|
Marketing Basics
The Truth, So Help Me! By Jack Potter, Founder and President |
|
When you talk about marketing basics you have to address the subject of sequences. Which comes first, the product or the marketing research? Good question you say, but how many of you said, the product of course! Well, that answer is the problem with many small businesses' marketing endeavors.. Stores like Pic'N'Save are the bone yards of great little ideas that nobody really wanted. Someone had a problem and solved it with a "bright idea" product. They were truly convinced that everybody would want their new product and buy it. They convinced others, got basic funding and started a "business." Next they "perfected" the product and finally wondered who would buy it, where they might be located and how the product might distributed. Alas, customers couldn't find them and /or they wouldn't buy. Big problem! Bankruptcy! Ten cents on the dollar. Not fun! The basic sequences were backwards. That's really the problem. It's not that the product was bad as such. It just wasn't needed or wanted in enough quantity to make it a viable enterprise. Why? The marketing research had been omitted. Someone didn't know that they should do it, how to do it, or they didn't even bother. The correct sequences are very important to success. Do you drive off before you open the car door and start the motor? Of course not. If your product or service business is already off the launching pad, listen closely! Before you run out of fuel and momentum you need to review and rethink your basic sequences. If you're on your final countdown, take heed. You could be way ahead and reach escape velocity -- if you get these correct. Marketing's purpose is to create want for your product or service and to sell it or to help the sales staff get it sold, period. That presupposes that your product is something that can be delivered viably. To begin, you have to find what there is to sell and what will sell and pick one item, not five or ten. Next you have to find out all about the item and any past history of it or anything similar. Once this is thoroughly done, you must survey it on many different publics to find which one needs and wants it and will buy it when offered. With that identified you'll need to do full research on what will make that public want and buy and approximately 80% of that decision is controlled by their "emotional hot buttons." Most research, when it is done at all, is done on the analytical side. This includes features, features, features and logic, logic, logic and that accounts for only about 20% of the decision to buy. The emotion of the sale, the "I gotta have it no matter what" is almost totally omitted from most marketing materials. Therefore, if your research doesn't include emotional hot buttons, it is not complete and will not give you the kind of return on your investment that you hoped. Once you have your hot buttons properly identified, you must "position" your product or service in the mind of that public which is most likely to buy it. When this is accomplished, you'll need to position your company in such a way as to gain support from your allies (vendors, employees, distributors, investors and your potential customers). Now you have the basics to formulate your strategic marketing plan, based upon your company's sales goals and what the marketplace and your potential customers want and demand. Many companies jump directly from some vague sales goal to a tactical step -- "I wanna ad or a brochure now," without careful homework being done. Shotgun marketing (" if it moves, shoot at it") is the result and research shows that it is one of the biggest reasons that many companies waste 50% of their marketing budgets every year. If you want a better return on investment and/or you have a modest budget, then laser targeting your marketing actions, not shotgunning, is the answer. Keep it simple, keep it specific. Now you're ready to formulate what tactical step by step actions are needed. Then decide on and create the marketing materials (a direct mail campaign, sales literature, a public relations campaign, an advertising campaign, a world wide web site) and the media mix that it will take to implement the strategic intention. Then you'll need to write a program for the campaign's release. The launch date is critical. All items and schedules must coincide and be in-the-ready for the launch. One missing item, one omitted step could cost you greatly in the campaign's overall effectiveness. Guided missiles are guided. Once you launch your campaign you need reconnaissance measures implemented to track the effectiveness of your campaign and to find and correct any bugs. It's deadly not to know what effect was caused by your marketing actions. Was it what you intended? Was it enough, too little, too much, too loud, too soft or what? Have we overcome their sales resistance? With white flags waving, did they surrender and is it time to send in the ground troops and close the sale? Track and keep statistical records of the results weekly and be prepared to "wade in" and handle any situations. Also, be ready to discover and codify unexpected positives that made the campaign go better than expected so that they can be capitalized upon later. With the campaign working well, ensure that it continues. No one-shot campaigns, if you please! If it worked once and you've codified and quantified what was done, it's certain that it will continue to work and work and work. If it slows down, be prepared to investigate why, find out what changed, who changed it, debug it and get the show back on the road. Marketing has basics. Now you know them. But you say, "I'm too busy to do them" or "I gotta get the sales in" or "My budget is too small" or... One excuse is as good as another. I could write a book. Say, that's a good idea! If you want more sales, you'll do all the steps. And in the proper sequence. Period! That's the truth, so help me! (Inspiration: David Ogilvy, Sun Tzu, Al Reis & Jack Trout and L. Ron Hubbard.) |
|