KAIZEN FINALE: The Secret Emotional Connection between Kaizen, Coffee, and… Your Customer?

What might these coffee grinds have to do with Kaizen in Marketing?

This is the third and final article in the guest posting series from Ryan, one of my most successful students.  Ryan’s already built a $250K/year business using my methods (please read the disclaimer on GlennCoach.com), and after coaching directly with me all year, is about to launch what I believe will be a much larger one.

It probably won’t surprise you to learn I’ll be opening several coaching slots tomorrow, including a new level with monthly telephone access, and with Ryan available to walk you through the hyper-responsive process at a much lower price.   You can review the NEW details on GlennCoach.com, and if you’re even remotely interested, please sign up for the priority notification list at the bottom.

Here’s Ryan’s article

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“KAIZEN FINALE: The Secret Emotional Connection between Kaizen, Coffee, and… Your Customer? (HINT: It’s NOT What You Might Think…)”

Hi, it’s Ryan here again

And today, I’ll be wrapping up this three-part Guest Post series on the Power of Kaizen.

But before we begin, let’s quickly recap what we’ve covered so far:

In Article #1, we talked about Kaizen and your BUSINESS.

I shared a few real-life examples of how tiny, incremental improvements can yield big gains in your business (and how this exact approach enabled me to go from earning $0 to $25,000 per month in my first 18 months online, using the hyper-responsive process).

In Article #2, we talked about Kaizen and your BRAIN.

We explored the idea of moving toward your business goals by taking one “impossible to fail step” at a time — using a deceptively simple (but extremely powerful) “Kaizen Mind Trick” that I personally use whenever I reach a “sticking point” in my business.

(By the way, if you missed either of those articles, you can still get them here: #1, #2.)

Now, in today’s conclusion to this three-part series, I’d like to talk about how I apply Kaizen principles within my sales materials — and across my entire marketing funnels — in a way that might surprise you…

Specifically, I’m going to talk about how you might use Kaizen principles to positively influence THE single most important person in your business — (Yes, someone even more important than YOU…)

And that someone is of course — Your CUSTOMER

To illustrate the sort of thing I’m talking about, I’d like to share a slightly embarrassing personal story with you, which I think you may find amusing:

Some time ago, I had one of those mini-marketing-epiphanies we all get from time to time — as I was standing in the supermarket looking to buy — of all things — coffee.

As I stood there scratching my head, staring at the shelves hopelessly lost, and deciding which brand of coffee to buy — it was like suddenly, my entire coffee-drinking life flashed before my eyes:

The first coffee I remember drinking was the one my parents drank their entire lives — Folgers — the Buick of coffees — sold in that unmistakable giant red can, priced at $3.99 / lb.

For most of my early adult life, Folgers was my coffee of choice — by default.

But years later, by the time Starbucks was on every corner and they’d started selling their ground coffee on the grocery store shelf — at some point, it went on sale — probably for something like $5.99 / lb.  And as a fan of their ‘by-the-cup’ product, I decided to give it a try.

I remember weeks later, when it went back up to the regular $8.99 / lb. price, I was faced with a decision — continue drinking the Starbucks brew, OR go back to my Folgers roots?

But, by that time, it was already too late.  I was hooked on Starbucks– whether I cared to admit it or not…

And then, a few years later, my coffee drinking habits evolved yet again:

As we started getting bit older, my wife and I began making a concerted effort to eat healthier across the board.  And in that quest, I came across compelling research that convinced me to start drinking certified organic (and pesticide-free) coffee only.

Making that organic transition came with a $10.99 / lb. price tag.

And now, after this whole episode flashed through my brain, I found myself standing in the coffee aisle at the local Whole Foods, deciding between two different certified-organic, fair-trade, boutique-brand varieties at a price of $12.99 and $13.99 / lb. respectively.

(And after realizing how I’d arrived at this point, suddenly questioning my own sanity…)

But THAT’S also when the mini-marketing epiphany hit me like a ton of bricks.

(Any guesses on what it might be?  And how it relates to Kaizen?)

Well, let’s start with this:

For me, as a consumer in this market, I NEVER would have made a direct leap from Folders at $3.99 / lb. to my current boutique brand, certified-organic, fair-trade variety at $13.99 / lb.

The price jump is just TOO BIG.

But each buying decision along the way that lead me there was small enough (and non-threatening enough), that I was able to seamlessly and unconsciously move down this path without setting off any of my internal, amygdala-controlled warning signals.

Or in other words, moving up a notch — one small step at a time — was never a big deal.

Okay, so how can you take this and apply the Kaizen principle of “one small step at a time” within this context in your sales materials — and across your entire marketing funnels — on a  practical level?

Well, for starters — knowing what you now know about how Kaizen impacts the brain, you might start asking yourself a few questions:

Like for example: Are you seamlessly moving your prospects and customers through your marketing funnels — and more broadly, to your way of thinking — one small, non-threatening, step at a time?

Or somewhere along the way — maybe in the form of an objection you fail to address in your sales letter or autoresponder sequence, or the price gap between your front and back-end products — are you asking your prospects and customers to take a step that’s just TOO BIG?

Because perhaps that could be the VERY STEP that might be causing them to “freeze” or “flee” — and put the brakes on any sort of buying decision.

After all, your customers’ brains are not unlike yours or mine.

We’re all wired the same way.

Until next time — to your continued success!

Ryan

PS - But going back to the coffee story, really the Kaizen lens above is just ONE way of looking at things — (and a convenient way to bring our discussion on Kaizen full circle…)

But there are at least 5 other marketing takeaways (which have nothing to do with Kaizen) that I was able to pull from that experience as a consumer.

And I’d be VERY curious to know:

As you read that story for the first time, what marketing lessons were YOU able pick out?

I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments section below, and I hope at least some of you will let me coach you through your very own Kaizen Success!  (Sign up for the priority notification list if you’re interested on Glenn’s coaching page)

PPS - I’d also like to send out a warm word of thanks to everyone who took the time to read this series of guest posts — and particularly those who shared their comments and feedback. Thanks so much!