Your Marketing Isn’t Broken – You’re Just Not Telling People What to Do…
Million Dollar Team Principle #20: Tell Your Customer What to Do, How to Do It, and To Do It Now!
There is no such thing as weak marketing.
There is only a weak direction.
Your ads aren’t underperforming because people don’t like your brand or your message.
They’re underperforming because your prospects don’t know what you want them to do.
That’s not a marketing problem.
That’s a leadership problem.
This is why every ad, every post, every email, every message must include a strong, specific call to action (CTA).
“A-B-C. Always Be Closing.”
– Glengarry Glen Ross
This famous line about leads is just as true in your marketing as it is in sales.
Marketing is selling in print. If your ad isn’t generating calls, clicks, or signups, it’s not persuasive.
It’s passive.
And passive ads don’t convert.
Weak Marketing is a Symptom of Weak CTAs
Call to action
Think about it. Before you send a mailer, post on Facebook, or build a landing page, ask:
- What exactly do I want them to do next?
- Buy now?
- Schedule a showing?
- Find out what their home is worth?
- Apply for a career?
- Download a guide?
Once you know the next action, you build everything around getting them to take it.
Legendary copywriter Gary Halbert taught this relentlessly.
He made it clear:
Great marketing doesn’t just describe something, it directs someone.
The best marketing reads like a roadmap—
With a destination and directions clearly marked.
Your job is to lead the customer step by step—
Remove all doubt, all friction, all options for inaction.
Examples of Strong CTAs
- “Enter your address to get your home’s current value instantly—no sign-up required.”
- “Call now to find out what your neighbor’s home just sold for—it’s more than you think.”
- “Schedule your private tour of this home before it hits the market. Click here to book.”
- “Apply now—our real estate license scholarship deadline is this Friday.”
Every one of those has:
✅ What to do
✅ How to do it
✅ Why it should be done
immediately
Say It. Show It. Then Repeat It.
Your CTA should be visible
multiple times in your message:
- One at the top
- One in the middle
- One at the bottom
If you’re afraid of being too aggressive with your call to action, ask yourself:
Am I afraid of helping someone?
Because that’s what a great CTA does—
It helps the reader move forward.
It removes doubt and creates direction.
Marketing is Not Art
It’s not a game of likes or views.
It’s a game of results.
You’re not writing poetry.
You’re writing instructions.
You’re building a bridge from curiosity to commitment.
So from now on:
- Never run an ad without a CTA.
- Never speak without knowing what comes next.
- And never confuse “interest” with “action.”
You must tell your customers:
What to do. How to do it. And to do it now.
Nick McLean
The Reside Platform – Where leaders go to build teams.
