Why the “Guru Marketing Systems” Aren’t Working for You

Look at your bookshelf — how many big binders from “guru” trainings and programs are collecting dust?

Open up your hard drive — how many gigabytes of templates and checklists and audio and videos are sucking up space?

You purchased them with good intention to grow and market your business. You might even have implemented (almost) everything by the book… but magic did not happen like the sales pages said.

I’ve worked with many clients who followed these systems to a T and got disappointing results. They then fell into the comparison trap and felt incompetent when they saw testimonials or FB posts from the 10% who got results.

What’s the problem? Why aren’t they working?

Good news is, you’re not alone. Better news is, you don’t have to toss those systems out the window. You can make them work for you…

Here’re 3 reasons why the “guru systems” have put you into a pickle:

1. They don’t take into account who YOU are and what truly matters to YOU

Prescriptive sets of strategies and tactics limit how we express our values, convictions and personality. If yours don’t match those of the creator’s, then chances are they won’t feel aligned.

If you aren’t fully convinced by the expression of your message, how can you expect others buy into it?

When you worry about whether you are doing or saying it “right” instead of letting your excitement and energy about what you do come through, your message is not convincing.

For my multi-talented and multi-passionate peeps, one of the challenges with these systems is that they often assume you’ve a cut-and-dry niche, expertise or clientele.

However, for many in my community, alchemy and magic happen when new ideas, skills, tools and experiences come together. Putting themselves into a box is limiting and frustrating.

They feel like they have to compartmentalize and chop up their message and expertise to fit into a mold.

With the seemingly discrete pieces of information they learn from different trainings, they don’t have a way to put all their ideas, passions, convictions, skills and experiences into ONE cohesive message, so they often appear like a Jack-of-all-trades.

>> Make the “guru systems” work for you: find that golden thread to tie all of YOU into a cohesive narrative, and then apply it to your message.

Take the time, and take a step back to understand the principles behind the strategies and tactics to make them work FOR your message. Never, ever, tweak your message to suit a strategy or tactic.

2. They don’t take into account your personal style or how your ideal clients want to be communicated to and interacted with

Many coaches, consultants and change-agents I work with kick butt when they make connections in person. However, when it comes to “marketing”, they freeze.

Their copy and content not only fail to make meaningful connections with their ideal clients, but also miss the mark in connecting THEM with their life’s work.

What I mean is, when they say those “marketing communication” out loud (e.g. an “elevator pitch” kind of thing), they don’t feel a resonance with the words.

Words and sentences not backed by emotions and convictions are just noise.

The communications do not strike a cord for THEM. The misaligned energy and lack of excitement don’t attract their ideal clients.

When they constantly worry if they are “saying it right,” they put a break on fully expressing their personality and convictions.

Moreover, many of those templates and checklists have led them to using generic words too superficial to connect with their audience meaningfully.

They use buzzwords or jargons that make them sound like everyone else. These words are devoid of meaning in the eyes of your ideal clients so they just glaze over… maybe thinking “oh, another one of those [insert generic label]”

Whether intentional or not, these systems encourage conformity without enough discernment. A lot of the marketing materials imply if you follow the systems to a T you will succeed.

And don’t get me started on those 5-minutes-of-fame coaching calls in which the coach would dole out advice without fully understanding the person, the context, the whole story. I’ve seen too many people got pushed down the rabbit hole and ended up wasting precious time, money and energy on busywork.

That, pisses me off — doesn’t seem to be a responsible thing to do, does it?

Coupled with “the what do you think about my copy” type questions in those Facebook groups (and trying to address everyone’s input regardless if they’re your target audience!), you are pretty much guaranteed to get lost in a sea of “other people’s opinions”.

(Side rant — it’s easy for anyone to say something about anything… they don’t have to live with the consequences, you do. Frankly, since when the way YOU express yourself is their business?)

>> What to do? Find the WORDS that connect you with your business, and connect you with your peeps.

Don’t feel like if you don’t use big words you are not good enough, or “expert” enough. That’s your insecure monkey mind talking (aka fear of not being good enough)!

Use plain English, keep it simple sunshine… give that a whirl! (Tip: run your stuff by one of those readability score sites like this one. Your writing should be comprehensible by a 7thgrader.)

And, stick to your guns!

3. They don’t take into account your holistic marketing and communication plan

Most of the time, trainings and programs focus on one specific topic. We get a blueprint for FB marketing, another one for writing a book, and another one for Instagram or Twitter.

Many people grab a strategy here and a tactic there, then string them together without considering how they come together holistically and synergistically.

By patching together a mish-mash of tactics without an overarching plan, many fail to create a cohesive narrative that communicates their relevance to the market in a way that highlights their strength.

Even worst, they sound like schizo from one platform to the next.

As a result, I see many doing a lot of busywork and chasing bright shiny objects… wasting time, energy and money.

They got themselves into marketing activities that don’t tap into their genius, or executing tactics that don’t resonate with their values.

The misaligned energy behind the actions is not attractive to clients, and the fact that they’re dragging their feet just sour the whole perception about business and marketing.

>> To make the pieces fit together: design a plan that drives the selection of strategies and tactics that helps you tap into your strength and speak to your value.

***

I’m not advocating tossing everything out the window, because reinventing the wheel is stupid. But you gotta start with what’s IN you, and then let your vision, conviction and superpowers drive the expression of your business through marketing.

Let’s make the most out of what’s already sitting on your shelf, or in your hard drive.

To optimize the space between individuality + originality vs. “tried-and-true” marketing so you can express your WHY unapologetically and profitably without reinventing the wheel.

If you are game to chart your own course, let’s chat:

I respect your time, and I don’t do those drawn out “strategy session” turned into “you are a loser if you don’t whip out your credit card and sign up for my service” thing.

We get on the phone for 20 minutes. No pitch, no fluff, no BS:

Just HIT REPLY, and let me know:

• Where you are at in your biz
• Where you what to be in 6 -12 months
• What “guru” training or programs have you taken… what worked, what didn’t?

I will get back to you within 48 hours, and if we are a good fit, we will get on the phone asap.

About Ling

Ling Wong :: Intuitive Brainiac | Creativity Mentor | Copywriting Alchemist. Through her unique blend of Business + Marketing coaching/consulting with a Mindset + Psychic Twist, she helps the maverick-preneurs uncover, articulate & transform their WHY into content that connects, resonates and converts — by way of an intuitive yet rigorous iterative process born out of her Harvard Design School training and 10 years experience in the online marketing industry.

Get her brand new WEBSITE COPY ALCHEMY video here.