Marketing: Expense or Investment?
THIS BELONGS IN EVERY BUSINESS LIBRARY!
I’ll attend a conference next week, using the opportunity to hawk my books. I’m bringing several dozen copies, and I’ve purchased an oversized poster of the cover to draw attention to my table.
I’ve also acquired a Square sales pad to make it easy for buyers to give me their money. Total investment: $80.
The saying, “It takes money to make money,” obviously applies to marketing. Tell folks that you’re there and why they need you, or they won’t understand that they should buy from you.
Two women I met recently should learn this lesson. They’re part of a team of three writing a book that explains reverse mortgages to recently widowed. This book will help sell their services, which typically generate $10,000 in sales commissions each.
The third team member (a marketing professional) wants AARP Magazine to run a story about this book. If her pitch is successful, she could potentially expose them to a huge, targeted market.
Developing a book like this makes lots of sense. Multiple studies show that many widows are unfamiliar with the financial arrangements their husbands made previously. This makes them vulnerable…and nobody wants to feel vulnerable.
What I can’t understand is why these two women refuse to seek professional assistance for their editing, book design, or promotional materials. Combined, these services would cost under $5,000, making their presentation significantly more visually appealing.
The marketer can’t understand it either.
You might well ask if they’ll sell $5,000 more in books by investing, and the answer’s “probably not.” So why do it? This book demonstrates believability, presenting three experts with their act together. If they sell just one more reverse mortgage (the real objective), they’re guaranteed a positive ROI.
After all, published authors typically have instant credibility.
Increasingly, I hear that using Canva or ChatGPT for editing and design is considered “good enough.” But when making first impressions on your sales prospects, is “good enough” worth settling for?
I’m reminded of the phrase, “Stepping over dollars to pick up pennies.” These two women appear to be prioritizing immediate savings over the long-term value of investing in their business.
From my corner, it’s short-sighted and won’t deliver the impression of their respective businesses they hope it will. In the long run, they’re sure to regret this decision.
With that said, I wish you a week of profitable marketing.
Make at least one more sale at www.marketbuilding.com.