Register for a Gift from Debbie LaChusa,
The Business Stylist

A letter from Debbie LaChusa, The Business Stylist®

Yes, I’d like to offer you a scholarship into Package U… the chance to access all 12 lessons for a full 12 months for just $1. But first, please do me a favor and read this page. Invest a few minutes to find out why I’m making this offer.

I promise you’ll also learn a few things about what it takes to be successful in business. You may even understand why you’ve continued to struggle in your business, despite purchasing multiple information products, attending all kinds of marketing training programs or business-building conferences, hiring coaches, or even joining mastermind programs that promise to help you create a successful business.

The Problem with Marketing Today

There’s a simple, age-old formula for marketing that goes like this…

Offer the Right Product to the Right People at the Right Price and the Right Time

It’s taught in business school as the 4 P’s: Product, Place, Price, Promotion.

It’s what I learned when I studied marketing in college and got my degree. It’s the strategy I used for years in my marketing career. It’s even the basis for the “system” I taught in my very first marketing talk back in the mid-1990′s, and the first information product I created in 2004: The 10stepmarketing System.

The 4 P’s are about STRATEGY.

Today, however, marketing has become all about TACTICS

Here are some examples of marketing tactics:

• Building a blog
• Building an email list
• Publishing an ezine
• Producing videos
• Mastering social media
• Offering teleseminars or webinars
• Speaking
• Writing a book
• Personal branding
• Creating information products, training programs, masterminds, and membership programs (some folks may not see these as marketing but they are, they’re all ways to package your services, and if your services don’t first fill a need or have a market, how you package them is a moot point)

These are all things you can do to market your services, BUT…

The problem is, if you haven’t FIRST satisfied the foundational 4 P’s none of this stuff matters… or works. And I believe this focus on tactics before strategy is the reason most service professionals are struggling in their businesses.

Unfortunately, too many people have bought into the idea that all they need to do is follow their passion, throw a couple of these marketing tactics into the mix and they can make millions. Because that’s what’s being taught by many people.

So business owners, and wanna-be business owners, are focusing on tactics when they haven’t taken the time to make sure they have a solid business foundation in place, first. Because quite frankly, the foundation stuff isn’t sexy, it’s not necessarily fast and easy, and therefore it’s not what’s being sold.

Problem is, tactics without strategy don’t work in most cases.

But not unlike dieters who fail on diet after diet, far too often business owners jump from system to system trying to find the one that will work for them. When the truth is, what they really need to do is go back and fix their business first. Just as the dieter needs to go back and understand the real reasons they’re overeating or not exercising.

It wasn’t always this way… so what happened?

I believe we are in this situation because there are too many people who have been fortunate enough to experience the “perfect storm” when it comes to their own business (all the P’s have been in place, either by design or by luck) but they have placed the credit for their success on the marketing tactic(s) they used.

These people (most of whom do not have formal education or training in business or marketing) then go out and start teaching the marketing tactic(s) that worked for them as the “secret to success.” When in reality, the secret to their success was the fact that they had the right product, at the right time, at the right price, and they promoted it to the right people. The “promotion” (i.e. tactic) is just one piece of the puzzle, yet they’re selling it as the entire puzzle.

I don’t believe these people are purposely misleading others.

I do believe most people honestly believe it’s what’s responsible for their success. And, in an industry that promotes information marketing as the holy grail of passive income, they’ve been taught to package, sell and teach what they know.

My perspective

I’ve created 8 businesses. I’m formally trained in business, marketing, and advertising (and I have a college degree in it) and I’ve been doing it professionally for 27 years (13 years working for others, 14 years on my own). Some of my businesses were very successful, others failed miserably. They failed because at their core, they didn’t fulfill a need or desire that people were willing to pay for. I realized this in hindsight, as we most often do. Like many other people, I got too caught up in the follow your passion advice and forgot to apply the basics.

It’s time to clarify what marketing can actually do

Marketing cannot solve a business problem. Marketing can only solve an awareness problem.

The real “secret to success” is to make sure you have the business basics checked off BEFORE you apply ANY marketing.

That’s why I’ve decided to offer scholarships to my most comprehensive business and marketing design program

It’s also why, at least for the time being (I’ve learned to never say never!), I’m no longer offering coaching or mentoring services to solo-professionals. While I know marketing, and I can certainly teach people how to market, I can’t do that effectively if the business idea isn’t solid first.

And unfortunately, I’m seeing that more and more frequently, especially over the past few years. Whether this is because of the passion business strategy that’s so prevalent these days, an effect of the recession and people being downsized and looking for other options, boomers deciding to take on more meaningful second careers, or just the fact that entrepreneurship (primarily in the form of coaching businesses) is being sold to everyone, despite the fact that some people clearly are not cut out for it (nothing against them, it’s not for everyone), I’m not sure.

But the result seems to be that there are too many people starting businesses they probably never should have started in the first place. Businesses that are doomed to fail because they’re missing these key components. That’s not an attack on these people—it’s what’s being taught and talked about at every turn. Don’t get me wrong. It’s not that loving what you do isn’t important. Certainly business is a lot more enjoyable that way. And, you’ll be more likely to do what it takes, and stick with it when times get tough, if you have passion for it. But passion alone isn’t enough. And throwing tactical marketing on top of passion isn’t enough either.

So, I have chosen to move away from coaching and mentoring. And to instead focus my time and energy on writing books, blogging, and speaking, and maybe even going back to consulting with established businesses.

I’ve also chosen to take the one program I created that I believe truly can help solo-professionals—Package U—and basically give it away to anyone who wants it.

You can register for your scholarship on this page

When you do you’ll gain access to this comprehensive training program for just $1 for a full 12 months. I really wanted to make it free but the membership program I use to protect the content requires a payment. So I made it ridiculously cheap. Just ONE dollar.

There are 12 modules in all, each with video and audio training, handouts, and quizzes, that will teach you the following:

I won’t promise you’ll get rich quick

I won’t even promise that you’ll make six or seven figures. Because frankly, I don’t think anyone can, or should, promise you that. There are simply too many variables.

What I will promise is that you’ll learn what I learned in business and marketing school, constant continuing education, and real-world experience over the past 27 years. You’ll gain valuable information that has stood the test of time. And when you implement it, your business will have the best chance for success.

Of course, this all comes with a caveat… you must make sure there is a market for the services you’re offering. Your services must fill a need or desire that people are willing to pay for. That requires a little homework and research upfront, or a willingness to go through the business and marketing design process and then test the waters.

Either way, there are never any guarantees that any product or service will be successful. All you have to do is look around at all the major product launches by big corporations that fail. Sometimes it just doesn’t work out. That’s a risk every entrepreneur takes. If you believe in your business and you’re willing to take that risk, and do the work, I’m happy to offer you a scholarship to Package U to help you out.

When you register, you’ll receive details for claiming your scholarship and enrolling in Package U for just $1

Not one dollar a month… one dollar period. And, no, I’m not going to try to up-sell you into another program.

I’m moving on to other things and I just want to get this training out so it can help those who want the help.

Thank you for taking the time to read this letter. I wish you all the best.

Sincerely,

Debbie LaChusa
The Business Stylist®

P.S. If you’re interested in learning more about what I’m now focusing on, you may check out my blog at www.MoneySuccessHappiness.com, my latest book at www.BreakingTheSpellBook.com and my main website at www.DebbieLaChusa.com

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