This is the second marketing article based on a presentation given by John T. Child, professional marketing presenter and graphic and website design professional. This article focuses on four ways to present yourself as an experienced professional in your field.
Brand Yourself as an Expert
The first of the four methods of presenting yourself as a professional in your field is to Brand Yourself as an Expert. To prove that you are an expert, write a book on a topic in your field that your target market would want to read. It can be as short as 50 pages or as long as 150 pages. Include charts, graphs, data, lists, pictures, and content that all work together to convey the message your audience would like to devour. Then put it into Amazon.com through www.createspace.com. This company will print a single order when it is made, and send it to the customer. All you are concerned about is being labeled an author. As an author, you are an expert on the subject you have written on. And experts are considered professionals, and professionals with services or products are patronized by people. John also suggested we check out the links to other professional sites at www.johnchildstoolbox.com.
Engage in Strategic Communications
The second method to be perceived as professional is to Engage in Strategic Communications. Using the right communication strategy leads to solid clients for your business. Suppose you are running a “special deal” to attract customers. What is your purpose? To get customers “in the door.” But if you do not collect their basic data–name, phone number, and email address–your marketing effort has failed. So when people come to your Facebook page to get the free information or to your website to do the same, make sure the door they must go through is one that requires them to leave their “data” in-order-to get the prize you are offering. Then make sure they have an easy way to download the information or book or order the product. One product you can make is to make an audio book loaded with marketing information your audience would like to have. www.kunaki.com prints CDs and DVDs for $1 each. Order 5o of them at a time and give them away free to your target market in exchange for their data information.
Set Up a Professional Website
The third method to brand yourself as a professional is to give your clients or customers a professional website. A professional website has two goals: to build leads (capture data) and to close deals (sell services or products). John suggests you spend the money to have a website designer produce a professional website. However, he suggested that you make sure your designer uses WordPress to design it on so that you can make changes or add pages in the future as your business grows and changes. I strongly concur as I have seen a number of clients come to me, frustrated that they cannot make changes on Dreamweaver or another platform because they don’t know code and no longer have access to the person who setup their website. A professional looking site that is client centered, loaded with pertinent information the client can use, will go a long way to making you successful.
Properly Use Social Media
The fourth method that shows you are a professional is to Properly Use Social Media. Social Media is all about communicating with your target audience, not about broadcasting at them. The grand secret of social media is influence. If you can influence key people in your target market to follow you on Facebook or Twitter and on your blog, you will find that many of their followers will imitate them. And this influence keeps spreading. Work from big to small to convey your information that your followers want. Make videos and write articles. Write blogs about your videos and articles. Tweet about your blog. Post a comment on your Facebook wall about your blog. Make sure all your social media content has value for your target market. Link from your YouTube site to your Facebook site and Website so your videos can be seen on all three sites. Post your articles on external sites to link back to your related website articles. Tweets about your blogs and articles and videos should be linked to the referenced content. The same goes for Facebook wall posts. Write often on all social media sites and you will find followers going to your website to purchase services or products at your store as a result of your recommendations and information you are giving them.
By implementing the four methods shared here, customers and clients and prospects will perceive you as the professional with the services that meet their wants, the professional that is concerned about them, and the professional that they are willing to be loyal to for many years. You will find yourself with a successful business.
Check out John’s ELP special if you need a new logo. It’s on our emails to members the week of 10/23. To reach John for marketing advice, email him at john@johntchild.com. His logo business site is www.perfectlogodesigns.com.