What is the lowest cost ($, time, energy) marketing strategy that a service provider can implement with the highest ROI?

So keep in mind, there are many ways to be successful and there’s no one right end-all be all answer to this. The answer can vary based on the business owner’s goals, their values, their type of business, and the types of marketing they do best! 

That said, the thing that comes to mind when I see this questions is… come up with a compelling way to verbally describe what you do, who you help, and what sets you apart. This part can take a little work because if it’s too long, you’re gonna sound like a walking sales page. Which is not the goal!!

Your goal is to describe what you do, who you help, and what you help them with, in a completely unambiguous way. 

For example, a business owner might say:

I’m a sleep coach who helps parents get that first x solid hours of sleep, (so they can even think! about a more sustainable plan from there).

Or, I’m an accountant who works with CPG companies who are chock full of personality (this is my client, Eucalyptus Accounting).

Or, I’m a holistic personal trainer who works with moms.

To make this stuff even more conversational, you can always break this stuff up into 2+ parts. While it’s important to be specific, you don’t have to keep a rigid script! 

So if someone asks, what do you do for work?

And you say oh I’m an accountant.

In many cases, people will continue to make conversation, and ask, oh cool, do you work for “x company?” 

And you can say, oh I work for myself, (or) I have my own business. I work with consumer goods companies, you know the ones who sell like bachelorette party chatchkis and stuff, they’re a super fun, wild bunch haha. 

That’s still really specific. 

It’s conversational. 

You’re just talking.

And, you have now set yourself apart from like 98% of accountants/coaches/trainers out there.

Then you go live your life, go to dinner parties, and regular life places you already enjoy! Ideally where you’ll run into people you have never met before, who will ask, what do you do for work? 

And you can tell them. 

Chances are, there will be a subset of people who either say omg, I’ve been looking for someone like you! OR, your description will be so clear and tangible, it’ll jog their memory of who in their life has been looking for someone just like you. And they’ll be like “omg you have to meet my friend so and so.”

If some people are cool with just knowing you’re an accountant, period, that’s ok.

If or when this topic of conversation drops off, you just let it.

Now, I can already hear the introverts shrinking into their seats. 

This is just one idea. And it may not work for you. There are lots of other approaches, and I love helping clients find the right, most seamless marketing solutions for their unique situation!

But it CAN work really well if you’re in a setting where you’re already comfortable, and just answering a commonly asked social question, if or when people ask. 

The benefits of this approach, is that:

People get a first hand sense of you, and the right people are likely to say, oh yea I resonate with you, I want to know more. 

Secondly, there’s often little to no cost to this, and you can go out and start meeting people this week. 

And you can go as fast or slow as you want, just meet more people for faster results. 

Other approaches can include public speaking, to large audiences of your ideal clients (for those of you who love a stage!)

Or leveraging other people’s audiences online (ie providing value to the audiences of service providers who serve the same folks as you but in a different way).