| |
| |
|
Marketing Information |
|
|
|
Budget Marketing: Managing Your Marketing Money Wisely!
There's a saying that half of all marketing efforts are wasted, but it's impossible to tell which half! I know from hard won experience how easy it is to waste money on marketing. When I first set up my own business in 1998, I spent tens of thousands of dollars employing the best graphic designer and printing a great glossy brochure. The feedback was 'Tom, that's one of the best glossy brochures I've seen!' But did it get me customers and help build my business? No! It was a pure ego trip. Now I know better. Most marketing efforts are done for purely ego reasons alone and almost all fail to live up to expectations. So what can you do about it? I believe the best marketing campaigns are built not on glossy brochures or expensive TV advertising but on understanding the needs and wants of consumers and then providing solutions to these needs and wants. Much of this is done by building powerful personal relationships and using the media to create awareness, credibility and trust in the hearts and minds of consumers. Here are the Top 10 Questions to Ask Before Spending Another Cent on Marketing. And, help solve that perennial question of how NOT to waste half your marketing efforts! 1. WHAT AM I TRYING TO ACHIEVE? Always start with an objective in mind. Is it to attract new customers in a start-up phase or retain long-term loyal customers? The marketing tools and tactics for each of these questions will be vastly different. Remember to set SMART Goals. => Specific 2. WHO IS MY BROAD MARKET? Who exactly are you trying to target? The more you can find out about them the better. What industry do they work in, what is their level of education and income, what are their values and beliefs and where do they live are just a couple for questions to consider. 3. WHO IS MY SPECIFIC TARGET MARKET? If you have a broad market try and segment it down. The more specific you can be the better. Think of the best way to eat a delicious and juicy orange. You must carefully peel away the astringent protective skin of the orange. Inside is the juicy flesh. When you have done this, carefully separate each segment without spilling a drop of juice. Take time to examine and focus on each market segment based on a range of different wants and needs. Regardless of size, each target market must be treated with precision and respect. 4. WHAT IS MY NICHE? I heard a great saying from fellow speaker Maree Wrack recently. "Provide the fruit, not the whole supermarket!". Focus on your strengths and deliver this product or service really well. 5. WHAT PROBLEM CAN I SOLVE? I believe running a successful business is pretty simple. As Bill Clinton said 'most of the big things in life are simple'. Being in business is about finding out about people's problems and then providing a solution for them. Whether you are running a multi-million dollar enterprise or a business from home, the principles are the same. 6. WHAT MAKES MY SOLUTION UNIQUE? What is it that makes your solution to a problem unique? Is it different from all the other possible solutions in the marketplace? This is commonly known as a 'Unique Selling Proposition' or USP. Identifying your USP helps to define your marketing strengths and identify markets. 7. HOW DO I REACH MY TARGET MARKET? What is the best way to reach your target audience? How do they get their information? Is it worth of mouth, personal referrals or through the media? 8. HOW WILL I DELIVER THE SOLUTION? What is the best way to deliver the business solution? What are the best and most cost effective distribution channels for my product or service? The channel chosen to communicate your message can define expense and effectiveness. Be realistic and savvy, make optimum use of your budget without cutting corners. 9. HOW MUCH WILL I CHARGE? Pricing is a very sensitive issue. Do you want to position your product or service as a low cost, high volume business or high value, exclusive and expensive. Make well informed, long term decisions keeping in mind your company's needs and those of your target market. 10. HOW WILL I RETAIN EXISTING CUSTOMERS? It is more expensive to attract new customers than service existing ones. The research shows that if you increase repeat business by 5 per cent you can increase your profitability by more than 35 per cent. How will you keep and retain existing customers? Create a structured model to follow for all clients and keep this is a high priority. Thomas Murrell MBA CSP is an international business speaker, consultant and award-winning broadcaster. Media Motivators is his regular electronic magazine read by 7,000 professionals in 15 different countries. You can subscribe by visiting http://www.8mmedia.com. Thomas can be contacted directly at +6189388 6888 and is available to speak to your conference, seminar or event. Visit Tom's blog at http://www.8mmedia.blogspot.com
MORE RESOURCES:
