Steve Miller's Blog, page 17

Dying Small Town Becomes Uncopyable by Thinking Big

It’s not news that small towns across America are struggling to survive. Downtown Mom-and-Pop shops are going out of business and young people are moving to big cities to find jobs.

Are small towns doomed or can they survive? And what’s the lesson for small businesses?

In this week’s Uncopyable Business program, Steve Miller shares the story of one small town in Illinois that appears to have found the secret sauce needed to revive the downtown and make residents proud to live there.

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How do you hunt moose?

In 1986 I was a guest on Robert Schuller’s Hour of Power. Dr. Schuller was a televangelist based at the Crystal Cathedral in Garden Grove, California. His was a megachurch with seating for four thousand people. At the time, the Hour of Power TV program was broadcast worldwide to about thirteen million. It’s not important why I was a guest, but that day was pivotal in my career. There were two services every Sunday and after the second, Dr. Schuller invited me back to his office for a cup of coffee.

“You were very good out there!” he said. “You should think about being a professional speaker!”

Huh? A professional speaker? Get paid to speak? I had no idea you could do that.

He laughed, “Oh yes, you can get paid very well to speak to corporations and conferences!”

“But how do you find people to hire you?”

Now here I was, a marketing specialist, asking for marketing advice. I should have known better, but his answer was awesome.

“Well, how do you hunt moose?”

Huh, again? I was definitely caught off-guard.

Dr. Schuller laughed and went on. “Well, you wouldn’t go to Florida to hunt moose would you? No! You’d go farther north, maybe into Canada. You’d look for a forest where moose lived—where a lot of moose lived. And would you attract moose with Hostess Ding Dongs? No! You’d use some kind of moose bait, something moose would love to get and none of the other animals cared about. And would you capture a moose with a tennis racquet? No! You’d need some sort of moose gun. A big gun that’s especially made for an animal the size of a moose.

“But the most important thing to understand is you’re hunting moose! That’s first. There are a lot of animals in the forest—bears, wild turkeys, otters, maybe big cats, birds, and fish in the streams—but you aren’t interested in any of those other animals. You are only interested in moose.”

I’ve carried that marketing lesson ever since. It makes for the strategic marketing foundation for all the clients I work with: you must define your Moose as specifically as possible.

Who are your market prospects? What profile can you define that covers them? What are their needs, and what is the problem/pain they have that you can solve?
Where are they? Are they in a specific geographic location? Maybe you specialize in working with companies of a certain size, in terms of annual revenues, or number of employees.
What is your prospect’s title? Are they the owner or CEO? Maybe they’re a production engineer, or a web designer?

The more clearly you can define your moose, the better.  Learn everything you can about them, and then figure out exactly where to find them.

In my book, Uncopyable, How to Create an Unfair Advantage Over the Competition, I explain how defining your Moose fits into the Marketing Diamond (Market, Message, Media and Moment). Knowing your Moose allows you to hone your message with laser-beam focus. It’s the first step in developing an uncopyable attachment with prospects and customers.

Think about your target customers. Define them as specifically as possible by answering the questions above. Then ask yourself the same question Dr. Schuller asked me, all those years ago: “How do you hunt Moose?”

Uncopyable Rock Star: Billboards

How many advertising media can you remember seeing as a kid that are still being effectively used?

We used to watch commercials on TV. Now we DVR the shows and skip the commercials. As for radio, most of us listen to Sirius, or podcasts, or play lists on our phones. Newspapers and magazines are fighting for their lives.

Today, most of the ads we see are online. Want to watch a You Tube video? You gotta watch the ad first. Do a Google search, and you’ll be re-targeted based on previous searches. Go on Facebook and you’ll see  sponsored posts in-between those photos from your friends’ fabulous vacations.

As far as media that worked then and now, Billboards are alive and well. These are low-tech stars in our high-tech world. Do people pay attention? I recently wrote about Uncopyable Rock Star Lee’s Discount Liquors in Vegas, which I’d never have known about if they didn’t use billboards.

The humble billboard stands tall, commanding attention while you’re behind the wheel and have nowhere else to look. Well, almost nowhere. When you’re driving, the temptation to look at your cellphone can be strong, but states are cracking down on their use behind the wheel. (I think that’s a good thing, by the way. The new laws save lives by forcing idiots like me to pay attention to the road.)

