Marketing today has become complicated and bloated.
Is it any wonder with over 36 major social media networks alone? Podcasts, blogs, vlogs, YouTube channels, Google Ads, Facebook Ads, banner ads, e-mail lists…?
The latest craze like simulated handwritten or actual handwritten letters.
Envelopes with teaser copy. Envelopes without teaser copy.
Some with nothing but a delivery address and a nameless return address.
E-mails with this kind of subject line or that kind of subject line.
Subject lines with those cute little icons in them.
And then personalization… do it? Or not?
Warm e-mail marketing, cold e-mail marketing…
It’s just nuts.
With all these tools on hand, a marketing consultant almost feels guilty not using them all in a strategy for their clients.
After all, they need to impress them with digital glitter to get their rates.
But, I did say “almost.”
In fact, some marketing ‘ex-spurts’ might devise an impressive market funnel system, but leaves the customer scratching their head and frustrated.
And in all this, an 8-year old kid from back in the 70s comes up with the best strategy which still works today.
Thinking back on a potential client’s project I was taken back to when I was an 8-year old kid.
I could sometimes be a little dickens.
One day, I scrounged the desk drawer of the family desk. I found what I was looking for.
A magnifying glass.
I took that weapon to the back patio door.
It was a blue sky kind of day. I’d never actually tried this, but I’d herd it worked, and I was about to find out.
With the magnifying glass in hand, and a nice bright sunny day, I held the magnifying glass about seven inches from the bottom of the patio door woodwork.
A circle of light about an inch round shown on the woodwork.
I slowly lowered the magnifying glass and watch that one-inch circle get smaller and brighter.
I lowered it until there was a bead of refracted light the size of a BB and super bright.
And sure enough, the wood started to smoke and left a burn mark.
Sure, I eventually got in trouble for my little stunt, but it sure is an example of marketing today.
The sun, it’s what, about a bzillion light years away? If I were to hold a magnifying glass a mile away, no one would even know down on Earth.
But, drawing it closer to the target until the bead of focus was undeniably bright, that’s when it made a real difference to the target.
See, it really isn’t that complicated to market to your customer. You just need to go where they are, and warm them up a bit by focusing on them.
Casting a marketing net so wide no one notices doesn’t help.
As the great Dan Kennedy said in one of his books, it’s like flying over Pittsburg, dropping 100,000 letters out of the plane in order to send your aunt a letter.
Even as an 8-year old kid I knew the best way to get a result was to hone in on the target.
And, that is all that is needed.
You don’t need the expense of a huge market funnel.
Just think what that does to your cost per customer.
Imagine the cost of 100,000 letters, ink, envelops, cost of a pilot, fuel, and plane rental.
Compared to a piece of paper, envelope, and a U.S postage stamp.
Take it from that 8-year old kid. A simple magnifier focused on the right area can far out perform exotic funnels.
After all, the whole idea is just to reach the people who are your ideal customer profile, right?
Do I even need to say, if you need help with this, contact me?