Why strategy works
I mentioned last week that it’s so easy to put the cart before the horse when you’re excited about a new business venture, product or service. So many times entrepreneurs and businesses rush to market before considering the implications to their business operations and brand. And when you do that you risk damaging your reputation for quality and service, and ultimately your brand.
For entrepreneurs I always encourage taking a deep breath and turning off the “I know I need…” switch. What’s the “I know I need…” switch? It’s the switch that stops all the assumptions and daydreams related to promotion and marketing that many entrepreneurs have. You can’t wait to put your first ad in the phone book or the local paper - or set up your website. I say, “Flip the switch! You haven’t asked the tough questions yet!”
Marketing, public relations, corporate communications and even advertising should revolve around someone else besides you the business owner. It should revolve around the customer. Who do you really want to do business with? Where are they? What do they do? read? listen to? see? visit? play? Who do they work with, talk to, live near etc.? Profiling your customer - the one you really want, the one who has the time, money and inclination to do business with you may seem like a breeze. But when you really start hashing through your answers, you might be surprised by what you find.
In working with individual clients and organizations, I’ve found that the answer to many of the questions above help you establish the core of your marketing and promotion plan. Why advertise in the local paper if 90% of your target market doesn’t subscribe? Perhaps dollars are best spent in creating a key event rather than radio spot advertising - it will all depend on what helps you reach your target audience AND tell your story.
Take a few days to really get to know your customers or potential customers. Let the information you gather guide your outreach strategies and see where that takes you before you commit to spending your hard earned dollars in a medium that has low return on investment.
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Vibrant Resource
Sarah Zink’s “Not Everyone With a Checkbook is Your Customer” is a fantastic book that I had the privilege of working on in part. Sarah’s no-nonsense approach to disecting your target audience is a proven success.
It’s available at Amazon.com or you can always reach out to Sarah herself for some dynamic training.
Putting the cart before the horse
So often in business it’s easy for entrepreneurs to put the proverbial cart before the horse. When seeking to start marketing and promoting your company, organization or program I cannot emphasize enough how important it is to have clearly defined objectives and make a comprehensive list of elements of your business that need to be in place in order to achieve those objectives.
For example, don’t order those business cards before you have your website domain registered. Don’t register the domain name until you’ve developed a solid branding plan for your business. The benefits of fully developing a plan before you start your public relations or marketing efforts (of any kind) are immeasurable.
In the weeks ahead I’ll be blogging about important things business owners and managers need to consider relative to their branding, marketing and public relations efforts. Hope you’ll stop back in and share your ideas and experiences.
TRD