What is effective marketing? The first steps

Many business owners underestimate the importance of effective marketing, viewing it as an ‘expense’ rather than an investment. Yes, marketing can be costly in terms of money and time, but if done right, it will be a great return on investment, and you will make your money back.

First of all, let’s define what is meant by ‘effective marketing’. Effective marketing can be defined as promoting or selling products or services that bring you effective results. If you use marketing correctly, it will be a great investment against a predetermined set of objectives. So how do you make marketing worth your time? Which marketing strategies can you start implementing right now to make a difference in the profit your company is currently earning?

This blog will teach effective principles to set your marketing strategies apart from your competition. Unfortunately, many businesses owners do not implement the strategies I will mention below, so if you get it right from the start, you will be ahead of the game:

Effective Marketing – Identify Your Target Market (Properly)

How many different target markets have you identified for your business? If your marketing only focuses on one target market, your marketing will be too vague. Women aged 23-35 is not enough. The more segments you identify, the better. For example, consider the following:

• What different interests does your target market have?
• What are the lifestyle preferences of your market? For example, are there any music lovers, golfers, or condo owners?
• What are the professional organisations, clubs, or activities that your target market is part of?
• In which industry/industries does your target market work?

Understanding your target market is integral in understanding how to create a proper product description and learning how to effectively manage customer expectations. Take the time to truly understand your customers and then you can effectively target the right people. So what can you do right now at this moment to market to your audience more effectively? Take action and identify 20 different target markets in your business.

Effective Marketing Is 80% Emotions and 20% Logic

Marketing has shifted emotionally in the marketplace. For your business, this means that you should be showing sympathy and empathy through your marketing. Showing emotion in your marketing also makes it more memorable and helps build customer loyalty. To carry out emotional marketing right, first, you need to know your audience very well. Ask yourself, what are my audience’s biggest fears, strongest desires, struggles and motivations? As an illustration, you could portray these emotions in your marketing strategy:

Fear – this emotion is great to use in your marketing messages if it aligns with your target audience’s pre-existing beliefs about fear. Another way to evoke fear is by highlighting that your offer is time-limited, which elicits a sense of fear of missing out (FOMO)

Belonging – part of Maslow’s 5 stages of psychological needs, a sense of belongingness is one of them which motivates our behaviour. Marketing should make your customers feel like they are part of a community. A great example which successfully demonstrates this is Airbnb, as, through various marketing tactics such as user-generated content, users feel a true sense of belonging and community within the company.

You Need an Effective Unique Selling Point (USP)

How are you different from your competitors? What makes your business stand out? You could research other companies’ USPs for inspiration. Common mistake business owners make is using price as their USP. There are some great USPs out there for inspiration. For example, the USP or FedEx which is “When it absolutely, positively has to be there overnight”. They understand the customer’s pain of waiting for their deliveries. The USP of ActionCOACH is that we offer a guarantee of coaching results or your money back. So if you are looking for a solution that guarantees the growth of your business, this is worth checking out.

Is Your Marketing Strategy Being Measured RIGHT?

I hear many business owners say to me that this particular marketing strategy is working for them and producing the most leads. And when I ask them to show me the numbers they don’t have them. How do you know if your current marketing strategies are working if you haven’t been measuring them all along? If you would like to figure out what is working and isn’t working in your current marketing strategy, take this short free marketing assessment which will suggest improvements in your current marketing strategy.

Great Marketing Starts with a Great Plan

Most business owners claim they have a marketing plan, yet when I ask to see it they say the plan is in their head. Dear business owners, this is not a plan. A plan in your head is just an idea. Even though the tasks in your plan may not always be met, having clear goals you would like to achieve in the day/week/month increases your motivation, narrows your focus and reduces stress levels. So, what are you waiting for? Here are some of the key elements you should include in your effective marketing plan.

Setting clear goals will also need to be present in your overall business plan. If you need support on this, check out this free detailed business plan template, which will clarify what you aim to achieve, your purpose, and your mission.

Effective Marketing keeps your business alive. Without effective marketing tools and a plan in place, your business is dying. However, note that developing an effective marketing strategy is one of the 6 steps in creating massive results in your business. Once you master this, this is when you need to look at the next 4 steps in growing your business to get the results you desire.

Some Other Articles You May Find of Interest:

Is your sales process not generating enough customers or leads?

How to optimise your sales process – Steve Gaskell – ActionCOACH

Are you ready to start designing and implementing business systems that work while you can enjoy living your dreams?

Walk Away from Your Business – Steve Gaskell – ActionCOACH

Why not check out our YouTube channel for business education: If you like more information on how we can assist with effective marketing in your business then give us a call: