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Job #1 when marketing to small businesses

Three professional service businesses with the same marketing problem, only they don't know it:

• An accountant offers an amazing tax planning service for fast-growth start-up businesses ... and FAILS.
• A marketing "expert" has a system to increase repeat sales ... and CAN'T GET A SINGLE CLIENT.
• A web design firm knows they can build web sites that increase small business sales ... but CAN'T GET ANYONE TO LISTEN.

What's the problem?

Your first job when selling to a small business entrepreneur isn't to convince them how wonderful your product or service is. It isn't to tell them how your product or service will solve a killer problem or help them reach an amazing goal.

Nope.

Small business entrepreneurs work haaaaaaaard. Many believe they need to do anything and everything in their business. They try to pack 24 hours of work into an 18 hour day. Most are too busy to even think about how to reduce their workload and increase their efficiency.

Now, all of these things are enormous mistakes. But they are common mistakes. And if you are selling to small business owners and entrepreneurs ... this is the mindset you must a) be aware of and b) address going in.

Your first job is to understand the lives and businesses of the people you want to have buy from you ... the chaos and the turmoil and the frustration and the dreams ... and then, you must convince them that the most important thing they can do right now isn't put out the 97th fire of the day ... it is to step away from what is happening in their business and learn about what you have to offer them.

If you are thinking you'd better have one hell of a compelling message to do this, you are right. It's also why most marketing to small business owners and entrepreneurs falls flat on its face.

Please keep your comments on-topic and civil.

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