I want to share with you a revolution that’s happening in business that you need to know about. It’s a revolution that affects us all and I call it the transparent marketing revolution.

You see, when I began my career back in the 90’s it was only big companies that could afford good marketing. As time went by with the proliferation of the internet, marketing began cheaper and easier to create and distribute. So you would think that this is good thing for small business, but I think it’s quite the opposite. Why?…because it made fundamentally bad companies look better than they really are.

Take my industry for example. Have you ever seen an accounting firm’s website that DOESN’T say they deliver proactive business advice and consulting services?

Have you ever heard of anyone really having a sophisticated conversion with their accountant about their business model and strategy? I’m not just talking about the numbers, I’m talking about marketing, sales, pricing, joint ventures, distribution channels, technology and so on. Have they ever been driven to come up with a step-by-step plan to achieve success, whatever that means?

But the fact is they give that impression in their marketing don’t they? So what happens to the customers within my industry? They become disengaged and stop believing anything they see marketed. This hurts the guys and gals that actually do what they say they can.

This is happening in your own industry right now! So how do you re-engage your market and get them to believe what you say again and believe in your business? The answer is transparent marketing. Let me use my business as an example and think about what you could do in your own business.

1. Show customers specifically what they are getting – don’t use generalisations.
2. For me, I don’t just say I’ll review your business model – I show them the exactly how I will do it.
3. I don’t just say we’ll have regular meetings to keep on track – I show them an example of what the agenda will look like.
4. I don’t just say I’ll analyse your numbers – I show you some of the reports I typically use.
5. I don’t just say I’ll give you advice – I show you an example step-by-step action plan that I/’ve done for someone else, with the names removed.
6. And most importantly, I don’t just say “trust me” – I give you a guarantee. If you can’t guarantee some portion of your service you have no right to take people’s money at all. For one of my services I let people go through the whole strategic planning process and if they don’t think the advice they have already received is worth at least a certain amount I will refund the full amount plus a $500 bonus for wasting your time. You see I only offer that guarantee to people I know I can help, and if I don’t think I can help someone I don’t offer them the service at all.

Show your marketplace exactly what makes you different, provide evidence and guarantee your service. If you can’t do that you’re days are numbered and you’ll blend into the crowd, no matter how good you are at what you do.

Right now I’ve got 5 spots open for my strategic planning service. It comes with the guarantee I’ve just talked about. I’m telling you I can usually make a big difference to most businesses, it’s what I do for a living, but we will never really know unless you take the chance and allow yourself to become re-engaged with a professional business consultant. Heard it all before? You sure have!