Trump your Marketing in 2016
Love him or hate him, Donald Trump does know how to do one thing very well – and that’s live in people’s minds rent-free.
Politics aside, the ability to get people talking about you and remembering your messages is an aspiration for just about any businessperson. And doing it without a “ginormous” advertising budget can be as much an art as it is a science.
So, what lessons can you learn from The Donald’s bid for the White House; one you can apply to your business in 2016? Here are a few key takeaways.
1. Know what you’re competitors are doing (and make their oversights your (digital) assets.)
Come on – this is business. In this day in age, you need to familiarize yourself with all the tools available to you. If you fail to purchase your own name’s URL, and you want to run for president (or even run a successful business) you’re already starting with the chips stacked against you. What would your prospective clients think if they went to your name or company’s name URL and it redirected to your biggest competitor? That you’re not serious about your business? That you don’t have a good team behind you? That the details get passed you? No matter what it is, it’s not good. But hey, your competitor looks sharp. If you haven’t already, I encourage you to see what I’m referring to by visiting JebBush.com.
The takeaway: While purchasing your competitors URL isn’t everyone’s style, you do want to claim, maintain and monetize your own digital assets. This goes for your URLs (your name, your business name and even a signature service offering-related URL), which can all redirect back to your site. If you don’t think your prospective clients are doing an internet search before agreeing to a meeting with you, then you may want to think again.
2. Master the art of making the biggest impact with the least amount of money.
If you want people to remember you, then you have to be unique. You have to say something different, powerful and impactful to them. Hearing or seeing something new is refreshing, exciting and memorable.
Then, with those powerful messages in tow, you have to go where their attention is – you don’t want to be background noise while your prospect carries on with their life (as advertising can often be). You want to be on the forefront sharing ideas and concepts that matter to them and doing so in places where their attention is captured.
How do you stand apart in a sea of competitors? Many people throw more money at advertising in an effort to have more people see their message more often, and with the hope that their ideal prospects would remember what they had to say. The problem with this is “me too” simply does not stand out. “Me too” is uniformity, even conformity, and if your messages could be said by any other advisor and mostly apply to their business as well, then throwing more money at advertising those messages really isn’t doing a lot for you personally. The profession as a whole, maybe, but building your own brand recognition and equity becomes a slow, grueling and expensive process.
Until very recently, The Donald had not bought any airtime in the form of commercials, yet he was always on the air in the form of editorial. Your prospects tune into news sources for content of interest to them, and pass by the advertisements on their way there. If you’re not going where they already are, then you’re always going to be chasing them.
3. If you stick to your messages, your messages will stick.
Good, bad or indifferent, if you have a platform to spread your word, stick to your story and your story will stick. Of course, be sure what you’re saying is what you want people to remember. Off the cuff comments have a way of backfiring, especially if people are listening. I recommend that you identify three to five key messages that, given the opportunity to speak to your ideal prospect (or media!), are the very things you want them to remember. We live in a sound bite society, and listeners will only take away a few key points from a conversation. Determine your most powerful messages for how it can help people, why they should remember you and the benefits to them if they do. Then stick to those messages in conversations, through the media, at your client events, in your written collateral… There is power in repetition. If you stick to your messages, your messages will stick.
Now, of course, for these strategies to be most effective, you’re going to have to show up and engage with those beautiful, wonderful, fantastic people you call your prospects. With these three tips in mind, you’ll be on your way to Trump your marketing in 2016. It will be ‘uge.
