One of the primary beliefs I live by is that your marketing should get you a healthy return
on your investment. And you should hold your marketing accountable.

But here’s the thing, just because something isn’t working doesn’t mean it should be
abandoned. Because sometimes your marketing isn’t working because there is a breakdown
in the process.

Finding and fixing the breakdown is key. Not discarding the entire process! (One reason I
have tracking in place for everything I do for myself and for my clients is so we can help
identify what is causing the breakdown.)

Here are the five steps we go through to build a new marketing funnel. It’s also what we
look at when something isn’t working to fix it. If your marketing isn’t working, go through
each of these steps. Start at the beginning to help you identify what needs to be fixed.

Step One: WHO –This is the first thing you should check. Are you targeting the right
audience? A lack of a well-defined target audience is one of the biggest mistakes I see. This
is so important. In fact, best-selling author, marketing expert, and co-founder of GKIC Dan
Kennedy says 50% of success or failure is the target market.

Step Two: WHERE – If you are targeting the right audience, then next thing to consider is
where your target market is hanging out. Are you targeting the wrong place, wrong social
networks, wrong lists, etc.? For example, if you are trying to reach millennials you might
think they all hang out on Instagram. However, this would be an incorrect assumption. It
depends on the millennials you are trying to reach. For instance, older millennials are often
on Facebook, so you could be targeting your audience in the wrong place.

Step Three: HOW –Next you want to look at how you’re trying to reach your audience. Are
you using the right media? Perhaps in the past email has worked well for you, however,
maybe your audience has migrated and is watching more videos these days. (Tip: often this
doesn’t require all new content. In this example, you could take the same message you sent
through email and create a video with the same message.)

Step Four: MESSAGE & DELIVERY –If you’ve got the right target market, you’re reaching
out to them in the right place and using the right media to reach them, and things still
aren’t working, you should look at your messaging. A few things to look at:
 Do you have the right USP (what are you offering that is truly different?)
 Why should they do business with you above anyone else?
 Do you have an attention-grabbing headline?
 Is the message being delivered with clarity?
 Is there a clear call-to-action?
 Is there urgency?
 Is there an easy way to purchase that makes your prospect feel confident? (e.g.
have you included testimonials, secure payment, a guarantee, etc.?)

NOTE: In case you missed our announcement, if your landing page where your message
resides is the source of your breakdown, we now are able to offer you an affordable way to
fix this. We’ve found this piece alone can be a source of a BIG return.

Step FIVE: FOLLOW UP — Do you have a follow-up system in place to get them in the
door? Studies show that only 2% of people purchase the first time they encounter your offer. A full 80% will say “no” the first four times. So, if you don’t have a way to capture
leads when they arrive and then you’re not following up with prospects at least five times
after they initially hear your offer, you are letting a lot of cash fall through your fingers.

Furthermore, in today’s society, you can dramatically increase your sales by following up
with people on multiple platforms.

Think about how you like to respond. Do you prefer texting? An email? Does seeing ads pop
up remind you that you need to get your oil changed or that a new restaurant you wanted
to visit is offering a discount?

Most people have a preferred way of being reached although using multiple platforms can
speed up the sales cycle. For example, let’s say you are driving your target audience to your
landing page through Facebook ads. When they land there, you collect their name, email,
and phone number. You could then send them an email that drives them back to your
landing page. A text message could be sent asking them if they received your email. And
retargeting ads could run to keep you at the forefront of their mind so when they are ready
to make a purchase you are in front of them wherever they go online.

Don’t limp along. If your marketing isn’t working the way you think it should go through
these five steps to review it and locate where it needs to be fixed. Some fixes are simple.
Some take more digging. However, if you stick with it, I promise you the payoff will be
worth it.