Video Intro #1:
Course Welcome and Introduction
A very big welcome to the programme!
- What is Bright Marketing?
- How can you get more people of the right type of people to buy your product or service?
- Who is Robert Craven? What does he do?
- How can you best use the programme?
- Keep thinking WIIFM ('What's In It For Me?')
- You need to make the tough decisions and take massive action
- The programme is all about ACTION - you taking action
- This is not a get-rich-quick scheme... there is no such thing!
Each section has a video intro followed by workbooks, book chapters, articles, and worksheets
The Section headings are as follows:
#1 COURSE INTRODUCTION AND WELCOME (where we are now)
#2 INTRODUCTION TO MARKETING
#3 SCORE YOUR BUSINESS: HOW GOOD IS YOUR BUSINESS?
#4 WHICH SALES METHOD WORKS BEST?
#5 THE MESSAGE
#6 ASKING FOR THE BUSINESS
#7 PRICES
#8THE SALES PIPELINE OR FUNNEL
#9 HOW TO GROW YOUR BUSINESS
#10 THE EXPERT MODEL
#11 ADDITIONAL BRIGHT MARKETING MATERIALS
#12 ROBERT CRAVEN, DIRECTORS' CENTRE AND BRIGHT MARKETING ACADEMY SERVICES
#13 BRIGHT MARKETING BOOK - FOREWORDS AND REVIEWS
#14 FREE BONUS - RADIO INTERVIEWS WITH ROBERT CRAVEN
THANK YOU AND FAREWELL
Who Is Robert Craven? - A Brief Introduction
Here's a short showreel - a one-minute video showing "Robert Craven - on stage" running a Bright Marketing seminar with 150 business owners and directors in Swansea in Wales.
It is just a taster, a flavour of my style. To give you a feel for what I am like on stage.
Enjoy!
KEY LEARNING POINTS:
- Robert is an energetic and enthusiastic professional speaker and author
- He majors in entrepreneurship and marketing
- The focus is on hands-on, practical tools, tips and techniques that improve sales and profits.
PS Check out the LINKS below to see Robert's various social media and internet profiles.
Common issues faced by other users:
- General gremlins
- Technical gremlins
Video Intro #2:
Introduction to Marketing
This section includes:
- FAQs of Marketing and a Quick Definition
- Traditional Marketing Is Dead
- How Has the World of Marketing Changed?
If we understand what marketing is (really), then we can apply it to our own business and increase our sales and profitability.
The Frequently Asked Questions of Marketing... and a Quick Definition
This lecture explains the 'birth' of Bright Marketing. The same questions asked again and again...
You will discover that you are not alone in asking these questions!
KEY LEARNING POINTS:
Asking thousands of business owners about marketing and sales, we discover that they are seeking answers to the following questions:
- What works?
- How to communicate? How to target?
- How to measure?
- How to stand out form the rest? How to be listened to?
- How to get more sales with low/no budget?
- How to make it happen?
Marketing at its simplest is about income generation... getting people to buy from you... seeing things through the customers' eyes... and doing all this profitably!
PS The LINKS below are articles which caused a bit of a stir when they were first published.
Traditional Marketing is Dead... Why Should People Bother to Buy From You?
Robert Craven (interviewed with Grant Leboff for Sticky Marketing TV) discusses:
- Why traditional marketing is dead...
- Why should people bother to buy from you when they can buy from the competition...?
As a starting point it is important to understand the state of play in the marketing field... It is an industry and it does self-promote heavily.
- In reality how powerful is marketing?
- Can it deliver on its promises?
Marketing (especially for small businesses) can deliver... but the business owner needs to know what he or she is doing!
Food for thought...
KEY LEARNING POINTS:
- Traditional marketing no longer works
- We need to re-think how we get people to buy from us
- The role of the marketer is encompassed in the whole product/service
- The big question: "why should people bother to buy from you?"
- Don't create a commodity and be like the rest
- Give people a real reason to buy from you (and not someone else).
PS Check out the LINKS below for the 'Marketing Conundrum' and 'Myths of Business Growth' articles.
How Has the World of Marketing Changed?
A Sticky Marketing TV interview (3 minutes)
- How has the world of marketing changed?
- Where do you start when you are a small business?
- Are any business immune to this new way of marketing?
KEY LEARNING POINTS:
- Everything has changed and nothing has changed
- The depth and breadth of communication is now potentially vast
- Figure out "Who is my customer and what is their hurt?" then figure out how to reach them... talk about their problem and how you can help them...
- Talk benefits not features..
- The ads of the big boys are just no longer believed so smaller business can 'get through' quicker and more effectively.
Video Intro #3:
Score Your Business; How Good Is Your Business?
This section includes:
- How Am I Doing? How Good Is My Business?
