1. Identify the need

A good reason, why I think a full refrigerator is overrated, FOOD ROTS.

Think about how your own refrigerator is used. The kids come home, they open the refrigerator up, they look at it and do not see anything to eat and it’s full! When they do use it, they never use the last little bit of anything, do they? It’s all waste, no matter how much or how little.

Most marketing is very much a same way. A customer has so many choices, and it’s really not because of him. It’s because of us trying to be everything to everybody. We are so afraid to target ourselves and to limit ourselves in any way, that we just become one of many inside the refrigerator. Just one of all the choices, because all we are saying that we can put something in your stomach and fill you up.

When you have a clearly defined marketing funnel, you take customers through the cycle not only for your benefit but for theirs. Qualifying a customer is primarily for their benefit. A good match between customers, suppliers and products is the single most important strategy you can use to grow your business. Losing a prospect in the middle of the funnel should happen. If you meetings are about why you lost these prospects, you may want to re-think your position a little. Think how could lose them sooner and spend more time bringing others into the funnel and qualifing them quicker. Your least expensive marketing should be to the masses and/or less qualified prospects. Once someone gets into your funnel, find ways to qualify them quickly. Rotten food stinks up the whole refrigerator.    

So how do we go about distinguishing ourselves? I believe the single most effective way to do this is to determine your customer’s needs? We can’t fulfill every need, but what is the one thing that we can fulfill?( Use the 5 Why’s to do that). If you want to get your marketing on track, I think this is the single most powerful influencer that you can do. Take a look at the refrigerator once again; do you want to be the eggs on the left or on the right?