Powerful positioning secrets for knowledge entrepreneurs

Whether you’re a seasoned Knowledge Commerce entrepreneur who’s been selling online courses since AOL was a thing, or you’re brand new and still putting the final touches on your first digital product, one thing is undoubtedly true...

Marketing matters.

And in the online space where others are constantly clamoring for the attention of the very same prospects, marketing matters a whole lot.

But while many digital business owners focus on the latest “flash in the pan” or shiny object showing up in their inbox, racing to stay compliant with Facebook, Google, and whatever social media behemoth is the next big thing...

The ones who “really know” how to create lasting success are focused on something far more stable, predictable, and yes, powerful. Without it, even the best Facebook ad would fall flat or only sizzle for a matter of seconds.

Perception Is Reality

At its core, marketing is simply about communicating promises to potential prospects. If they use your product or service their lives will be changed in the way you’re promising. But making promises is easy. In fact, online, it’s almost too easy.

Remember this: people don’t buy without belief.

That’s the “hard” part of all this digital marketing. Creating an environment for your prospect to believe the promises you’re making in your marketing. That you really can help them. That they really are better off with you than without you. That you really are as good as you say you are.

And a way to create a “shortcut” into generating belief is through remembering that perception is reality. That a man making medical claims while wearing a white lab coat is more readily believed than that same man making the same claims without one.

So in our article today we talk about the marketing “golden goose”. The one key to making it all work. From online to offline, this single marketing principle works for any and all businesses.

And it’s a must for anyone who wants to experience massive and long-lasting success online.

In this post, we’ll dive into 5 proven ideas to powerfully position yourself as an expert, an authority, and as someone worth listening to.

5 Positioning Secrets That Create Persuasive Perception

Positioning is all about how your prospect perceives you as the one who delivers the message. It’s why people believe one media source and distrust another. It’s all a matter of targeted positioning for your ideal prospect.

Secret #1: Borrow Others Authority

You’ve most likely seen the “As Featured In” section on most websites, right? If not, head on over to our Kajabi homepage and you’ll see exactly what we mean. In fact, we even have built-in “Logo Blocks” so you can add this instantly to your Kajabi website.

The concept is simple and used by everyone from small and large businesses, to influencers and everyone in between. The goal is to borrow the credibility and authority which already exists in other publications or media.

This is why people submit articles for sites like Fortune, Huffington Post, etc.

For Knowledge Commerce entrepreneurs -- especially those of you just starting out -- this is an instant way to gain believability which otherwise might take far longer.

Make a list of the well-known and respected publications, media outlets, or news stations in relation to your business and brainstorm ways to get featured. Maybe it’s writing an article, doing a podcast, or producing some other kind of content.

Seek to serve and add value to their audience and more than likely you’ll find the majority of them are eager to work with you.

Secret #2: Become A Published Author

Book equals credibility. You can take that to the bank as it’s been true for hundreds of years. And while having a blog or sending out daily emails is incredibly effective, in terms of positioning, neither of these can compare to having your own book.

Your prospects know that putting a book together takes more effort, time, and expertise than just pressing send on your latest email. Plus they’ve been trained to just accept this as truth whether they're conscious about it or not.

But here’s the thing...writing a book isn’t as hard as people think it is.

Does it still require some work and focus? Well of course. But we’ve seen some blog posts or series of blog posts which could easily be converted into a book. And many ‘smart’ marketers do exactly that. They turn their existing content, podcast transcripts, blog posts, and even emails, into chapters of a book.

And you should too!

With the rise of self-publishing and print on demand services, becoming a published author has been completely redefined. Your book doesn’t have to be the next great American novel. Instead, it can be short, concise, and include “no fluff”. Which in reality, many people want.

If you’re looking to create powerful positioning and have yourself be viewed as an expert or authority, becoming an author is one of the fastest and most effective ways to get you there.