- How Good Is Your Business? (filmed at Warwick Business School)
- How Good Is Your Business?
- Just How Good Is Your Business? (the Workbook) - a bonus
Unless you know how good your business is then it is impossible to decide what actions you need to take to improve it. Once you understand the strengths and weaknesses of your business then you can make the necessary decisions to improve your business performance.
This section focuses on the FiMO framework which looks at your performance to date.
You will also be introduced to the RECoIL framework which looks at the the potential or capability to grow.
It was felt necessary to present the FiMO (and RECoIL) framework in several different formats so that you understand the subtleties and are able to apply the model to your own business properly.
How Good Is My Business? FiMO
The FiMO framework is used to evaluate how good your business is. Marketing is part of the whole business so it cannot be considered in isolation.
By looking at the whole business you can identify the strengths and weaknesses of your business. Most businesses are weak at marketing and that impacts on Operations and ultimately on Financial performance.
You need to know how good your business is.
The FiMO framework is presented in different lectures to emphasise the importance of the subject matter!
KEY LEARNING POINTS:
- The FiMO Framework show you how your business performs
- Your Financial Performance is dependent on your Marketing and Operations.
PS Check the LINK below, 'Getting off to a Flying Start', an article originally published in Director magazine.
How Good Is Your Business?
(Warwick Business School video) (low sound volume)
Filmed working at Warwick Business School with their 'new entrepreneurs' (coming out of the MBA class). Some were start-ups and some ran businesses already.
This is a live explanation of how the components of FiMO work and inter-relate.
KEY LEARNING POINTS:
- Finance is a consequence of Marketing and Operations
- Cash is the key financial measure
- Marketing is all about the customer
- Marketing = revenue generation
- Everyone always focuses on Finance - they get fixated on it but it is only a consequence of the other two!
How Good Is Your Business?
(Blackboard presentation)
This blackboard presentation takes you through the FiMO framework as well as the RECoIL framework.
We have deliberately included the RECoIL framework as a bonus for this programme. The RECoIL framework is a bit of a bonus because you don't really need it for the purposes of Bright Marketing 101, but it does add to your understanding of your business. Having access to the RECoIL framework will help you understand what needs to be worked on to improve your overall financial performance.
This blackboard presentation is an alternative explanation from the others presented in the programme and it will cement your understanding of the FiMO audit healthcheck.
KEY LEARNING POINTS:
- FiMO looks at performance to date
- RECoIL looks at the potential or the capability to grow
- Combining FiMO and RECoIL is a great consultancy tool to audit and evaluate your business. It shows you where and how you can improve your business performance.
"Just How Good Is Your Business?" (the Workbook) - a Bonus Lecture
This workbook is part of the Directors' Centre coaching workbook series (RRP £20) and is available here as part of this course.
It comprises the following three tools:
- FiMO
- RECoIL, and
- SNOW
and includes descriptions of how to use them.
RECoIL and SNOW toolkits are not crucial for this programme but are simply an added bonus for Bright Marketing 101 users.
Also see the LINKS below
- 'How do Venture Capitalists Evaluate Your Business Proposition?' and
- Business Growth Article in Directors Magazine, 'Getting off to a Flying Start'
These also look at how businesses are evaluated.
KEY LEARNING POINTS:
- How to use and apply FiMO and RECoIL and SNOW frameworks to measure your business (see the worksheets at the end of the workbook)
- Case studies of businesses applying these tools.
Video Intro #4:
Which Sales Method Works Best?
This section includes:
- Identifying the Most Effective Sales Method - Introductory Lecture Notes
- Which Sales Method Works Best? (Warwick Business School)
- Which Sales Method Works (Sticky Marketing)
- Which Sales Method Works Best? (Growing Business article)
- The 7 by 3 Rule - "Why doesn't my marketing work?"
One of the most frequently asked questions is , "Which sales method works best?".
It is difficult to answer because every business is different. More importantly, every business's set of clients/customers are different and may behave differently from another. So, the question needs to be framed from the point of view of your target customers/clients. How do they prefer to buy from you?
However, it is clear that certain sales methods work better than others. In a world where suppliers are endlessly encouraging us to use their sales tools or techniques, we need to understand what works best for our own business. The most expensive solution may not be the best one for your business.
Identifying the Most Effective Sales Method
With so many ways to reach potential customers, most people are at a loss to know what works best... There are so-many get-rich-quick schemes out there claiming to be able to sell us some kind of magic silver bullet. If only life were that simple.
It is crucial to understand what activities are the most effective... to understand what works best for us...
While this lecture presents the 'research', you will have to measure and monitor your own marketing results to understand what works best for you.
However, the principles in the lecture are probably right for most businesses!
See the LINKS below
- 'Evaluating Your Marketing Investment' - an apparently simple set of questions to challenge if you are getting the best value out of your marketing spend.
