I’m working on an ebook [SPOILER ALERT!]. It’s a “marketing survival guide” of sorts aimed at professional service providers. (More on this down the road…)
And the process of compiling the book’s material got me thinking about how often marketing strategy is overlooked, and how that leads to one of marketing’s biggest pitfall, the dreaded trap of: unrealistic expectations.

Strategy Uber Alles

Now, I’ve preached ’till my normally pallid face is a distinct shade of royal blue on the importance of marketing strategy.
I mean, how can you expect to jump in the car sans map, GPS or any clear inkling of where your headed and reasonably expect to reach your destination?
The cold, hard reality is: You can’t.
Hence the overarching importance of marketing strategy.
Meanwhile, the temptation to skip over the strategy piece of marketing and dive headlong into tactics is the miscue that leads to the subject of this post… The misguided expectation of INSTANT RESULTS.
With tiny supercomputers tucked in our pockets, connected to the greatest knowledge base in the history of mankind (the interwebs), along with on-demand this and streaming that and same day delivery, we’ve lost all track of patience. And so we expect EVERYTHING to happen RIGHT NOW!
This attitude, unfortunately, infects business and marking in particular, too… Countless small business owners (likely you included?) view marketing as an A to B business function.
In other words, you expect to place an ad (and in reality, a website, promotion email or social media post, sales letter and the like are all essentially ads) and sit back, casually sipping your pumpkin spice latte whilst a tidal wave of new business cascades into your lap.
Marketing, however, is far more akin to an A to Z business function (that touches all 26 letters of the alphabet along the way).
The purpose of marketing isn’t strictly to close the sale! We’re not in the movie Glengarry Glen Ross or the Boiler Room. Making the sale is the finish line you cross if your marketing efforts have successfully made it from point A to Z.
Rather, the purpose of marketing is to make a connection, cultivate a relationship, and when your prospects primed and ready — ask for the sale.
This process is often expressed like so: Know, Like, And Trust
Meaning… Your would-be ideal client gets to know you. If the introductions go well, the relationship progresses, and your prospect begins to like you. If that like solidifies, your prospects begin to trust you. And then, and only then, is he or she genuinely ready to hire you.
In short, marketing is a journey.
There are no shortcuts. Sometimes you get lucky. But you can’t depend on luck. So, you’ve got to put in the work. You’ve got to build the steps toward the platform in which prospects get to Know, Like, and Trust you.
Anything less chalks up to unrealistic expectations.

Have You Ever Been Burned by Unrealistic Expectations?

Ever launched a website or email campaign or some other marketing promotion you were certain was as destined to score BIG TIME? Only to have those hopes dashed with little or no response to your efforts? Trust me, we’ve ALL been there :—( Swing by my Google+ page and share some of your marketing heartbreaks.