5 Simple Ways to Refresh Your Marketing
April 17, 2011
Is your small business kinda slow these days? Are customers just not calling and coming in like they used to? It’s probably because you’re using the same old marketing and advertising you’ve been using for years.
It’s time to change it up a bit. When’s the last time you looked at your messaging and marketing materials and made changes…. I mean really looked???
Here are five ways to refresh your marketing 
1. Update or improve your product or service offerings. You can refresh them by simply making some minor changes to your selection, how you package them, or what you call them. For example – an oil change can become your “Car Wellness Package” and you can include a “5 point wellness check”. A CPAs tax preparation service can be “Keep the IRS Off Your Back Service” and you can include a little “Stay out of jail free certificate” – maybe even a t-shirt saying “I’m a not a jailbird because Joe’s CPA firm did my taxes” (corny, but effective!).
2. Experiment with your pricing. Repackage and restructure your offerings. Maybe offer some new creative discounts, special offers, new member incentives, loyal customer deals.
3. Find new ways to offer or deliver your products or services to customers. Is it completely 100% easy and convenient for your customer to use what you offer? If not find ways to break down those hurdles… maybe you go to them, maybe you offer a delivery service, or do your service in 1 hour instead of 3, or offer online shopping.
4. Is your brand image out dated? Was your logo and imaged designed in the 80’s? Does your business look dated and out of style? If so, you may want to consider refreshing you image or potential customers may view you as being passé.
5. Try creative new ways to communicate with customers and prospects. So you’ve been doing direct mail and print ads and the returns are diminishing each year… Try something new and fun and different. Hand out flyers at the shopping center, try email marketing, Facebook, Twitter, sponsor a little league team – find out where your target market hangs out and literally, get your message in front of them!
Of course, the important thing is, no matter what you change or do, TEST, TEST, TEST and MEASURE, MEASURE, MEASURE! Small business marketing is really about testing and measuring to find what works and what doesn’t. It doesn’t do any good to do any marketing if you don’t do these things…. you’re simply just playing an expensive guessing game!
What do you think? I’d love to hear your thoughts on this!! Leave your comments here.
By the way – if you like this post, I would REALLY appreciate your ReTweet! Thank you!!!! 
Want a Successful Small Business? Forget Instant Gratification!
April 9, 2011
Here is a paraphrased summary of three different conversations I had with business owners this week:
Business Owner (B.O.): “Marketing doesn’t work, I tried it.” Me: “Really? Tell me more about that.” B.O.: “I sent out a bunch of post cards and didn’t get a single response!” Me: “Hmmm.. A ‘bunch’ you say? How many is a bunch?”
B.O.: “Two hundred and fifty!”
Me: “Ok… and how many times did you mail this group of two hundred and fifty?”
B.O.:“Well, just once, why would I do it again if it doesn’t work?” (Silly me…)
Business Success is a Journey
Nothing in life is easy. You’ve heard that right? Everything worth having requires a lot of hard work, a ton of persistence and loads of patience: Everything, from our education, to our relationships, and our careers. Did you expect to just go to a single class to earn your degree? Of course you didn’t- it took years of going to classes and studying! Did you expect to just show up at work for one day and earn a paycheck for the rest of your life? Sure, that would be nice, but no. Did you woo your spouse with pomp and circumstance while you were dating and then completely ignore him or her afterwards? Ummm, I certainly hope not!
So then why would you expect marketing your business to be any different? Why do so many small business owners expect marketing to be quick-and-easy one-time event? Place an ad and get rich! Yay!!!! Send out a postcard and make the phones ring off the hook! Wahoo! One ad, one postcard, one networking group and I’m set for life!!!
It Doesn’t Work That Way!
I’m sorry, it just doesn’t. No matter how hard you try.
I guess f you haven’t been doing sales and marketing as long as I have, mailing out 250 cards with a “10% OFF” offer and not getting a single bite may seem like an earth shattering failure… but trust me, it isn’t. If you sent out 250 post cards to your target market with an extremely amazing, compelling, and timelyoffer, on a consistent basis and didn’t get a single response, then I might be a bit more surprised.
Statistically, the chances of getting any measurable response from a single ad, postcard, email, etc. are going to be pretty slim – for many reasons…. Factor in the quality of your content/message (was it compelling, relevant, and timely?), your audience (did you target?… Know, I mean really target?) and your tracking methods and it can be nearly nonexistent.
But, Don’t You Know Who I Am?
Think about it: you are presumptuously putting your company/brand/message in front of the faces of Anyone-Who might at some point in their lives buy your products or services, assuming they 1) are your target market, 2) have made the decision to buy, 3) have allocated the resources to buy, 4) have no obstacles in the way of actually making the buy, and 5) they know like and trust YOU enough to want to buy from you.Holy cow with all of those variables it’s amazing we ever sell anything at all, isn’t it?
