Promotions used to be easy. It was all about just talking to people; telling them the valuable assets you had to offer. In today’s world, the way we go about this has changed.
Inbound marketing is the new way to do business. With the dawn of the internet, businesses can now capture clients while the owners are asleep. It’s become the new dream to not have to work, but just have money flowing while you do what you want. (Let’s be honest, there’s still work involved, but probably a lot less stressful than putting in the 50 hours a week in another employment role.)
Social media has become a large part of this promotional network of inbound marketing. With more platforms appearing by the day and mobile apps joining that arena, it’s hard to decide where your time is best spent. It should NEVER be your goal to try and be on all of them. There are far too many to manage successfully.
Think about your business. Who are your customers? What value are they seeking? Are they men, women, young, experienced, local, country-wide? There are a lot of questions you can ask to narrow down your target audience. This is one of the first things you look at when defining your marketing strategy. If you don’t know who you are trying to sell to, how can you reach them?
“We do everything! We sell to everyone!”
In the history of the world, NO ONE has ever done everything or sold to everyone. Even companies like Amazon and Wal-mart have a target audience. It’s not that they don’t have a number of valuable items and sell to a wide range of people, but there are things that they do REALLY well and their marketing focuses on that.
Let’s take Amazon for example. Do you think they are targeting people in their marketing that go to their local mom and pop shop 3 blocks from their house once a week for the same items they have been buying at that store for the last 30 years? Probably not. Their market are those individuals who are living in a fast paces environment where they don’t always have time to shop. The internet savvy generations who want to access more than a local store can house. Amazon has done very well with expanding their product lines and improving the time to receive shipments. They will continue to do so until they reach a point that they can no longer sustain beyond that point. (Like all businesses, there’s nearly always room for some improvement.)
So, then let’s think about your business. What do you do REALLY well? Who are your repeat customers? What would they say if they were to give a review of your business? Are you focusing your marketing efforts on these things or are you trying to sell ice to Eskimos? It’s not to say that perhaps you are trying to make a change in your business and take on a new dimension or take a different path. Businesses will do this over time. Take a look at the change in the photography world. At one point, it went digital. Film cameras are not the norm any longer.
Looking Ahead
Over the next week, think about these questions. Write down some ideas you have on your assets and customers. Next week we’ll dig into the best ways to determine your best sale-able assets and the audience you should be trying to reach. You will be on your way to taking control of your business’s online presence.
Next week too long to wait? Feel free to schedule a Coffee Consult with me before then. We’ll discuss your business and what you can start doing to make a difference right away.
