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Fatal Marketing Blunders That Drive Owners Out of

Business and The Steps You Must Take to Avoid Them

As business owners, you and I face decisions every day that have the power to sink or sail our ships. These decisions are ours and ours alone to make. There’s no one there to take on the tough choices for us, no one to hold our hands and tell us what to do. The buck stops with us.

Most of the time, we gladly face these decisions.

Why,

Because, well…I’m guessing you’re a lot like me and don’t particularly like being told what to do—unless it's what you wanted to do in the first place😊. But sometimes, having the weight of decisions on your shoulders and yours alone is challenging. And… unfortunately, when faced with difficult decisions, it’s easy to misstep—make the wrong move.

In the world of direct mail copywriting, a few names stand out like beacons in a fog-filled night. Legends, Titans, if you will, who’ve made their clients fortunes that rival the royals with persuasive messages in the form of direct mail delivered to an expertly chosen list of prospects.  

This list of titans has some names you’ll surely recognize, including Dan Kennedy, Russell Martino, and the subject of today’s blog, the “Michelangelo of direct mail copywriting” himself—Gary Bencivenga.

Gary Bencivenga has a long and illustrious career helping American businesses break sales records faster than a bodybuilder can snap a pencil.   This master of persuasion is semi-retired now but frequently shares his wisdom and insight on the secrets of his success.

Today, I’d like to share a few of my favorites of Gary’s ‘magic marketing bullets’ and how I use these time-tested, proven techniques to help my clients reach more ideal prospects and reap more profits than they dreamed possible.

The lifeblood of any business is tied to its marketing efforts. If you wish to stay in business, you must attract the right prospects. We all know this. That’s why we seek the advice of advertising experts and sign contracts with marketing agents. We want to reach more customers, clients, patients, and patrons eager to do business with us.

The problem with most marketing campaigns is they fall short on one or more of the key elements that make them effective—and unfortunately, making marketing missteps can cost you time, money, and patronage. Make enough of these marketing missteps, and they can sink your business as effectively as the iceberg that sank the Titanic.

If you want to design a winning marketing strategy, you must understand your customer’s needs, fears, and desires. You must have a strong online presence that entices them to want to do business with you. And you must reach out to them regularly with a tailored message that has them lining up with fists raised full of cash, eager to hand it to you in trade for your goods or services.

That’s what today’s blog is all about. So, buckle up and get ready to connect with your customers on a whole new level!

Your customer is rarely looking for a specific product or service. They are looking to fulfill a desire or meet a need. If a consumer is looking to buy a vacation, they are not necessarily interested in the physical address of the hotel or the color of the bed sheets, they want the promise of a week of fun and adventure in an awe-inspiring place with their friends and loved ones.

I am a marketing and sales strategist so it’s my job to understand and identify opportunities and constraints for the business owners I work with. Recently, I’ve heard many of my clients complain about how hard it is to find and retain excellent employees in their organization. This has come up so many times in the past year I thought I’d address the subject in today’s blog.

Your employees are a living and valuable resource in your business, one that most businesses cannot do without.   Still many employers hire for key roles in their organization after only a single interview, sighting that they had a good feeling about a person, or just felt they’d work out.   To me, this is like going on a blind date with someone and deciding to let them move in with you the next day.

I have a passion for seeking out business leaders who accomplish amazing things. I search out these individuals, learn as much as I can about their lives and their journey and then absorb as much of their stories and the lessons they have to offer for use in my own life and my own business.

One of the business leaders I’d like to highlight today is Indra Nooyi, former Chairman and CEO of Pepsi Co.   Indra was born in southern India to a conservative Brahmin family. She graduated top of her class in high school and got a BA in math, chemistry, and physics in Madras Christian College. She then came to the USA, went to Yales School of Management, and took a job with a Boston consulting group.

Once upon a time there was a business owner. He’d created a widget like nothing the world had ever seen.

This widget was capable of regrowing hair, mending clothes, and easing congestion all at the same time.

In fact, there was little this widget couldn’t do, it was simply magic.

Well, the business owner lived in a remote village in a forgotten county on the outskirts of the outskirts of a town who no one could ever find and who few ever cared to look for. The people in the town made their living by selling hats to bald men, mending clothes, and treating those who suffered from congestion during winter colds.

One day the business owner decided to share his fantastic widget with the town. He set up a table in front of one of the local hat shops and proudly displayed his wares catching the attention of a few passersby.

If you watch CNN, or FOX or follow any of the financial news sites, then you’re likely bombarded with bleak forecasts and constant projections of gloom and doom.

There’s talk of recession, dismal job reports and unrest in the markets overseas and abroad loudly discussed by news anchors and bloggers on every major site…all the time.

It’s exhausting. And it’s enough to make even the most seasoned investor consider shoving their nest egg under the mattress.

I’m a firm believer in making your money work for you and investing in your future. I know plenty of successful men and women who’ve increased their worth by investing in the stock market. But the market is by no means a safe or stable place to put your hard-earned cash.

The business owners I know who enjoy robust and sustained wealth did not make their fortune from the S&P 500, Apple, or Tesla. They took their hard-earned profits and invested it in the only business that truly matters…their own.

When it comes to transformative leaders in the tech industry, Tim Cook shines.

When the great Steve Jobs passed away in 2011, Tim Cook stepped brilliantly into some very big shoes.

Jobs had handpicked Cook as his successor and expressed his confidence in Cook’s ability to lead Apple forward.

It appears Jobs was right. Tim Cook has been at the helm of Apple ever since. He has guided the company and continued Job’s legacy of innovation and success.  

Tim Cook's journey is a testament to determination, innovation, and an unwavering commitment to excellence. He was born in the early 60’s, in Mobile, Alabama. He received his degree in industrial engineering from Auburn University and then went on to get an MBA from Duke University’s School of Business. Soon after he started on a path that would eventually shape the future of technology.

Today I’d like to dive into the ocean of wisdom offered by one of the greatest investors of our time, Warren Buffett.

Known as the "Oracle of Omaha," Buffett's success and long-term investment strategies have made him an icon in the world of finance.

In this blog, we'll explore some valuable business advice from Warren Buffett, drawing inspiration from his speeches and taking a glimpse into his remarkable life journey.

Warren Edward Buffett was born on August 30, 1930, in Omaha, Nebraska. His passion for business and investing emerged at an early age. In one interview he recalled delivering newspapers as a young boy, filing his first tax return at 13 and claiming his bicycle as a deductible expense.