subject: The 9 Habits Of Exceptionally Successful Marketers [print this page] Anyone can become an exceptionally successful marketer, and the great thing about the business is that you can do it working from home. Working from home, however, presents some challenges for some people. Many are successful working within the confines of brick and mortar and a time clock. When they change to a job working from home, however, the transition can be challenging.
If you are one of those people and you've decided to go into marketing, you're going to need to establish some habits that will make you an exceptionally successful marketer.
That's right. In order to be an exceptionally successful marketer, you need to have some exceptionally successful habits - at least, nine of them.
#1. Plan Before You Lay Out A Dime
If you're familiar with business principles at all, you know that planning is critical to any successful business venture. A habit you'll need to incorporate, not only in the beginning of your marketing business, but in various checkpoints throughout your business, is to make sure you always have a plan and that you're following it.
Even if you already have one in place, you'll need to re-evaluate your plan at different stages throughout the lifetime of your business. Marketing is a fluid business. It is constantly changing. With that in mind, before you begin your business and as your business evolves, you'll need to have a marketing plan in place.
After your business is established, you'll still need to reassess your success at times, and where you want to be going. If it has changed from your original plan, then you need to change your plan. You may want to expand it into other niches, or maybe something you're doing that used to work isn't anymore.
Regardless, that's the time you need to revisit your plan.
#2. Know Your Niche
In becoming an exceptionally successful marketer, you have to know your niche. Your niche is your lifeline and the source of your income. If at all possible know the following about your niche:
o Age
o Gender
o Family Status
o Political preference
o Interests
o Financial Status
This is just a short list, but if you can gather demographics and other information about your niche, you can expand your marketing expertise into other areas in order to develop even more revenue streams.
Keep in mind, your niche should be included in your plan.
#3. Multiple Revenue Streams
Don't limit yourself to certain marketing streams. Be open to multiple approaches in a variety of interests. When developing your plan you should have thought about what your interests were and how they fit into your marketing plan.
Your interests, strengths, passions and everything else that make up you can be incorporated into a stellar marketing plan that gives way to a multiplicity of revenue streams.
#4. Know Your Limitations
You don't have to be everything to everybody. You can spread yourself so thin in marketing that you will be swallowed up with the demands. Instead, initially establish a few marketing streams that work for you that don't make you feel to stretched and stick with it for 3 to 6 months.
If you're happy with the level of effort and the revenue it is bringing in, then don't change anything. If, however, you feel you can add more and you want to take it to that next level, go for it. Continue to reassess your business quarterly for the lifetime of your business.
#5. Home, Home On The... Website
You've got to have a "home" highlighting your marketing business, its goals and success. Without a repository of your information available for people to see who you are, what you do and what you have to offer, you'll never achieve exceptional success as a marketer.
Establish a blog or website. You can do it for free through several different online companies.
Blogs Free blogs can be created through WordPress, or Goggle offers Blogger. Either one is user-friendly and easy to set up. You can even begin your revenue stream when you set up your blogs by adding widgets for AdSense.
One of the most critical functions you can build into your blog or website is the capturing of your audience's e-mail addresses. Being able to market with a ready audience can quadruple your revenue.
Websites Free websites are available through Webs.com or Wix.com and others. Do a search on the Internet and check out a few out. Set up a couple of them and see how they seem to work for you. If you're looking for free, don't give your credit card number out ever. You will be charged.
Some rules of thumb to follow:
o Comments - Make sure you allow comments on your site, but you may want to choose the option to approve them, instead of having them automatically posted on your site. o Stellar Copy - You're becoming an exceptionally successful marketer, so when you build your blog or website, make sure you write exceptionally successful copy. If you don't know what that means, visit other marketing websites to get a better idea. o Simple Formatting - In formatting your site, follow the KISS method - Keep It Simple Silly. Don't get crazy with all kinds of graphics, videos, flash files and other extravagant stuff. People are looking for quick gratification and will not stay long on your site if there are too many distractions.
Keep it simple. Keep your pictures small, space your verbiage, keep comments off to the side or off to the bottom of the page, and only have one or two videos on each webpage.
Your website or blog should be part of your plan, cater to your niche and build on your revenue streams.
#6. Time Investment
You've got to know going in that becoming an exceptionally successful marketer is going to take a great investment of your time. Depending on how you measure success will depend on how much time you are willing to invest in your marketing business.
Just because you invest a lot of time, though, doesn't mean that you will reap more success. Be wise about the time you invest in your marketing business.
Find out what has worked for others, and don't try to reinvent the wheel. Build off what has worked for others and incorporate that kind of thinking and mindset into your own business. This will eliminate some of the time you will be spending on establishing your business.
The time you are able to commit daily and weekly to your marketing business should be included in your plan. This will be a determinating factor in how big your business can grow.
The habit you should take away from this is work the time you have. You should determine the amount of time you can spend on your marketing business, then make that time count. Don't let yourself get distracted with other activities.
#7. Regular E-Mail Distribution
After your website or blog is established, you should begin to receive e-mail addresses of those who are subscribing to your site. It is critical for you to keep in touch with these people in order to maintain them as customers. It is far easier to maintain a customer than it is to obtain a new one.
Besides, when you have e-mail addresses, you have a readymade audience. Your marketing business can advance into other arenas by sending new marketing streams to this audience.
Make it a habit to communicate with this audience on a regular basis. Daily, Monday-Wednesday-Friday, or weekly is the best, and let them know the first time you send an e-mail distribution how often you will be sending it to them. You create anticipation.
Create a distribution list in your e-mail program with all the e-mails of your subscribers. It will allow you to quickly and effortlessly in one fatal swoop send a broadcast out to everyone of your subscribers at once.
#8. Communication
People will be sending you e-mail or commenting on your site. Make sure when you receive a communication that you respond within a reasonable timeframe. The rule of thumb is 24 hours. If you can have an automatic response setup that lets people know that you received it and that you will be responding within 24 hours, that would be the best method.
Regardless, you will lose customers and potential customers if you do not respond to communication within a reasonable timeframe.
#9. Get Excited
You are on your way to becoming an exceptionally successful marketer. What could be more exciting?
A habit you must incorporate in your quest is to have a good attitude. Give thanks along the way as you progress on your path. Celebrate every little success that you experience. Note the success on your site, but don't brag.
Maintain an attitude of thanks and by the time you become a truly exceptionally successful marketer, you'll be the standard by which others are measured.
