One Size Does NOT Fit All When It Comes to Marketing Your Business
A few days ago I stopped by my local Peet’s coffee house, and found myself listening to a conversation between four, local business owners. The hot topic was Marketing—specifically, how to market themselves successfully without spending a lot of money. What surprised me most was the amount of time they took discussing the wrong things.
First of all, I applaude any small business owner for understanding the importance of Marketing, and taking the time out of their extremely busy schedule to discuss it. Few understand the importance of doing it well. Most only think about Marketing as a luxury, an afterthought, or after it’s time to renew their yellowpages listing.
At some point, a business owner asked the group, “What type of Marketing has worked for you?”, which sparked a lively conversation about what each have tried, and the results they’ve experienced. I guess logically, they all wanted to know what worked well because it might work for them. And, the feedback might help them get better results and avoid possible Marketing “mistakes”.
The problem is this approach does not work. Planning your Marketing is not like buying a tape dispenser or calculator at the local Office Depot. One size does NOT fit all. A particular Marketing vehicle may get results for one company, but may not have the same effect for another company—even if the companies are within the same industry. All businesses are unique. The values, goals and attitude of the business owner, experience, employees, customers and overall culture are different.
Also, most small business owners don’t know the direct results of their Marketing efforts. Some may be trackable to a certain degree, like a coupon or email campaign. But, most of the value you get from Marketing occurs indirectly or over time, and is impossible to measure. What results you actually see are only a small part of the goal. If you are Marketing well and your message is distributed consistently using a variety of vehicles, then you are building a foundation where your customers will remember your company, become familiar with your product/services, and feel more comfortable doing business with you in the future.
Rather than asking others what has worked for them, business owners should be asking themselves the right questions that will guide them to a successful outcome. Ask, “What does success mean for my business?”, “What would success look and feel like?”, “What are my short-term and long-term goals?”. Then, make it happen. A helpful resource for a simple, one-page, do-it-yourself, Marketing plan is the book entitled, The One-Day Marketing Plan : Organizing and Completing a Plan that Works by Roman G. Hiebing and Scott W. Cooper. Or, enlist the help of a professional to consult with you and create your unique Marketing Plan.
© Copyright 2008. Banana Creative. All rights reserved. Would you like to reproduce portions of this article? Please contact Banana Creative for permission.