Small Business Strategy during COVID-19

For more about Strategy in times of uncertainty, download

Winning the Uncertainty: A Playbook for Strategy in Times of Survival

MARKETING

ENGAGING WITH THE RIGHT PROSPECTS FOR YOUR BUSINESS

WHAT IS MARKETING

Many small businesses are quite successful with a sales-driven approach to generating revenue. This relies on individual contact – things like cold calling and networking at the top of the funnel.

But, if the company wants to grow, that system will eventually break down.

The best way to think about marketing is to consider it a machine. Like any machine, it takes time to build, and you have to know what you’re doing to create it.

“Marketing is not the art of finding clever ways to dispose of what you make. Marketing is the art of creating genuine customer value. It is the art of helping your customer become better off.”

- Philip Kotler

WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF MARKETING

Sales will be more predictable. Machine-driven sales are not as prone to be undermined by people getting busy and having other priorities.

Sales will be more profitable. A healthy pipeline leads to more control of your margins.

Sales will be more reliable. You’ll know the formula for getting sales, so you will be able to use that formula to generate sales when you need them.

The foundation of growth is predictable, reliable, profitable revenue.

WHAT ARE THE ELEMENTS OF MARKETING

Generating Leads

Finding prospects who have the needs and problems that you can address and solve.

Nurturing Leads

Engaging and educating prospects to support their buying process.

Converting Leads

Structuring the sales process so that prospects buy from you.

Although those elements are simple, marketing can be confusing because there are so many different aspects of it.

Read on for a more indepth look at marketing

WHAT ARE THE CHALLENGES OF MARKETING

It’s hard to cut through the noise. We all experience it – a constant barrage of communication and messages.

Marketers are professionals at bending the truth. It can be challenging to get a straight answer from marketing people, and even more so marketing agencies. You don't want to be lumped with this negative view from your prospects.

Marketing channels are constantly changing. A tactic that worked well last year could be played out this year. A channel that hasn’t worked last year could become favorable this year. The media landscape and prospect behavior is constantly changing.

There are so many options. There are an overwhelming amount of marketing tactics to consider – mailers, online marketing, ebooks, social media, and dozens more.

WHAT IS THE ROI OF MARKETING

Better leads

When your marketing machine is working, your leads will be a better fit for your offerings. And, they’ll be more ready to buy.

Growth

Marketing is the engine of business growth once a company gets past 10-20 people.

More consistent leads

An effective marketing program will generate leads more consistently than piecemeal (or sales-driven) efforts.

Business value

The saleable value of your business is tied to your ability to systematically generate revenue and serve clients. Having a “marketing machine” will increase the value of your business.