Billboards can’t contain a complicated message. But for the right product and message, they can be very effective.

Here in Washington, billboards have been highly effective for the pot industry. (Pun intended). Yep, Washington is the Evergreen state in more ways than one. Billboards work by delivering the simple message most marijuana stores want to convey: Want pot? We’re right down the road. The message gets the attention of their Moose, and invites them to take the next step. (Blinker, blinker, brake, buy.)

Billboards don’t just work for liquor and pot; you can see examples of extremely creative billboards here.

Until there are driverless cars and we don’t need to pay any attention to the road AT ALL, we’ll be looking up. We’ll see billboards. They’ll have a share of our attention.

When you’re marketing a product or service to potential customers, it’s easy to be compelled by the latest “shiny object.” SEO, Social Media advertising, Pay Per Click. The list, like the beat, goes on. But sometimes an underrated option is overlooked because it’s out of fashion. Billboards are still effective for the right product, market and message.

That makes billboards an Uncopyable Rock Star.

Uncopyable Rock Star of the Week: Billboards

How many advertising media can you remember seeing as a kid that are still being effectively used?

We used to watch commercials on TV. Now we DVR the shows and skip the commercials. As for radio, most of us listen to Sirius, or podcasts, or play lists on our phones. Newspapers and magazines are fighting for their lives.

Today, most of the ads we see are online. Want to watch a You Tube video? You gotta watch the ad first. Do a Google search, and you’ll be re-targeted based on previous searches. Go on Facebook and you’ll see  sponsored posts in-between those photos from your friends’ fabulous vacations.

As far as media that worked then and now, Billboards are alive and well. These are low-tech stars in our high-tech world. Do people pay attention? I recently wrote about Uncopyable Rock Star Lee’s Discount Liquors in Vegas, which I’d never have known about if they didn’t use billboards.

The humble billboard stands tall, commanding attention while you’re behind the wheel and have nowhere else to look. Well, almost nowhere. When you’re driving, the temptation to look at your cellphone can be strong, but states are cracking down on their use behind the wheel. (I think that’s a good thing, by the way. The new laws save lives by forcing idiots like me to pay attention to the road.)

Billboards can’t contain a complicated message. But for the right product and message, they can be very effective.

Here in Washington, billboards have been highly effective for the pot industry. (Pun intended). Yep, Washington is the Evergreen state in more ways than one. Billboards work by delivering the simple message most marijuana stores want to convey: Want pot? We’re right down the road. The message gets the attention of their Moose, and invites them to take the next step. (Blinker, blinker, brake, buy.)

Billboards don’t just work for liquor and pot; you can see examples of extremely creative billboards here.

Until there are driverless cars and we don’t need to pay any attention to the road AT ALL, we’ll be looking up. We’ll see billboards. They’ll have a share of our attention.

When you’re marketing a product or service to potential customers, it’s easy to be compelled by the latest “shiny object.” SEO, Social Media advertising, Pay Per Click. The list, like the beat, goes on. But sometimes an underrated option is overlooked because it’s out of fashion. Billboards are still effective for the right product, market and message.

That makes billboards the Uncopyable Rock Star of the Week.

If your prospects are satisfied, you have NO sale

Do you think everybody who fits the profile of your targeted customer needs your product or service?

Well, guess what, there are a lot of them who don’t agree with you!

Here’s a simple fact of selling and marketing: people only change when they are DISSATISFIED with their current situation. Look at it this way – are you satisfied with your car? Yes? Then if a car salesperson called you today and tried to convince you to buy a new car, you’d quickly dismiss him or her. No matter what they say, you are not in the market for a new car.

This doesn’t mean you wouldn’t like a new car, or it would be cool to get a new car. It simply means you aren’t motivated to change.

Why is this important to understand when looking to fill your funnel? Watch this week’s UNCOPYABLE BUSINESS and learn why!

Don’t agree with me. I welcome your comments below! And be sure to sign up for these weekly vids in the right hand column!

Uncopyable Rock Star of the Week: Teatro Zinzanni

I can’t describe this week’s Uncopyable Rockstar. I’ll explain in a minute why that’s a good thing.

