The critical point is that each company utilized a distinctive strategy, which I subsequently found to be successful. As soon as I discovered that strategy and the ratios that were involved, I concentrated as much of my time and energy as I could on just that one marketing strategy. I made it a point to devote 80 percent of my marketing time to that strategy while devoting the remaining 20 percent of my time to experimenting with new and different marketing strategies in order to determine the ratios and returns they bring to my company.

It is essential to keep in mind, if you want your company to be successful, that you must avoid becoming sidetracked, overburdened, or flooded with an excessive number of things, especially when it comes to marketing. Discover what works, test it to make sure it will continue to work, and then scale it up so that your business can expand. A few helpful hints are provided below for the stages that I just detailed.

Step 1: Select your method. Pick a strategy and method you would like to implement in your business. It is important in this step that you give yourself enough time to get comfortable with the process and method. The key here is to spend enough time establishing ratios (which we will talk about in step 2). Many business owners quit too soon if they do not see immediate results. I had the first 25 doors shut in my face before doors 26, 27, and 28 asked me to estimate their paint jobs.

Step 2: Establish your ratios and returns. Jim Rohn said, “if you take action enough times, a ratio will begin to appear.” When I was knocking on doors with M & E Painting, I established after the first 28 doors I knocked that 3 people wanted estimates. I was 3/28 after one hour of work. That ratio would have been much different if I quit at door 25. Nevertheless, I established ratios and from there could track my efforts and results.

Step 3. Pump up the volume. Dedicate 80% of your marketing time to this method. Be very intentional about having uninterrupted time in your calendar to execute this method. If you plan to spend 20 hours of your week marketing, make sure 16 of them (80%) are focused on your one thing. Don’t get distracted here. Hold yourself accountable and have others hold you accountable for these actions.

Step 4. Improve, refine, and tweak. As you continue to work on your one thing, remember that you will get better, smoother, and more efficient in your approach, message, and confidence in presenting your one thing. As you do, your ratios should improve.

Step 5. Explore other options. Once you find your one thing, it does not mean it has to be your only thing. Spend 20% of your time exploring other options. In this step, simply go back to steps 1 and 2, and determine if you have encountered a new method that brings equal or better results than your current method. About three years into M & E Painting, I was intrigued to see the dancing men and women on the street corners holding signs to advertise for companies. I remember the day I took step 1 on attempting this method to discover rather quickly that the ratios of this method were just as effective, sometimes more so than my canvassing method. Be sure to explore other methods so that you may stack and add to your marketing mix.

Step 6. Evaluate and Purge. As you build your marketing mix, always make sure you know which method is the best return on your time and dollar, and invest heavily in that. As you explore and add other options and methods you will begin to see that some methods need to be eliminated from your mix. I see many business owners that get stuck in implementing a method that is no longer effective and they have a hard time eliminating it.

Step 7. Rinse and repeat. As your company grows, it is always a great idea to explore new and innovative marketing methods. Keep working on steps 1-6 on each method that presents itself to you. Successful companies are always exploring new ideas and ways to innovate and stand out from the crowd, while still remembering to spend the majority of their time on the main thing that produces results.

Keep in mind that marketing should be entertaining, and encourage yourself not to be afraid of trying new ideas. Some of my most successful marketing strategies were ones that others thought were crazy, such as our Rockstar sign spinners and our Painted Baby campaign (the Painted Baby campaign was so successful that I am writing my next book about it!). For example, some people thought our Rockstar sign spinners were crazy. Winning business awards was one of the marketing strategies that I thought would be the most difficult for our company to accomplish, but when we did it, it became one of my most successful marketing approaches. Read my blog post from last week, “How to Win Business Awards,” as well as my book, “Become an Award-Winning Company,” for more information on how to win business awards.

I recently launched a Tik Tok video series called Back to the Business Basics.  Click here to watch the episode where I shared about about this topic in today’s blog.

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Wishing you much success in your business and leadership journey.

3 things:

I love you.

I believe in you.

You’ve got this.

Now, go get it!