Good marketing is making absolutely sure that you are placing the right valuable message in front of the right person repeatedly. This is true for all industries.
Before you read on keep this in mind. Marketing should not cost you anything if done correctly. It is necessary to keep a business full of new customers. It is also THE SINGLE MOST IMPORTANT ACTIVITY A BUSINESS CAN DO. THERE IS NOTHING MORE IMPORTANT THAN MARKETING YOUR BUSINESS. IT COMES BEFORE EVERYTHING ELSE. Think about it.
A valuable, benefit based, message.
A great message always gives value and shows the benefits of doing business with you to the customer. You usually only have one shot at this so going on and on about how great you and your company is will be a waste of time. Get right to the value and benefits. Let the services or products you provide prove you are a great company.
Do you have a product or service where customers will buy from you again and again? If so, you might wat to consider making less profit on the first sale. Provided that you have a system in place to re-market to your customers. This way you make your profit long term. However, if you don’t have a system in place it’s going to be an uphill battel to make much from repeat purchases. An automation system is NOT expensive and in today’s business environment is a necessity not a luxury.
If you sell a product or service where there is not much repeat business, then you need to make all of your profit up front. Just make sure you do a complete competitive analysis to see what your competitors are selling the same products and services for and see if you can beat them and still make a profit. Alternatively, you can go the other way and make your price higher. Then you must show the value in your offerings over the competition. And great customer services and competency is not enough. We all expect that.
You need to track the income from all advertising and marketing. From ads to the pens and t-shirts, you give away. You need to know if your marketing is working and you do that by simple math. Revenue (by tracking) – Costs (production and placement) = Profit.
Who is your best customer?
Once you have your message crafted it’s time to find your new customers? In this world of data collection, it has become easier than ever to find your qualified customers. Determine what your best customer looks like. Age, Income, Geography, Race, Sex, marital status, etc. Fine-tune this, as it will help you save a fortune on advertising. Moreover, make sure if you are currently in business, you clone your current best customers.
So you now have a great clear message and a complete profile of your best customer. What do you do now? First, pat yourself on the back and know that in my twenty years of marketing you are of the very few companies that actually take these very important steps.
Find places to promote your message.
You must make absolutely sure that the media salespersons can prove beyond any doubt and through actual data that the customer you are trying to attract are visiting, reading, watching or listening to the media they sell placement. If they can’t then you walk away. Period. Unless you like throwing your money away. And if you do then give to charity. In addition, you must have the budget to repeat the offer in the media frequently or don’t do it.
A great foundation
Make sure that your website and your customer acquisition process is tested. Your website should have sections that you can directly point customers based on their interests. It should also be responsive to work in all devices (Desktop, Mobile). You should have a system of email collection and remarketing implemented. In addition, your entire sales staff should be familiar with all promotions. All of this is done before you advertise.
Two words about testing
Test everything. (What, that’s two words. you wanted more?) Just kidding. Test headlines, call to actions, images, etc.
So in recap.
- Good Marketing is the most important thing you can do in business.
- You need a high value message that will make you long or short term profits.
- You need to create a Unique Selling proposition (USP)
- Create a best customer profile.
- Place your marketing in the media that only serves your best customers.
- Have a great foundation.
- Track your marketing.
- Test everything.
Call me if you need help 732-818-0080 x102.
As always, your comments are welcomed and appreciated.
