Marketing is the engine of your small business. Without marketing you’re just someone with a shingle out hoping people with stop by your store, website or ring your phone. We all know hope is not a strategy. The essence of marketing starts with positioning your business as a solution for a specific niche customer. Once you have a detailed customer profile, you then develop ways to attract the attention of that customer. If you start by building a relationship without trying to sell, you can develop an intimate understanding of your customers’ needs. Your marketing plan is all about positioning your business as the best option to meet those needs. The only way to grow your small business is to keep growth as your #1 goal.
There are four main goals of marketing
- Attract new customers
- Sell more products to existing customers
- Sell more expensive products to existing customers
- Persuade your customers to refer you to additional customers
How do you do it?
Message: The story you tell about what you do is critical to the success of your small business. Your message must be authentic and results driven. Be careful not to make your message all about industry jargon; focus on a statement which will drive your target customer to ask more questions. For example, “I can fix any sales team in 90 days?” Now, you want to make sure that you don’t make a statement that comes across as hype or unbelievable, but don’t be afraid to stake you claim for how your business is the best solution for your target customer.
Market: One of most common business mistakes I see is: small businesses (with limited time and resources) trying to focus on too large a market. Focus on a specific niche target customer. If everyone can use your product or service, no one will. Work on being a specialist in your industry. You will be able to charge more, and you’ll not have to compete as often. I remember, when my company focused on video production we were going after a government contract to do a video for the U.S. Air Force, and I will never forget one of the firms competing with us was called Air Force Video Production. Needless to say, they won the contract hands down. When you are a specialist, it’s very hard for generalists to compete with you. Niche your business.
Method: How you communicate with your target audience is important. Social media is the most cost effective marketing tool, but you shouldn’t start with social media. Focus on your website first. Make sure it represents your brand well and that it is easy to do business with you. Invest in an email marketing program such as www.Mailchimp.com to keep in touch with your existing customers and prospects. Once you have your target customer identified, then you should figure out where that customer spends time online and be a part of the conversation. Remember to “friendraise” first online. Build relationships first, then go for the sale.
Money: If you are not making money, you have an expensive hobby. You must make sure that you are pricing your products and services to make a profit. Make sure there’s a percentage of your overhead and administrative costs factored into your pricing along with your labor, materials, and shipping.
If you make sure that your message is converting customers, that you understand what your market needs, are clear on the best methods to communicate with your target customers and are making money, your business will soar.
Do you have any more M’s to add to marketing?
I would add “mind” because consumer psychology is important in the purchasing decision.
I would add “Map” in that each of your 4 Ms serve an establishing element – from initial strategy to customer targeting to positioning to monetization and a “Map” element would work across these variables to flex and mold the business over time. It might be something as simple as starting with quarterly or semi-annual check points to make sure the 4 M foundation is working properly and, if not, include a process to workout changes / updates.
Erik Michielsen
Very well done piece!!. I whole heartedly agree about being specific about one’s target market. So many busiensses operate on the “cast a wide net..” concept that truly hurts them because they can’t hone their message and their communications strategies when their market is diverse. I actually believe for some businesses (consultancies, home service businesses, etc.) they SHOULD start with a social media presence, like a well executed FaceBook page or robust LinkedIn profile. They are easier to manage, quick to put up and very searchable. I have clients that have done this well. Too often I see small businesses create a website that misses the mark on establishing the company in the marketplace and isn’t maintained so it becomes close to, if not totally, useless.
Hi Melinda,
These are great guidelines that also apply to revitalizing a older business that may have faltered due to marketplace changes. I especially like your directive to keep growth as the #1 goal. That’s a bulls-eye target that stays constant even with a changing marketplace. By providing new services or expanding services to meet emerging needs of a niche market, it would seem that growth would be the inevitable outcome. The revamped services would also serve to attract new customers. Thank you for this excellent post.
The four main goals of marketing is listed which is the essence marketing starts with.
Melinda,
I would add Mission to the list. Without a mission, the hustle and drive needed to distinguish yourself as a business is almost impossible. Mission is what fuels major dedication to blogging, being active on social media and being bold to make mistakes along the way.
Jeff
Good point.
I would add “Motivation”. Be motivated to share to potential customers on social media. If you can’t be online often, decide a few times a day to contribute to a conversation or provide information. Thanks for sharing. Great post.
Great article! I would add “measurement” to the list. Knowing how to measure your social footprint, the quality, content and quantity of conversation around your brand, and the effectiveness of your paid (advertising) and unpaid (PR) media efforts is paramount. It’s like getting dressed and going about your whole day without ever looking in the mirror: you might get lucky but you run the risk of smiling at everyone with something caught in in your teeth.
Thanks Melinda and everyone else who has posted. My website has just gone live and I am waiting for feedback on what is working and what I need to change. Your blog and the feedback comments has provided valuable insight in what I should do next to make my website more effective.