Save Your Advertising Dollars by Saying "No"

As small business owners, so many of us have fallen prey to the smooth talking media sales reps.  The minute you open your doors for business, sales reps from the TV stations, newspapers and radio stations are the first ones in your door.  In their hands they have what I like to call “the deal of the week”.  You know you need to market your business, especially when you’re just starting out, so you sign up for these promotions because they’re “a limited-time promotion” and “you’ll never get a better deal”.

I have a client who, when I first met her, had spent over $15,000 in advertising the previous year.  Her comment to me was “I’m not sure if any of it worked.”  This was a very clear example of someone who had been too nice to say, “No, thank you” to the sales reps.  I understand that sales reps need to make a living.  I get that.  What I’m saying is that you need to be smart about where you’re spending your money.

Before the sales reps ever come walking through your door, here are some things you need to do to save yourself a lot of money.

1. Know your customers very, very well.  I don’t just mean your existing customers, but who your ideal customer is.  Who do you want to communicate with?
2. Know where your customers are.  Do they read a physical newspaper or do they read an online newspaper?  Maybe they don’t read a newspaper at all.  Maybe they follow their favourite media online and get updates through social media.  You can’t communicate effectively to your customers if you’re not sure where they are.
3. Create some marketing goals.  These goals will stem from your overarching business goals.  Do you want to attract a new demographic?  Do you want to introduce a product or service?  Decide what you want.
4. Establish some tools to measure the effectiveness of your marketing campaigns.  If you have no way of tracking what’s working and what isn’t, you’ll never know what forms of advertising to use.  This is precisely why too many business owners wind up spending way too much money on their advertising.
5. Stick to a budget.  When you develop your marketing plan for the year, you need to create a budget to work from.  Stick to that budget and don’t be afraid to tell the sales rep that this current promo doesn’t fit into your budget.

Now, every time a sales rep walks through your door with the latest “limited-time promotion” stay strong and walk away from the “deal” if it doesn’t fit into your plan.  If it does fit into your plan and budget, take advantage of the deal.  Work closely with the sales rep to make sure the ad copy addresses the campaign goals and you’ll be all set.

5 Ways To Create Effective Advertising

Advertising is an important part of any marketing plan. But with so much focus on social media these days, you'd think that advertising isn't worth the cost. However, done right advertising can be a really important part of your marketing strategy, especially with a good mix of online and traditional advertising. If you've ever attended one of my workshops or even read some of blog posts you'll know that I am all about consistent, integrated marketing. That means that all of your marketing activities need to work together in a systematic approach to achieving your business goals. And advertising is one of those activities.

The biggest advantage that advertising has over other marketing activities is the sense of control. With proper target marketing you can control (to a point) who sees or hears your ad and you can control when your ad is run. The key to effective advertising is knowing what your objectives are and how you want to approach your campaign. 

Below are 5 elements that you should consider in order to make any form of advertising effective.

1. Advertising should have one of 3 objectives... to inform, remind or persuade your audience. Know what your goals are before you even think about writing the ad. The desired outcome will ultimately determine the look, feel, sound, and distribution of the ad. The goal of most advertising should be to start a relationship, not sell a product or service.

2. Be realistic about what an ad can do. If you are running a small online ad chances are it will be pretty unrealistic to expect a multi-thousand dollar sales achievement from 15 words and a link. When setting your advertising goals, set a realistic goal and set a ‘stretch’ goal to strive for. Also, know that advertising alone cannot be the only metric to measure your success by. There are a lot of factors that go into the buying decisions of consumers.

3. Advertising, both online and offline can be and should be targeted at a narrowly defined viewer. If a radio station that tells you that 75% of its listeners are 18-55 that isn't narrow enough. Know your ideal customer really well, what they want and how they want to communicate with you before implementing any advertising.

There are lots of resources out there to help you learn more about your ideal customer but Google AdWords is a great tool to find out what your customers are looking for. Group your Google AdWords into very tightly crafted keyword groups to target people looking for very specific things. You can also find geo targeted mailing lists and then cross them with lists of people that buy a similar product.