If you haven’t been to Teatro Zinzanni, here’s a quote from their website: “It’s a three-hour whirlwind of International Cirque, comedy and cabaret artists all served up with a scrumptious multi-course feast and elegant libations.”

As great as that sounds, it falls short of what it’s like to go to a Teatro Zinzanni show.

The word “amazing” is so over-used it pretty much makes me want to barf. Reality shows like “The Bachelor” would be out of business without it. (Our date was amazing! By the way there’s no way I’m giving you a rose.)

However, based on its dictionary definition, amazing is the word I have to use to describe Teatro Zinzanni.

Zinzanni is a great example of Steve’s saying, “The experience is the marketing.” Steve and I have been back again and again. We’ve taken groups of clients, friends and family. I’ve recommended it to others enthusiastically. But when they ask why, I  usually say, “Just go. You’ll love it.”

Here’s a behind-the-scenes fact: the show is indescribable by design. I heard it from the horse’s mouth, so to speak, when Steve had Zinzanni founder Norm Langill talk to a group of clients during a “Stealing Genius” meeting in Seattle.

Langill is a seemingly low-key guy, but talked passionately about how every single person in the theatre experiences each show differently. There’s simply too much going on at once for one person to capture it all.

Every performer is talented in their special skill. There are jugglers, contortionists, dancers, acrobats and musicians. But they’re also cast members who play a role and interact with the audience. Even during “breaks,’ there are constant activities and sideshows going on.

I found an interview with Langill that gives an enticing peek into the creativity and preparation behind each show. Once the show begins, the magic ingredient is added: improvisation. Each performer is brilliant at ad libs and theatrics, and they’ve learned the best ways to draw out audience members in a way that makes you laugh so hard it practically hurts. In a good way.

The interaction with the audience becomes the most entertaining part of the show (I’ll never forget one of our good-natured clients, Tom Herndon, being selected as one of the contestants for an “Elimidate” competition).

I’ll end by saying what I always do: Just go. You’ll love it.  I can’t tell you exactly what will happen, because it’s different every time. Even if you and I went to the same show, we’d each see something a little different.

And that makes Teatro Zinzanni the Uncopyable Rock Star of the Week.

Great Customer Service Doesn’t Make You Uncopyable

There appears to be a blind spot in most corporation’s marketing strategies.

Most organizations get the fact it’s very difficult to separate from the competition through product capabilities and quality. But far, far too many have shifted to the cliched statement of “we give the best customer service.” No specific description of what it means. No examples. No proof. Just a vague generality.

Whether we like it or not, if we want to survive and thrive in the future, we MUST go beyond common, hackneyed announcements and give real, backed-up-with-hard-evidence promises of why prospects should do business with us.

Have I gone too far this week with this assertion or are you guilty of accepting your lot in life, because the alternative path is just too difficult?

Watch this week’s UNCOPYABLE BUSINESS!

Disagree with me? Please share your comment below!

Uncopyable Rock Star of the Week: Vegas

“What happens here, stays here.”

Can you identify the city this slogan refers to? Of course. The answer is Las Vegas. Or just Vegas, as it’s often referred to.

The slogan is a legend, yet relevant. If you’re old enough, you’ve seen/heard this slogan in ads. If not, you’ve heard it in movies, songs and in passing. I personally say it to anyone I know who tells me they’re going – or have been – to Vegas.

Steve and I were in Las Vegas recently, during our West Coast marathon road trip. The official story: we were in Vegas to visit family. Of course there’s more – but I can’t tell you about it. It’s the part that will stay in Vegas.

I’m kidding of course. But I do think of the famous slogan every time I’m there. The phrase perfectly sums up the Las Vegas Brand.

Exactly what is the Vegas attraction? I think of it as a fantasy, escape, or excuse. This article tells how it was first described back in 2003. After brainstorming and a year of research, the R and R Partners ad firm summed up the Las Vegas branding statement like this: In Vegas you can have the freedom to be someone you can’t be at home.

(For a laugh, check out this funny ad from 2006, with a man testing which occupations work best for picking up girls.)