- 'Selling Is Simple' shows how to sell!
KEY LEARNING POINTS:
- Most businesses sell through face-to-face and word-of-mouth
- Other sales channels are heavily promoted but may not be so effective
- The sale is normally the consequence of several steps in the process: they see, they hear, they speak to you...
Which Sales Method Works Best?
(Warwick Business School)
Five minutes looking at the results to the question, "If you could use ONE sales method what would it be?"
KEY LEARNING POINTS:
- Often the cheapest channels are the most effective
- The first channels we think about are the ones that have been sold to us
- Often it requires a two- or three-step process to get to our best way of selling
- The 'research' only asked what people's number one option would be
- You need to plot what works best for you and what actions to take as a result of that knowledge.
Which Sales Method Works
Interviewed with Grant Leboff for Sticky TV.
KEY LEARNING POINTS:
- Which sales method is the best?
- Face-to-face is the number one best way to sell
- Which sales method is most expensive?
- Question: which gives the best results? Answer: the less expensive techniques!
- The stats are still in favour of face-to-face despite a growing number of businesses selling online
- After face-to-face, referrals/recommendations and networking... the survey respondents didn't vote for other things as their number one solution.
Which Sales Method Works Best?
Consistently it has been the basic and obvious tools of face-to-face and referrals and recommendations that work for small and independent businesses. One shouldn't be surprised there.
What I find surprising is that this continues to be the case despite the rising influence of the internet and social media.
Please remember that the original research (2004) and subsequent follow-ups (2010 and 2013) were not high-quality, intellectually rigorous research but more general market research seeking to understand what business owners felt to be the number one, the top way of making sales in their specific business.
Originally an article in Growing Business magazine, this summarises the earlier lectures on the subject.
KEY LEARNING POINTS:
- The most effective sales methods are of the old-fashioned 'pressing the flesh' variety
- The survey simply presents a list of preferred number one sales methods
- The survey does not show the link between pre-sales and the sales processes.
The 7 by 3 Rule - "Why Doesn't My Marketing Work?"
It is all very well talking about 'what works?' but just how much effort is involved?
Most people do not persevere enough with their marketing. They try a couple of times and lose the will to continue because they do not see immediate results.
How often do you need to 'do' marketing activity that everyone talks about?
How much do you need to do before someone will notice you and your product?
PS 7/3, 7th March, is my birthday!
KEY LEARNING POINTS:
- People need to hear your message more than once to absorb it
- Despite your best intentions, not all of your marketing messages will get through to people (the dog will eat it, they will accidentally throw it in the bin)
- You need to communicate a lot just to get a chance to add to (never mind, cut through) the noise.
Video Intro #5:
The Message
The section includes:
- The One-Minute Intro
- What Is the Message? The Elevator Pitch (Warwick Business School)
- What Do People Buy? Benefits, the Customers Point of View and Afters
- Disruptive Marketing - An Introduction
Getting the message right is a crucial element of the whole marketing piece. Too many people want to talk about channels or marketing collateral, but at the the very heart of the marketing piece is getting the message right for the specific people you are trying to influence.
Interestingly enough, this section on the message can be visited and revisited again and again. One always feels that one can improve the message and messaging that comes from our business. The message is very much a work-in-progress.
The One-Minute Introduction or Audio Logo or Elevator Pitch
This is a critical part of the Bright Marketing philosophy. Unless you can articulate your message clearly then it doesn't matter which channels you use.
This simple process will show you how to tell people what you do. You can use it on your business card, at networking meetings, in your business plan... where and whenever you are trying to explain what you do in a simple yet compelling manner.
KEY LEARNING POINTS:
- How do you communicate in a way that people understand and get your message?
- A structured script can be continuously improved and adjusted to give you above-average results
- The elevator pitch, (audio logo, one-minute pitch or whatever) will help you understand what it is that people really are buying from you
- The elevator pitch helps you to communicate your message so that the listener actually understands how you can help them.
What Is the Message? or the Elevator Pitch
Warwick Business School
Here we talk through how to put together an elevator pitch.
KEY LEARNING POINTS:
- Why is it called the Elevator Pitch?
- Why is it so good?
- The five-step process with examples...
- People buy from you because of their hurts and problems: Motivation 'away from' is really powerful!
What Do People Buy? Benefits, the Customers Point of View and Afters
Robert Craven interviewed again with Grant Leboff (for Sticky Marketing TV) - a relatively informal discussion.
KEY LEARNING POINTS:
- Benefits vs features
- The customer's point of view
- People buy AFTERS - people don't buy what you do... they buy what you do does for them!
Disruptive Marketing - An Introduction
This Introduction to Disruptive Marketing gives you insight into answering the fundamental question, 'Why Should People Bother To Buy From You When They Can Buy From The Competition?'.
