Would Marketing Work for My Business?

by Alin B. Business Developer

The Million Dollar Return on Your Business Question: “Would Marketing Work for My Business?”

If we define marketing as making yourself visible to a target consumer public or potential client base, in the most effective and accessible way; then, of course, marketing would not only work for any business, but would be an indispensable element to consider.

                                                                                                                       

 A more relevant question to ask yourself is, “What kind of marketing would work for my business?”

 

The parameters you need to work out, and work on, are these:

 

·         Who and where are your potential prospects?

·         Which types of marketing channels are the best for the kind of consumer response you need?

·         How do you go about establishing a long –term marketing strategy, which helps your business grow in a way that is sustainable and agile enough to contain your present capabilities and expand with future growth?

 

Firstly, what avenues of marketing are there out there at your disposal?

 

·         Print media (flyers, brochures, mail shots) – slow, ineffective and time –consuming, generally. Most effective when you already have your clients and want to inform them of additional procedures or services etc. and can be distributed on your premises.

·         Newspapers and smalls. There is still a public which reads these - mostly those who are not internet savvy; but the reach is very random, tangential, and difficult to track or control.

·         Billboards and TV. If you already have a big name and enough money – a class of their own, and league which most businesses can’t play.

·         The Internet. Unquestionably the star. An advertising platform with razor sharp effectiveness, which anyone can exploit on their own terms, within their own budget, and still achieve viral results, without annoying the public.

 

 

Let’s turn to the Internet; what are the options?

 

The first stop on the internet is always Google, because Google is an advertisers’ dream where most of the world is looking for solutions, information and products - though practically reachable only for a few.

 

 Here are some statistics to consider about Google, and the internet in general.

 

40 % of people using the Internet use it to search and mostly they do so on Google which has 64% of the global market share.

 

 Heat maps have proven that not only do most people not search beyond the first page, but they often don’t even search beyond the first three links at the top of the first page.

 

 Furthermore, 20% use search engines, specifically Google, to look for local businesses and services, and 92% of all business online is generated by search engines.

 

If you want to find out whether your business and Google are a match, or just get a general idea of exactly what people are looking for on Google, you can use the Google's own keyword search tool- Google Keyword Planner.

 

Just an interesting tip before you begin. When you use this tool, you will immediately be disappointed by what appears to be low search volumes. GKT underwent a transformation some years back.  I was doing an extensive local services search at the time, and literally from one day to the next the exact same keyword dropped from an approximate volume of 2000 – 2 400 to 50. Based on my personal knowledge of the local areas and businesses I was searching, population figures etc., I had to seriously conclude that the first figure, before the change, was accurate- simply because the second figure, after the change seemed so improbable. So I keep this in mind when I use GKP even today.

 

GKP is free, as are a lot of useful resources on the internet. You can search for a list of keywords, including local services (Plumber Vancouver) and if you use the tool correctly, you will come up with a list which elaborates on your original query, giving you lists of keywords which will give you an astonishing and encouraging insight into your niche,  and the potential to market your product or service. In fact, an inspiration to press on with the internet, when you realise exactly what people are searching for and how you can meet that need. It gives you the knowledge and power to focus your marketing in a very specific way; whether it is just a local service or an e -commerce store.  Anything, in fact, which appears as a keyword with a valid number of monthly searches, can be marketed.

 

This is why the internet works for almost any kind of business- both for local businesses, and businesses with a more extensive geographic reach.

 

It is important to understand that the Internet involves multiple marketing channels - search engines social media, business listings, video and more - many of which overlap; and often, to be effective, should overlap.

 

 With regard to this, there are some basic questions you have to ask yourself before you set out in a hurry to exploit the power of the internet:

 

·         How can you best make yourself visible in such a competitive environment?

·          How do you do so in a way that meets your budget

·         How do you begin to seek professional advice on this matter (if you don’t have the time or inclination yourself), without falling into the hands of unscrupulous marketing agencies?

 

 

 For lack of space in one article, let’s just investigate the reality of failing retail outlets in the virtual world of today. However, bear in mind that the internet works for any kind of business, and involves specific ways of exploiting the various internet channels.

 

Using retail outlets as an example: do you have a great product but find that there just aren’t enough people visiting your store? You know there’s a need for your product, but somehow those needy people aren’t paying you a visit? This is a common scenario with retail outlets these days. A truth you need to face is that retail business has migrated to the internet.  People now love buying on the Internet. It’s an adventure; and retail outlets kind of bore them nowadays- fussy, insistent shop assistants and limited stock array.

 

Once you realize that the internet is where retail is happening, and where the consumer crowd is hanging out, you need to consider the necessity of meeting the consumers where they are looking for you, and position yourself accordingly. Anything other than this would make no logical sense, if you are serious about your long –term survival.

 

 The other truth you have to face is that e-commerce can be a real headache and a long, slow, frustrating learning curve, when you just start out. If you are thinking of immediate success by starting out alone and handling all your own marketing, shipping, e-commerce site etc., its really difficult, in fact, impossible, to achieve without significant financial resources.

 

By far a better, and saner, option is to make use of a multiple seller platform, like Amazon, and then possibly link your Amazon storefront back to your own e-commerce site later on. This is what a lot of big companies already do.

 

Amazon is super easy to use, super well-organised and is trusted by millions of shoppers globally. Their buying platform is unbeatable user –friendly, and dynamically exciting for online shoppers. Their monthly fee is very low, and you can piggyback on their marketing expertise and reputation. This means you just have to sell and ship - it’s that easy. You can pursue additional complementary marketing strategies through social media as well, to broaden your consumer reach.

 

This article might have touched on areas you feel could help you, but you just don’t know where to begin, or are afraid to even consider approaching an advertising agency, because you’ve heard how expensive they are. There is no need to sink into any kind of paralysis. There are private agencies which employ freelancers who are experts in all of these issues, on your behalf, and can help you at a very reasonable rate: for example, digital consultancy Kurve UK, MindStudio and platforms like Upwork.

 

If your retail business has clearly reached a dead end, and you seriously need to consider alternative, head over to Amazon, scroll to the bottom, click on “sell on Amazon”- and you’ll find out just how easy it is. You'll wonder why you waited so long!

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Created on Dec 31st 1969 18:00. Viewed 0 times.

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