The primary purpose of all note business marketing strategies is to deliver a message to the note holder. The message may be an attempt to buy their note, to promote your brand, or to introduce the note holder to your company. In the note business we may be “selling” ourselves, our expertise, or our service. Our service is the options we can give note holders in the hopes of buying their notes.
In order to better prepare the marketing message, we must first understand something about the psychology of the note holder.
Neurolinguistic programming, or NLP, is a communication technique that was developed in the 1970s by mathematician John Grinder and linguist Richard Bandler. This technique was designed to help people and companies increase their rate of success through more effective communication. It identifies the following three ways in which people process the information that they receive:
(V) Visually. The visual process takes place through the eyes and is most affected by pictures and words that relate to seeing.
(A) Auditorily. Auditory processing relies more on sound and is affected most by things that are heard or words that relate to hearing.
(K) Kinesthetically. Kinesthetic refers to touching or feelings. The feelings may be internal ones such as joy, fear, comfort, or anxiety. External feelings relate to taste, touch, smell, or physical movement. Words that support such feelings capture the attention of the kinesthetic processor.
The visual-auditory-kinesthetic, or V-A-K theory, was not specifically developed for writing note business marketing materials, but it can be a useful tool when preparing any type of marketing piece.
By using visual words, you are able to attract the interest of the person who processes incoming information through their eyes. By using auditory words, you can catch the attention of the auditory person who processes information by hearing. And with the use of well-placed kinesthetic words, you can establish instant rapport with the person who relies on touch and feelings.
The list of words and phrases below can be useful in preparing materials for use in different marketing strategies. The trick is to be able to insert enough of all three kinds of key words into your marketing.
Visual: Beyond a shadow of doubt, Describe, Get an eyeful, Get a perspective, Gleam in the eye, Hazy idea, Imagine that, In view of, Looks like, Like a photo, Mental image, Mind’s eye, Map out, Paint a picture, Pretty as a picture, Take a peek.
Auditory: Clear as a bell, Discuss, Entertain me, Give me your ear, Hardly a peep, Heard voices, Hold your tongue, Listen in, Loud and clear, Power of speech, Manner of speaking, Outspoken, Pay attention to, Rings a bell, Purrs like a kitten, Tuned in.
Kinesthetic: Chip off old block, Demonstrate, Get a handle on, Get a load of this, Be in touch with, Gut feeling, Draw a picture, Heated argument, Illustrate, Tasty, Hot seat, Lay hands on, Intuition, Point out, Feels just right, Moment of panic.
Good marketing is a matter of quality, not quantity. You want to spend your time, energy, and dollars where you can anticipate the most return. Write marketing materials in a V-A-K way for all of your marketing strategies that will attract the attention of all types of note holders.
Concentrate on direct marketing techniques where you can expect a more direct response. Select marketing tools designed to reach out to your chosen target market of note holders. Be sure to track which of your marketing efforts brought the most results. And remember that marketing is a matter of long-term planning and action.
Take a look at your current marketing materials and see if you could make it more interesting by using words that will attract the attention of all three V-A-K types. Then look over what you have written. Underline the words that will appeal to the visually oriented in red, the auditory in blue, and the kinesthetic in green. Which color shows up the most? More than likely, this is the way you process information. The most challenging part of using V-A-K in note business marketing is to come up with words that relate to a processing mode that you seldom use yourself.
Remember, success demands action! Keep on marketing, it’s going to work! TWITA! (That’s What I’m Talking About!) ☺
Jeff Armstrong of Armstrong Capital has been a note broker and investor specializing in the seller financed note industry since 1991. He can be reached by email at info@armstrongcapital.com. For more updated and current information on how he can help you with your note business, your note investments or to request a quote on a note you currently have visit www.armstrongcapital.com.