Sure, it makes sense for him to run an advertising campaign.
He’s got the budget, he’s an absolute authority in his field, he’s got an offer that converts and a terrific value proposition.
But, he’s also got a list of 2000 subscribers, many of whom have bought from him in the past.
“How often do you mail your list?”
“Used to be monthly. I need to get back on that track”.
Alright, time to put my foot down. With a firm hand.
Because sure: advertising can work really well.
But advertising is an investment – and let’s not even get into how costly it can be, or how it can take a long time before you get your targeting and messaging right.
No, long before that comes another set of questions:
How did you get that list?
You built it, over time, investing in your business and your visibility.
How did you get that authority positioning?
By working with people, creating relationships, developing opportunities over time (I mean, not every entrepreneur also teaches at universities. Stuff like that takes time).
How did you end up with an offer and value proposition that people actually pay you money for, every month?
By experimenting and learning by and by who is your ideal buyer, and what they need, and how to communicate with them.
All of the above can be summed up in one word:
Investing.
Investing time, mental space, money, creating articles and videos and doing all the business things a business does.
A huge investment, spanning decades.
But if you don’t talk to the list of people who gave you permission to mail them, you’re looking to invest even more, without deploying the full potential of the massive investment you’ve already made.
You’ve built up assets – relationships, positioning, status, a list etc – and you’re not leveraging your assets.
Like growing an orchard, and when the time comes to harvest your apples, you instead go plant more apple trees. Not the best choice.
So whenever you are thinking about investing (be it time, money, or other resources) into your business, ask yourself the final, the big, the most important question:
Have you, to the fullest extent and maximum potential, leveraged the investments you’ve already made?
Do that first. Invest after.
On another note:
You might be the odd one out, but nearly everyone I speak to has a list of permission-based contacts that they don’t communicate with often enough.
And that’s where I can help: if you want a chat about what to say to your list, with what offers and what messaging, let me know and we’ll set up a Zoom call.
