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[ All 2004 Newsletters ]
New Radiance Updates Newsletter
September 20, 2004
Vol. 4, Special Edition
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NEWS: A new Soul Ministry Action Group is starting
this Thursday, Sept. 23. Get all the details at:
http://www.newradiance.com/SoulMinistryActionGroups.htm
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IN THIS ISSUE:
1. The Hurricane Season of 2004
2. Re-focus your Marketing for an Uncertain Economy
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~~ THE HURRICANE SEASON OF 2004 ~~
In the aftermath of a destructive storm season - such as
we've experienced in the southeast and all the way up
the eastern US - we can't always rely on business getting
back to its usual routine quickly, if at all.
Perhaps you've noticed that business has begun to drop
off already, as your clients and prospective customers have
been too distracted by survival concerns to think about
booking an appointment with you. Communications and
computers are down in many parts of the nation, causing
a further business slowdown. And as jobs disappear, even
temporarily, because of flooded or damaged businesses,
the trickle-down effect will be felt by many, sooner or later.
How all of this will affect you and your business largely
depends on how clear you are about what you are doing.
Do you feel tentative in what you have to offer others...
or are you focused and firm that your business can thrive
and grow through any conditions?
Are you feeling aligned with the Divine Plan of your life,
so that each day dawns with the revelation of wonderful
new opportunities for growth, service and prosperity?
Let our hearts and wallets open to support those who
experienced the brunt of Mother Earth's eruptions of
wind and water. But let us also remember our own role
in all of this.
Each of us came here on a unique mission. We don't
serve anyone well if we allow our work to be waylaid
by feelings of anxiety or tentativeness of purpose.
If you are a healer, people need your talents now. If
you are a teacher, your perspective can help people
see the bigger picture. If you are a coach or counselor,
your skills are vital for helping individuals through the
immobilizing effects of anxiety and emotional trauma.
If you are a consultant, you are in a position to assist
business owners to maintain a positive outlook and
move to the next level more quickly.
If you're a store owner, you could create a sense of
community, so people feel connected and less alone.
If you operate a spiritual center, you will be looked to
for consolation and inner peace in times of turmoil.
The aftermath of 9/11 led to a period of economic
unrest and an escalation of fear consciousness. The
hurricane season of 2004 looks like it may cause some
similar effects, for a time.
It is probable that people will be concerned about buying
"just the essentials" for awhile, and discretionary spending
(aside from items such as lumber and camp stoves) is likely
to start falling off quickly. If your business is in the
"discretionary" category, how can you transform it into
something people see as "essential?" This is where clarity
of vision and focused marketing come in.
If you would like some help figuring out how to re-focus
your business, consider joining the Soul Ministry Action
Group that starts this Thursday, September 23 at
1:00 PM (EDT); 2:00 Central time; 4:00 Pacific time.
Module 1 runs for 4 weeks and is all about focusing and
positioning your business in alignment with your soul's
mission, to serve a real need in the marketplace. You'll
be among like-minded business owners who wish to
strengthen their business focus and create a marketing
plan that is right for their specific business.
To learn about Soul Ministry Action Groups and see if
they're for you, just follow this link:
http://www.newradiance.com/SoulMinistryActionGroups.htm
~~ MARKETING IN UNCERTAIN TIMES ~~
The following article appeared in New Radiance Updates
in November 2001 and addressed the need for businesses
to stay viable and relevant during those times of economic
uncertainty following 9/11/01.
Each of us is in charge of our own certainty - and we can
rise above mass consciousness with a clearer vision, a
firmer focus... and a plan. I'm reprinting this article because
it may provide you with ideas you can put in place
immediately, so your business can remain relevant and
"essential" during the months ahead.
RE-FOCUS YOUR MARKETING FOR AN UNCERTAIN
ECONOMY
by Barbara Casey
In uncertain financial times - and in war times - many
people cut back on discretionary spending. While the
cycle of uncertainty persists, individuals and businesses
tend to focus their attention and finances more on the
"essentials" than on indulgences.
We saw the effects of this trend shortly following Sept 11,
as families canceled vacations, postponed larger
purchases and shortened their holiday buying lists.
Industrial giants slashed payrolls and cut spending in an
attempt to stay afloat during the economic downturn.
If really large businesses find themselves in that kind of
trouble, what can small and home based businesses do
when times are tough?
There is a way.
If we have the discipline and the desire, we can actually
re-focus our businesses more quickly and easily than the
big companies. We just need to understand which of our
products and services could be considered "essential" and
then base our marketing efforts around them.
For example, hands-on-healers could emphasize the cost-
effectiveness of learning how to heal our own sore throats.
Nutrition experts could focus on building the immune
system's defenses against stress-induced illnesses.
Counselors might advertise personality and aptitude testing
for improving career choices. Bookstores could promote
more heavily their self-help books and classes, focused on
practical, "how-to" solutions.
It might be useful to look at the essential needs of humans,
to get an idea of what motivates us to act, to change, or to
buy products and services. Psychologist Abraham Maslow
suggested that we each have a "needs hierarchy" which
essentially tracks our life cycle from birth to maturity.
