Minority Businesses and Business Events in Pittsburgh

By Leesa Barnes

Three days ago, Americans elected a new president. What made this choice historic is that despite America’s sordid and often violent history on race relations, many Americans looked past Barack Obama’s strange name and skin color to elect him as the 44th President of the United States.

63 million Americans voted for President-elect Obama. The media is reporting that single women, Hispanics, African Americans and young people voted for him. It was the first time in decades that this target market felt engaged in the political process.

Politics aside, there are many lessons that business owners can learn from President-elect Obama’s success:

1. Every little bit mattered – Obama’s team encouraged people to donate online whatever they had. Whether it was $10 or $1,000, no amount was too small. The result? Obama’s team raised enough money to out-muscle Hilary Clinton (whose run for the leadership of Democratic Party ended in mountains of debt) and Republican John McCain (who wasn’t able to counter many of Obama’s attack ads in key states because he didn’t have enough money).

   Your Action – If a prospect can’t pay your consulting fees, do you have another product in your funnel that’s less expensive, but offers the same impact? If not, develop one. 
   

2. Communicate one vision – Throughout the campaign, Obama’s team focused on just one theme: change. It became the rallying cry for so many of his supporters.

   Your Action – What is your vision and how do you communicate it to your clients? If you don’t have a vision, develop one and share it with your clients. 

3. Use what your target market is using to engage them – Obama’s campaign team used social media to engage their target market. He knew that the affluent, the educated and the young – all who identified with Obama early on in his campaign – used sites such as Facebook, Twitter and blogging to communicate with each other.

   Your Action – If you are not actively using social media and your target market, release your own fears and start using it. Watch my video on releasing fears to help you move forward.

4. Be careful how you attack your competition – As Clinton and, later, McCain attacked Obama’s background, his name, his patriotism, even his religious leanings, Obama’s target market perceived it to be an attack against them. Single women, Hispanics, African Americans and young people turned against Clinton and McCain because they took their attacks against Obama personally.

   Your Action – Don’t be afraid of negative comments posted on your blog or on Facebook by your competitors. Your fans and supporters will protect you by not doing business with the one attacking you. Handle negative comments with grace and positivity and let your fans and supporters be the ones to pounce on the nattering naybob of negativity. 

5. Lead with humility – During the Democratic leadership race, Obama got cocky after winning Iowa. When he lost New Hampshire to Clinton, it deflated his ego. This taught him to be humble and he never let his ego get the best of him again. Humility is the characteristic that many of his supporters admired.

   Your Action – No matter how much press you get for you and your business, be humble. Your fans, supporters and clients want to follow a confident leader, but are turned off if you toot your horn too much. Remember to lead with humility.

Leesa Barnes is an award winning blogger and critically acclaimed author who helps individuals energize their body, brand and business using social media marketing. To learn how you can become Marketing Fit, visit http://www.marketingfit.com to get your complimentary eCourse called the Marketing Fit Detox: 7 Ways to Get Rid of Fattening Marketing Tactics for Good Using Social Media.

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