Copywriter Kevin Francis And David White At GKIC London March 2014
The March 2014 meeting of the GKIC London Chapter took place yesterday (18 March) at the new venue, the Eight Club, Change Alley London. The new venue was a success I think, once members managed to find the entrance! It’s not especially prominent and more than one person (yours truly included) ended up wandering around Change Alley a couple of times before noticing the discreet entrance and buzzer to obtain access. Anyway. once inside, a classy establishment and more room than the previous GKIC meeting place.
The first session saw David White reveal a simple, but highly effective, formula for setting down at least a first draft of your USP (“Unique Selling Proposition”). Now, while most people understand the value of having clear USP, in practice I’ve found that most people struggle to come up with something suitable and end up with nothing. The beauty of David’s simple formula is that is at least produces something that can be used and…
1. This provides at least a workable starting point. In practice I’ve found USPs tend to emerge over time, evolving through a number of versions
2. Even a poor USP is better than nothing. It’s understandable that we want to present ourselves and our business in the best possible light. But all too often the “best” becomes the enemy of the “good”. If you at least have a USP, you have an answer to that question “Why should I do business with you?” and that will put you streets ahead of the competition who have only a vague response to that question.
(Digressing slightly, this is partly to do with the power of the word “because”. Cialdini relates the case where people asking to jump the line at a photocopier got a better response simply by using the word “because” even if the supposed reason was somewhat spurious!)
David followed up with some insights on the 3 broad approaches to new client attraction and some of the ways to put then into practice.
The main break followed with a chance to refuel with some excellent food (although the bad news is that no “Mini Fish And Chips” which were a big hit at the old venue)…
…and have a chat with fellow members. I have to say, the hour break always seems to fly by as most people end up having an engrossing conversation.
In the main GKIC session…
…”Four Reasons Why Outrageous Advertising Works”.
In short, in today’s cluttered market place it’s essential to stand out from the bland crowd and attract attention in a way that makes an impact but is also appropriate for your target audience.
Plenty of great examples drawn from Bill Glazer’s book “Outrageous Advertising” (highly recommended).
Finally…
…another great exercise from Fergus McClelland to improve communication skills…
…Moe Nawaz with some tips on how to boost your income rapidly…
…and Renegade Investor Graham Rowan on how he has used GKIC style marketing to get some truly remarkable results in his various businesses.
The next GKIC London Chapter meeting is on Tuesday 22 April 2014. All the details and registration here at next GKIC London meeting.