The other day, one of my yoga teacher friends called me to vent about her marketing efforts, and how frustrated she is about, well, everything.

If you too feel you’re doing All. The. Things. and you’re not getting results, it’s a valid concern!

My friend felt like she’s tried everything – writing weekly blog posts, posting on social media, sending newsletters and creating free opt-in offers – and it feels like nobody’s interested in her offers.

Talk about frustrating!

And I get it! I really do. It took me two years before I slowly saw all my hard work building my online business paying off.

I know it’s going to shift for you, too!

But to help you to hopefully get there sooner, I’m going to walk you through five marketing strategies that will shift your actions from ineffective to profoundly powerful.

#1 Help your potential clients stop procrastinating

How often have you seen an offer and thought “Oh, that looks interesting”, and then forgot about it?

The thing is, it’s how we humans are wired. We all procrastinate. Even with things that we KNOW would be good for us.

Your job as a marketeer is to help your potential clients stop procrastinating and instead take action.

That’s why you should use sales or unique offers that expire by a certain date. If something expires or goes away on a certain firm date, let your audience know. That is authentic urgency and it’ll help people get off the fence and buy now.

#2 Use authentic scarcity to promote

Another human trait is that we always, always want what we can’t have. The more scarce something is, the higher the demand.

Authentic scarcity can help your customers overcome this, “Eh, you know what? Let me wait and think about it,” thing that we all do. But please remember, this has got to be honest and real.

So, how do you do that? Scarcity is when there’s a limited or diminishing quantity of a thing. If you provide a service you can’t work 24 hours a day, so bookings are limited. The same applies for space in a yoga class or on a retreat. You’ve just gotta say so and make it really clear as you sell out.

Here are a few examples:

If you’re offering a yoga retreat and there only a few spaces left, state this on the website, for example “only 2 single rooms left”.

If you’re offering coaching, let people know how many spaces you’re offering per month, or if there’s a wait list.

One thing to note, scarcity is only cool if it’s actually true. Please do not fake scarcity or urgency.

#3 Always speak your customer’s language

One of the biggest mistakes entrepreneurs make is using the wrong words to attract their ideal clients. They use “expert speak” or “jargon” to talk about their work – instead of the words their customers are using.

When you talk to your customers like that, for example using fancy Sanskrit names, they won’t understand how you can help them. And more importantly, they won’t relate to you.

Instead use language that resonates with your audience and put yourself out there. Share your story, what brought you to where you are. Share what’s going on in your life.

Don’t follow a script of what you think you should say if it doesn’t actually sound like you or it makes you feel uncomfortable and try to figure out the exact words and phrases that your audience actually uses so that you can sprinkle them into your copy.

#4 Add social proof

Have you ever asked a woman you met in a yoga class or a fellow teacher, “Hey, where did you buy those cute yoga pants?” or “What’s your favorite place for lunch around here?”

And then, based on what they say, you follow their recommendations. Not one hundred percent of the time, of course. But pretty often, right?

We are wired to respond to so called “social proof”, or word of mouth recommendation. If someone that you know, like and trust says, “This is awesome! You gotta try it!” then you are way more likely to give it a whirl.

Student testimonials are a powerful form of social proof. When your visitors read praise from other people – and the praise feels real and genuine – then they are likely to feel more confident about purchasing a workshop or retreat from you.

Add testimonials and feedback from your clients on your website. Put them on your homepage, on your offer pages, and add an extra page with all your loving testimonials.

Social proof is one of the most powerful marketing tools that you have and it’s all in your control. And the beautiful thing is, that asking your customers for feedback will also get you more connected with them.

#5 Always have a call-to-action

Most of us mistakenly assume that our potential customers know what we want them to and we forget to add a CTA or a call to action. Instead start adding a CTA on every piece of marketing that you put out there.

Here are some examples:

• Click to play the video
• Reply to this email
• Leave a comment
• Click here
• Buy now
• Register now

You have to tell your readers, website visitors or social media followers what you want them to do, what’s the next step you want them to take. Make it super simple for them and they’re gonna love purchasing from you.

The thing to remember is to stay focused and use ONE CTA and use it repeatedly. Don’t ask them to do different things, like download a flyer and book now and sign up for a free call with you. This is just going to confuse your potential customers with too many options.