4. Measure everything

The most successful business owners, managers and marketers can tell you exactly how every element of their marketing is performing and why. It takes a great deal of work to get serious about things like analytics and tracking, but you won’t really succeed until you do. By taking the time to create a process that allows you to measure every aspect of your advertising you can see what's working and what isn't, allowing you to make necessary changes and further improve on what is working all the while staying tuned in to what your market wants more of.

5. Test, test, and test again

This last element goes hand in hand with measurement, but takes it a step further. Once you have a baseline you can start to work on improving your results by simply tweaking things like headlines, calls to action, visual elements, keywords, content, publications and lists. Once you know what’s working in one place you can expand on it to test it in other places. Google AdWords is an inexpensive way to test thing out before broadcasting more widely. As for online advertising, particularly in social networks, you also might want to test out new social networks and their advertising structure to get a feel for what works and what doesn’t, providing it reaches your target audience.

So, even with the advent of social media, advertising still has its place in your marketing strategy. Advertising has changed its distribution channels over the years and that will continue for many more years to come. But no matter what distribution channel you use, whether it’s online or off ine advertising, using these tips will allow you to create advertising that resonates with your customers.

Create a Marketing Strategy in 3 Easy Steps

I just came to the realization that all of my blog posts just dance around the topic I am the most passionate about.  And that’s strategy.  I’ve written about integrating your marketing, 3 easy steps to creating a marketing budget and I’ve talked a lot about building a brand.  So, today I decided that I’m just going to lay it all out there, straight forward, step by step on how to develop a strategy before you even attempt to spend $1 on any of your marketing.

Developing a strategy is by far the most important step when marketing your business.  The biggest mistake small business owners make is that they know they need to market their business, but they don’t know where to start.  So, what happens is that they get roped into these “deals” from ad executives from the local newspapers, and radio and TV stations.  They wind up spending hundreds or thousands of dollars on advertising but don’t really know whether it worked or not.  Well, let me walk you through a 3-part process to help you develop a strategy so you don’t spend any more money on advertising that doesn’t work.

Part 1 – Brainstorm:

This is where you throw out every possible thought that comes to mind.  Sometimes the crazier the better.  I have found that sometimes a member of the team will throw out some weird and wild idea that ultimately we end up using some or all of that idea.  But this is also the time to define some really key things such as your intended target market, your goals and your budget.

One of the most important keys to developing a strong marketing communications plan is to determine your target market or target markets and know what they want and how they want to communicate with you.  The trick is to discover what that ideal customer looks like in the most specific way possible and then go about building an entire marketing strategy around attracting more of these ideal customers. 

Part 2 – Budget:

This is where most of my clients get the most stressed out because they haven’t allocated any specific amounts to their business activities.  They are really just “winging it.  If you don’t have a plan this is where you can get into trouble with your spending and then it really will be too expensive. 

1.       To create a marketing budget for the year, set your budget between 5 – 10% of your gross annual sales.  When you think about it, $100,000 is sales with a marketing budget of 5% only gives you $5000 to work with for the year.  This is where the creativity comes in, knowing where to best allocate those dollars.

2.       From that budget, develop marketing campaigns for the year.  Then develop a budget for each campaign based on the yearly budget you have just set for the company.

Remember that advertising doesn’t have to cost you a fortune.  Leave the big marketing budgets for the big corporations who have the money to spend on it. 

Part 3 – Metrics

Now, you need to set metrics for tracking the direct impact of each campaign on its ability to help you reach your marketing goals.  If you have nothing to measure your marketing efforts with you won’t know whether or not your marketing is actually working.  Some common metrics include number of click-throughs on an online ad, number of new sales, number of new leads or percent increase in traffic to the store.  In order to be useful, metrics need to be measurable and quantifiable.  So, make sure you define them specifically with numbers and then break them apart into tiny segments that you can work towards achieving.  Review last year's sales records so you have something to which to compare this year's sales. Here is where good record keeping is essential. 

