3 Things Your Business Needs BEFORE Spending A Single Cent On Ads
David Lee-Schneider MarketingThe biggest challenge most of my clients face is knowing what to focus on in their marketing. It can be incredibly overwhelming with all the different options and tools out there – social media platforms, advertising platforms (print and digital), search engines, autoresponders, tech tools, productivity tools – the list goes on and on. How do we know what’s right for us, and at the stage, we’re currently in?
The big mistake many business owners make is that they focus on lead generation BEFORE getting their conversions right, only to realise that they’re spending way too much money and time on marketing without getting the results they’re after.
In my 90-Day Marketing Transformation, we follow a clear marketing roadmap to help you focus on your marketing activities in the right order, so you can maximise results while minimising cost and effort. It’s divided into three pillars.
- ATTRACTION
- CONVERSION
- AMPLIFICATION
The order in which you focus on your marketing activities is crucial. As you will agree, it doesn’t make sense to launch an ad campaign (amplification pillar) before knowing that you can actually convert these people. It would be like increasing the amount of fuel you pour into a car that only has 2 wheels. More fuel won’t make it go any faster unless you have a working vehicle.
The Marketing Roadmap – 3 Ways To Grow Your Business in 2026
First things first. Most business owners would like to jump straight in and throw money at ads (either print or online) before having laid a solid marketing foundation. You wouldn’t start building a house before having a solid plan and foundation to build on. In the same way, you need to address your marketing activities in the right order. Here are 3 things you need to focus on BEFORE spending a single cent on advertising or other costly marketing activities.
1. Create a Lead Magnet
A lead magnet is a tool to help you build a list of potential customers. It’s something of value to your target audience that you can send them for free but in return for their name and email address. This is a crucial part of any marketing strategy and should be the very first thing to decide on, as it gives people a way to connect with your business even before they’re ready to buy. Here are some examples of lead magnets you could use in your business.
- Free guide or ebook
- Free video or tutorial
- Discount code or value voucher
- Free checklist or time-saving template
- Free report with information that’s highly relevant to your customers
I, for example, offer a free 17-point website checklist, as that is something most of my clients struggle with. You may also find these free downloads helpful as examples for strategic lead magnets.
The important thing is, you don’t have to re-invent the wheel. Sometimes, a simple voucher for new customers will work wonders – like this massage voucher we created for one of my clients in Wishart, Brisbane.
2. CRM & Email Automation
Once you decided on your lead magnet, the second step is to choose a CRM (Customer Relationship Management Software) and an email marketing provider that you will use to build your list. Some CRM’s already have email automation built-in. There are loads of options out there, some very basic and some with more advanced marketing automation features that you probably won’t need at the start. The important thing is to just get started.
When starting out, a free service like Mailchimp may suffice (they offer a free plan until you reach a certain number of subscribers). Here are two options that I personally recommend for small businesses and which I have used myself.
Other popular CRM systems include:
3. Map Out Your Customer Journey
Once a potential customer opted in for your free lead magnet, what are the next steps you want them to take? What information will they be looking for before they are ready to become your customer? It’s important not to treat every person as if they are ready to buy from you right now. Instead, focus on building a relationship with them first, so that when they are ready to buy your product or service, your business becomes their natural first choice.
Here’s what that customer journey looks like in one of my other businesses (a yoga studio).
- Step 1: Claim a FREE Yoga Pass
- Step 2: Send Introductory Offer
- Step 3: Upgrade to 10-Class Pass or Membership
- Step 5: Offer Workshops & Retreats
For most people, it’s too much of a stretch to go from never having tried yoga before to committing to a membership or a yoga retreat. But a free yoga pass will help them get started and move towards that goal.
This is a natural progression that eases people into their journey of becoming long-term customers, slowly moving them from free to higher-priced products. Timing is a crucial element in marketing. Make sure that the messages you send people are relevant to the stage they’re currently in. This can be automated using email automation software (see the previous point) or using a messaging bot.
The key is – always focus on educating and connecting with your customers more than you focus on selling.
David is a digital marketing consultant based in Brisbane, Australia. With a focus on automating tedious manual processes and making marketing easy, he’s helped hundreds of businesses across Australia transform their marketing. Learn more about the 90-Day Marketing Transformation
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David Lee-Schneider Marketing
David Lee-Schneider Marketing
WOW! I wasn’t aware of your Yoga Studio. Just visited the site and seems like you are doing great! Keep it up and thanks for the helpful pointers!
There seems to be a loophole here. For any startup business, getting their name out is the very first step. How would they achieve this without using any kind of paid marketing or advertising?
I think once a business grabs a customer and treats them right, that customer will be there for good. Most people are brand loyal and when they choose an option they are happy and satisfied with, they will not choose any other alternate.
Constant Contact is another great one when it comes to choosing an Email Automation Software. It lets you deliver powerful emails, simply and easily. If you haven’t already used it, you should give it a try!
Which one of the paid marketing platforms do you recommend after the business is done with the 3 important steps mentioned in this article?
Relationship building with your target audience or prospective clients is the key to success. Without properly engaging your audience and without proper communication, you cannot expect business to start flowing.
Correct me if I am wrong but do these steps work in all kinds of businesses? Every business belongs to a different industry and not every customer is interested in receiving emails, so creating a lead magnet might not work in all cases.