor do we need budgets that restrict the amount of testing marketers are able to do — we need spending mandates that empower marketers to run every good idea up the flagpole to see how many prospects and customers salute.
My advice: If you own a business or work for one, read => this. Then, read => this. Then, marshal the troops this week to brainstorm what you should be doing right now to put effective marketing first.
I’ll predict that one meeting will do more to help your company or your clients’ companies thrive than anything else you could possibly do this week.