This is more valuable than any textbook I've read. I received an early version of The Great Formula to review...The book is broken down into two sections...the first section begins with a quick review of The irresistible Offer (TIO) and how TIO works into a business plan, and more importantly, how the business plan can leverage The irresistible Offer.
Here's where Mark has cracked the formula...you see, TIO is about making a sale while The Great Formula is about sustainably growing your business. Your most expensive proposition is acquiring a new customer. Now, how do you nurture this relationship to create a life-long customer? Mark is asking us to think two products ahead...to think about not a sale but an ongoing relationship with a customer.
The second section of the book, the smaller section, is on case studies from users of TIO. This is greatly useful...I get to see tactics and thinking of how to transform a tactic into a strategy. Of how a single sale consistently became 4 sales for one retailer.
I wish all my clients read this book. I would be able to build on this premise with ease. You aren't looking to make one sale...You want to make a lifetime of sales. I see this book as a practical tool kit for a dirty word in marketing...branding. I know, more money has been wasted in the name of branding than just about any other ego driven rationale, but there is something in that concept of branding...building sustainable profitable relationships with your customer...selling them. Then sell them again. THIS IS BRANDING when done well, because you are developing a RELATIONSHIP with each customer.
Selling is getting the resistance out of the way...Branding is about nurturing that inclination to buy. What happened to ABC? Always be closing...hey, if you have closed this sale why aren't you working on closing the next sale? Now...sometimes the best way to close the next sale is to properly say thank you for this sale. In an attention economy, getting somebody's attention is the first step to a sale...that's TIO, and it works best when you can identify a thirsty audience.
The case studies detail how readers find their thirsty audiences. When you know you have a thirsty customer, offer them a second glass. This might seem basic, and it is, but I find this strategy under-utilized.
If you are in marketing you need to be selling...sell! Now, be smart about your selling efforts. The great formula is not about selling harder, it is about selling smarter.
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