I cannot emphasise enough just how important this question is.
This Intro explains why you need to be able to articulate your message so clearly that it had to be included as part of this programme!
KEY LEARNING POINTS:
- Everything looks similar
- Why should people bother to buy from you?
- The Disruptive Marketing 'ology':.. when everyone zigs, you zag
- Think of Innocent Drinks, Google, and Apple who slam together technologies to disrupt industries
- Interruption working does not work - get people to talk
- Disrupt how your industry does marketing.
Video Intro #6:
Asking for the Business
This section includes:
- Asking for the Business - Introductory Lecture Notes
- Asking for the Business
- Elevator Pitch - What Would You Say to Sir Alan?
- Sales Enthusiasm
I am constantly frustrated at how poor most businesses are at asking for the business. After all the effort that people put into crafting their sales strategy, message, channels and routes to market, it is amazing that so little thought and time goes into practising and perfecting the crucial task of actually asking for the business.
Asking for the Business
We endlessly let ourselves down by not being very good at asking for the business. We put all the effort into the backstage marketing preparation but few of us are very good a having the eyeball-to-eyeball conversation and actually asking for the business.
The best way to approach such matters is to have a rough draft script that we can work to. One that has worked before. This takes some of the stress out of the situation. We can adjust it to suit our own specific circumstances. It is a great starting point.
KEY LEARNING POINTS:
- Most of us are lousy at asking for the business
- #1: Put your heart on your sleeve
- #2: Get more business script
- #3: The referral script.
Scripts for Asking for the Business
- Blackboard lecture
Starting with... the most important script, The Elevator Pitch.
Sorry, but we just can't emphasise the importance of it (the elevator pitch) enough and it makes sense to show it to you in as many different forms as possible!!!!
KEY LEARNING POINTS:
7 scripts (and take action!):
- Elevator pitch
- Asking for the business
- Referrals: seeding and asking
- The close
- Asking for more business
- 60:6 process
- Check the offer
- Take action
What Would You Say to Sir Alan? - An Article
This article goes through the elevator pitch. Published in over 10 different publications already it has been a hugely popular article..
Why?
Because what it says works.
Yes, it covers materials from the earlier lectures in this session but it is worth reading.
KEY LEARNING POINTS:
- How to put together an elevator pitch.
PS Check out the LINKS below on elevator pitches and networking.
Sales Enthusiasm
From the interview with Grant Leboff (for Sticky Marketing TV).
KEY LEARNING POINTS:
- Share your enthusiasm
- How to ask for a sale
Video Intro #7:
Prices
This section includes:
- Put Up Prices - Introductory Lecture Notes
- Do Not Compete on Price
- How to Not Compete on Price - Use these Methods!
- How to Put Up Prices
- Put Prices Up in a Recession?
Pricing is one of those subjects that causes a lot of debate. Up or down? By how much? When? How? Why?
The plain fact of the matter is that most businesses do not sell a pure commodity (ie a product that is not capable of being differentiated in any way). If you can differentiate your product/service (which you can), then you do not need to compete purely on price.
Put Up Prices
For some reason, people are incredibly nervous about putting up prices. To me it is a no-brainer. This section sets out to convince you likewise!
KEY LEARNING POINTS:
- Competing on price is a mug's game
- You have to sell so much more if you reduce prices
- You attract the wrong kind of customers if you reduce prices
- You have to sell so much less and you can afford to give a better service if you put up prices
- You attract the right sort of customers if you put up prices.
PS See also the LINKs below for a full radio interview with Find the Edge on pricing, among other matters, as well as the Economist article on the subject.
Do Not Compete on Price
You cannot compete on price.
You really cannot compete on price. In fact, what you should do is put your prices up! Really!
KEY LEARNING POINTS:
- Put up your prices now!
How to Not Compete on Price
- article
This lecture does what it says on the tin.
It talks through and shows you techniques that enable you to compete (but not on price).
KEY LEARNING POINTS:
15 different ways to present your offer so that you do not compete on price.
How to Put Up Prices
It is one thing to say that you should put up prices but how on earth do you do it?
Well here are a number of suggestions. Originally published with the Directors' Centre Online Business Club.
KEY LEARNING POINTS:
- 15 different ways to put up prices... to justify/explain/notify price increases.
Put Up Prices In A Recession?
- An article
You have got to be joking!!!
Well, no, actually.
And here is the argument and some examples where it has worked.
KEY LEARNING POINTS:
- Put up prices
- Lose the 'problem' clients
- Examples of others putting up prices and succeeding.
Video Intro #8:
The Sales Pipeline
This section includes:
- The Sales/Prospecting Funnel - Introductory Lecture
- Introduction to the Sales Funnel
- More Profit - Using the Pipeline to Show How to Increase Profits
- Case Study - How to Increase Sales by 150%
The Sales Funnel (or Pipeline) is a key tool in the marketer's kit bag. Understanding how prospects become clients is crucial to being able to successfully design and map out the journey you want them to take to becoming a satisfied customer/client.
