About Purpose is about your purpose.
Aim: Identify and articulate your purpose.
Arm: Shape yourself around your purpose.
Act: Achieve your purpose.
Programs:
| Receive our Free email newsletter |
Fishing in the Weeds
Bob Ryan, About Purpose, Inc. ©2005
There I was, fishing on the Mississippi River. Trolling the shorelines and pulling up bass, crappies, walleye, northern, perch and sunfish. There are not too many other summer activities that are quite as enjoyable.
River fishing has its own challenges and rewards. As we trolled down-river, I noticed I had a hard time keeping my bait close to the bottom. Because the current carried us faster, the bait would rise up closer to the surface, out of the strike zone. When we turned and headed up-river, the bait would drop to the bottom. That was no picnic, either. I frequently got tangled up in weeds, or the jig would get hung up on a sunken branch or a rock. And yet, that’s where the fish were. I got to thinking about (wait for it...) business and how most of our success comes when we can keep ourselves in the strike zone.
Fish Where the Customers Are. It’s no secret that fish relate to structure. Before you head out on the water, you check the contour maps for the quick drop-offs, the sunken islands, the channels, and the weed lines. You read up on which species like what kind of structure. To be successful in business you have to go where the customers are. “If you build it, they will come” is a line from a movie – not good business advice. Do your research. Identify your target niche. Marketing’s first three principles are location, location, location. In retail, this is obvious. In other businesses you may have to dig a bit deeper to find how and where to offer goods and services.
Fish the Weeds. A corollary to “fishing where the fish are” is that it’s rarely easy. Oh, sure, I can drop a line in off most boat docks and catch little perch and sunnies. (Or, more likely, they’ll steal my bait because they’re too small to catch). If I want to get to my real target customers, I have to work for them. I have to be willing to invest in the right tools, spend time filling the sales pipeline, learn what my customers really want. I may have to give up my preconceived notion of how I want to work. Think about hours, accessibility, terms, delivery, service, warranty, etc. My wife’s definition of fishing is sitting in a boat with a good book and a Diet Coke in a sunny, breezy spot. Comfortable? Yes. Productive. No.
Use the Right Bait. Did you just spend $8.95 on that killer Rapala? One of the fishing facts that always surprises me is that nothing works all of the time. Just as it’s important to alter your baits for different conditions and different species, it’s often necessary to change your approach to marketing and advertising. The very same prospect who passed you by with last week’s message may be drawn in by this week’s message. What works in the summer may not work the rest of the year.
Patience, Patience, Patience. I don’t own a boat, so I rely on friends and relatives for fishing. There are many different styles. Some flit from place to place, spend five minutes casting a line and then trying someplace else. What I find works most consistently involves a little patience. Some people set up a marketing program and then abandon their plans at the first hint of failure. I prefer to stick with something for a while, massaging it a bit as I learn about my customers. Events, for example, are rarely successful the first time. It takes patience to build trust and reliability.
Practice Catch and Release. Finally, there’s a well-known practice among fishing enthusiasts called Catch and Release. The idea is to try to protect the resources by being selective in what you keep to eat. Releasing female fish in their prime egg-laying time of life ensures good fishing for the future. Likewise, don’t burn out your customers. Treat them with care and build for the future. Leave them with such a delightful experience that they will come back and bring their friends and family. Don’t be selfish with your time, your advice and your service.
Fishing may not be directly analogous to attracting and keeping customers, but I think there are a number of lessons to be learned from that artful sport. My apologies to those of you who hate fishing. Maybe next time I’ll write about reading a good book while floating along with a Diet Coke.