Whether you work as a full-time marketer or run your own business, your marketing efforts should always be a top priority. If they’re not, you are likely watching money fly out the window.
With that being said, some marketers and/or business owners fail to push quickly enough on their marketing efforts, leaving them in the dust when it comes to staying up to speed with the competition.
From marketing auto insurance to healthcare needs to real estate and beyond, you should always stop and review your marketing strategy from time to time. In doing so, you can see where you may be falling behind and where you need to pick up some speed in order to stay out in front of competitors.
Covers Your Bases
Before you set out on your next marketing initiative, take some time to review you game-plan and see where you may be lagging.
Your marketing strategy should include the following:
- Focus – First and foremost, all your marketing campaigns must have a focus. Whether you are marketing insurance policies, wills, products and services to improve healthcare for senior citizens or just about anything else, you need to focus. Use this resource and that resource to get a handle first on your demographics. If you’re marketing auto insurance to families, those without teenagers of the legal driving age are not going to be worth a great deal of your time now. Maybe down the road they will, but now the focus should be on families with kids in college, especially those who are likely to drive (students living a notable distance from home etc.). If you are marketing wills, you are likely not going to have much success with anyone under the age of 40 or so. Also keep in mind that consumers in their later teens, 20’s, 30’s, 40’s etc. tend to be more active on social media (see more below) than older individuals;
- Socialize – If you are failing to use social media in your marketing campaigns, you are once again putting yourself behind the eight ball. Marketing via Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn etc. will put you and your brand in front of countless more eyes. The key here is to socialize without becoming a nuisance. Along with being socially active in answering consumer marketing questions and solving consumer issues where possible, you need to leave them with a call to action (see more below). Lastly, make sure ALL your social media platforms have contact information so consumers can follow up with you when necessary;
- Action – Last but certainly not least, make sure you leave consumers with a call to action in all your marketing campaigns. Not doing so leaves your marketing efforts rather up in the air; you may or may not hear back from those you pitch. Be sure to show consumers why it is to their benefit to do business with you, make available enticing offers that are all but too good to turn down, and certainly make the process easy. If you leave consumers with a messy contact scenario (bad links, confusing information etc.), don’t hold your breath waiting to hear from them.
About the Author: Dave Thomas writes for a variety of websites on topics such as marketing and technology.