Hub Mentality
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Hub Mentality™ is a revolutionary approach to solve new problems. It’s a mindset, a culture, a way of life for cutting-edge businesses. When it’s adopted, it permeates the framework, systems, processes, leadership and management, every aspect of a business.
Hub Mentality™ is contrasted against sales mentality. The old model was to use interrupt advertising, hype and pressure to transact sales. The focus was on continually bringing new people through the door, rather than serving and leveraging existing customers.
The core of Hub Mentality™ is interaction and relationships by leveraging technology. In a word, the core revolves around community.
Building a hub, or a technology-facilitated community, requires the following ten elements:
1. Interactivity through new technology media.
Hubs are crafted primarily through technology, beginning with a top-notch website, lead generation and data capture systems, customer relationship management (CRM) software, and email marketing software.
There are also a number of social media and social networking tools that may be appropriate for your business. These platforms facilitate interactivity.
2. Database building and management.
It’s imperative your business world revolve around building a database of customer information. Personal information in a central database, as derived through permission marketing, is worth more than money in the bank.
3. Permission.
Stop yelling at people who don’t care about you through the use of mass, intrusive media.
Subtly and effectively demonstrate to them why you add value to their lives. Then, invite them to give you permission to market to them.
4. Trust and authenticity.
When potential customers give you permission to market to them, you capture their information and guard it tenaciously. People must feel absolutely secure that their personal information is safe with you before they’ll give it to you.
Furthermore, they need to know that they’re dealing with the reality of your company and not hype, gimmicks, or cover-ups. They want authenticity.
5. Free content.
Relevant information is the new power. You’re no longer trying to make one-time sales through hard closes. You’re trying to cultivate trust and friendship.
This is done by giving prospects massive amounts of free content in the form of blogs, videos, digital downloads such as e-books and podcasts, white papers, books, etc.
6. Coherent strategy.
You can’t just throw free content against the wall and hope it sticks. All of your efforts must fit into a macro picture where each part supports the greater whole.
One step must build on the other and everything must lead toward increasing the quantity and quality of your database.
7. Balance.
It’s a delicate balance to strike between cultivating the database and making sales. Be strategic about what you send and how often you send it. Too little contact and community members lose interest; too often, they feel bothered.
8. Flawless execution.
It’s critical that you execute on your promises and deliver what customers expect.
Systems must be in place to ensure perfect delivery. If you don’t execute and keep your promises, these customers will tell everyone about it, and they have the web to spread their bad experience.
9. Gradient approach.
Gradient marketing means to gradually pull customers through increasing levels of engagement and commitment.
You start by giving free content to catch their attention and establish trust. Then, you offer low-price, low-commitment products. The more interaction you have, the higher the commitment, through money and time, from your customers. The content you give them throughout is designed to educate, rather than sell.
10. Customize your Hub to make it profitable.
All of the above elements must be customized to your particular niche. And let’s not forget that you must be profitable for all of this to work. You must be completely clear on what drives your economic engine.
How can you synchronize giving the customer what they need and pulling them into your profit centers? How many emails can you send them per month without them getting annoyed and unsubscribing? What is the right balance of value and sales?
All of these questions need to be answered as you transition your company to Hub Mentality™.