Sales and marketing, whether it be to a consumer or business, has gotten really complicated. With all the different ways to broadcast messages from traditional to digital, inbound to outbound, and everything in between, how do we know what is working and what is not? After all, we (humans in general) are bombarded with literally thousands of messages each and every day, what is it that we pay attention to and what is it that marketers should be broadcasting? And how?
Depending on who you listen to, you will hear that you need to have a website that is optimized for SEO (Search Engine Optimization) and SEM (Search Engine Marketing). Others will tell you that you HAVE to have a social strategy that uses all the various platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram and a whole bunch of others. They will say that you need to be blogging, producing vlogs, whitepapers and thought leadership pieces for other blogs or publications.
It is all very confusing. And, just like great business strategy, you CANNOT be ALL THINGS to all people.
Simple answer. Don’t try to complicate a cheeseburger. Do what works for your target audience.
First, determine who your audience is and what they need in order to move from a place of being unaware towards awareness, interest, research and purchase. Your audience will be different from someone else’s. It will even be different than your competitor’s because you should be delivering different value. Sales and marketing should be unique for every business!
Second, don’t boil the ocean. You will be better served to produce fewer more focused (and potentially more expensive) messages than blasting out messages on every medium known to mankind. It will be, in the long run, more effective and way more efficient.
Finally, everyone you know thinks they are an expert at marketing. They all have opinions about what you should be doing. What the creative should look like. How much money you should spend. Remember this… Those well-meaning advisors are probably not your target audience. Do what works for your audience. If you don’t know what works for your audience, start asking questions of customers as to how they found you, why they bought and why they continue to buy.
Robert Murray is a Vancouver, BC based Business Strategy Consultant, partner at Incrementa Consulting Inc., #1 Best Selling Author, and International Keynote Speaker. For further advice, insight and inspiration on how to unlock your inner leader, follow Robert on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook.
Tags: Business, Business Strategy, Marketing, Marketing Excellence, Marketing Strategy, Sales, Sales Strategy, Vancouver BC
