Whenever a situation is critical, like right now in the world, we rely on pre-learned behaviors and knowledge. It’s our subconscious mind that enables us to make quick decisions, react to the situation and, survive. The last few weeks have brought on a whirlwind of emotions in most of us: fear, unclarity, frustration, acceptance, hope, unity. Remember this powerful quote by Winston Churchill:
“Fear is a reaction, but courage is a decision.”
Winston Churchill
So, how can you help yourself make the right decisions during difficult times? This is what we discussed in last week’s Powerful Marketer Talks webinar “3 Emergency Marketing Principles”. Watch the webinar in full at the end of the post!
Here is an overview of key discussion points:
It is understandable that especially at a time like this, people are led by their (fear-driven) emotions. That is why it is crucial to gain control of your subconscious mind, so that it can support you to achieve positive outcomes. There is a lot of conflicting information out there, some come from reliable, some from unreliable, and some from questionable sources. When deciding what to base your decisions on, we recommend focusing on improving your knowledge of the fundamental truths. Your fundamentals give you certainty and security in everything that you do! That is why the principles mentioned in this post are called “emergency” – they are timeless and universal, and especially helpful at a time like this.
Principle #1: Go back to basics & focus on psychology.
When we are under stress, we tend to enter into a tunnel vision mindset. This means it is hard for us to see any opportunities or solutions that are around us. This is why we need to focus on ‘back to basics’ mindset. Make things simpler. Everything and everybody are starting again on a blank page. Psychology is what applies always, both in your personal life, but also in business.
Business House Concept from the Powerful Marketer Program illustrates how the foundation of any business is always psychology, people and your ability to lead others. Now is the time to shift the focus from the roof (results) to the foundation (psychology). This will help your company to survive the difficult times, as psychology is there to give you answers!
Principle #2: Cover your cognitive mind with fundamentals.
There’s a huge information overload right now, and the crisis has amplified that even more. A couple of years ago, scientists estimated that a human brain processes about 34 GB of information per day, which is enough to overload and completely crash a laptop within a week. So, instead of running with the winds and trying to catch every trend, focus on the fundamentals. For example, the theory of 8 P’s: Product, Price, Place, Promotion, Process, People, Physical Evidence & Psychology.
Be aware that marketing is not just about advertising and promotion, there are so many other areas that need to be covered. And if you are facing a lot of confusion in your marketing right now, and don’t know what to do, what advice to follow, what trend to follow, then just start with the basics. Think through all the P’s in your business’ context and base your decisions on that.
Principle #3: Focus on problem-solving and look for solutions.
It can be hard to ‘find time’ for tasks that require a bit more focus, like planning or analyzing your marketing activities. It can seem very tempting to continue with everything as always, but the trick here is that what used to work before, may not anymore. If you are stuck in the wheel of multitasking and just trying to get as much done as possible, you are limiting your creative thinking. But creativity is exactly what you need to find a solution to any problem.
So, by taking a little bit of time to help yourself gather crucial information about how your company, your competitors and your customers are doing, you will start to see new possible solutions. If you believe that there is no way for you to make time for that, then try using the Eisenhower Matrix. The simple exercise of categorizing your tasks based on their urgency and importance will help you to see clearly where you should allocate your time and focus.
Auditing (or simply put: analyzing your marketing and business) has many benefits, such as:
- It tells you which information you need, how often you need it, and how to find it.
- It helps you discover problems and loopholes, and pinpoint strengths and weaknesses of your marketing.
- It gives you a better understanding of your marketing plan.
- It helps you make solid decisions about where to put the company’s resources in the future.
- It helps you overcome Fear of Missing Out and not feel anxious and stressed out about loose ends and unfinished tasks.
Whereas it is recommended to carry out an extensive audit once a year (for example, by using the RESULT technique from the Powerful Marketer Program), then our advice is to focus more on the present and immediate future right now. Decide on a few key activities that you do each week that help you best to understand the situation right now. For example, tracking competitors’ social media, or your website visits/online purchases, etc. By seeing the real numbers (and not just your ‘gut feeling’), you will start to see patterns, and these will indicate to you in which direction you should head in your marketing.
Remember, the crisis will not last forever, and every chaos always provides new opportunities. So, if you are struggling with your marketing, just focus on the simple things that you can change.
You can choose to turn back to basics and rely on psychology in your marketing activities. You can choose to feed your brain with timeless fundamental principles, so that they are there to support you during difficult times. And you can choose to make time for important activities, like consistently keeping an eye on a few key metrics that give you clarity and an understanding what is happening in the market and with your business.
Watch the webinar below and make sure you sign up for the next webinar HERE!
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