If It Hasn't Been Tested, It’s An Opinion, Not A Fact (Part 1)

Ever heard this (or said this) before?

“[x] doesn't work.  I've done this for years and I know this to be true.  Experience (or conventional wisdom, or experts, or whatever authority you want to pick) says so.”

The thing is, sometimes that statement is absolutely true. And sometimes, well, not so much.

As we've discussed, your gut could be lying to you.  Or maybe a mentor might have implanted this opinion in your brain a decade ago and you've held it as a core belief ever since.  You might have heard someone trying [x] with disastrous results (or did it yourself, even).

Here’s the thing: unless you verify that [x] “doesn't work” – how do you really know?

Without verification and testing, all you have is an opinion. Yes, it could be an informed opinion.  And yes, it’s not always possible to test every idea the way you’d like, for a variety of reasons, and you can’t hold up everything you do because it hasn't been tested.

100% unadulterated marketing savvy!

But don’t let your opinion become the barrier to your success.  Be open to trying – and testing – new things.  You might find the old ways no longer apply – and things that didn't work, might work now.

How do you test?  How do you get the “facts”?

Let’s assume that [x] – the thing that does or does not work based on your opinion - is any given marketing tactic.

It could be social media, newspaper ads, yellow page ads, radio and television, search engine optimization, direct mail, email, online advertising, door hangers, trade shows, sponsorship, customer service, existing customer referral programs… the list of marketing tactics are longer than your arm and change constantly as new channels come online and old ones die off.

Before we move on, can you articulate who your ideal customer is?  Do you have your message in mind?  No? Contact me NOW!

Yes?  Good, now let’s consider tactics and testing... in Part 2.

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