Marketing Experts Are WRONG! (Including Me!)

SUMMARY

Frank Kern, a veteran marketer, challenges conventional direct response tactics, sharing how advising a client against a sales letter sparked reflections on using content to build problem awareness and leverage existing sales machines.

STATEMENTS

• Marketing "sacred cows" like always using direct response sales letters can ruin businesses if applied blindly, as Kern learned from a client's email.
• A business vetting contractors for massive projects had thrived for 13 years via referrals and inbound inquiries, proving they lacked a sales problem but needed more leads.
• Kern advised against deploying a long-form sales letter, committing "heresy" by suggesting content to trigger problem awareness instead of forcing direct sales.
• Customers arrive through word-of-mouth or website discovery when they recognize a need, so enhancing problem awareness fuels an already functional sales process.
• Content should aim to make prospects aware of potential issues, like inadequate contractor insurance, prompting them to seek solutions organically.
• A retired cop's Instagram post about unnoticed home smells illustrated how external triggers create sudden problem awareness, mirroring marketing opportunities.
• Prospects often aren't ready for hard sells; they need to self-conclude a problem exists before engaging, allowing natural sales processes to take over.
• Even providing full problem-solving advice in content draws seekers, as awareness alone positions the brand as the solution without aggressive pitching.
• In most markets, only 1% of prospects are immediately ready to buy, while 60% are on the verge, making premature sales pitches inefficient.
• Building billion-dollar brands historically relied on repetitive content exposure, now achievable cheaply online without massive budgets.

IDEAS

• Rigid marketing rules, like mandating sales letters, ignore unique business contexts and can disrupt proven customer acquisition funnels.
• A niche service for vetting high-stakes contractors succeeds via organic discovery, highlighting how problem recognition drives inbound leads without ads.
• Advising against direct response in favor of content marketing feels like heresy but aligns with amplifying existing strengths rather than overhauling them.
• External stories, like a cop noticing home odors, reveal how subtle narratives trigger self-doubt and problem awareness in audiences.
• Olfactory fatigue explains why people overlook their own issues, paralleling how prospects ignore needs until content prompts reflection.
• Content can solve problems outright yet still attract customers, as awareness creates demand even without sales pressure.
• AI tools like oJoy.ai streamline brainstorming worries, generating targeted content ideas for niche markets efficiently.
• Markets split into tiny ready-to-buy segments versus vast considering groups, favoring awareness-building over instant conversions.
• Historical brand success stemmed from repetition, now democratized by cheap digital ads that enable small-scale equivalents.
• Retargeting with low-cost reach ads sustains exposure for 28 touchpoints, turning passive viewers into buyers at pennies per interaction.
• Direct response thrives when prospects are pre-aware, transforming content into a low-risk funnel feeder for existing sales processes.

INSIGHTS

• Blind adherence to marketing dogma overlooks business realities, prioritizing adaptation to proven models over universal tactics.
• Problem awareness acts as a silent catalyst, converting latent needs into active searches without coercive selling.
• Content's true power lies in evoking self-realization, fostering trust through value rather than persuasion.
• Digital tools have leveled the playing field, allowing repetition-based branding at fractions of traditional costs.
• Nurturing the majority's readiness amplifies efficiency, as 60% potential outweighs chasing 1% immediacy.
• External triggers mimic organic doubt, bridging awareness gaps to integrate solutions seamlessly into prospects' journeys.

QUOTES

• "I broke the marketing guru law, which is when in doubt, always go the direct response route."
• "You've got a machine that works that turns people into customers. So, if we were to take that long-form direct response sales letter... we could very well mess up everything."
• "What just happened when I read that post? I became problem aware."
• "You could actually tell them how to solve the problem in every piece of content that you make and they would still seek you out."
• "It takes... around 28 touch points for someone to go from thinking about buying something to actually buying something."

HABITS

• Reflect deeply on customer emails to question long-held marketing assumptions and tailor advice accordingly.
• Follow diverse social media accounts, like a cop on Instagram, for unexpected inspirations that spark business insights.
• Use AI tools daily for brainstorming, rambling queries to generate content ideas on audience worries.
• Prioritize building goodwill through helpful content over immediate sales, ensuring long-term brand strength.
• Research facts quickly via Google to validate ideas, like confirming olfactory fatigue, before creating marketing materials.

FACTS

• Businesses vetting contractors for $100 million projects rely almost entirely on referrals and organic website traffic after 13 years.
• Olfactory fatigue causes noses to stop detecting constant smells, leading most homes to have unnoticed odors per online sources.
• Prospects typically require 28 brand interactions, such as ad clicks or content views, before purchasing.
• Billion-dollar brands like Coca-Cola and Ford built dominance through decades of repetitive advertising costing hundreds of millions.
• Retargeted ads in the US for ages 35-54 cost 11 cents to deliver 28 exposures over seven days on platforms like Facebook.