The Sales/Prospecting Funnel
- Introductory Lecture
Some people are totally obsessed with the sales funnel... some have never heard of it. You need to know what it is and how to use it sensibly!
In some senses this is an entire learning programme in its own right. Professional marketers in blue chips use the concept extensively. You just need to understand the principle and apply it as you feel appropriate.
KEY LEARNING POINTS::
- What is the funnel?
- The customer journey
- Moving stuff along the pipeline.
PS Look at the LINK below, 'The Death of the Sales Funnel', which challenges whether the sales funnel is so great for the 21st Century!
Introduction to the Sales Funnel
An introduction to the sales funnel... following the customer buying journey.
Some call it the funnel, others call it the pipeline. The idea is that you see your potential client going through a series of steps from stranger to client. You can map out the customer journey and try to improve the individual steps. But first, let's look at the steps, in general.
KEY LEARNING POINTS:
- The customer buying journey
- Strangers, friends, lovers
- Too much focus (especially in social media) on quantity and not enough on quality.
More Profit - Using the Pipeline to Show How to Increase Profits
For several years I have run the More Profit Workshop and this is the essence of the half-day and one-day event.
The argument is that you need to sort your financial model before you sort your marketing ideas. There is no point selling more stuff (marketing) if you don't make a profit when you sell it!
KEY LEARNING POINTS:
- Sort the financial model before the marketing model
- Put up prices
- Do things simultaneously, not sequentially
- Take massive action.
PS The LINK below goes to a YouTube video from a More Profit event.
Case Study - How to Increase Sales by 150%
A true-life case study of an accountant increasing sales by 150% by applying simple arithmetic to their sales funnel, then improving every aspect of the process...
KEY LEARNING POINTS:
- Do the numbers
- Look for where you can make improvements
- Small changes can have dramatic impact.
Video Intro #9:
How to Grow Your Business
This section includes:
- How to Grow Your Business: The 3+1 Tool - Introductory Notes
- Lifetime Value of a Customer
Marketing has to be seen in its context. You need to know how to grow a business and how your marketing activity will fit into the whole picture. Then you can make your marketing deliver!
How to Grow Your Business - the 3+1 Tool - Introductory Lecture
At the centre of nearly every 'business development' course should the fundamental fact that there are only three ways to grow a business. Many seem to ignore this fundamental fact. So, do not forget the 3+1 tool... it will show you how you can grow your business.
See also the LINKS below on this subject.
KEY LEARNING POINTS:
- Get new customers
- Get them to buy more
- Get them to buy more often
- Stop them leaving.
Lifetime Value of a Customer
The lifetime value of a customer is a critical calculation. It tells you how much you can afford to spend trying to acquire a new customer. The two calculations to be aware of are:
1) The lifetime value of a customer
2) The cost of customer acquisition
See also the LINK below, Why Do Clients Leave You?
KEY LEARNING POINTS:
- Customer lifetime value
- Customer relationship management
- Testing for suitability for using a CRM system
Video Intro #10:
The Expert Model
This section includes:
- The Expert Model - Introductory Lecture
- An Introduction to the Expert Model
The Expert Model encapsulates the Bright Marketing approach to growing your business. While most businesses actually deliver on the individual pieces of the Expert Model, it is important to see how the various parts all inter-connect and support each other. The result is a more consistent and robust approach to marketing - your customers see and hear a clearer message and this makes it easier for them to understand what you do so that they are more likely to buy from you!
The Expert
- Introductory Lecture
Taking on the role of the expert puts you in a position where you can charge sensible prices and attract clients to come towards you. While especially suited to service firms, it also applies to most others. However, most people do not usually put together the different pieces of the jigsaw in one place.
The Expert Model is particularly suited to smaller businesses. You can not compete on price so compete on your specific expertise in your field!
KEY LEARNING POINTS:
- The Expert Model
- Steps to becoming an expert.
PS See also the LINK below - a review of the 'Grow Your Service Firm' book which talks about the Expert Model.
An Introduction to the Expert Model
Interviewed with Grant Leboff (for Sticky Marketing TV), we discuss the first principles of the Expert Model.
KEY LEARNING POINTS:
- Experts can charge so much higher prices!
- It can actually be easier to be the high-charging. niche-focused expert!
- Niching means you can be the big fish in the sea!
Video Intro #11:
Additional Bright Marketing Materials
This section includes:
- The 80:20 Principle - Introductory Lecture
- The 16 Immutable Laws of Marketing - Introductory Lecture
- The Bright Marketing Manifesto - Introductory Lecture
- Why the Zebra's Bottom on the Cover?
