In marketing, anything that causes your target audience to ignore your message is killer. Once you’ve lost them, you’ve lost them. Here are 6 “Red Lights” that will bring a halt to your response:
- Failing to Grab Attention – Before we can compete against our business competitors, we have to compete in the even tougher battle for people’s attention. You, your competitors and hundreds of other advertisers are competing to capture the attention of the consumer. But it doesn’t stop there. Children, spouses, health problems, financial issues, personal obligations, and other matters are also pressuring the prospect for a sliver of their overwhelmed mind.
- Not Holding Interest – Trying to draw a response without a relevant message is like trying to catch a fish by dangling a worm in the water without a hook. A firmly lodged “hook” is required to reel in both fish and prospects. That “hook,” in the case of prospects, is their personal interests. It’s hard for people to let go of something that genuinely interests them.
- Unappealing Offer – If the reaction to your offer is, “So what’s the big deal?,” then you’ve got a big problem! Make every offer a “big deal!” Load it with appeal. Pack it with a credible promise with meaningful benefits. Shoot to make it “irresistible,” but don’t settle for anything short of great! Most marketing & sales communications live or die by the offer. This is why, as a general rule, if you want to improve response you need to improve your offer.
- Lack of Urgency – If you forget to build urgency into your promotion you can be sure that most of your prospects will forget about you! Later is never in a world so crowded with things to do that people are forgetting about life’s fundamentals. If your customer feels “it can wait,” you might as well forget about it!
- Lack of Clarity – If you confuse them you’ll lose them. Confusing copy or layout, as well as an unclear call to action or means of response is another sure loser! Consumers tend to give up easy, and won’t make the effort to try to figure out what you’re trying to say and what you want them as consumers to do.
- Making It “Hard” on the Consumer – Focus on taking all the “hard parts” out of it for your prospect, e.g. hard to understand, hard to believe, hard to reply, and so on. Making it “easier” on your customer lifts response!
First Direct Corporation sells CRM software, but your true success comes from using it effectively with your marketing & sales. To find ways to leverage your CRM technology better, contact me. Call (845) 221-3800 today!
