In this episode of Actionable Marketing In Minutes we talk about creating a successful marketing campaign.

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Problem:

Whether you are a big international corporation or a small local business on the corner, in order to be successful at what you do, you need to have a marketing strategy and you need to stick to it.

The main challenge in creating a marketing strategy is finding the time to sit down and start working on it. But once you find the time to do it, that’s when the fun begins. Any form of promotional activities you want to pursue: networking, advertising, direct mail, sales calls… all should be implemented in a strategic, planed out fashion in order to be effective. Let us give you a few tips.

Solution:

In order to form a good marketing program always keep a few things in mind: 1. What am I selling: Always try to put yourself in the customer shoes. You want to emphasize the key advantages and benefits of your product and how they alleviate your target market’s pain points. Like this: “No, this is not just a desktop application, it is a tool to ease your day to day work, increase your efficiency and productivity, ultimately this is not a purchase it is an investment to better your business!” We know you’re passionate about your company but you need to prioritize. If you have a wide range of products or services in your portfolio choose a few to promote heavily—the ones you feel will have the greatest impact on the market or benefit your potential customers the most!

2. Finding your target demographic: In an ideal world, you would have unlimited resources and your target audience would be roughly around seven billion people around the globe. The reality is a bit different. You need to define your potential clients in as many details and with as much information as you can. Advertising can be quite expensive and you want your money to be spent in the right place for the greatest ROI! There is no detail to small when targeting your key demographic: industry, age, tech literacy, size of company, location, average household income, and so much more.

3. Know your competition: Without a detailed look at the competition your marketing program will be set up for failure. Who are the other players? Is your market crowded or wide open? You need to identify the major players in your market and more importantly what sets you apart from them. What is your competitive edge that will make your potential client choose you over everyone else? I recently read an article that said that too often companies get caught up in fighting against the competition rather than fighting FOR the attention of their target market. So, while it’s important to be on top of what your competitors are doing, don’t lose sight of wooing your ideal customer.

4.Try to segment: Try to identify segments of the market that are not being exploited to their full potential. Remember someone once said something like “Wow Facebook is great and all but I would like to be able to customize my pictures more. Today that thought is Instagram! – one of the most popular social sharing platforms in the world.

5.Consistency: We mean two things here. Consistency in what your message is saying because people need to hear something 7 times before they remember it, and consistency in where it is placed. Nothing is less effective than a “drive by” advertising program. You can’t have your ad hit the number one paid spot on Google once and think that that will be enough to bring in the money. You have to work to consistently be where your target market is. So make sure your marketing program is consistent in both message and placement.

Benefits:

Before spending money and pursuing any number of promotional activities, start by defining what it is that you want to promote and who do you want to promote it to. Make your game plan and stick to it and you will get much better promotional value for your money.

We hope you’ve found this information helpful. Please connect with us on Twitter @DirectiveGroup or on LinkedIn. Let us know what you think and what you’d like to hear about next. And if you like our podcasts please share with your networks using hashtag #actionablemarketing.

Join us for an upcoming episode as we discuss How To Integrate/Sell Your Products On Social Media