Perception Is Reality

There is NOTHING more frustrating than knowing that you are offering the BEST products and services in your market - only to learn that no one else seems to know that you even exist or are an option!

We see this much too often.

After working with an entrepreneur or business owner for a short period of time we can see the signs. We see that this company is really good at what they do. They have great systems, great personnel, great checks and balances, a great product, awesome customer service and yet they're still struggling to achieve the sales they should and the market recognition they deserve.

This is the classic struggle between your Inside Reality and your Outside Perception.

Your Inside Reality defines who you are, what you do, what you believe, and how you do it. The problem is, a great Inside Reality alone doesn't make you any money. You could have the greatest product or services in the world, but if nobody knows about it, nothing happens.

That’s where your Outside Perception comes into play. Your Outside Perception is what your potential customers and client’s perception of what you do, what you believe, who you are and how your business runs.

Perception Is Reality

Here’s what we mean…

If you're perceived to be a run-down dumpy delicatessen you're going to get the results of a rundown delicatessen - even if you’re not!

The key to making a lot of money is to get your Outside Perception to match your Inside Reality. When you show your community what you do better and different than everybody else and promote it well great results will follow.

Let’s not be shy about this.

You MUST know what you do different and/or better than your competition and promote it from the rooftops - shout it out loud.
Stop being the best kept secret around.

In Chapter 3 of My Marketing Sucks we show you how to figure out exactly what makes you different, better and unique; how to dominate your market with your Unique Selling Points.

Shortly, your marketing will be able to scream from the rooftops:

“We are the greatest because we do xyz better than anyone else and we can prove it!”

In some businesses we find there is a big disconnect between your Inside Reality and Outside Perception.

Here is a good example...

We do annual customer surveys for our clients. Often, we find out business owners are too close to the trees to see the forest. Meaning, they can’t see the flaws their customers and clients can see. In the fitness industry, many club owners don’t realize when their facility becomes a little tired and worn at the edges. Yet, in the member survey, we may hear it over and over again.

The owner typically would say to us “I didn't realize it got that bad!” A fresh coat of paint, a new cleaning crew, attention to detail and the problem is solved.

Importantly, you need to let people know that you have acknowledged the issue(s) and what steps you are taking to address it. Remember, your Outside Perception is still bad. Nobody knows you cleaned it up or painted and carpeted the public areas. A handful of people are still coming in now, but those who have not been in recently don’t know you fixed the problems.

You need to get the word out to bring that Outside Perception and Inside Reality back into alignment. Pictures and videos testimonials used in your marketing, on your website and social media pages are a perfect way for you to change your Outside Perception to match your Inside Reality. Customer Surveys are a fantastic way to make sure your Outside Perception and Inside Reality are in alignment.

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Surveys will produce dozens, if not hundreds, of quality testimonials from your raving fans.
They also help identify a few of those ‘trees in the forest’ you are missing.
For more about Surveys, go to - http://www.MyMarketingSucks.com/Customer-Surveys
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If you asked your customers why they bought from you, they could tell you something quantifiable, specific, and instantly obvious. They could point to specific advantages of your services and say, "That's why I do business here; that's why I refer my friends to come here; that's why I'm a loyal customer of this place; that's why I don't mind paying more here; that's why I keep coming back."

That's your Inside Reality!

You're Not as Good as You Think You Are

Businesses with a great Inside Reality have innovated their service or product, giving prospective customers a REASON to buy from them. But here's a glitch: Just because you've achieved "WOW!" doesn't mean that customers are going to flock to your business.
You still have to market your business.

And that's where your "Outside Perception" comes into play.

We had a health club client whose revenue was flat for 5 years in a row prior to partnering with us. We launched a member survey to get some insight into what was going on. The surveys came back okay. They scored well on customer service, variety, cleanliness, price, value and convenience.

As we read through the comments, we saw a pattern. Most members felt like the club was fine, nothing wrong, and nothing great. But they never mentioned anything that made the club better, different or unique from other gyms in the area.

If your customers become complacent, they are wide open to anything New or Different that comes along. This business spent all their energy replacing customers who drifted away with new customers. That client recycling game is exhausting and doesn’t lead to growth… just the opposite.

                                                                           Your Unfair Advantage #1: Understand That Perception IS Reality

We went to work on innovating to get beyond just churning members through the club to get to the root of why our client was not growing.
The surveys showed us how much their members loved the club’s staff, personal training and their group fitness classes. They also pointed out a number of areas where the club could better serve them.

The survey results gave us a stake in the ground to help our client understand a few critical marketing truths and what to do to get to the next level.

Take Your Pride and Stick It on the Shelf for a Minute

So congratulations! You have a business where your customer service is great and your customer’s love you!
But none of that means squat to a prospective customer if (1) They don't know you even exist as an option; or (2) They can't distinguish your value because of your inability to market yourself properly.

They perceive that you are no better or no worse than anybody else.

Marketing ineptitude creates a chasm between your Inside Reality and your Outside Perception - a divide your prospective buyers cannot navigate. Regardless of how good you are or how good your "Inside Reality" is, your prospect can't figure it out if your marketing sucks.

You appear on the surface to be just another company that sells whatever it is you sell. The prospect will more than likely be apathetic at best, resistant, or hostile at worst.

Most business owners know what their customers want, but can't communicate their "Inside Reality" to the outside world. They can't take their WOW and lead prospects to the conclusion:

"I would have to be an absolute fool to do business with anyone else but you, regardless of price."

Think about your business.

Your ability to know what your customer wants is what has made you as successful as you are now. You have good products and/or services, and you fill a market need. You've studied your market, your prospects and your business for years, and you have solutions that add value to your customer's life.

Why, then, aren't you making all the money you deserve? Because you're an expert at what you do; not an expert in creating the systems, tools and marketing resources needed to crush your competition.

That expertise, my friend, is what we are bringing to you today!

Advertising executive Rosser Reeves once said, "To be effective, you've got to make the product interesting, not just make the ad different." That's something too many of the books, gurus, and agencies don't understand.

Visit an ad agency or a media sales rep and they'll say, "Just bring me any product or service and a big bag of cash, and we'll guarantee you that we'll spend all of it." They put all their creative effort into making the ad different, with no thought for the Inside Reality of the product or service.

It’s a Balancing Act

You've got to continually work on both sides of your business - the Inside Reality and the Outside Perception.

If you concentrate all your efforts on the Inside Reality but you don't know how to market properly, you set yourself up for frustration and failure. You'll be pulling your hair out trying to figure out where your money vanished to, or you'll feel like the "best kept secret in town."

Or, if you're focusing all your efforts on the Outside Perception, you may have bought some advertising or direct mail books, or you hired a PR or ad agency, or enlisted a media sales rep. Now you'll have customers, but they'll hate you because you're selling them a lie!
You must balance both sides of your business.

Most businesses could stand some improvement in both areas, but they struggle most with the Outside Perception. In reality, they have good companies and offer good value, but they don't differentiate themselves in the marketplace.

Just teaching you how to innovate leaves you with a wonderful, innovative company that nobody knows about. Just teaching you sales, marketing, advertising or PR techniques will drive in business that won't stick around because they receive no value. You have to consider both the Inside Reality and the Outside Perception.

Look at your current ads and your website. Is it instantly obvious what makes you better? Do you show your target audience what makes you unique and different? Do you communicate what factors they need to consider when deciding, and how you provide value? Ideally, do you provide them an easy, low-risk, next step they can take prior to purchase to see why you are the obvious choice?

If not, you have some work to do: Ensure that your Outside Perception is an accurate reflection of your Inside Reality. Convince prospects that you are the obvious choice with whom to do business.

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Frustrated with marketing that does not work?
Looking for a systematic way to get more new customers, lasting longer and spending more on YOUR product/service/idea?
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