- Case Study: Olga's Choice of Channels to Communicate
- Case Study: Can You Rescue a Drowning Estate Agent?
- What is Your Marketing Strategy? - Worksheet
Many of the items above did not fit neatly into one category or section. As a result we have assembled them all here. Most of these 'lectures' span the whole Bright Marketing 'ology'. Understanding and absorbing these lectures will help to embed the thinking and philosophy (behind Bright Marketing) in you and your business.
The 80:20 Principle
- Introductory Lecture
The 80:20 principle is behind nearly every lecture in this package. Although not made explicit, the Pareto Principle (its other name) is never far away. Hence we had decided to include this brief lecture.
KEY LEARNING POINTS:
- The law of the vital few
- The law of the trivial many
- How do these laws work in your business?
PS See also the LINKS - 'Making the 80:20 Work For You'... a great set of questions. See also the 'SMP Mini-Case Study'
The 16 Immutable Laws of Marketing
There are certain fundamental laws of marketing. Just like the laws of nature, you cannot ignore these laws.
Time and time again, nature reminds us how these laws just are true... in the world of social media or in the old-fashioned world of traditional selling.
One of my favourites is: The Law of Perceptions... marketing is a battle of perceptions and not simply a battle of products... marketing is a battle for the mind of the customer!
KEY LEARNING POINTS:
- The 16 Immutable Laws of Marketing.
PS The LINK goes to Jim Symcox's blog where he asserts (and agrees) that marketing doesn't need to be complex.
The Bright Marketing Manifesto
The Bright Marketing Manifesto is a list of 23 cardinal rules of marketing for modern thinking small/independent businesses.
Many people print it out and stick it up on a wall by their computer to remind them of these core principles.
What's your favourite line?
The line, '95%% of people don't buy on price despite what they say' was originally a gut-feel, sweeping generalisation on my part. I have now been introduced to research that supports me by saying that only 10%% of purchases in any industry are totally price-driven (IPA).
KEY LEARNING POINTS:
- Change your attitude and approach to your marketing and sales activity
- Go for it!
Why the Zebra's Bottom on the Cover?
Robert Craven (interviewed with Grant Leboff for Sticky Marketing TV) is asked about the zebra's bottom on the front of the book. Why is it there?
The interview continues to ask why the book was written!
KEY LEARNING POINTS:
- Stand out from the crowd
- Be different.
Case Study: Olga's Choice of Channels to Communicate
A quick, live 'Case Study' that looks at how Olga can communicate her message. Which channels could and should she use? Recorded at Warwick Business School.
KEY LEARNING POINTS:
- Sort your message
- Sort your channels
- Make everything inter-connect and inter-relate
- Take massive action.
Case Study: Can You Rescue a Drowning Estate Agent?
Estate agents as businesses must be proverbial basket cases. If houses are not selling and people cant get mortgages, what can they do other than go bust which, of course, many are.
KEY LEARNING POINTS:
- Don't drop a ball
- Put your prices up
- Work the 80/20
- Grow your sales.
What is Your Marketing Strategy?
- Worksheet
The simplicity of this worksheet's one basic question understates the fundamental importance of the question.
KEY LEARNING POINT:
- What is your marketing strategy?
- Why should people bother to buy from you?
Video Intro #12:
Robert Craven Services
A series of introductions. This programme should just be the start of working together. Here we introduce other ways that I can work with you to help you to grow your business.
This section includes:
- Introduction to The Directors' Centre Consultancy
- Introduction to Robert Craven in a Nutshell
- Introduction to Robert Craven - Professional Speaker
- Introduction to The Directors' Centre Online Business Club
Introduction to The Directors' Centre Consultancy
The Directors' Centre is a management consultancy based in Bath in the UK.
About The Directors' Centre
Challenging, honest and goading business consulting for been-there-done-it business people. Free of business school BS we offer a no-nonsense approach to business growth.
We specialise in working with owners and directors of fast-growing businesses.
Led by Robert Craven.
Specialties
Entrepreneurship and business growth: strategy, marketing and teams
Introduction to Robert Craven in a Nutshell
90 seconds to see Robert in action...
- FiMO in a nutshell
- Actions you need to take, and
- What the audience thought.
Filmed in Preston in front of an audience of 100
Introduction to Robert Craven - Professional Speaker
I spend much of my time 'on the road' talking to audiences about how to grow sales and profits. It would be great to see you at one of my events.
This is a 5-minute video of my showreel...
Introduction to The Directors' Centre Online Business Club
The Business Club gives business owners the tools, tips and techniques to grow their sales and profits. It is updated each month with videos, articles and workbooks focusing on practical ways to improve business performance.
www.directorscentre.co.uk
This online resource centre contains curated materials selected by Robert Craven specifically because of their practicality and relevance to business owners.