An increase in leads or sales over last year's numbers might indicate that your current marketing campaigns are actually working but don’t make the mistake of putting all of your eggs in one basket.  One marketing activity cannot be held accountable for your total business success.  So be sure to have a variety of metrics to track.

So, now you have an idea of how to create a strategy before you actually go about spending any money on your marketing.  For more in-depth information, download the video below.  This video is from a webinar I presented a few months ago and gives you a much more detailed step by step process to creating a strategy that works.

Strategy Before Tactics

I always love hearing from small business owners to find out how you do things.  I’d love to hear your input on creating a marketing strategy.  Tell me how you created your strategic marketing plan.

 

What You Need to Know Before Launching a New Product

I hear people all the time saying that they have developed a new product or service that they know is going to be a hit.  I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard someone say, “It`s going to sell!  It`s going to make money!”  Well, maybe it will, but don`t make the mistake of getting tunnel vision with your own product.  You’ve developed this product and put your heart and soul into it.  This is your baby so of course you want the world to know how fantastic it is.  But before you spend even $1 of your marketing budget on promotion you need to do some research.

 

Some of the basic things you need to know before launching a new product, service or business are:

1.       Is there a market for your product?

2.       Who is most likely to purchase the product?

3.       What kinds of similar products are already on the market?

4.       Would your customers recommend the product to a friend?

5.       What do consumers like and dislike about the product?
 

Getting access to in-depth market research databases can be both time-consuming and costly.  And unless you understand how to read and analyze the information you may not be getting a true picture.  However, there are a few ways you can at least get some basic information without breaking the bank.  And at least this way you can customize your research to your specific product.

1.       Implement market surveys.  These can be done by phone, by email, through social media or in person.  Make sure the questions you ask are:

a.       relevant to your product

b.      not overly lengthy or complicated, and

c.       not skewed towards a positive outcome

2.       Hold focus groups.

3.       Do a product test launch

4.       Host a free promotional event where you let people sample your product.  Ask people for their honest opinion by giving them a short (3-5 multiple choice/yes or no questions) questionnaire.  The more feedback you get the better.

The information gathered will help you narrow down your target market, make appropriate changes to the product, and give you a starting point to developing your marketing strategy.  Now that you have a better understanding of what your customers want, you can go about giving them exactly what they want.

However, all of this research might show that there really isn’t a market for your product.  If that’s the case, find out why.  If you’re still convinced that this new product needs to be on the market, find out what concerns your potential customers have with the product.  This information will give you a better insight into what changes you can make that might make the product more marketable.  But if your research indicates that there isn’t much of a market for your product right now, that’s okay.  It just means that you will have saved a lot of money on the promotion of a new product only to have it sit on store shelves.

So, before you spend any money on promotion, be sure to allocate some money to research.  It’s just as important, if not more important than your advertising spending.  Get your head out of the clouds and really look at things from the consumer’s point of view.  It will be well worth it.

 

3 Easy Steps to Creating a Marketing Budget

Setting budgets is so critical to any business, big or small.  But I often see so many small business owners just winging it, not really knowing where all of their money is going.  I’m not an accountant but staying on budget is crucial to my job.  Everything I do is based on a budget.  Without a budget or a plan, a business runs the risk of spending more money than it is taking in or, conversely, not spending enough money to grow the business and compete. We all know that we need to spend money to make money and we want to save as much money on those expenses whenever possible.  But how do you determine how much to spend on marketing your business?

Creating, monitoring and managing a budget does not have to be a scary, overwhelming thing.  Even if you have no accounting experience or if you don’t think you have enough time in a day to do it, it really is imperative that you take the time to do it… and do it well.   It will allow you to allocate resources where they are needed. You simply need to work out what you are likely to earn and spend in the budget period.  Here is an easy 3 step plan for creating a marketing budget that works.

