Marketing Makes4More Marketing

I’ve said it so many times lately – mostly as a sort of a preparation for what is to come for our prospective new clients.

The more marketing you do, the more there is to be done. We’ve been talking with a lot of companies who’ve gotten to where they are in spite of not having consistent marketing. Once they jump on the train, they quickly see what we’ve been saying. Some may say the concept is a great racket for companies like mine. Well, it does generate a lot of ongoing work, but the real benefit for us is seeing how instituting a plan works.

You’ve gotten where you are without a conscious effort to share your story, spread the word, and help people see and understand your value – imagine how much better things can be with consistent messaging, right?

Recognize It and Use It2Fuel Growth

Before you started this marketing thing, you were plenty busy and perhaps you even saw success. Now some consultant is telling you it’s important to have a strong website, to update its content regularly, and to have news to share on a variety of platforms. They want you to find your voice, message it consistently, and even find ways to talk to people who used to be clients or prospects in the same manner. Then, you have to do it all again next month.

It never ends.

That’s right – the business development process, a DRIP marketing program, nurturing relationships, starting new client engagements, and ongoing care for clients really is truly never-ending. You may as well take note of that, and make sure you’re doing what you can to get more people into that process and more clients cared for in better ways.

Once you start – you won’t see a finish line. And that’s a good thing.

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Systems4Everything

It’s an observation and it isn’t the case in every circumstance.

For more than two decades I managed sales departments in the television advertising industry. Most of the prospects we spoke to didn’t have any kind of advertising budgets or plans in place. They’d often select their buys based on their current circumstances: how they felt at the time, how their cash flow was, or if they needed to make that extra sale.

Now, as an Advertising Czar, I’ve spent the last ten years working with a lot of business owners – smart people – who have plans in place for everything from time tracking and human resources, to financial reporting and operations. They pay close attention to how their systems keep products or services moving through their processes and wouldn’t think of ignoring a monthly report or a problem with production. Yet their marketing and advertising is so often left to chance.

Why Not Plan4Your Marketing?

It’s probably because business owners don’t understand the power of advertising or marketing. Maybe it happens due to the fact that these parts of a growing business are at times hard to quantify. Whether it’s one of these reasons, or it’s the result of something else, there’s no doubt a smart organization needs to have some sort of a marketing system and advertising plan.

The first step? You start.

It’s as simple as that, really. Figure out who you want to speak to, what you want to say, and take the leap. The thing about systems and plans is that you can always improve them. The failure happens when, like many companies, you don’t have anything in place at all. Even if you aren’t an advertising expert – you have to start somewhere. A business can always make its processes better, but it can’t improve anything until that system is in place.

Market (and advertise) away, people – THEN get better at it.

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Advertising2Get Noticed

I’m convinced some ads are invisible.

Well, they certainly take up space or air, but they get skipped or ignored more than spam on a Monday morning. You know the ads I’m talking about – the tire ads that used to run in the sports section listing every available size and price, the radio commercials for the local company that tell you they believe in quality or have been in business since some year way back when, and of course the screaming car dealers appearing in commercials that run on TV. Sure you may have a passing awareness someone is saying or sharing something, but as soon as those attempts reach your eyes or ears, you’re gone. Zero interest (and not the kind of deal those same car guys are trying to sell you).

Basically – those ads are ignored. Or more directly, they are invisible.

The Difference4You

Why do companies insist on using the same tired tactics when trying to vie for your interest, attention, or even better when trying to get your direct response to their marketing and advertising? The answer may be a simple one – and it likely takes you back to junior high school…

It’s probably fear. Or maybe it’s because “everyone else is doing it”.

Businesses are afraid to make their advertisements different. One car dealer shouts at the TV audience so the other one decides they have to yell at their radio listeners. Neither has figured out – at that point – no one is really listening (or watching or reading). Yet it continues.

Wise marketers use their platforms to gain access, to get attention, or to create interest. Step outside of the norm, color outside of the lines, and think outside of the box… whatever you do, get away from the advertising templates that have embedded themselves into your industry. The purpose is to build awareness and get noticed.

That almost never happens with invisible ads.

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Sprucing Up2Make an Impression

Way back in the olden days, the proverbial shot of the storekeeper with a broom at his front step, apron tied around his waist, seemed to be everywhere. You know the scene. Mister Jones’ grocery (florist, hardware store, drug store, candy shop, appliance outlet, etc.) was the Main Street retailer and everyone knew his name. In the window was the display with his hot-selling items, specials, and maybe some local news of interest.

