| |
| |
|
Marketing Resource Center |
|
|
|
Marketing Discipline and the Joy of Success
Discipline Is Important. I recently read an article about why discipline is important to a marketer. The author said that undisciplined people only live for today. He added that disciplined people use a little of their time for pleasure, and then invest the rest of their time in the future. Disciplined people get out of their armchair and do something. This takes effort and willpower. On the other hand, undisciplined people squander their time and their money. It takes discipline to be a successful at business and in life. While I fundamentally agree with this premise, there is something about the concept of discipline that sounded tough...agonizing, even. I had to take some time to think this through. As a person who believes free time and relaxation, how can this still apply? Can a person be both a pleasure seeker and disciplined? Are You A Grasshopper or An Ant? Does a person have to make a choice between being the fabled lazy grasshopper or the hardworking ant? You know the story. The ant slaves away all summer creating shelter and storing seeds for the winter while the grasshopper laughs and dances and sings, thinking the ant is a fool. Come winter, the ant is cozy and well fed. The grasshopper perishes from hunger and the cold. Both of those guys were flawed, in my opinion. One had no sense of community and the other, no joy or humor. And it made me start thinking. I'm a marketing expert. I spend my days developing marketing strategies for my clients and I work to market my own business. Does it take discipline? Well, the answer, of course, is a big "Yes!" Does that mean that in order to be successful, I have to be like the ant? Am I relegated to the role of schlepping my days away carrying seeds back to the nest for the winter? Well...no, I think not. All work and no play makes for a dull girl. As a creative person, I know taking that route would be a sure path to stagnation. Plus, I don't like to think of myself as stodgy. Do you know what the thesaurus has next to stodgy? Try blah, boring, humdrum, plebeian, trite, uninteresting, and wearisome. Ugh! Discipline is a Practice But, I'm not like the frivolous grasshopper, either. Because I AM disciplined. I do invest ongoing time in various endeavors that will have a payoff in the future. Yet, none of my day-to-day activities are agonizing for me. I love working on my business, my clients are wonderful, and I feel completely fulfilled by my outside interests, my home, and my friendships. And, these things each take ongoing care, nurturing, and attention. What I realized is that everything I do in my life involves embracing a practice. Discipline is defined as "training expected to produce a specific character or pattern of behavior." I think the best example of this is my yoga. Yes, it is a routine, but it is by no means agonizing. (Well...okay, there are some crazy poses that are a little over the top!) My yoga practice brings me joy and I feel more centered. In the same way, building a business and a regular marketing routine is about a practice. It requires discipline, but this in no way detracts from being creative or enjoying today, right now, in this moment. Marketing is about building stronger relationships. It takes a continuous effort to relate to customers, vendors, referral sources, and leads. Invest in your business through an ongoing commitment to promoting it with both enthusiasm and creativity. Successful Marketing Requires Discipline For marketing to succeed, it is crucial to take the approach of a disciplined practice. And, the more time you invest in each activity, the more you will prosper at all levels of your business. Ultimately, I realize that the author of the article was correct. But, I believe it requires a combined approach of the grasshopper AND the ant. Have discipline and build relationships, like the ant. But, also be sure to take time for relaxation and activities you enjoy, like the grasshopper. Work in a business that is fulfilling to you. And that is the biggest key. Discipline does not make you stodgy if you are investing your time in an endeavor that you feel passionate toward. Success is an ongoing journey. Each time you return to your disciplined practice, whatever it is, you prosper from the moment-to-moment experience of doing it. As time goes on, your discipline pays off. So, take time to examine your practice of marketing. Is it a disciplined approach? Is it a practice you follow rigorously? Begin to move forward purposefully with an intention to expand your business and invest in your marketing activities every day. By committing to consistent and persistent marketing efforts, you WILL get amazing results. Wendy Maynard, your friendly marketing maven, is the owner of Kinesis. Kinesis specializes in marketing, graphic and website design, and business writing. Visit http://www.kinesisinc.com/resources/articles.html for more articles and free marketing wisdom. You can visit her marketing blog, Kinetic Ideas at: http://www.wendy.kinesisinc.com Want to harness the power of kinetic marketing? Sign up for Kinesis Quickies, a free bi-monthly marketing e-newsletter: http://www.news.kinesisinc.com
