Your Marketing Options
There are many marketing options available to businesses today.
Not all are needed or necessary for every business, but all businesses will have a core set of marketing items with other items tried and added over time.
What is your business currently using - online or offline - for its marketing strategy?
Let me tell you about a new local start up business called Sally’s Flowers.
Sally has just signed a lease in the main street of her city because it’s cheaper than the mall.
She is excited about getting her business up and running - but knows there is not as much foot traffic as the mall would have, so she has to do some marketing to let people know she is there.
Sally has a budget to start with so she has to prioritise what marketing she is going to do.
What items on the list do you think she needs to begin with?
Logo
Business Card
Labels / Card for ordered flowers
Signage - building, flag, sandwich board
Brochure / Flyer
Ad in the Local Paper
Website - basics - about, products, contact
Social Media - FB, Pinterest, LinkedIn
Online Directories - Yellow Pages, Localist
Network Groups
These will be similar to what most of you have and do.
As the business takes off Sally is always collecting customers and suppliers details at every opportunity to build up a database, plus gathering testimonials.
From this information Sally gets a good idea as to where her customers are coming from:
Print / Advertising - mail drop
Online / Website
Word of mouth
Now we visit Sally’s Flowers one year on:
Sally’s talent for floral arranging has lead to demonstrations and courses.
So not only does Sally sell flowers but she also sells her experties.
Her website now takes online orders.
Testimonials and Case Studies have been addedd to the website.
A monthly newsletter goes out to the database
A video tutorial has been added to the home page as a teaser for her courses, started a Youtube channel
The courses are advertised on the website, social media and the local paper.
The Facebook page has changed from pretty flower pictures to now inform and educate her followers.
Showing seasonal flowers, arrangements etc
She has a company delivery car/van signwritten, a uniform and a loyalty card system in place.
Joined a local Networking Group.
Sally has been building relationships with her suppliers and customers and decides to host a 'Business After 5' event at her premises.
From this event she gets invited to demonstrate at a local fundraising event,
Be a guest speaker at the local garden club,
Be a judge at a local schools gala day for the childrens flower growing project.
You get the idea!
Coming back to us – As business owners, we cannot afford to use just the one marketing vehicle of advertising to spread the word about our businesses, especially since there are so many other free or low-cost things that can be done to increase revenue.
And it’s important for you to understand that customers and prospects react differently to different marketing tools.
Every business is different as far as what marketing tools work best and in conjunction with each other.
And they will only work well if done on a consistent basis, and kept up-to-date!
Take time to look at your business from the customers side.
Remember you are solving someones problem : People buy something that helps achieve a goal that is particular to them. You need to sell results, not the product or service.
The old analogy : “They don’t want a quarter inch drill bit, They want a quarter inch hole.”
A Feature is what your product/service does.
A Benefit is what the customer can do with your product/service.
Get to know your customers, who they are, ask your customers for feedback.
If you don’t get the job - ask why. What could you improve on?
Check out your competitors, what works for them that you could adopt and do better?
Keep ahead of them.
So examine all the ways you market your business.
Keep using those that work, get rid of the ones that don’t.
Then add new tools from time to time.
Soon you’ll have a set of methods and tactics for generating business and growth.
You’ll find new comfort levels, and your marketing will grow as your business does.
My job in all of this is to help businesses sort through all those options you see in front of you - by create marketing tactics that support, reinforce and cross-promote each other, and by keeping the branding consistent across all for print, web and social media.
I would love to help you navigate your marketing strategy and implement what needs doing.