New material is released on a monthly basis.You can trial the service for free.
Video Intro #13:
Bright Marketing Book: Forewords & Reviews
This section includes:
- Foreword to the 2007 book
- Foreword to the 2011 book
- Reviews for the Bright Marketing Books and Workshops
Reading and listening to other people's experience of the Bright Marketing ology give you a real sense of how the Bright Marketing materials can, and have been, used to help you grow your businesses. The best form of promotion is advocacy and here you can watch and listen to what others say!
This also helps you to understand how others have applied the learning to their businesses so this plays a key part in solidifying your learning.
Foreword to the 2007 Edition of Bright Marketing
John Davis, Marketing Director of Local Business for Barclays Bank, wrote the Foreword to the 2007 edition of the book...
His words give an insight into how valuable he saw the Bright Marketing process to be to business owners...
Foreword to the 2011 Edition of Bright Marketing
George Derbyshire, Chief Executive of the National Federation of Enterprise Agencies wrote the Foreword of the 2011 edition.
His words give an insight into how valuable he saw the Bright Marketing process to be to business owners...
Reviews - for the Bright Marketing Books and Workshops
Reviews give a great insight into what individual users got from the Bright Marketing process. So many people have had so many different experiences of how Bright Marketing has helped their business. Hearing others gives you a sense of not being alone... there are as many different learnings as there are people using the material. And that is because the material is meant to be taken and used by you to grow your business and your business sales. There is no one simple way of applying this material.
Video Intro #14:
Bonus: Internet Radio Interviews
This section includes:
- Robert Craven - interviewed by Ian Brodie (internet radio interview)
- Robert Craven - interviewed by Emma Sargent (internet radio interview)
- Robert Craven - interviewed by Jurgen Wolff (internet radio interview)
- Robert Craven - interviewed by Kenny Goodman (internet radio interview)
The interviews give a great insight into how Robert Craven looks at and sees things.We have selected interviews that relate specifically to the Bright Marketing content and ology.
As you listen to the interviews you hear certain common themes repeated again and again.
And there is very good reason for the repetition.
These themes occur time after time because they are answering fundamental questions.
These themes repeat themselves because they are so important.
Robert Craven - Interviewed by Ian Brodie (internet radio interview)
Ian Brodie on this Authority Marketing Podcast interview.
"This interview with speaker and MD of The Directors Centre, Robert Craven, covers Authority Marketing from two angles.
The first is how Robert established himself as an authority in the field of entrepreneurship (the Financial Times recently called Robert The Entrepreneurship Guru).
We also touch on some of the concepts from Roberts recent book Grow Your Service Firm which contains a ton of practical advice for service professionals on how to build an expertise based business."
Robert Craven - Interviewed by Emma Sargent
Emma Sargent runs the Extraordinary Coaching Company and helps freelancers and consultants turn their jobs into long-term businesses. She gets coaches and businesses to work towards achievable goals over the long term rather than trying to achieve success over a short period of time.Emma has been helping people succeed for over twenty years and will help you face up to the reality of what you need to achieve in order to be successful.
In this interview with Robert Craven they talk about Robert's latest book Grow Your Service Firm and some things people do to become successful.
Robert Craven - Interviewed by Jurgen Wolff (internet radio interview)
UK business guru Robert Craven reveals how entrepreneurs can thrive despite the recession, plus a look at mis-matched marketing and what would happen if authors charged like airlines. Hosted by Jurgen Wolff, sponsored by Pearson Publishing.
Robert Craven - Interviewed by Kenny Goodman (internet radio interview)
Respected author and business guru, Robert Craven, has opened up to Find the Edge's Kenny Goodman, revealing some of his tried and tested techniques for creating business growth.
In the first part of the interview, Craven discusses a variety of topics, including how he entered his profession, how marketing has changed, and why he doesn't like the term 'SME'.
He also discusses the importance of acting quickly as a business leader: "The first person I sacked, it took nine months to do it, because I always put it off. There's some nice stuff by Brian Tracy, in a book called 'Eat the Frog.'
"His thing is how do you eat a frog well you eat it very, very quickly, because it's foul.
"If you take the example of having the awful conversation needed to sack a member of staff, it doesn't get any easier the more you think about it. You might as well just get on and do it."
He continued: "I think the people who are really good at running their business, they tend to move quickly."
He also talks about the changing world of advertising and marketing.
He said: "Traditional marketing is dead. 76% of people believe that advertisers lie, whereas over 80% believe a recommendation or referral from a friend."
"Traditional marketing channels on the whole are dead, and then you've got the new, new media stuff, with very little demonstrable return on investment."
"I think the trouble with social media is that people confuse social media activity with business. So, you can spend all day on the sites, but I think people do confuse activity with actually making sales."