MORE RESOURCES:
Marketing - Google News |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Service Marketers; How's Your Packaging? When a shopper picks up a product in a store, what's the first thing they notice? The packaging, right? The same holds true for someone buying a service.Yet instead of a folded carton with colorful graphics, you are the packaging for your service business. Utilizing Your Best Hidden Asset To Increase Sales You probably already have in your possession one of the most valuable and powerful assets you can possibly own. But if you're like most business people you probably aren't using it to its full potential. 5 Tips to Grow Your Business Globally Entering into Global markets is a great way to organically grow your business. However, many small to mid sized businesses have a hard time, if they even venture to go global at all, entering global markets. First Steps to Developing a Marketing Plan Direct Mail . . The Biggest Problem With Your Marketing Is...? What is the biggest problem most marketers have? Who knows. We don't, and they certainly don't either. Uncover Your Hidden Markets Want a simple, low-cost way to boost your sales? Just uncover the narrowly defined sub-markets hidden in your main market. Then create special versions of your advertising to focus on the specific needs of prospects in these hidden market segments. 5 Tips to Help You Identify WHO To Market To If you have your own small business, it's important to decide exactly who you will be marketing your products or services to. After all, you probably don't have the time or the money to market to everyone. Lead Generation: What Is It worth? Our business environment has changed dramatically. Companies must now be disciplined and market-driven if they want to stay alive. Your Ultimate Competitive Advantage The biggest secret to success in business is to always maintain a competitive advantage in everything you do. One of the best ways to get and maintain a competitive advantage is to always make it as easier for your prospect or customer to say yes than to say no. Beware: Marketing Sinkholes Ahead! Life provides your business with enough opportunities for failure. Don't help it along by creating sinkholes to consume your limited financial resources. Is It Time To Kill Your Marketing Program? Ouch . . Developing the Unique Selling Proposition The "Unique Selling Proposition" advertising campaign was developed by Reeves in 1961. Reeves proposed that marketers offer products different from their competitor' offerings by developing products that have a special formula, design, or feature. How To Go From Under Dog to Top Dog by Unleashing The Power Of a Postcard The Tale of Two Dentists.. Set Your Business Apart With A Unique Selling Proposition Unless your company has absolutely no competition now or in the forseeable future, you're well advised to find and develop a unique selling proposition (USP) that differentiates your business from all of your competitors.For you to succeed, you have to identify and understand what you or your business does or can start doing for your prospects and customers that provides them with a result that is superior to the competition's. Put Your Marketing To The So What? Test Want to get Better at your Marketing today?For many service business owners, marketing can be a real mystery. We don't really know exactly how it works. Marketing On The Cheap: Become a Joiner Recently I wrote an article on the benefits of joining your local Chamber of Commerce as a way of getting exposure for your business. See "Marketing on the Cheap: Join The What?" at this source or at http://sbmag. The Right Logo The Logo: a little historyLogotype, commonly know as a logo, is a design, a graphic representation/image/trademark symbolizing one's organization. Designed for instant identification, a logo can appear on company letterhead, advertising material and signs as an emblem by way of which the organization can easily be recognized. Secrets of Trade Show Success The ropers at Annie Oakley's Real Western Dudette Ranch were all riding high in the saddle. It was just before their first ecotourism and adventure travel trade show in Chicago, and they just knew they would rope in big sales. The Bare-Bones Basics Of Multi-Level Marketing Multi-level marketing is the biggest growth industry in the 1980's. It is the industry that has made corporate giants of Amway, Shaklee, Mary Kay and Herbalife. Helping Your Prospects Overcome "Buying Fears" By Using Testimonials You DO use direct marketing for your small business? right? If so, you're taking advantage of the most cost-effective means of advertising available. (Yes? I'm biased? I admit it!)Let's talk for a minute about how you can make your sales copy and direct marketing more effective.
|
| home | site map | Advertising Articles |
| © 2006 |
