Firstly, I’ll apologize in advance for using the word ‘Suicide’. It’s not a very nice word … however it’s very relevant because 99.6% of business owners, internet marketers and entrepreneurs do in fact commit ‘Advertiisng and Marketing Suicide’ -without even realizing it. 

It’s a fact that business these days is more competitive than it’s ever been. To stay alive and be competitive, you can’t just offer a quality product at a fair price. YOU have to know how to market effectively.  As you know, marketing goes hand in hand with advertising. Unfortunately, most business owners, internet marketers and entrepreneurs have NO idea how to get the most out of every marketing dollar they spend.

YOU should demand that you get the best possible results from every cent you drop into marketing! Most companies spend more time planning their office Christmas Party than they do creating powerful persuasive, marketing communications.

If I hung around with you for an entire month, I’d probably find you struggling with advertising and marketing; not sure what to do … frustrated with things you are doing, avoiding new decisions & being victimized by ad salespeople -  including Yellow Pages Reps. I bet if I looked at all of your advertising and marketing pieces … they would quite frankly be the same (or very similar) as everyone else’s within your industry.

This is what I call ‘Advertising and Marketing Suicide’. Unless you are an experienced copywriter/marketer or you’ve paid a copywriter such as my self to create killer marketing pieces for you … I will guarantee you that if you look at any of your advertising and marketing copy, it is little more than a glorified Business Card that lists your features and products and that your business name is right at the top.

This is a recipe for a complete waste of YOUR precious money. How do I know? … because I’ve walked in your shoes and I see this every single day! Now this can stop! Are YOU Guilty Of This? Does this seem too obvious? If you don’t believe me … take a look at any advert or marketing piece or website that you’ve created. Answer this question; Is your marketing telling your prospects and clients what benefits they get from doing business with you … if they become a customer?

Or are you feeding them dribble about; your company, your location, how wonderful you are, what your product is (features), how great your quality is, how fantastic your service is etc … in other words … all about YOU? Yawn! Yawn! Your prospects would get more excitement from reading the obituaries in the newspaper to see who’s died!

99.6% of the ads, marketing pieces and websites are totally focused on the business and NOT on what the business can do for YOU, the prospect! Pay attention to advertisements in newspapers, on the television and on the radio. You’ll find the same things happening in those places, consistently … every day. This type of selfish advertising falls into the terribly wasteful category of “institutional” advertising.

Institutional advertising produces at best, deferred results. At worst, institutional advertising is ineffective, unproductive and a wasteful expense that accomplishes NO profitable purpose whatsoever. The only winner is the sales rep. who will gladly accept the ‘pockets full of the cash’ that’s coming their way from the big fat commission payment they get from doing a ‘snow job’ on you!

YOU know it’s institutional advertising when it tells you how great the company is, or how old and stable they are, or some other frilly, fancy, cutesy and other non-compelling foolishness. YOUR selfishness is what kills most of your marketing. From brochures to flyers, sales letters to advertisements and the Internet, your marketing message should let your prospects know that you are concerned with what they want only.

So the quicker you tune into their favorite radio station – W.I.I.F.M. (What’s In It For Me) the quicker you’ll generate more cash flow! Anything about you … should always come last. Your clients, customers, patrons, patients … whatever you choose to call them … should always come first. All marketing materials you create should focus on what the prospects want and need. Every sentence should show that you understand their wants and needs.

Until your marketing efforts focus on the prospects first, your marketing is handicapped.

Here’s An Example:

… Let’s imagine for a minute … that you are in retail sales and you own a liquor store. You currently have a special on your most popular carton of beer for $29.95 instead of the usual price of $32.95. You get excited and put up signage in your shop window … you run an advert in the paper (after all everyone will read my ad … or will they?). 

What beer guzzling bloke could pass up such an offer? You change your ‘A’ frame board outside to advertise the Special $29.95 … save $3 per carton … and then you happen to turn around and look across the street and see what you competitor’s advertising.

Suddenly you feel the need for a stiff drink yourself … because … here’s what their ‘A’ Frame Board says …

“Win FREE Beer For A Year!”

For every carton of XXXX Beer that you buy you will get one entry into the draw! Hurry! This is for the first 97 people only. Offer EXPIRES: XX/00/00 Not only has your competition splashed their ‘Win FREE Beer’ for a year prize all over their liquor store … they’ve run an advert in the same paper with this headline …

Attention: Beer Drinkers “WIN FREE Beer For A Year”

Now ask yourself this question … Which liquor store do you think will be full of thirsty beer drinkers eager to part with their cash for the chance to win free beer for a year? The prize only has to be a free carton of beer every month for 12 months. A very cost effective way to promote any business for next to nothing! Could this example work for any business? You better believe it my entrepreneurial friend.

You could apply this to any retail business, any service industry … in fact there wouldn’t be too many businesses or industries that it wouldn’t work for! Go on … let your imagination run wild for a few minutes and ponder on this example and then take the action to implement it into your business. 

Create sizzling sales copy that sells!

Australian, Trevor Crook has been called the ‘Crocodile Dundee’ of direct response copywriters due to giving his global clients the biggest advertising knife, so they can slash their competitors in half and leave them feeling like they’re a one legged duck swimming in a crocodile infested creek.  He is a highly paid direct response copywriter, mentor, author and international speaker who travels the world helping business owners and entrepreneurs to ignite their sales and profits using sizzling sales copy for online and offline marketing strategies. He has customers all over the world and is the author of the ‘Toe Cracker’ report, his online FREE newsletter that delivers lava hot copywriting and marketing tips directly to your inbox.  Visit Trevor's website at: http://www.trevorcrooklive.com