Thursday, November 09, 2006

Searching For The Easy Button

I was chatting with an accomplished marketer, sales trainer, and
home business owner the other day about why so many people who start a home business drop out so quickly.

"Most people are looking for the Easy Button," was his quick
response. Then he said something that surprised me.

"You probably don't think there is such a thing, do you? But there
is. It's just that it's so damn hard to find!

The Easy Button is out there, but you need a map to find it. You
have to be ready to walk over hot coals, crawl over broken glass on
your bare belly, and slay a dragon or two."

He said, "Have you seen that commercial where all sorts of office
problems are solved by pressing on the Easy Button?" "I have," said I.

"What do you suppose it took to create that thing?" he asked.

I said, "Come on, Rick, it's just an ad. That Easy Button isn't real!"

"Oh, but it's very real," my friend retorted. "It just doesn't
look quite like it does in the TV commercial.

You see, that Easy Button is made of the wants, needs, and desires
of the people who are looking for it. People who own or work in
businesses. They require services and supplies to run the business
smoothly. The company behind that commercial did its research-walked
the red-hot coals, crawled over the broken glass, slew monsters-to
find out exactly what its potential customers needed, wanted, and
desired; and then positioned itself as the easy way to get those
things."

"So the Easy Button is a metaphor for a real solution," I ventured.

"Exactly! It positions the advertiser as the expert in office
solutions. It uses something unbelievable to convey a message in a
memorable way. You may not believe in that Easy Button, but you can
believe in the company.

The reason most people who start a home business don't find the
Easy Button is because they have a misconception about what it looks
like. They're thinking about money. Easy money. Their own needs.

But the genuine Easy Button is made of other people's needs, not
our own. That is the essence of the art and science of marketing.

That's the map I was talking about. Learn the art and science of
marketing. It will take you straight to the Easy Button. "

"By the way," asked my friend, "do you know what's stamped on the
back of a genuine Easy Button?"

"I have a feeling you're going to tell me," I said.

He smiled, "just three little words. 'Simple but not.'"



About the author: Bryant Sandburg is a nationally
recognized marketer and mentor who specializes in home business
growth and development. A former broadcast advertising executive, he
style="text-decoration:none"> writes and practices the art
and science of marketing from his home office in Lisbon, NY. Write to
him at bryant@schoolofhomebusiness.com, or phone 315-393-4529.

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