Step 1:

Start by creating budgets for the entire year. Be realistic about your projected sales for the budget period.  If you overestimate, it will cause you problems in the future.   Develop separate budgets for marketing, inventory, payroll, and anything else that you will be required to spend money on.  Continuously check to make sure your budget balances and that your numbers make sense.   

Don’t forget to work in a salary for yourself.  I see this happen all the time, where the business owner sinks so much money into the business that they don’t bother paying themselves. 

Step 2:

To create a marketing budget for the year, set your budget between 5 and 10% of your gross annual sales.  When you think about it, if you only have $100,000 in sales with a marketing budget of 5% that means you only have $5000 to work with for the year. Choose a number that you are comfortable with but a substantial amount of money to achieve all of your marketing objectives.  In step 3, you will need to use your creativity to know where best to allocate those dollars. 

Step 3:

From the budget amount you determined in step 2, develop your individual marketing campaigns for the year.  Determine a budget for each campaign based on the yearly marketing budget you have just set for the company.  Make sure you align your marketing goals and objectives with your campaign planning and spending.  You may need to put more money into marketing activities in one or two months in the year, especially if you’re running a strong campaign or if you run a seasonal business, and less in other months.  Just really take a look at your marketing goals and make sure you’ve budgeted enough money for each of those activities.  If that 5% you allocated in step 2 isn’t enough, go back and adjust your numbers. 

Remember that advertising doesn’t have to cost you a fortune.  Leave the big marketing budgets for the big corporations who have the money to spend on it.

It’s going to take some time to play with your numbers to make everything balance.   That is ultimately the goal… to make sure you’re not in the red.   Stick to your budget as closely as possible, but review and revise it as needed. Remember it’s a plan, a guide to your business finances.  It’s not set in stone, but constant review of it is essential to make sure you know where your business stands.

 

Five Questions to Ask a Marketing Consultant

In our last blog I told you about some of the things you need to have prepared before hiring a marketing consultant. But something else you need to have prepared is a list of questions that you will want to ask a marketing consultant before you sign any contracts.

People are sometimes skeptical of marketer, associated marketing with pushy advertisements.  But marketing is not just advertising so please don’t think of us like a slick, used-car salesman.  It’s very rare that you will encounter a consultant who is greedy and just out to screw you over.  Highly skilled, quality marketers adhere to very strict policies and procedures.

But just to make sure you’re comfortable with the working relationship here is a list of questions you will want to ask.

1.       How will you direct my marketing only to prospective clients so I don’t waste money on reaching the wrong people?

The marketing consultant should ask you what type of customers you want to attract.  You should have a general idea of your target market but the consultant should be able to help you refine it.  With this information the consultant should be able to give you some ideas on how to best reach these people.  Any knowledgeable consultant will give you some ideas during your initial interview but will let you know that your overall communications plan will develop over time, with a plan and a strategy created before any communications are implemented.

2.       What qualifications do you have in marketing and business?

College or university courses alone will not create a competent marketing person.  But it’s at least a step in the right direction.  I personally have both a college diploma in Business Management and a university degree in Marketing Communications.  However, real world experience allows the consultant the opportunity to apply what they learned in school to real situations and to learn what works and what doesn’t.  Your consultant should be able to provide you with a portfolio of work they have completed, including clients you can call for a reference.

3.       Have you ever worked in sales?

Working in sales is the best way to learn how people make buying decisions.  I actually started working when I was 15 years old and almost all of my jobs have been in some sort of sales role.  I have over 20 years of experience in the retail industry, having been a sales associate, a store manager, an area manager and a regional manager.  I have won several awards over the years for my selling and management skills and in the process I learned a lot about people; how they think, how they solve problems and how they make buying decisions.  Hiring a marketing consultant who has an extensive understanding of sales, the selling process and the buying process as well as insight into consumer behaviour is a huge advantage to you when developing your marketing plan.

