Packaging is Emperor
To quote Sean De'Souza, the marketing InfoGuru from New Zealand, "If content is king, then packaging is emperor."
In marketing these days, we've heard a lot about content being king. Content for an Independent Professional is the sum total of information that you possess that you can leverage to both attract clients and to offer for sale.
This includes content on your web site, case studies of successful projects, background information on you and your business, articles and white papers both published and unpublished, principles, techniques, and strategies, and even the content of workshops, seminars and teleclasses.
If you have an ever-increasing body of relevant content, you have the building blocks for marketing and selling your services. And building blocks is a good metaphor because, if that content is just sitting there in a big pile, it isn't worth very much.
It's when you start effectively organizing, packaging and presenting your content that you can take your marketing and business to whole new levels, dramatically increasing both your attention value and your net income.
At the simplest level this may be starting with the raw material of information that goes on your web site. Unformatted, it's just a mass of black text on a computer screen. It's hard to read and will actually push people away.
If you repackage that text and use an attractive, readable font, make smaller paragraphs with spaces between them, highlight important concepts in bold text, include subheads for different sections, add some color here and there, and include graphics or illustrations, you pull the reader in.
Attention, interest, involvement and response all go up when you start paying serious attention to packaging.
Since design and the overall look and feel of your marketing materials is perceived and processed in the prospect's mind before the content is read, packaging truly becomes emperor.
If you only focus on this one aspect of packaging, you will dramatically increase the impact of your marketing. But you can take packaging to levels that can transform your entire business.
It's a matter of realizing that those building blocks of content can be built into a one-story ranch home or a sprawling three story mansion worth a fortune.It's all in how you package it.
Let me give you one example.
You have the information and the expertise to help companies improve their leadership ability. Your main service is to provide consulting services to help your clients learn and implement these ideas. Your content, your knowledge is certainly important, but the way it is packaged may be very limited.
When you think of packaging as emperor, you may start to explore the many other ways you could package that same content.
1. Create an article or white paper on "Leadership Practices of Great Companies" as a giveaway to potential clients. Great introduction for new prospects.
2. Develop a talk or keynote presentation on the "Eight Deadly Mistakes of Leadership" for business groups. Builds visibility and credibility.
3. Put together an in-depth workshop on "Leadership Practices for High Achievers" to offer in conjunction with your consulting. Increases the size of every project.
4. Assemble a one-year program on "Leadership and Profitability" exclusively for CEOs from different companies. Then sell the program to the executive teams of each of those companies.
5. Write a virtual program on "Leadership in Troubled Times" that is delivered via web and online audio for companies going through transition. Creates passive income which can be offered to an unlimited number of participants.
OK, that took me about five minutes. What could you do if you took an hour or two to explore and brainstorm packaging opportunities for the content you already have?
I discovered a long time ago that clients were only going to buy the packages that I took the time and effort to put together. They weren't going to make them up for me.
And incidentally, creating, marketing and selling these packages brought me income far surpassing any standard consulting I offered, while freeing up my time to come up with even more valuable packages. And in many cases they were actually a lot easier to market and sell than consulting! It's time to give the power to the Emperor of Packaging and see where it takes your business.
Marketing Flashes on "Packaging Is Emperor"
Packaging tips that increase business.
Always offer more than one option and price for each package. As Alan Weiss says, instead of giving a choice between yes and no, give a choice between yes and yes.
Give a name or title to each of your packages as I've done in the the article above. This branding creates an impression of more value and substance. It also makes them more memorable.
Don't underestimate the power of selling small, inexpensive packages. A teleseminar that sells for $25 will sell a whole lot more units than a workshop that sells for $500 (with a whole lot less effort).
Conversely, don't assume your prospects won't buy expensive, more in-depth programs. A complete solution that is high priced can be perceived as more affordable than a partial solution at a lower price.
Packages can evolve into the next package and the next. An article turns into a presentation which becomes a paid teleclass which morphs into a workshop. This continuity builds momentum.
All the best,
Robert Middleton - Action Plan Marketing
Helping Independent Professionals Attract More Clients
By Robert Middleton of Action Plan Marketing. Please visit Robert's web site at www.actionplan.com for additional marketing articles and resources on marketing for professional service businesses.
