7 Reasons Your Marketing Isn’t Working

7 Reasons Your Marketing Isn't Working

When you’re trying to increase your revenue, it seems logical to increase your marketing efforts. But if you feel like you’re doing all the marketing things and nothing is working, it may be time to look at other parts of the revenue equation.

What you sell (your product) multiplied by your price multipled by how many you sell equals revenue.

The revenue equation has 3 parts:

  1. What you sell (your product/service/offer)
  2. How much you charge
  3. How many you sell

Marketing efforts are usually entirely focused on increasing “how many you sell”. But if there are issues with what you sell or how much you charge, marketing can’t do its job.

Here are 7 Possible Reasons Your Marketing Isn't Working:

1. People are confused about who your offer is for

It may make logical sense that if you cast a broad net by marketing to everyone you increase your chances of getting a sale. But in reality, the reverse is true. There is so much noise out there and most markets are so crowded that people won’t listen unless they feel you are speaking directly to them.  Your message has to resonate clearly with a defined group of people who have a specific problem.

2. Your product or service doesn’t solve a big enough problem

People buy things to solve problems. If your product or service doesn’t solve a problem for your ideal customer, they won’t buy it. Additionally, people are pretty content doing nothing about a whole lot of problems, so the closer your problem is to “poison ivy“, the better chance you have of making a sale.

3. The outcome of your offer isn’t compelling

If you design websites for high-end restaurants designed to increase the number of reservations, say that. If you have a 6 week program that helps people get to sleep faster say that. If people don’t know what you’re selling or why they should buy it, they won’t bother to find out.

4. You don’t know where to find your customer

If your ideal customer is a 20 year-old you probably have a better shot at finding them on TikTok then on Facebook.  If they are a 40-year-old male software developer, Pinterest may not be your best bet.

5. Your funnel is too fast

If you’re an entrepreneur, consultant or coach and you’re trying to sell a $2500 product to a group of people who downloaded your free PDF, you may be asking them to to get married when what they’re looking for is a first date. That is a really tough job for even the best marketing and sales people in the world. You may need to develop some in-between products at more accessible price points.

6. Your CTA is intimidating

If you’re trying to sell a $25 product and you’re asking someone to book a call, they may decide the juice isn’t worth the squeeze. Make sure that whatever you’re putting between your customer and their credit card isn’t stopping the sale.

7. Your delivery system is overwhelming

It’s been confirmed in multiple studies that we’re addicted to instant gratification. If you’re trying to teach someone to write a 5 email welcome series and your course has 27 modules and they can find someone else who can do it in a 45 minute workshop – what do you think they’re going to do? And the person that’s offering the fill in the blank templates that they can just download and do? That product is going to win every time.

Action Plan for When Your Marketing Isn't Working

The good news is that all of these issues are fixable and can help you evolve your offer into something that sells. The best place to start the fix is to talk to your customers or the people you want to be your customers. 

Marketing is just one piece of the puzzle when it comes to getting people to buy from you. But your product or service (and your pricing) are equally as important. If your marketing isn’t working, you can use these 7 issues as a checklist to evaluate and concentrate on the “what” and “how much” parts of the revenue equation. When you’re done, turn the marketing system back on. I’m willing to bet you’ll see different results.

How I Can Help

If you’re launching a new offer (or reviving a current one), check out my FREE Offer Creation Guide. It’s a step by step walkthrough of every decision you need to make to create ANY offer in ANY niche.

Laura Zavelson

I'm Laura WELCOME TO THE BLOG

I love to write and creating these articles for you is one of my favorite parts of my job. Here you’ll find my take on offer design, managing your business money and how to create a lasting business that delivers flexibility, freedom and rewards.

This is where I put together everything I’ve learned in  25 years of being a serial founder, teaching entrepreneurship and mentoring hundreds of entrepreneurs like you. 

Happy reading!

find your way around

Search

TOOLKIT

TOOLKIT PRICING MADE EASY

with easy profit calculator

Fill in the blanks and quickly figure out how to price your 1:1s, group coaching packages, workshops, VIP days, proposals, online courses and more.

THE GUIDE

join the conversation

Grab my Pricing Toolkit Give me 60 minutes and give yourself a raise.

If you struggle with how much to charge, my “Find Your Ideal Pricepoint” toolkit is for you. The fill-in-the-blank pricing calculator and step-by-step walkthrough video will give you the confidence to charge what you’re worth so your business can bring in good, consistent money.