Marketing your spiritual business

22 May

How to market your spiritual business if you feel misaligned with modern marketing strategies.

Common marketing struggles for the spiritual business owner

One of the biggest marketing struggles many spiritual businesses face today is that many modern marketing strategies feel totally out of alignment with their values. This misalignment can cause much inner conflict, anxiety and overwhelm for the spiritual business owner. Especially when so many marketers are constantly pushing that the only way to success is by using certain strategies and nothing else.

As a holistic and spiritual business owner myself for nearly 25 years, I fully understand these difficult challenges and although I do believe certain strategies work well for many, I equally appreciate how important it is for each business to assess its own unique needs and aspirations.

Finding a more spiritual approach to marketing

One of the main reasons I began to look for a more spiritual approach to marketing was so I could help many of my fellow therapists and coaches. Most spiritual business owners and entrepreneurs who begin to deepen their spiritual path do so because they know how important it is for them to become more aligned with themselves and their truth at a core level. The deeper they go on that journey, the more their level of awareness and spiritual consciousness heightens. Consequently, many aspects of society, particularly the illusions and superficialities, feel totally incongruent with their brand's values and core message. It is one of the reasons why so many spiritual businesses begin to seek more authentic, aligned marketing and branding strategies.

So what is authentic marketing?

Well from a marketing perspective, authentic marketing is centred around transparency in your business, marketing your brand’s core values and beliefs. Some marketers may, for example, state that certain brands are completely authentic, whilst some of us may view this statement very differently. So for instance, some large corporate companies use certain branding and marketing strategies to imply they are safe, trustworthy and really care about their customers, whilst the reality may indeed be very different. For example, one famous baby skincare manufacturer implied for many years that they really cared about families and babies, when in fact they knowingly used ingredients that were highly toxic and linked to certain cancers.

Sometimes small business owners presume that authentic marketing means they have to show up and share almost everything about their life with their audience. And of course, transparency on so many levels is key, but authentic marketing is sharing the truth about what truly matters to you and your audience. It really comes down to core values and traits. That is why I am a great believer in combining a spiritual approach to marketing with archetypal branding and marketing.

What is archetypal branding and marketing?

Archetypal branding and marketing is a simple yet powerful way to authentically convey the key core values and traits of your brand to your audience. It speaks to your ideal clients on a conscious and unconscious level, tapping into their wants and needs. For the spiritual business that is wholeheartedly focused on working with soul clients, the clients they are here to serve, this can be a powerful and highly effective way to brand their business in a deeply authentic way. Especially when they are energetically and consciously aware of the subtle differences within their offerings.

The reality is that the holistic and spiritual sector has exploded and so many spiritual businesses are struggling with visibility. Even some experts in this field are struggling to stand out from the crowd and to get their unique message across in a simple and effective way, amidst a chaotic online space.

This is why archetypal branding is a highly effective way to get your message across to your ideal clients. It helps you to identify your most dominant brand archetypes, the archetypal traits and values that are at the heart of your business and so important to your soul clients. So that you find it much easier to choose themes, styles, colours, fonts and imagery aligned with your brand’s strengths, values and traits.

Four common mistakes spiritual businesses make around marketing

Some of the most common mistakes in branding and marketing that many holistic and spiritual businesses make are:

1. Poor branding

Not investing enough time or money in creating an effective brand. The right brand is worth its weight in gold, as it helps you to stand out from the crowd, make an impact, helping people to remember you and your brand.

2. Choosing the wrong brand colours and styling

So many holistic and spiritual businesses choose colours, fonts and images that they like, rather than choosing those that resonate with the core values of their products and those of their audience. Many choose colours they are attracted to because it is a colour that they need more of in their own life. Therefore, it may not represent the energetic blueprint of the skills and gifts that they are sharing.

3. Focusing on a poor social media strategy

Another major problem is focusing on a social media platform and strategy that doesn't align with you, your business or your ideal clients. Perhaps you have been told by a marketing coach or social media strategist that this is what you need to do. Every spiritual business is unique, therefore a marketing strategy should relate to specific business needs. A “one size fits all” approach rarely works.

4. Poverty mindset

A poverty mindset can show up in all sorts of ways within a business and can be especially evident via your advertising and marketing. It can show up as resistance, fear or distortions around investing financially in your advertising and marketing. It can also show up as playing small or even treating your work as a hobby rather than a healthy, thriving business.

Many heart-centred and spiritual businesses carry a lot of distortions around their work, creating unhealthy patterns and beliefs about charging money for their services, advertising and marketing. This is very common in archetypes such as the “Caregiver” who by its very nature is generous and altruistic. Or the “Orphan” who tries to cater for everyone and anyone, costing their business dearly.

Recognising poverty traits, which can often show up as the “Slave” archetype or “Servant” archetype, can help you to identify areas in your life and work that you need to work on and resolve.

4 ways to get soul aligned in your marketing

The more aligned you are with your purpose and business, the easier it is to intuitively and spiritually be guided by what feels right and wrong You will also begin to understand the difference between your triggers, your fears and what is right for you and your business.

1. Identify your most dominant brand archetype

Identifying your brand’s most dominant archetype can help you to identify some of the most common values and traits that are your biggest soul client attractors. These key values and traits on an unconscious level, will build a better connection and a sense of trust with your audience.

2. Invest in creating an authentic spiritual archetypal brand

Invest in creating an authentically spiritual archetypal brand, to help you stand out both online and offline. A unique brand identity that feels so natural and aligned with what you and your brand stand for. A brand message that speaks deeply to the wants and needs of your audience. Invest in an archetypal theme that tells a story, that helps them hear, see and feel the core values that your brand provides within your products and services.

3. Focus on creating a spiritually aligned marketing strategy

Focus on creating and building a spiritually aligned marketing strategy that is in line with the core values of your brand and your audience. Only choose social media strategies that feel aligned with your brand's messaging.

4. Tap into the power of your brand’s archetypal strengths

Tap into the energetic power of the strongest traits and values of your brand, in order to create and build an authentic mindset. It is much easier to build confidence and success with services and offerings that you deliver naturally and effortlessly.