I've used a ladder analogy to picture this hierarchy because
we're not motivated by the "higher" needs until the basic ones
have been filled. On the other hand, all of the needs are
recurring, so we're up and down the ladder quite a bit.
See if you can relate the major benefit of your product or
service to one or more of these essential human needs.
Then re-focus your marketing - your wording, your look, your
positioning statement - so that it is clear just how you can help
a person have his or her needs met. What psychological
"button" does your message push to get the attention of
those you can help?
Marketing and Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs:
(1) Survival is the first basic need -- food, water, clothing
and shelter.
Health food stores might promote toxin-free products to a
population that has recently learned to fear toxins. Clothing
stores could place longer-lasting, natural-fiber apparel in the
forefront as essentials for cost-conscious, health-conscious
shoppers. Realtors don't just sell houses, they provide sturdy
shelter for families. Bed and breakfasts, inns, motels - and
even spare rooms - suddenly become temporary homes
while people re-build from natural and man-made disasters.
(2) Comfort and security sit on the second rung of the needs
ladder. After the basic requirements of survival are met, we
naturally want to preserve and enhance what we have.
Here's where furniture, home improvement, insurance and
home security become issues. How can you offer security
and protection from physical and emotional harm to people
who are concerned about terrorism, job loss and the future
in general? (The Hurricane Season of 2004 has taken the
concept of "home improvement" to an entirely new level,
as homeowners try to figure out how to make their homes
more secure against high winds and rising waters.)
Think about specific personal or business security issues
that you can solve, and build your marketing around them.
Health practitioners might focus on keeping clients healthy
so they can better ward off airborne bacteria, not to
mention mail-borne ones (and now, bacteria from spoiled
food and backed-up street sewers). Water filter and air
purifier businesses can emphasize the "clean" and "pure"
aspects of their products, now that people are more likely
to appreciate these benefits. Insurance agents provide
peace of mind for families who might lose a breadwinner...
or a home.
With an uncertain economy, we are more likely to cut
back on the comforts and luxuries that we might normally
feel entitled to. Travel agents, restaurants, retreats and
spas could re-focus toward the business market, or
emphasize events that continue regardless of economic
conditions - such as weddings and anniversaries.
(3) After people have had their survival and safety needs
more or less met, they are ready to give and receive love,
to make friends, and to belong to a group or community.
Are you a teacher? Emphasize the nurturing environment
of your classes. Do you operate a singles group? Use
testimonials to demonstrate a sense of "belonging."
Spiritual centers can be particularly important resources
as people with like ideas naturally group together in times
of crisis. Tell people who you are and how to reach you.
(4) If we've climbed this far up our needs ladder, we find
ourselves wanting to be respected - we are building not
only self-respect but our reputation and status in the
community.
We are learning to master our careers, establish our
autonomy, and understand our usefulness in the greater
scheme of things. Comfort and security are "kicked up a
notch" and so are our teachers, mentors and service
providers. We are fine-tuning ourselves in body, mind and
spirit, and look to learn from those who have already
"made it."
What do you do that can add to a person's "approval
rating" in his or her community - whether home or
business? Can you provide status symbols, teach poise
or public speaking skills, create a standout marketplace
image? Can you teach a person how to run a business
successfully?
(5) Moving to the fifth rung, in education, we want the
higher teachings; in healing we want to feel balanced in
all our bodies; in our spiritual yearnings we will settle for
nothing less than Divine Connection. Does your business
offer services at these levels? If so - say so! People are
looking for you.
If we've made it to the fifth rung, we are ready to "live our
real lives." The need for self-actualization and inner
meaning is not always recognized until we have endured
a period of discontentment. We are here for a purpose and,
try as we might, we won't achieve real self-fulfillment until we
recognize and activate our purpose.
How can your business help people do this? As a personal
example, in 2001 I wrote a niche marketing course that shows
home based business owners how to re-focus their business
on the passion and purpose of their life, to help them
actualize their soul mission so they could make a difference
and make a good living at the same time.
What do you do that can help individuals picture and fulfill
their mission? How might you re-focus your business to point
people to their own self-fulfillment? Remember, at this level
it's not so much a factor of having got there first; rather, "we
teach what we have to learn." If you're reaching, you could
also be teaching.
(c) Copyright by Barbara Casey.
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Niche marketing is all about discovering what your inner
voice wants you to do with your business life so you feel
"at home" in your work and fulfilled in your mission. If you
wish to transform your home-based business into the
business of your dreams in a niche that suits you perfectly,
visit: http://www.marketingwithamission.com
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HAPPY MARKETING!
Barbara Casey
Barbara Casey is a marketing consultant for lightworkers.
Her specialty is intensive 3-hour Soul Ministry Focus
Consultations that show you the truth of your mission
and the direction of your marketing. In person/by phone.
(727) 397-2702
Email: mailto:newradiance@earthlink.net
http://www.newradiance.com/barbaracasey.htm
We respect your privacy and will never share your
email address with anyone.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
New Radiance Corp.
PO Box 86674, St. Petersburg, FL 33738
(727) 397-2702 newradiance@earthlink.net
Copyright 2004 New Radiance Corp
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