Over the last couple of months I’ve been working out at the gym pretty regularly and have been working on losing weight at the same time. I’m doing this for multiple reasons, like losing weight due to sitting at the computer for 12+ hours a day, being healthier so that I can be around longer to enjoy my grand- kids and just feel so much better.
I got to thinking today at the gym that working out and weight loss is very similar to the marketing practices I’ve learned over the years.
I know you’re thinking how can these two be similar so let me explain.
First similarity in weight loss/fitness and marketing is the fact in many cases we jump in “thinking” we know what we should do and/or the steps needed to get there and then quickly realize when we’re not getting the results we want, we either give up or seek help. In fitness they’re called personal trainer, in marketing it’s business coach or mentor. Many times we “Google” it to find answers. In some cases we can but it’s trial and error to see what works or doesn’t.
An example of this would be, in my recent struggles of losing the weight I wanted, I just started cutting out things I knew that weren’t good for me. After a month of still being hungry and not losing a single pound I met with a nutritionist. I was surprised to find out I wasn’t eating enough. I found by making tweaks to my diet I immediately started seeing results. The same is true when we don’t get the results we want with our marketing. If our conversions aren’t good on our website we look for answers in online marketing we may seek a website critique or training videos or even schedule an appointment with a consultant.
Another similarity would be that in our fitness program we may start by walking or running, which helps some but we still aren’t getting the results quick enough. That annoying doughnut around our middle is still there even with a diet. So you think about exercises.
I’m sure we’ve all at one time or another tried this on our own and tried it for a few days or even a week or so and didn’t get the results and now those dumbbells are sitting in the corner gathering dust. The thing with fitness is you have to work on improving your core or your torso area so that you have a good place to work from. By working with a “trainer” they’ll be able to tweak your workout and show you how to work smarter to get the results you want.
The same is true with our businesses. We fiddle with it and try a few things and again don’t get the results we want, even though we’ve bought what we thought are the right tools – we still don’t get where we want to go. It’s because again we’re not focused on our “core” business or maybe we missed out on the fundamentals to get things done the right way. Sometimes it’s just an easy “tweak” to start getting the results we want.
One thing to remember is that once you start seeing results track those results. Continue to tweak, as there’s always room for improvements. On your website it’s best to test everything and track it to see what works and what doesn’t.
