Have you ever received an email or direct mail piece, or watched an ad and found it distasteful? Lisa Manyon, the guest on this month’s SkillBites Show, explained that she has felt that way about many commercials and marketing pieces since she was just 4 years old. The standard approach in marketing for many years has been based on the formula Problem – Agitate – Solve. In other words, point out the pain, make it sound horrible if the person experiencing the pain doesn’t do something about it quickly, and then present the solution. For many people, this feels more like emotional manipulation, which does not bode well for attracting them to purchase the service or product being offered.

Lisa developed a different approach, which she refers to as the “Challenge.Solution. Invitation™”formula. It is a subtle energetic shift that is more appealing because it treats people as people, and involves marketing with more integrity. Accordingly, it tends to attract more of the ideal prospects for the particular product or service, and has longer term sustainability.

For any marketing campaign, Lisa advised, there are two critical components: the content or message, and the strategy. The right content without a strategy to drive people to the message is unlikely to succeed, and vice versa. Lisa spends time with her clients determining the best ways for them to market that is consistent with their own values and the preferences of their target market. She also creates a plan for them, a 90-day calendar of what they should do, and how to do it as easily as possible.

Lisa emphasized that there is no quick fix. Marketing takes time, and requires consistency to be effective. It is critical for the business owner to capture his or her own voice and not adopt messages of others. When the message comes from the owner’s core truth, it will be much more effective. Lisa has an exercise that helps her clients identify their core values so that they can ensure that their business activities are congruent with those values. When there is a disconnect, the business is usually not successful.

Lisa recommends questioning everything. When someone suggests something, ask why, and make sure it is a good fit for you, that it will enable you to get where you are going and is good for your clients. When you are clear on your own values and the value you are delivering to your clients, you’ll get a consistent flow of new clients.
To connect with Lisa, go to her website, writeoncreative.com. There, you can sign up to receive her free copywriting action plan.