That is why a consistent and repetitive approach is key to effective marketing. For one thing, studies show that consumers don’t even “see” an ad until they’ve been exposed to it like seven times or something.
You are never going to build a successful business by sending one postcard or email or placing one ad serendipitously here and there. That just isn’t how it works- it isn’t how we as humans work. It takes time to build trust; it takes time for us to make decisions to move forward. It takes time for us to pay attention to all the “stuff” that’s bombarded at us each day – but that’s another blog topic…
But besides the whole “does advertising work or not” argument: Do you even know who your best prospect is? What their buying cycle is? What their triggers are? If you don’t know the answers to these questions, don’t even waste your time and your money on another direct mail piece, advertisement, networking event, or any other marketing tactic…. Really.
But if you really want to gamble your hard earned money, the next time you’re tempted to throw money away on an ad or direct mail piece without knowing the 3 things I outlined above, visit the nearest casino instead- you have a better chance of getting a return on your investment. Or better yet, hire Fortune Marketing Companyand invest in the long-term success of your business!
What do you think? I’d love to hear your thoughts on this!! Leave your comments here.
By the way – if you like this post, I would REALLY appreciate your ReTweet! Thank you!!!!
Can Bad Marketing Make You Fat?
March 22, 2011
OK, so bad marketing can’t really make you fat. BUT it can cause your business to be out of shape, inefficient, sluggish, and unhealthy.
Leading a healthy lifestyle can be challenging. If eating right and exercising were easy we’d all be svelte, fit, slenderellas. But the fact is we’re not. For many of us choosing healthier alternatives is a learned behavior and it takes practice, dedication, and commitment. It means saying “no” to the convenience of Big Macs, Little Debbies, and elevators and “yes” to fish, broccoli and the stairs. In short, it means changing old habits, and doing what is right instead of what’s easy and focusing on the bigger picture instead of immediate gratification.
A Healthy Body and a Healthy Business
The same is true of building a successful business: in order for our businesses to be the best they can be we need to take care of them. But many business owners get bogged down in old habits, convenience, lack of education, and a real understanding of what it takes to effectively and efficiently get customers in their doors. Like our bodies, we have to give our businesses the proper nutrients and exercise if they are to be strong and healthy. The marketing “nutrients” a business needs are: planning, strategy, continuous education and research. And the “exercise” is the execution of the proper tactics = doing the right stuff, not just thinking about doing the right stuff. So, I’ve made a list of 4 practices for marketing a successful business.
4 Diet Strategies We Can Apply To Create Strong, Healthy And Sustainable Businesses:
1. It takes planning – If I don’t plan what I’m going to eat, when I get hungry I’ll grab whatever is convenient – whether it’s good for me or not – simply because it bears a small semblance to actual food. This is exactly what many small business owners do: without a plan they latch on to any marketing or advertising idea that comes along because it bears a semblance to “marketing” or promises to satiate a need for more customers. Buy buying the wrong advertising to get more business is just like grabbing that chocolate cupcake to nourish your body; you’re just consuming empty calories to stop the gnawing hunger pains, losing sight of the bigger picture, and hoping for impossible results.
2. It takes imagination – Broccoli and chicken breast get old fast. If I had to live on that for the rest of my life, I’d have thrown in the towel long ago. In order to be a success with a new food strategy, I need to get creative and try out some new flavors, new spices, and new recipes. The same is true with your marketing. Don’t get bland! Don’t copy what your competitors are doing. Take some risks; try some new combinations, new words, new packages, and new offerings. Spice it up!
3. It takes discipline – Does one day of eating well and exercise get you to your ideal weight or optimal health? NO! Well one ad, one direct mail campaign, or one promotion isn’t going to get your business where you want it to go either… You need to make a commitment to the process. If you don’t have the discipline to stay focused on the big picture you’ll be tempted to fall back into old habits; purchasing those 1000-callorie marketing cupcakes that do nothing but send you on a sugar roller coaster!
4. It takes time to see results – we don’t get overweight and/or unhealthy overnight and we don’t get healthy overnight. We also don’t build businesses overnight. Building a brand, credibility, and trust takes time. Don’t give up too early…don’t get desperate and grab that 1000 calorie marketing cupcake = an expensive ad or campaign you know deep down isn’t right for you but fills a momentary need for instant gratification…
What do you think? I’d love to hear your thoughts on this!! Leave your comments here.
By the way – if you like this post, I would REALLY appreciate your ReTweet! Thank you!!!!
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+Carolyn Higgins, President of Fortune Marketing Company
- Carolyn Higgins, President of Fortune Marketing Company specializes in helping small to medium sized businesses get the customers they need to sell more, increase profits and achieve all of their business and personal goals. We do this by implementing and managing marketing systems based on data and strategy - there is no guess work. For more information visit us at: FortuneMarketingCompany.com. We'd be glad to help!
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