The “What happens here, stays here” campaign combined humor with a perfect blend of mystery and clarity. To this day, the phrase communicates the Vegas message and lets you know why you want (or perhaps don’t want) to go there. For a stellar job in defining and communicating its brand, Vegas is the Uncopyable Rock Star of the Week.

 

Limited time offer – FREE Webinar with book purchase! (Worth $197!)

If you give Amazon $19.46, I’ll give you permanent access to the  replay of one of my most popular webinars that sells for $197! 

(Hint: Imagine if you could set up a system where new, qualified  prospects actually arrive in your inbox AUTOMATICALLY!)

Best of all, though, is you will receive absolutely KILLER and USABLE content that can bring you a return MANY TIMES your than your little  $19.46 investment…many, many times more.

How does this work, you might ask?

Let’s start with my book, UNCOPYABLE: How to Create an Unfair Advantage Over Your Competition.

Your competition is trying to kill you. Duh, we both know that. But how do you defeat them? Your products and services are actually pretty similar. Technology has commoditized everything. You say you offer the best customer service, but…well, that’s what the competition says, too.

That leaves price as the determining factor. And I’ll bet you DON’T WANT TO COMPETE ON PRICE! Am I right?

That’s where my book comes in. UNCOPYABLE will show you how to separate yourself from that evil empire through three powerful strategies and a brainstorming method you can use for years to come.

UNCOPYABLE has been on the market for only six months and has received RAVE reviews from top corporate business people Here’s a sample:

“Steve reveals the “magic bullet” in branding – how to make your brand so distinctive that it cannot be copied.  What a common sense approach!  The trick is to execute – well.”

Ross Born, CEO Just Born Quality Confections

Bethlehem, PA (producer of Peeps®, Mike & Ike®, Hot Tamales®)

“I have just finished reading Steve Miller’s new book, “Uncopyable.” It is terrific. I will read it again and incorporate Steve’s ideas in our marketing efforts.”

Duke Moscrip, Owner and Founder, Duke’s Chowder House Restaurant Chain, Seattle, WA

“Steve Miller is the master of marketing and a legend in the consulting world. In Uncopyable he argues successfully what it takes to be extraordinary in the ever-changing, highly competitive global sphere.”

Nido R. Qubein, president, High Point University, author, How to Be a Great Communicator

“I have read many business building books. None have been so interesting that I cannot put the book down! Steve Miller’s thoughts are so real world and so do-able, that I found myself putting into action, things that Steve wrote about in each chapter.”

Ron Dahlhaus, Owner, Buy Wise Auto Parts

By the way, UNCOPYABLE is a short, easy read, only 138 pages of actually copy. I wanted to get to the meat of my information, as well as the how-to-do-its. And you know what? I don’t need 400 pages to do that.

And the $197 webinar, you ask?

For most businesses today, sales and marketing are very inefficient. Too much time and energy are spent uncovering good leads and wasted on unqualified suspects.

There is way better way to do it. PUT YOUR MARKETING ON AUTOPILOT teaches how to automate the lead identify and capture process, so you can hand your salespeople higher quality leads. And getting more high quality leads means more sales!

Okay, so how do you get this amazing deal? Follow these simple steps:

Go to Amazon and order my book. You MUST order the real book. The cheap Kindle version doesn’t count!  CLICK THIS LINK TO ORDER.
Forward your Amazon receipt to me at uncopyable-book@theadventure.com
We will personally set you up for permanent access to  PUT YOUR MARKETING ON AUTOPILOT!
Read my book.
Watch the webinar.
Make more money.

That’s it. Easy-peasy!

Go get the book!

And always remember…

BE UNCOPYABLE!

Best Practices Are Stupid

Interview with Stephen Shapiro

For those of you who don’t know, I’m an Advisor and Radio Headliner for the C-Suite Network. A couple of months ago at a C-Suite meeting in Dallas I met Stephen Shapiro, author of the great book, BEST PRACTICES ARE STUPID.

This week I’m breaking from my regular UNCOPYABLE BUSINESS mode and presenting a full 49-minute interview with Stephen about one of my favorite topics – innovation. You will want to listen to this entire conversation as we share powerful techniques Stephen developed leading a 20,000 person innovation practice for the consulting company Accenture. This is good stuff.

Watch this week’s UNCOPYABLE BUSINESS!

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