What You Can Learn From My Biggest Marketing Lesson In 10 Years

Since June of this year, I’ve totally revamped my website, (switching to an entirely new theme), added a membership site to it and started marketing with Facebook.

To say it’s been a journey and more than a half is an understatement. I had to destroy some old paradigms about systems and processes and I’ve learnt some big lessons about marketing online.

I Learned To Sweat The Small Stuff

I know, the saying is actually “don’t sweat the small stuff,” but I learnt that online, it’s the small stuff that really matters.

When it comes to personality types, I’m the socialiser (97% of my personality) and we don’t like detail. Everything is big picture to us and so things like boring tracking and testing just don’t come natural. We like the presentation, the stage, and how it looks to other people and we’ll work hard at “the way it looks” and relish in any accolades that come our way.

And yes, I’ve been getting a lot of comments and some business because of my new website, but I’ve learnt that when it comes to marketing online, the money is in the detail.

And by detail, I don’t just mean design details. I mean a closer look at what your prospects respond to and what they don’t.

I also learnt over the past couple of months that what really kills your sales is paying attention to the wrong details.

I Discovered That Marketing Is A Lot Like Architecture

Before constructing a building, an architect will draw a plan of the building and sometimes they’ll even make a cardboard or plastic model of the building. The construction company then builds the house in accordance with the architects plans.

But applying this to my marketing efforts was a huge hurdle for me. Though I have personally followed a number of marketing plans in the past, being the socialiser that I am, that’s just akin to hemming me in and consequently I’d always end up deviating and doing my own thing but never really completing the model.

But over these past few months, I began to realise how much of our success online is in the plan … or the detail.

Sure you could build a house by winging it so to speak, but in the process, you’re going to have to make a lot of alterations and spend a lot more money due to trial and error.

But Trish, Isn’t This Too Restrictive?

If you’d asked me this even ten months ago, I would have said “yes!” I’m a socialiser remember.

But remember I said earlier that I had to destroy some old paradigms?

Winging it instead of creating systems was one of them.

I woke up to the fact, that even our bodies are made up of a series of systems and if parts of the system malfunction, we get sick. The cars we drive are made up of a series of systems and if one part of the system fails, the car will eventually break down. We even have a system for cooking and cleaning in our homes otherwise things will get out of hand.

If that’s the case, why on earth did I think I could create a desirable business without a system?

It can be done, but if freedom is one of the lifestyles you want to create, putting systems in place for your business isn’t optional, it’s essential.

And You Can Also Tweak It To Your Liking

Now, this was one of the biggest lessons learned. I can be such a perfectionist at times, I have to say out loud, “do it imperfectly!” Yeah, not something they teach you in school or college I know, but my mentor Adam Urbanski taught me that and I think it’s a good lesson to learn.

So, when I changed the theme on my website, for weeks, I didn’t like the front page. My heart skipped two beats each time I looked at it.

But, the basic elements were there and then one day, I got the inspiration on what I needed to do to make me feel like I do now … happy!

Even that kinda mustard colour signup box gave me chills until I changed it to the colour it is now … just one small tweak.

The same with The Influential Woman Academy.

I followed the sales letter blueprint of the Thrive Themes developer, but it was lacking my personal touch, and it took me weeks of just letting it sit there and tweaking it only when I felt inspired to do so. Again, so not within my comfort zone, but it felt great focusing on the improvements and not inventions, or starting from scratch.

And in truth, you don’t know what you don’t know until you do it.

Here’s a glance at what the original Academy page looked like …

But The Marketing Blueprint Kept Me Focused

Right now, it seems that everyone is talking about marketing funnels and some of them will even hail, “you’re doing it all wrong.” But in answer to that I would say that it’s only wrong if it doesn’t work for you.

Once I found the blueprint or marketing funnel that resonated with me, I printed it and kept a copy of it on my desk. I scanned it, marked it up and where possible replaced the tools they suggested with the ones I was already using and I made a few other minor adjustments.

But I actually found myself enjoying the process and feeling relieved after every step was complete.

My Marketing Strategy Felt “Put Together.”

And if you’re either a socialiser like me or processes and detail make you feel hemmed in, visualise the freedom you’ll have once all of those processes and systems are in place.

This was where it all began for me back in February of this year, and eight months later, I have a replicateable system that I can apply again and again to any product I launch in the future.

How about you?

What systems could you put in place that would help free up your time? Tell me in the comments below.

Until next time,