Marketing Lessons from the Movies: Moneyball

I didn’t want to watch this movie. I’m not a sports fan, and baseball movies just don’t light my fire. So Jeff had to twist my arm to get me to watch Moneyball with him.

Here’s a brief plot summary for you:

The manager of the Oakland A’s has to build a team with ZERO budget. Using only computer analysis of statistics, he cobbles together a team of “budget” players who start a winning streak against all odds and advice.

Yes, it’s an inspiring story of believing in yourself, where there’s a will there’s a way, never give up on your dreams…

But what I really took from this is the power of numbers.

It’s All About the Numbers

Numbers? Numbers are boring!

I might have agreed before I learned about their power.

Most of the time we make decisions based on how we “feel.” But when it comes to business, you need numbers to back you up. After all, profit is the Big Number that determines the ultimate success of your wedding business, right?

You simply need to know your numbers to find out what’s working and what isn’t for your wedding business.

So many times wedding vendors buy advertising or try a new marketing method without tracking their results. How many leads did you get from that source? How many of those leads ended up booking you?

Or they set a goal of “making more money” or “booking more weddings.” ONE PENNY is technically more, and I doubt that’s what they have in mind.

If you want to have any hope of hitting your goals, you need a specific number. Otherwise, how will you know if you’re going to hit it or not?

Years ago, Jeff and I set a goal for our wedding business: $500 income per month. We posted it on signs all over the house. We stared at those numbers wherever we looked.

Guess what? We hit that goal, so we set another: $1,000. Then $5,000. Then $10,000. Then $20,000.

We hit them all. That is the power of knowing your numbers.

Finding Your Power Numbers

In Moneyball, Coach Billy Beane ignores conventional wisdom and logic to build an amazing by focusing only on numbers. He didn’t care if they got more bases by walking or if he ended up with a team full of losers; as long as the statistics looked good, they made the team. And it worked.

In your wedding business, you need to focus on what brings you results regardless of how it looks to anyone else. What brings you more leads, more booked weddings, more income per event, more money in your bank account?

Focus on your numbers. Ruthlessly. Relentlessly. Just like Coach Beane did.

This might mean that you don’t follow the herd into the marketing fad of the moment, or you might end up doing something that to most people looks completely ridiculous. It doesn’t matter, as long as your numbers prove those RESULTS.

Whipping Your Team Into Shape

If you don’t know your numbers, here’s where to start.

• How much money do you want to make per year?
• How many weddings do you need to book at your current rate to make that much?
• How many meetings will you need to book that many?
• How many leads will you need to get that many meetings?
• What do your numbers look like right now?

These numbers are the key to your success and essential to know whether your business is on track or off. Start paying attention to them and you will automatically start moving towards your goals.

What do you think?

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