Is Your Marketing Tool Narcissistic?

You know this type: completely self-absorbed, and talks only about himself that every topic of conversation leads back to him. A narcissist.

Guess what? The same characteristics can be found in many marketing tools whether its door hangers or print flyers and brochures. These tools are egocentric and are only interested in talking about their business and the products and services they offer.

These collaterals like your door hanger printing are only interested in themselves rather than helping customers solve their problems and concerns. It may be easier to escape from these types of collaterals than having to leave a conversation with a narcissistic person. However, the same thing applies - customers tend to veer away from these types of marketing campaigns.

A narcissistic marketing tool, whether they are door hangers or print flyers, are interested only on the company's spectacular features and offerings. They have the most superior manufacturing techniques, the most brilliant people, and the well designed company offices that no one can resist their offer. Surely, there are more than the features of the company that the target customer is looking for, like, customers' issues perhaps. Too many marketing collaterals just ignore this simple fact.

A marketing tool can only be effective if it contains benefits and solutions to people's concerns. When you consider the time it takes for a person to absorb any information that is of interest (say, in less than 7 seconds) a narcissistic door hanger printing for example can only result to one thing - turn off its readers.

On the other hand, an intelligent and well-presented marketing tool does not leave its readers cold. It actually provides the benefits for customers from the company's products and services based on careful research and well thought of planning. It only shows that an intelligent marketing tool is in tune with its target audience's needs and wants. Hence, it provides clear statements that are benefit driven, as well as supports its claims by providing other customers to feed testimonials and satisfaction guarantee.

A well-designed and intelligent marketing tool simply encourages the reader into a dialogue where both participants can benefit from the exercise.

Even if the marketing copy sounds good to you, the best indicator that your marketing campaign will ever get a favorable response is if it answers the question - where does your customer fit in? What is in it for them? When you are able to answer that in your marketing tool, you can finally say that you have moved on to being narcissistic to having a marketing campaign that can effectively generate customers every time.

This is the point: while prospects and clients care a lot about the businesses they engage in, they look for their own needs first and foremost.