The Bright Marketing Results

Part Two of a three part series that looks at the Bright Marketing workshop tour.  The 23 Principles of the Bright Marketing Manifesto that evolved from the unique Barclays Bright Marketing Seminars have changed the lives and fortunes of thousands of the UK’s small businesses. So what’s all the fuss? Also, we look at two more of the manifesto principles

 

The first Bright Marketing seminar was run in June 2002. Since then the workshop has been delivered over 100 times to approximately 10,000 people who run small/growing businesses.  So has it been a success?

‘Bright Marketing’ – Any Good?

The simplest way to evaluate a programme like Bright Marketing is to ask the customers, ask the presenters and of course ask the Bank that helped create it..- now there’s a thought !

What The Delegates Say

The feedback from the delegates is best described as awesome!  99% of delegates said they would recommend the event to other business owners – you can’t get better than that.  More importantly, 96% of attendees said that they would do something significant in their business as a result of the programme.

What The Speakers Say

The programme was led by two of the UK’s leading speakers on marketing, Robert Craven and Kiki Maurey.  Kiki comments: ‘this programme has been literally life-changing for many of the delegates – you can see the wool coming off the eyes of the delegates as we talk.  We focus on what it is that delegates want to discover by using a no-nonsense, practical approach to show how people can get more (and better) customers.  And it works.  They love it!’

What  Programme Creators Say

‘We have been delighted to run this unique and remarkable programme – one that really does help local businesses increase their chances of survival and success. Our research shows that there is a direct correlation between effective marketing activity and business success ’ says John Davis, Marketing Director, for Local Business Banking at Barclays. ‘Delegates want to know how to run more successful businesses and these seminars certainly give delegates the marketing tools that they need!’

Show Me The Money!

Nigel Burton from Freebird New Media, who attended the Bright Marketing workshop in Preston, says
’ the most important idea we implemented from the seminar was talking to customers about what they did and didn’t like about Freebird – this was definitely a pain barrier in some cases but has improved the relationship with existing customers dramatically... we get a significant portion of our increased turnover from those customers.  In addition, we binned some of our more difficult, high maintenance clients leaving us free to invest more time and energy into the ones who treated us with more respect. Last year we were £150,000 turnover – we look set to double that this year and to hit the half a million mark by year end ‘07.’

Lesley Lant of Perennial, a marketing consultancy in east London, said
‘from your initial idea of asking for more business our invoicing to one key client increased by 50%’.

Star of Dragon’s Den, Jay Cousins, the one who bravely refused their money for his innovative, fold flat tableware is also a fan.  When asked what was the impact of the programme on his business he replied that ‘the impact was a forecast that doubled previous projections’.  The dragons of the den aren’t the only ones that have spotted his potential! 

Bright Marketing Manifesto Continued…

Bright Marketing Manifesto Principle #19: Everyone Looks The Same

 

Everyone looks the same. Your competitors pay similar people with similar qualifications similar wages to use similar software on similar hardware to make similar products that do similar things at similar prices. 

We live in a world of similarity – similarity abounds.  In this world of similarity I can almost guarantee that your competitors have similar, if not identical marketing materials to yours. 

I expect that most of your competitors claim to be roughly the same.  Most of them employ similar brand or web designers and between them they create very similar websites and brochures that claim (Yawn! Yawn!) roughly the following:

• We offer value for money, the best price
• We deliver contracts on time using recognised methods and approaches
• We employ well qualified staff with good credentials, experience etc
• We have a history of important clients, some of whom have written over-flowing but probably anonymous testimonials.

And finally, there is always the line that twitters on about ‘what makes us different from the rest is our obsession with customer service’ or some such similarly empty line.

What absolute garbage this all is!  You will be exactly the same as the rest of your competition if you also try to promote yourself by celebrating these similar qualities.  In most industries there is too much sameness; too much safe differentiation between the various competitors.  In reality, there is usually an over-supply of participants; and more often than not, the barriers to entry (to the industry) are relatively low. 

You cannot stand out by offering the same as everyone else! You cannot stand out by claiming that what makes you different is the same as what everyone else says is the thing that makes them different! To stand out you do need to be different.

Bright Marketing Manifesto Principle #20: Ask For The Business

Ask for the business - the customer cannot pick up your enthusiasm to work with them by osmosis alone.

We are particularly mediocre, if not ghastly, at asking for the business in this country.  Because we are so much in love with our product, we cannot believe that the potential customer cannot also see how great it is.  Because we have spent so much time preparing our proposal, we cannot believe that the potential client cannot also see how great it is.  Because we so desperately need the next piece of work, we cannot believe how unfair it is that the client might consider buying elsewhere.

The reality is that we usually communicate very poorly with our potential client.  Most UK business people are not born as sales people – we are in business because we had a passion to make a certain product or service… and we thought that we could then make a living out of it if enough people bought it.

Most are not trained in selling with integrity – some of us are grossly heavy-handed at selling but the majority are like nervous little mice, too nervous that the client might say ‘No’ so we avoid facing them and asking the straight questions.

The normal method of presenting a proposal is post it or send and only very occasionally to offer it to the client face-to-face.  Even then we withdraw as rapidly as possible for fear of the dreaded rejection.  Stop!  Change your tack!  Try asking, yes, asking for the business! 

Why?
Because it works

Why?
Because so few people actually do it properly.

How?
Quite simply, look them the in the eye and say something to the effect of, ‘In case you are in any doubt as to why I have come over here today, let me explain to you that I am here to make it absolutely clear that this is the sort of contract we would really like to work on… we feel that the chemistry is really good… it is just the type of contract we relish and can deliver real results for… and you are just the type of business where our service really excels… so I wanted to make it absolutely clear that we’d love to win this contract… in effect, yes, I am asking you for the business!’  Try it… because very few do!

My one-liner of the day

Stop procrastinating… just do it… ‘cos you probably won’t die.  It’s far easier to ask for forgiveness than it is to ask for permission!

 

Next Month More of the Manifesto Key Points and final tips techniques to get your business ‘cooking on gas’

Note: The Barclays Lets Talk Bright Marketing Workshops will be delivered by Barclays Robert Craven and Kiki Maurey in Spring 06..  For further details of the Bright Marketing Manifesto go to  www.directorscentre.com

 

Customer Is King – How To Exceed Their Expectations by Robert Craven, Foreword by Sir Richard Branson.  Virgin Books, ISBN 0 7535 0968 7  RRP £10.99

 

NOTES

The Barclays Bright Marketing Workshops will be delivered by Robert Craven in Spring 06 visiting 20 towns.  For further details of the Bright Marketing Manifesto go to 
www.directorscentre.com/barclays-bright-marketing-diary.php

Customer Is King – How To Exceed Their Expectations by Robert Craven, Foreword by Sir Richard Branson.  Virgin Books, ISBN 0 7535 0968 7  RRP £10.99

About the author

Robert Craven is a keynote speaker and author of the business best-sellers 'Kick-Start Your Business' and 'Customer Is King'. He has recently been described as 'one of the UK’s leading marketing specialists' and the 'entrepreneurship guru'. He runs The Directors’ Centre, helping growing businesses to grow.
For further information, contact Robert Craven on 01225 851044. (rc@directorscentre.com) www.directorscentre.com

Robert Craven©2006

publication details

DUE TO BE PUBLISHED: 2006 Start Your Business magazine.