REFERENCES

• oJoy.ai: AI tool used for research, organizing thoughts, and generating content ideas like audience worries.
• Mike the Cop: Retired police officer's Instagram post about unnoticed home smells inspiring problem awareness concept.
• Project Shepherd: Feature in oJoy.ai designed for rambling inputs to decipher and produce structured outputs.
• FrankKern.com: Personal website mentioned for further resources and contact.

HOW TO APPLY

• Analyze your current customer sources: Identify if sales stem from referrals or inbound leads, confirming no core conversion issues exist.
• Assess market readiness: Gauge the 1% immediately buying versus 60% considering, using surveys or data to map awareness levels.
• Brainstorm problem triggers: List 15-20 audience insecurities or unnoticed issues, like hidden smells, via AI or notes for content fodder.
• Create awareness content: Produce short videos or posts evoking doubt, such as "Does your home smell bad without you knowing?" without hard sells.
• Run low-cost reach ads: Target demographics on Facebook/Instagram or YouTube with video views, budgeting for repetition over conversions initially.
• Retarget persistently: Follow initial content with 28 touchpoints over weeks, nurturing viewers toward your site at minimal expense.
• Integrate with sales: Direct aware prospects to your existing process, adding subtle calls-to-action only after awareness builds.

ONE-SENTENCE TAKEAWAY

Challenge marketing myths by fostering problem awareness through content to supercharge existing sales without risky overhauls.

RECOMMENDATIONS

• Shift from universal direct response to customized strategies, testing content for niches where inbound already works.
• Leverage cheap digital repetition like big brands did, using reach ads to build familiarity before sales pushes.
• Use AI for rapid idea generation on audience fears, ensuring content resonates without exhaustive manual research.
• Prioritize 60% of prospects in consideration phases with nurturing touchpoints, avoiding alienation of the unprepared.
• Validate assumptions with quick fact-checks, adapting tactics based on real business data over guru rules.

MEMO

In the high-stakes world of marketing, where gurus preach the gospel of direct response sales letters as infallible, Frank Kern, a self-taught veteran with 26 years in the trenches, dares to commit heresy. It started with an innocuous customer email from oJoy.ai, his family's software venture. The sender ran a niche firm vetting contractors for $100 million construction projects—ensuring proper insurance to avert disasters. After 13 years, their business hummed along on referrals and organic website traffic. But when the client crafted a hard-hitting sales letter using Kern's tool, hesitation arose. Kern, defying convention, advised against it: Why tamper with a machine that already converts?

The epiphany stemmed from the client's reality—no sales shortfall, just a lead drought. Kern realized that bombarding unaware prospects with pitches could sabotage their steady funnel. Instead, he championed content to ignite problem awareness, drawing from an unlikely muse: an Instagram post by retired cop Mike, who revealed how every home harbors a signature scent its owners ignore due to olfactory fatigue. This "dark secret" of the senses—confirmed by Kern's swift Google dive—mirrors market dynamics. Prospects stumble upon solutions only after recognizing voids, like executives fretting over underinsured builders risking multimillion-dollar calamities.

Kern's counsel? Flood the niche with educational pieces targeting suite executives at construction giants, subtly underscoring risks without overt selling. This approach echoes how Coca-Cola and Ford forged empires through relentless repetition, once a luxury for deep-pocketed corporations. Today, the internet flips the script: Platforms like Facebook and YouTube offer "reach ads" for pennies, enabling targeted exposure to pet owners or worried homeowners at 11 cents per 28 interactions. Kern's own oJoy.ai draws over half its users directly via domain searches sparked by such content, proving the model's potency.

Yet Kern isn't ditching direct response; he's sequencing it smarter. Only 1% of any market is primed to buy now, while 60% teeter on awareness's edge. Premature hard sells waste ammo on the unready, demanding 28 touchpoints—from video views to ad clicks—for conversion, per industry benchmarks. By nurturing with value-laden narratives, brands position themselves as inevitable solutions. Even freely sharing fixes, like cat-odor remedies, lures seekers, building goodwill that endures.

For marketers, the lesson cuts deep: Common "rules" like always deploying sales letters blind businesses to their strengths. Kern, who rose from pizza delivery to consulting tech behemoths, urges common sense over shortcuts. In an era of cheap digital reach, blend awareness-building with proven processes—pour gasoline on the fire, don't rebuild the engine. This nuanced path, Kern insists, accelerates growth faster than any myth.