You know the term, "ambulance chaser."

It refers to attorneys who prey on victims of accidents in the hope of retaining them as clients and making a buck off their misfortune.

I recently ran across a joke that pokes fun at this practice ...

Two personal injury lawyers met at a cocktail party. Hows business? asked the first.

Rotten, replied the other. Yesterday, I chased an ambulance for twenty miles. When I finally caught up to it, there was already another lawyer hanging on to the bumper.

So what does this have to do with marketing?

Well, there are some professionals besides attorneys who practice what I call "ambulance chaser" marketing.

Here's how it goes ...

You get a phone call or email from someone who saw your website, your ad, or heard about your business. Their sales pitch is not to ask about your business or how they might be able to help you, or even to sell you on the merits of their services or cite results they've gotten for others in business' similar to yours.

Rather, they point out that they've noticed you're not doing a very good job at whatever it is they do, and they point out if you want to improve, they can most certainly help you.

It never ceases to amaze me that people think this tactic might work. Why on earth would you want to do business with someone who hasn't even taken the time to first ask about your business or your results, and who has more or less insulted you on their first contact?

They may be very good at what they do, but if they don't take the time to first ask about your situation or the results you're currently getting, how can they possibly know if they can help you do better?

I believe you should always listen before you offer advice.

Find out what your prospect needs and where their challenges are. Then determine how you can best help them.

So, whatever business you're in, please don't practice "ambulance chaser" marketing.

Always, always, always take the time to get to know your prospective clients and their needs before you assume you know how to best help them.

And the best way to do that is to ask questions and listen.

I'm sure I've been guilty on occasion of making judgments about other people's marketing, assuming it wasn't working because it didn't fit the mold of what I consider to be the "right" way to market.

But what I have come to realize is that I need to accept that just because someone isn't doing things "my" way, doesn't mean they're not getting results.

So whether you're a coach, a financial planner, a teacher, a trainer, or any other professional offering a service, realize the best way to market is NOT to judge your prospects and assume you always know better.

Ask questions.

Learn what your prospects and clients need. And then tell them how you can help them achieve that. You'll not only get a much warmer response and better results, you'll probably feel a whole lot better when you're marketing yourself.

Debbie LaChusa

Debbie LaChusa is a marketing veteran with 20 years in the business. After 13 years in the advertising and marketing agency business, Debbie founded DLC Marketing, Inc., a marketing consulting and coaching business. Her goal? To give entrepreneurs and small business owners affordable access to the same high-level strategic marketing and advertising expertise that typically only large companies with big budgets can afford.

Debbie's commitment to making marketing expertise accessible to small business also led her to pursue speaking engagements and teaching. She has spoken at meetings and conventions across the United States and in Canada. She also is on the faculty of Wellcoaches Corporation, where she teaches wellness coach trainees around the world how to successfully market their new coaching practices.

Debbie has written and self-published two marketing workbooks, "A Step-by-Step Marketing Guide" and "A Step-by-Step Marketing Guide for Your Fitness Business" which have sold copies worldwide. Her advice is also featured in Entrepreneur Magazine's "How to Start a Personal Training Business," part of the magazine's Business Start-Up Series. And she is a contributor to the San Diego Business Journal.

Debbie created The 10stepmarketing? System to provide small business owners, coaches, consultants and other independent professionals with all the tools they need to market themselves.

This simple, step-by-step system, features an easy-to-use question-and-answer format that walks business owners through every step they need to take to develop and implement their own marketing plan designed to achieve the success they desire and deserve.

On a more personal note, Debbie LaChusa is a fraternal twin. In 2004 she launched Twin Connections, a web site that celebrates the unique and mysterious bond shared by twins. She collects twin stories and hopes to compile them into a book.