I’ve watched the same marketing mistake play out over and over across firms I coach, and I made it myself too, in a campaign that cost real money and delivered almost nothing back.
In this episode, I’m breaking down why certain popular tactics keep failing, and what to focus on instead.
Listen below.
0:48 First on the list of tactics I won’t recommend is paid ads, framed a bit differently than expected. Not an outright no, if you’ve got real experience making them work, go for it.
3:08 Without a defined target market and sharp value proposition, AI ad copy just reads like everyone else’s. Better tools didn’t make the underlying strategy any easier.
4:30 Cold outreach is next on the list, emailing or messaging people unsolicited. I’ve never liked it, and the data backs that up. It works for a few firms, but they’re the exception.
5:54 If you’re researching properly, an ignored message takes as long to write as a successful one. Multiply that across the volume you’d need for a handful of leads, hours that a single referral could outperform in minutes.
7:17 Last up is giveaways, rare, but usually poorly set up when firms run them. You offer something of value, people register with their info, and you market to them after. The trouble is, they’re there for the free thing, not your service.
9:02 My Facebook campaign’s real problem was chasing vanity metrics, not real clients. Giveaways draw in freebie seekers, not buyers, and without a defined audience, those likes mean nothing. Flashy tactics fail without real strategy behind them.
10:55 Favor strategies that build real trust over time instead, social media, YouTube, blogging, and solid email marketing. Marketing takes time, it’s never been overnight for me.