In marketing these days, we've heard a lot about content being king. Content for an Independent Professional is the sum total of information that you possess that you can leverage to both attract clients and to offer for sale.
This includes content on your web site, case studies of successful projects, background information on you and your business, articles and white papers both published and unpublished, principles, techniques, and strategies, and even the content of workshops, seminars and teleclasses.
If you have an ever-increasing body of relevant content, you have the building blocks for marketing and selling your services. And building blocks is a good metaphor because, if that content is just sitting there in a big pile, it isn't worth very much.
It's when you start effectively organizing, packaging and presenting your content that you can take your marketing and business to whole new levels, dramatically increasing both your attention value and your net income.
At the simplest level this may be starting with the raw material of information that goes on your web site. Unformatted, it's just a mass of black text on a computer screen. It's hard to read and will actually push people away.
If you repackage that text and use an attractive, readable font, make smaller paragraphs with spaces between them, highlight important concepts in bold text, include subheads for different sections, add some color here and there, and include graphics or illustrations, you pull the reader in.
Attention, interest, involvement and response all go up when you start paying serious attention to packaging.
Since design and the overall look and feel of your marketing materials is perceived and processed in the prospect's mind before the content is read, packaging truly becomes emperor.
If you only focus on this one aspect of packaging, you will dramatically increase the impact of your marketing. But you can take packaging to levels that can transform your entire business.
It's a matter of realizing that those building blocks of content can be built into a one-story ranch home or a sprawling three story mansion worth a fortune.It's all in how you package it.
Let me give you one example.
You have the information and the expertise to help companies improve their leadership ability. Your main service is to provide consulting services to help your clients learn and implement these ideas. Your content, your knowledge is certainly important, but the way it is packaged may be very limited.
When you think of packaging as emperor, you may start to explore the many other ways you could package that same content.
1. Create an article or white paper on "Leadership Practices of Great Companies" as a giveaway to potential clients. Great introduction for new prospects.
2. Develop a talk or keynote presentation on the "Eight Deadly Mistakes of Leadership" for business groups. Builds visibility and credibility.
3. Put together an in-depth workshop on "Leadership Practices for High Achievers" to offer in conjunction with your consulting. Increases the size of every project.
4. Assemble a one-year program on "Leadership and Profitability" exclusively for CEOs from different companies. Then sell the program to the executive teams of each of those companies.
5. Write a virtual program on "Leadership in Troubled Times" that is delivered via web and online audio for companies going through transition. Creates passive income which can be offered to an unlimited number of participants.
OK, that took me about five minutes. What could you do if you took an hour or two to explore and brainstorm packaging opportunities for the content you already have?
I discovered a long time ago that clients were only going to buy the packages that I took the time and effort to put together. They weren't going to make them up for me.
And incidentally, creating, marketing and selling these packages brought me income far surpassing any standard consulting I offered, while freeing up my time to come up with even more valuable packages. And in many cases they were actually a lot easier to market and sell than consulting! It's time to give the power to the Emperor of Packaging and see where it takes your business.
Marketing Flashes on "Packaging Is Emperor"
Packaging tips that increase business.
Always offer more than one option and price for each package. As Alan Weiss says, instead of giving a choice between yes and no, give a choice between yes and yes.
Give a name or title to each of your packages as I've done in the the article above. This branding creates an impression of more value and substance. It also makes them more memorable.
Don't underestimate the power of selling small, inexpensive packages. A teleseminar that sells for $25 will sell a whole lot more units than a workshop that sells for $500 (with a whole lot less effort).
Conversely, don't assume your prospects won't buy expensive, more in-depth programs. A complete solution that is high priced can be perceived as more affordable than a partial solution at a lower price.
Packages can evolve into the next package and the next. An article turns into a presentation which becomes a paid teleclass which morphs into a workshop. This continuity builds momentum.
All the best,
Robert Middleton - Action Plan Marketing
Helping Independent Professionals Attract More Clients
By Robert Middleton of Action Plan Marketing. Please visit Robert's web site at www.actionplan.com for additional marketing articles and resources on marketing for professional service businesses.
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