Mr. Jones wouldn’t dream of opening his store without sweeping the entrance area or washing the windows, updating his posters or flipping the “closed” sign to “open”. After all, dozens – maybe hundreds – of people would be walking by that day and he needed to put his best foot forward to earn his share of their hard earned money.

Mind the Store4Faster Growth

These days you have your own entrance area to tend.

You may not be Amazon, or even a mid-sized web company, but there’s a good chance you have dozens or hundreds of people coming by your online storefront. At the end of the year, even a small traffic website likely has thousands of visitors. Maybe there are even tens of thousands of people visiting your website. And yet, unlike the storekeeper, you’ve probably not cleaned the windows, rearranged the items on display, or swept out the entryway.

We’ve spoken to scores of business owners who have let their website go untouched. Not just for days or weeks, but virtually untouched for months or years.

How does that happen? You wouldn’t dream of letting your shop go, but that first impression that initiates a consumer or patient’s choice remains out of date, unattractive, and maybe not even responsive to visitors who choose to “surf” on their phones or tablets.

It’s true you can have a successful business without a relevant and enticing website. But why would you? In these “uber” competitive economic times, there are some simple ways to keep up with Mr. Jones. Build a useful and attractive website and make a plan to update it on a regular schedule. It’s as simple as minding the store.

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Pictures2Enjoy

Galaxys, iPhones, Google Pixels, and the sort produce so many great memories. After all, without them, how would a person ever have invented the selfie stick? The contraptions help capture memories, friends, funny faces, kiddos, siblings, and funny signs and advertisements. They’re good for that for sure.

Occasionally, things work just right and you accidentally – or even sort of on purpose – get that perfect photo. Just a touch here or a shift there can make you look like you know what you’re doing. Suddenly, you’re feeling like Brett Winter Lemon or Molly Doyle and you want the world to know it.

Maybe that’s why Instagram and other visually-driven sites have gotten so popular.

Over the past few years we’ve gone from assisting companies with their websites to actually building them ourselves. We’ve done design work for a good bit of them. While there are times you have to insert a stock photo here or there, we don’t take the decision lightly. It’s important to think carefully before finalizing your photographic selections.

Photography4Branding

It’s near impossible to build a great website without quality images. Words don’t usually cut it when placed plainly with nothing to draw in the eye of the visitor. The same goes with an interrupting image in a corporate piece or in your sales materials.

There are a lot of places you can take a shortcut. For years we’ve encouraged our clients not to cut corners when it comes to top notch photography. It completely transformed the Rockfish Food and Wine brand we rebuilt this year. (You may also remember a few months back when I wrote about bad photography impacting my buying decision at a fast food joint along the highway.)

Whether it’s a one dollar hamburger or a twelve dollar hamburger, good imagery is paramount to good advertising AND good marketing. And it’s not just with food. So go ahead and enjoy your camera phones and happen upon that perfect shot – just don’t let it be a substitute for the real thing when it comes to your company’s branding.

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Manuals2Educate

My Dad calls them “destructions”. You know – the printed papers that come with most electronic items or things that need to be put together. Detailed explanations of pieces and parts and how they all operate are provided in order to help you complete the process of putting something together for use. These also help answer questions if you’ve got a product and just can’t quite figure out how to make it work the way it is supposed to.

They explain everything.

Well they do if you are patient enough to read them or do what they map, show, or say. They’re perfect for the engineer types who want details, information, and specifics. People like me get bored really quickly and just try to figure it out. I guess that’s why I’m not very good at the products labeled “Some Assembly Required”.

On the other hand, this perpetual struggle I have leads to a helpful marketing observation.

Websites4Marketing

A lot of companies – especially technology companies – like to use their websites like an instruction manual.

Most websites are supposed to be marketing tools. At least they are initially and as you determine how you’re going to build yours to attract customers (or patients or clients). Sure, you can put product specifications, schematics, directions to your location, answers to frequently asked questions, and things like that on your site. But where the real value these days comes is in the ability to connect with prospective users.

Think about that as you design your next website.

Is it easy to use? Does it catch someone’s eye or make them want to explore further? Is it helpful? Have you made it interesting? These are the types of questions that ought to drive most every website (even the fulfillment and technical ones). Naturally you’ll want it to be responsive so no matter what screen someone is using, they can have a good experience. And of course you eventually want to engage people and get them to take the steps needed to make a buying or appointment decision – over time. Websites should market first – then educate.

The bottom line is that your website is the new storefront. It’s what greets those interested in doing business with you. Start there.

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