Have you spent heaps of money over the years on random advertising campaigns, not really sure how effective they’ve been?
You did some adhoc ads in the paper.
You’ve tried radio and you’ve done your listings in the local searches.
You feel like you’ve spent a fair bit on marketing, but it hasn’t resulted in consistent leads, customers and more money in your bank account.
Today I want to talk to you about how to STOP wasting money on marketing that doesn’t work.
I’ll share the FIRST step all businesses need to be really clear on before they spend another cent on marketing.
I know from my personal experience how easy it is to waste money on marketing.
12 years ago, I started my online personal training business, Get Active Online, and in the first year I spent over $15k on magazine ads. This resulted in very little new business (initially) and for a small business it was a big investment. I thought by being seen in the magazines, it would fast track my business to success. I thought the new clients would come in instantly. They didn’t. I really didn’t have much idea about marketing back then!
I also remember the time I spent $5K on a 2 week radio campaign which resulted in 1 lead, ummmm, that was another effective marketing effort… Not.
What I’ve learned out of it all is there are TWO things that businesses need to focus on to get value for money from their marketing and produce marketing that is effective.
- Know your customers inside and out!
You need to be REALLY clear on who your ideal customer is. What problem is your business solving, how do you articulate this, where are your customers looking, what are their interests, demographics, influencers? The more you know about your ideal client the easier it is for your business to target them effectively.
- Choose the right type of advertising/marketing for the RIGHT phase of the Customer Journey.
I’ll get into this one in more detail in another blog, but basically you need to be aware of the Customer Journey and then match your marketing efforts to the phase of the Customer Journey.
So, let’s get stuck into finding out about your ideal client!
I suggest working through the following questions as this will get you delving deep into who your ideal customer is and how you can ensure your business is SEEN by them.
Ways to establish more information about your ideal customer.
Who is currently buying your product? Ask them questions, interview/survey them. Find out as much as you can about them so you can attract more just like them.
Use your Social Media/Website insights. Who is currently liking/visiting your page? Facebook offers detailed insights into who currently likes your page.
Check out the competition and see if they are targeting the same customers as you.
Turn this information into a USER PERSONA, a visual representation of your ideal customers. This is used to influence your marketing decisions.
For each user persona, create one key marketing message that answers their problem. Create a clear sentence and add it to your persona template.
When you can clearly define YOUR IDEAL CUSTOMER, you will be one step closer to ensuring you stop wasting money on marketing that isn’t going to reach them.
