marketing segmentation :: essays research papers

The Greatest Marketing Secret of All If there is something about which I am pretty adamant, it's the concept of attracting clients that are pre-qualified and willing to do business. And this involves many different things. In fact, most of it comes down to three core practices: 1) Focus, 2) targeting, and 3) multiplication (such as focusing on a niche, market targeting, and multiplying one's marketing efforts). However, this fundamental magnetism is not only based on pure marketing practices or strategies. It also involves something at a much deeper level that is far more effective than any other marketing tool or process. This "thing" to which I am referring is, I believe, the most important marketing secret that I can ever teach you -- and it's far from being a secret at all. But it is considered as one to a certain degree simply because this "secret" is often neglected or ignored by many business people. What is this elusive secret? Before I divulge it to you, let me give you a little preamble. First, I must admit that it upsets me terribly to see when people tend to scoff their most valuable marketing assets. No, I'm not referring to salespeople or promotional activities. I'm not referring to prospects or clients either. I'm referring to talents, dreams, and passions. "Marketing is not a battle of products, but of perceptions," marketing expert Jack Trout once wrote. If people perceive that doing business with you has an implicit added value, especially when compared to your competitors that are fiercely fighting for your market's attention, you will often end up with their confidence (and their repeat and referral business) as a result. Of course, there are numerous ways that value can be added to your business -- e.g. by specializing, by packaging (naming) your products and services, by presenting benefits rather than features, by delivering personalized services, by presenting a professional image, by offering something for free, and so on. But the most effective way to communicate this added value is through the genuine, sincere, and passionate zest you have for what you do. People have a tendency to gravitate toward other people who love what they do -- their enthusiasm, charisma, and authentic desire to serve others are instantly communicated through their actions and particularly their marketing efforts. Sadly, however, the marketplace is filled with so many people who jump into business for one sole purpose: Money.