11 MONSTROUS Small Business Marketing Mistakes and How To Avoid Them
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MONSTROUS Marketing Mistake Number 1: Sinking a Fortune Into an Unproven Product
Is your business idea built on market research or a hunch?
Entrepreneurs often fall in love with their products or services before they determine if there's a real market, and they throw fistfuls of money into the venture.
Testing your business idea with the real marketplace.
There is a misconception among small business owners that, with the right product or service, your customers will simply "find" you when you open your doors for business.
The day you open for business is the day you put on your "marketer's hat" and never take it off.
To stay in business you must profit.
To sell you must market.
If you have a product that will "practically sell itself," then your marketing job will be easy.
Avoid this mistake by:r
nDefining your niche market and USP (Unique Selling Proposition) that differentiates you from your competition.
MONSTROUS Marketing Mistake Number 3: Trying to Reinvent the Wheel
Marketing is an age-old practice with some very basic principles.
It's easy to get caught up in the innovation process and forget that the REAL focus should be on results.
Please note that I am not saying, "copy" what others are doing.
Realizing great marketing ideas are used over and over again with just the right twist to make them fit a specific business.
MONSTROUS Marketing Mistake Number 4: Over-Preparing and Doing Nothing
The fear of failure can be powerful.
Yet, there is a point at which we are so busy preparing, organizing, and researching to prevent failure that we never get around to the actual marketing of the business.
In order to sell a million of something, you have to sell the first ONE.
Start small, track results and build from there.
Mistakes are the entry to success.
And, to learn what does NOT work is a valuable tool in getting you closer to discovering what WILL work.
Fail a little.
MONSTROUS Marketing Mistake Number 5: Boredom
When I was working for an ad agency many years ago, I had one client that was running an extremely successful ad campaign.
He wanted to develop an entirely new campaign.
"
What?
That client may have had the money to spend on a new campaign due to "boredom" but you and I usually don't.
This is detrimental to your business!
"Losing money" is a reason.
Avoid this mistake by:r
nRemembering that, what is old to you, is new to an untapped target market.
Testing new promotions without abandoning the current one.
Never swap a current promotion with a new one that hasn't been tested.
Everyone else who attends these "meet and greet" assemblies is there to do the same thing you are.
Avoid this mistake by:r
nTreating networking opportunities the same as any other marketing tactic.
MONSTROUS Marketing Mistake Number 7: Doing What Your Competitors Do
It's important to be aware of what your competitors are offering, but do not let it dictate the strategy you use for your own business.
Don't try to become the "lower price" leader.
If your competitor wants to tout low prices, then you focus on value.
They want the best VALUE.
Avoid this mistake by:r
nFinding an unmet need or want of your target market, and fill it to differentiate your products and services from your competitors.
Define your USP, and identify your niche market.
The value of target (niche) marketing is one of the toughest sells I make to my clients.
Avoid this mistake by:r
nViewing the practice of niche marketing as inclusive, not exclusive.
It's logical to say, "Everybody needs a support group so my business should attract everyone.
Make sure you ARE that business by targeting a niche market.
Yet, targeting a market that is too specific will limit your ability to succeed long term.
That's a pretty narrow market to sustain your business in the long term unless you can capture the ENTIRE market with a product or service that has a high profit point and customers need to use or replace it often.
Never compete for someone's rent money.
Avoid this mistake by:r
nCreating your customer profile to identify characteristics of your potential buyers,
Identifying a niche market,
Examining the long term potential for new and repeat sales.
The cost of finding those new customers can be expensive, which is one reason it is so important to really target a specific niche.
Wouldn't you like to:
.
reach proven buyers for your service or products?
That little goldmine of proven buyers available to you "on the cheap" is already yours in the form of current and previous customers.
Avoid this mistake by:r
nRealizing that, when a sale is finalized, it is the beginning of your relationship with that customer, not the end.
If you don't have your own to offer them, then develop a referral, joint venture or product bundling program so you can reap profits from your already-interested (and buying) customers.
The most expensive is generating leads - finding the people who are interested in what you have.
A person who has expressed interest in your products and services is far more likely to eventually buy from you than someone who did not respond at all!
Avoid this mistake by:r
nCurbing the tendency to become obsessed with generating more leads until you have exhausted the ones you already have.
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