The biggest tension in my work is reminding people that they are unique, and then reminding them that they are not.
On the one hand, I remind them not to copy others’ marketing or fall for shallow trends, and instead focus on what sets them apart and makes them stand out.
But once they’ve bought into that idea, I have to convince them that they’re not unique in this specific sense:
The voice telling them not to start is the same one everyone hears.
Because that’s the voice that triggers this response to marketing recommendations:
“Sure, that makes sense. But I can’t because...”
It feels like something unique and distinctive, some special carve-out they’ve been granted that no one else needs.
But it turns out everyone has that same voice. The one that says, “That’s great for them, but for me...”
And even when someone explains why that particular objection is invalid or unconvincing, they manage to immediately concoct another. The goalpost keeps moving just out of reach, as if by magic.
I get it, the reasons might seem clear and strong:
- I don’t want to embarrass myself
- I don’t want to look like I’m trying too hard
- I don’t want to admit I need to do marketing
- I don’t want to start something I can’t stick to
- I don’t want to fail publicly
But what stands in your way is not an obstacle but a gate.
And through that gate, the one labeled “Doing it wrong but doing it anyway” is a land called “Doing it enough that you get good at it.”
So what am I saying you do? Literally anything that gets you started.
The easiest place to start is to fill in the prompts given in my Beginner’s Guide to Marketing: Part 3.
You don’t have to do anything with your answers just yet, you just have to make them.
Once you have, something really important will have happened. You’ll be a new person, passing through the threshold between not starting and having started.
You won’t feel it in the moment, but you’ll look back in a few weeks, months, even years and remember where you began.
And that you began.
Because starting is the only thing separating your marketing from the marketing you admire.
Now all you have to do is not stop.
Kelford Inc. is the marketing team that’s never at a loss for words. If you’re struggling with what to say and where to say it to attract ideal clients, we’ll show you the way.