Robert Craven has developed an enviable reputation for devising business development strategies, and has glittering references from the likes of Richard Branson. He has also written several books.
Kenny Goodman, founder of Find the Edge, said: "Robert's one of the leading voices in business, so I was delighted to be able to pick his brain.
"He has some fascinating insights to share, and anyone in business will be able to take something away from listening to the interview.."
Here are some of the questions in part 1:
01:05 How do you help businesses grow?
03:58 When you did your MBA, after having run businesses yourself, what common mistakes did you see in the way Business Schools Train & Educate?
06:42 How can the Accountability of Mastermind Groups help Entrepreneurs & Business Leaders?
07:47 How can Entrepreneurs and Business Leaders be more productive personally?
09:55 If you were asked to eat a frog, how and when should you eat it?
11:33 What major problems do SMEs face in todays markets?
12:43 How can SMEs deal with over populated market places?
14:28 How can businesses easily stand out from their competition?
15:22 What common fears do you see with most Entrepreneurs?
16:33 How well do most businesses know their customers, and how can they build a better relationship with them?
19:29 How are most SMEs marketing their businesses today and how can they do it better?
21:22 Why do you say traditional marketing is DEAD? How can businesses embrace Social Media?
Here are some of the questions in part 2:
00:12 Should businesses increase their prices even in price sensitive markets and if so why?
02:52 Robert explains if your gross margin is 30% and you put your prices up by 10%, you can afford to lose 25% of your current customers. Even if you do lose customers they will tend to be the high maintenance penny pinchers.
03:51 He also explains that if you have a gross margin of 30% and you reduce your prices by just 10%, youll need to find 50% more customers. Again, these tend to be the penny-pinching, high-maintenance, non-loyal customers who will move again as soon as they see a cheaper price.
04:48 How can businesses create more value for their customers to make them more loyal?
07:06 What advice do you give the Davids who are competing against the Goliaths?
09:46 What tips would you give entrepreneurs and business leaders who want to be seen as an expert in their market place?
11:59 Robert explains why businesses need a back of house Ology and front of house Ology. He goes into details as to what these are and how they can be achieved.
13:31 Robert explains how writing books helped him rapidly become known as a go-to expert. It meant that instead of him chasing customers, they now chase him.
15:03 Robert discusses his 2 major business gripes: 1. Big businesses missing the opportunity to do business with small businesses he explains why. 2. SMEs (specifically service businesses) missing opportunities by being mediocre when they could be giving legendary service.
16:28 Robert discusses what he loves most about the business world right now.
19:03 Robert explains how he gets great testimonials from the likes of Sir Richard Branson and how this can massively help business.
Two LINKS below connect you with the interviews.
Video Intro #15:
Thank You and Farewell... Robert Craven
A VERY BIG THANK YOU... and FAREWELL.
We would love to hear from you.
We welcome your feedback at rc@directorscentre.com or +44 (0)1225 851044.
All the Best
Robert and the team at The Directors' Centre
Thank you for working with me on this programme!
Cheerio!
Robert
07:00: Video Intro #1: Course Welcome and Introduction. A very big welcome to the programme! - What is Bright Marketing? - How can you get more people of the right
Digital Marketing ... more customers, more sales
Audit Marketing Now! Assess Your Ability To . Set goals, define strategy & plan campaigns. How does Bizii deliver more customers & more sales.
Small Business Marketing Strategies with BIG Results: More ...
Small Business Marketing Strategies with BIG Results: More Customers, More Sales, More ProfitsNOW! [Kym Turner] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers.
Santa Cruz SEO Agency - Bright Valley Marketing
Reach more customers by ranking higher in search Ready for an influx of new customers? At Bright Valley, What are your biggest marketing or sales
4 Easy Steps to Getting More Customers - Business Know-How
Here are four steps to increasing your customer base and sales without spending more More Customers marketing well, you can put more
Bright Salon - A MOBILE APP THAT HELPS YOUR SALON BUSINESS ...
The perfect sales and marketing tool. Grow your salon business by reaching exstisting and new customers instantly with a mobile app from Bright you more sales.
Lead Generation Company - Get More Leads in Your Business!
Get more leads in your company with Bright Think Marketing! you can figure out the total sales I have been using Think Bright Marketing for about 3 years now.
3 Tips To Boost Sales And Bring In New Customers ...
Here are some tips and ideas for boosting your sales and bringing in new customers. print marketing will be much more Comments on this post are now
Internet Marketing Services to Get More Customers Now With ...
More Customers, Sales more customers with effective marketing and advertising strategies. Learn how to take advantage of the web opportunities for B2B and B2C
Marketing Jobs: The Outlook is Bright
Most of us have read or heard that Five Years From Now, CMOs Will Spend More on IT outbound marketing and sales our customers where they