Google News |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Devious and Deceptive Packaging Have you read anything in the news lately about childhood obesity, Jose Canseco and steroids, or fat free foods? Where is the truth in any of that?If only we lived and shopped in a pure world where labels told the whole truth and nothing but the truth. But while consumers rely on labels to make wise nutritional choices, food manufacturers use labels to sell their product. Marketers VS Consumers Predators VS Prey The distance between marketing consultants and the real world can truly be mind boggling. When a marketing consultant tells someone to send out 10,000 postcards in order to get a 3% response rate and that the actual sales will be something less than that . How to Convey Trustworthiness in Direct Mail Marketing Sales Letter A person or business that might buy from you is called a prospect. But they might just as accurately be called a skeptic. Be Prepared for Marketing For most businesses, making a sale is all important. However, despite the amount of effort and attention given to getting sales, there is often no attention given to developing and effectively implementing a systematic marketing process. A Look at Color Brochure Printing Brochures have become vital in today's workplace, serving a wide variety of purposes. Some are quite complex and others are simpler; color brochure printing is one of the simpler options. Direct Mail Response Rate Boosters (12 tips and ideas) 1. Mail to a different list Your list is the most important part of your direct mail campaign. Step by Step Guide to an SMS Campaign SMS is good for:? Short lead times and immediacy ? Cost effective personalised communication ? Ongoing 1 to 1 relationships ? Automated data capture and compliance ? Direct revenue and uplift opportunitiesBasic Rules for SMSIn addition to permission, there are five key elements that differentiate SMS marketing from traditional marketing. These are also the key success factors for its use. You Cannot - Not Market Everything you do - or don't do sends a message and marketing is about sending messages. You can market well or you can market poorly, but you cannot - not market!What message are you sending with your dress, stationery, phone message and printed materials? Is it the message you intend to send? Your prospects don't listen only to the message you want to send - they observe and interpret your unintended messages as well. Tricks of the Trade: Design your Booth for Maximum Impact The fight for your customer's attention at a tradeshow has never been so intense. Budget cutbacks in the travel sector means that buyers spend less time than ever at shows. Catalogs are Selling Machines If you've got a mailbox, you're no doubt aware of the popularity of catalogs. People love to look through catalogs, and more important, they love to buy from catalogs. Design Direct Mail Postcards Back-to-Front to Boost Response Rates Conventional wisdom says that the front of a direct mail postcard is for the picture and the back is for the address, stamp and a short message.But some savvy direct marketers design their postcards the other way around-and boost response rates as a result. How To Create Urgency So People Buy Now .. Financial Services Marketing Insights: A Marketing Compass What we now call "marketing" began long before the name was coined. In the mid-1800s, traveling salesmen dressed "snake oil" and other tonics in fancy packaging and extolled their virtues to a gullible public. Free Sample Sales Letter: Example of How to Write a Persuasive Business Marketing Letter Here is an example of a business-to-business sales letter mailed to auto dealers by a firm that markets gift cards that replace paper gift certificates. Anything in brackets [like this] did not appear in the letter but simply appears to describe the mechanics of the letterAuthor: Alan Sharpe Target audience: General managers of auto dealerships Mailer: Sharpe AutoCards [a fictional company for the purposes of this sample letter] Purpose: Generate appointments for salespeople[MAILING ENVELOPE] [Is 5 x 9 inches in dimension and has a window, through which appears a portion of a gift card, personalized with the prospect's name. Advertising Your Private Practice: 6 Tips for Maximizing Your Results-Part 2 As discussed in part 1 of this article, "Your Private Practice: Beware of the Problems," I usually don't recommend advertising as a main method of marketing a practice for new coaches, counselors and healing professionals. There are often more cost-effective ways to get the word out and attract clients. Are Your Prospects Walking Out on You? After 11 years in sales, I've put together and delivered more sales presentations, briefings, and demos than I care to remember. But the nice thing about repetition is that after a few dozen presentations you get very good at reading body language. Specialized Mailing Lists Make All the Difference If there is one thing I can't say enough it is that the most important part of your mailing campaign is your mailing list. It is vital that you put the right amount of energy into learning about lists - who to mail to - so that your mailing efforts aren't wasted. 5 Print Ad Essentials! Writing an effective print ad, particularly a classified advertisement, requires that you remember five essential points. Failure to implement these points correctly can cost you much in the way of time lost and a sale missed. Unleash the Powerful Promoter Within Dear Friend,You're ripping me off.How? You may be thinking, "We just met. Marketing Tips- Who Are You Competing With? Before you can market, you need to know who you are marketing to. Who is your customer? How will you market? Will you cold call, mail, set appointments or employ a walk in approach? Be careful with the walk in approach as many businesses do not permit soliciting.
|
| home | site map |
| © 2006 |