Secret #3: Results Over Resume

If you’re just starting out on this online business adventure and are working on your first online course, membership site, or digital product, it can be a little intimidating. We totally get it.

The common trap is to focus too much of our energy on what our digital resume looks like. We think that we need another certification, a degree from a fancy establishment, or even one of the two secrets we’ve mentioned above.

But the truth is your prospects value something more than anything else...results!

When your entire focus is on creating results for those you serve, your resume isn’t even an issue. If you’re a health coach and you really can help someone, you should be finding ways to create quick wins with little risk to your prospect.

Many times this is by offering a free trial to your digital products or services. Or by structuring an offer where they only pay once a result is produced, or in some other way.

The key principle is to never get stopped because your “resume” doesn’t look as good as another competitor in your niche. If you can help a prospect get the result that they seek, they most likely could care less about your certifications or who you’ve worked with.

Secret #4: Be An Active Voice

We’ve already talked about publishing a book and other articles. But how often are you online and you read someone’s comment and think “wow...this person really knows their stuff!”? Then maybe you follow them or send them a friend request.

It happens all the time!

In fact, you can see it happening on Instagram daily. Go to any large influencer account and you’ll see other influencers adding fairly lengthy comments. These comments generate attention which turns into new followers for that person.

So be an active voice on any platform you’re involved with. Stand for something by sharing your message and delivering value. Those who succeed in solidifying their positioning in this way are the ones who are always seeking to serve.

You can always tell when someone is trying to comment just to get followers, or commenting to truly help someone. Do the latter and your positioning will organically evolve day after day!

Secret #5: Speak At Live Events

Similar to writing a book, being on stage and delivering a speech carries with it a perception of authority. You get to piggyback and borrow the credibility of both the event, organizer, and additional speakers as well.

So finding both paid and free speaking engagements is well worth your time as someone who sells their knowledge online.

And remember...the organizers of these events are typically in need of more speakers! It’s not as easy as you may think to find qualified and competent presenters who can share a powerful and use message.

If possible, create an agreement that allows you to have the recordings of your speech whether to sell or share as a bonus. These are not only excellent “instant” digital products but are absolute no-brainers in using to position yourself effectively in all of your marketing.

Positioning Works When You Work It

Positioning requires the kind of elbow grease that will ultimately set you apart from others in your industry. Just by putting in the work and taking action on a few of the simple ideas presented above, you’ll immediately be granting yourself a more “listening ear” whenever you put marketing out into the world.

These 5 ideas are just a few of many which work extremely well. Choose the ones that work for you or find different ones. The key is to leverage positioning to create more belief in your prospects!

1. Borrow Others Authority
2. Become A Published Author
3. Results Over Resume
4. Be An Active Voice
5. Speak At Live Events

Unsure Of What To Sell?

And If you’re still in the “idea stage” and are unsure what you’d even teach online, we’ve recently put together a brand new, completely free, 3-part video training series which takes you from idea to your first mini-course.

Click the link below to get immediate access to the first video:

CLICK HERE FOR IMMEDIATE ACCESS

If you already know what you’d like to teach and would rather jump right into the Kajabi platform and take it for a risk-free test drive, below you’ll find a link for your 14-day free trial…

Use Kajabi to Turn Your Knowledge And Content Into Products You Can Sell

We know that you have something to teach the world. We also know there are people out there who want to learn what you know.

That’s why we created Kajabi. It’s a full-featured platform that allows professionals like you to create their own businesses from home.

Create online courses, establish membership sites, and sell other digital products. We offer tons of marketing tools to help you spread the word about your products and earn more revenue.

Of course, launching a business represents a huge commitment. We understand that.

To help ease you into the process of creating a Knowledge Commerce business of your own, we offer a 14-day free trial.

Get unfettered access to our tools, templates, and other assets so you can fully explore what Kajabi has to offer.

Are you ready to become your own boss? Now’s the time.

Try Kajabi For Free

Grab your 14 day free trial today.

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