4.       What is your marketing background?

There are lots of people out there who claim to be a “marketing consultant” or “marketing service provider”.  But let’s make something very clear here.  Marketing is not advertising.  It’s not just about writing a press release or creating a logo.  Nor is it about creating a website or writing a blog.  It’s about developing an overall marketing strategy to work to deliver your core message to your specific intended target market.  Many people understand methods of communication or are very creative and talented in their own industry.  But marketing relies on both the method of communication AND the message.  The most powerful methods are of no value if they deliver a poor marketing message.  So, make sure the consultant you hire has in-depth experience in marketing, not just design.

5.       Besides marketing, in what areas do you consult?

None.  In fact I limit my consulting to a specific type of marketing, a specific type of client and a specific type of relationship.  I specialize in working with small businesses, but not all small businesses.  The clients I help are small business owners with companies that employ less than 100 people and are located in off-the-beaten-path, rural areas of the country.  My clients have very specific needs that are unique to them because of their proximity to (or lack thereof) services often only available in large urban centres.

Marketing has branched out into dozens of sub-specialties.  When looking for a marketing consultant you need to determine if their specialty is right for you.  There are some marketing consultants who say they do it all.  However, they generally have experience working with many types of clients but often not many of any one type.

Asking these few questions will give you a feeling about whether or not this will be a good working relationship.  Remember that when you’re hiring a marketing consultant, this is a relationship you will want to nurture over a long period of time.  As your business grows and changes, your marketing needs will also change, so having a consultant you can trust is vital to the success of your business.

 

Things You Need to Know Before Hiring a Marketing Consultant

Have you ever watched the show Dragons Den?  Or the American version, Shark Tank?  I’m addicted to watching those shows every week.  There are a few of the Dragons and Sharks that I would love to partner with in business and some that I could do without.  Some of the Dragons and Sharks have changed over the seasons and some have made a big impact on my own business decisions. 

I think what’s really amazing to me when I watch Dragons Den or Shark Tank is the sheer number of people who come on the show completely clueless about doing business.  Time and time again, people have spent countless hours and money developing a new product.  But they obviously have not done their research first.  People go out there on national television absolutely, solidly believing in their product but it’s clear that the market doesn’t want or need it.  Their valuations are often ridiculous too, usually because they have valued their company at a million dollars or some other crazy number but they haven’t made any sales yet.  But what really gets me (and I think it’s because I’m a marketer) is the people who go out there and have no clue who their customer is.  They go into this dramatic sales spiel about their product but then one of the dragons cuts them off and says, “But who’s going to buy it?”  It amazes me that they often can’t answer that question.

Whether you’re going on Dragons Den or Shark Tank to pitch a product or you’re approaching a consultant to help you move your business forward, there are things you need to do to prepare for this meeting.  So, here are some thoughts about what you need to know before hiring a marketing firm.

·         Do you have a business plan?  If you don’t have one that’s an issue because it shows me that you haven’t taken the time to do your research.  And if you wrote a business plan 5 years ago and haven’t looked at it since, you need to do that and update it.

·         Do you know your numbers?  You need to know how much it costs to produce the product, how much to sell it for, what your expenses are, what your profit will be and an accurate sales forecast for the next 12 months.  You also need to know how much you will be allocating to marketing expenses.  I can help you with that, but you need to come in prepared.

·         What are your marketing objectives?  Many clients come to me and say, “I need help with my marketing.”  Well, that encompasses a lot of things, so what exactly do you want help with?  What are your goals and how do you think various marketing activities will help achieve those goals?

·         What makes your product so different and special?  I can help you further define your differentiating factors and help you align those with the right target market, but you need to be able to clearly tell me why this is such a fabulous product and why anyone would buy this from you as opposed to buying it from a competitor.

Marketing is one of the most time consuming and expensive aspects to operating a business and it is absolutely crucial to any business.  But you can’t expect to sit back and just let it happen.  You need to do your homework first.  Here is also a list of questions to ask your marketing consultant before signing any contracts with a marketing firm.