I learned a lot about being current and in-tune with your customer needs and values when I was only four years old.  At the time, my family and I were living in a Nova Scotia town called Wolfville. My dad got a job at a theatre there, so my entire family moved there for the summer.

It was the first time I went blueberry picking, and we ended up with so many blueberries that we decided to sell them.  

But the “being current” learning experience happened when they left me alone with just the blueberries, a “for sale” sign, and the money.

My mother basically describes the story as this. She went inside for a moment, and so did Fred, my older brother. Then she asked “where’s Rosie?”

My brother and I are only three and a half years apart age-wise. So he was far too confident about leaving me alone unsupervised. And he turned out to be right. By the time, my mom and my brother came back outside the blueberries were gone, and I had a $10 bill in my hand.

• Because someone had seen the sign
• Asked if the blueberries were for sale
• And paid the price my family had agreed on for all the berries.

Little did my family knew, but their four-year old kid had the entire operation under control.

In fact there was no adult supervision whatsoever. I learned a few valuable lessons that day about what being current really means, and today I’m going to share them with you. Because it was a huge influence on my decisions in my adult years as well.

1) Sometimes it’s as simple as right place right time

 Most of my client work I’ve done in 2019 has been thanks to one, very simple marketing concept: hang out in the places where your target audience hangs out, and the right people will show up.

And I trusted that tactic because that’s exactly how I earned my first ten dollars at the age of four:

• The people driving by needed blueberries
• I looked like a friendly, approachable little girl
• And there was a “for sale sign”, with plenty of tasty, fresh looking blueberries to spare

 But what does this involve?

 A lot depends on where your target audience typically hangs out.

If they’re avid Facebook users, who all spend their free time in online parenting groups, start making friends in those parenting groups. If there’s a niche-relevant Meetup group, attend meetings on a regular basis.  And don’t forget to tell people about what you do. Because sometimes people who are interested in what you offer will surprise you, and ask for more information. This involves:

•  Joining groups in your niche
• And offering unconditional value to groups members.

For me, what was a real game changer was switching to a co-working space filled with people that were a lot like the clients I work with. This made being current pretty easy, since a lot of my fellow members have needs that are a lot like my customers.

Other sources as well include prioritizing local SEO, and regularly sharing carefully curated content on LinkedIn. This is all about being current, through regularly being on peoples’ radar.

When you show up in the right places it will pay off, because people will always be reminded that when they need you for your area of expertise, they can easily reach out.

2) Familiarity has value and worth

First time I told my partner the story of the blueberries, he was like: “oh that’s where you got your entrepreneurial spirit from!” But something I openly acknowledge is the fact I was just a kid. I don’t even remember what the people who bought the blueberries even look like.

But it’s safe to assume that, on a subconscious level, I reminded them of some other little girl they care about. Because people buy stuff because the message or people behind it are like them, and genuinely like them. Ever since, I see examples just like this.

When I’m in my parent’s neighbourhood in the summertime…

I often see kids being current through selling lemonade based on the same principle.

 And I can’t help but buy a glass of lemonade from them. Because they remind me of kids I went to school with.

What this familiarity is really about, is being current through exclusively selling to people who find your way of doing things comfortable and relatable. These kids did that by using places like the sidewalk in front of their parent’s house. That way neighbours who know their parents walk by and say: “why not?”

Alternatively, you could simply assume you know a demographic that’s very different than your own. But it takes a lot of time, strategy, and research to pull that off. Because there’s a very real risk of seeming patronizing (if this is done in a misguided way).

3) Know and love your product

When I look back on my memories of selling blueberries, I remember what really finalized the customer’s choice to buy blueberries was just how much I genuinely loved what I was selling. 

I had a lot of confidence in what I was selling, and I knew a lot about it.  Although I was barely old enough to be in junior kindergarten, I had tried the blueberries and knew where they came from. This gave the customers enough reassurance to hand over their money.

I’ve spotted this approach to dealing with customers in some of the farmer’s markets I’ve visited, and even an independent butcher that my partner and I get most of our meat from.

 Rather than “just” asking you what you want, they always through in a conversation starter or two about what you’re going to do with the products they’re selling. Then, they include a bit of free advice about how to use their product in an appropriate context.

A great example of this approach is this:

 Recently my partner and I did a weekend trip with my parents to Hamilton. We went inside Hamilton’s indoor farmer’s market, and our first stop was a vendor selling cheese. The selection was overwhelming, and included more types of cheddar than I knew existed.

So, we asked the man selling the cheese what he recommends. He encouraged us to try small slices of his favourites, and went into deep detail about why he likes them. By the end of that exchange, we bought three different types of cheese. We went into that knowing that we wanted cheese but we didn’t know what kind. And the seller’s in-depth knowledge of his product helped us get over our hesitation.

I’ve even seen places like my favourite tea shop use the same approach, and it works! Because this helps enhance people’s perceived value of your product (regardless of cost). 

Notice how I didn’t mention anything about trends? 

The truth is, I did that on purpose. Some of the most one-dimensional attempts at being current have happened because an agency, organization, or individual thinks they know a specific type of person. And this can lead to bad consequences.

According to Wordstream guest writer, Dan Shewan:

If you run a small business, maybe you have an idea of your target market. However, a vague idea is not enough to compete in today’s ruthless business environment. Without detailed knowledge of your target market, you could be losing business to your competitors or missing out on opportunities to increase sales.

 This is exactly where keeping things simple, and starting with a specific type of person you already talk to on a regular basis can be so effective. That way, sticking just to what feels the most natural to you will have a much higher chance of reaching someone who cares about the same things.

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Please add a comment below if you'd like to discuss this topic. – Rosie