Among business professionals, the most difficult obstacle
is taking the time out of running the business to market
it. Of course, this is a catch 22 because if you don't
take the time market your business, then there will not be
a business to run.
Time and time again, marketing becomes a lower and lower
priority until it becomes a problem. Then companies have to
put far more time and energy into the marketing than
originally needed. Any MBA will tell you that they were
taught to ensure that a marketing plan should be put into
place and a budget established, yet many companies are
without them.
Does your company need professional help?
Aligning your business with a marketing firm may be a great
asset. Marketing professionals devise personalized
marketing plans that address your specific market. They
have experience in how to best get the attention of your
target market, and they can customize your plan to fit your
needs, including your budget.
Half of the battle in getting your business in front of
customers is determining the most effective way to do this.
Of course, as a successful business owner, you can
determine this on your own. However, what you have to ask
yourself is "how is my time best spent?" Hypothetically,
if you could close a deal with a client that made you
$50,000, then it would be more appropriate to focus on your
clients - and pay the marketing professionals $500 to put
together a plan for you. As the saying goes, you have to
spend money to make money.
Finding the right marketing alliance
When it comes to choosing the right marketing company to
align with, consider them carefully. You want to be in a
partnership here with someone who truly believes in what
you do.
Interview them and ask specific questions about their plan
to market your company. Pay attention to your reaction to
what they have to say. They may have some ideas you never
thought of, as well as ones you may already be doing. Do
keep in mind that marketing professionals may develop very
creative plans, and even though it may be a bit foreign to
you, the strategy may be worth going outside of your box.
Whether they suggest collaborative marketing, relationship
marketing, strategic alliances, or joint ventures, each of
these present a potential advantage to your revenues.
Finally, when choosing a marketing company, ask for
references. Ask to see a portfolio of the clients they have
worked with before, and then call a couple of them and get
their feedback.
Enjoy the decision process
Once you have made the decision to align with a marketing
company, it decision making time. The company will provide
you with a detailed marketing plan that is laid out over a
specified time period. Some will be 3 month plans, while
the most effective will be over at least a year.
Keep in mind that the plan is not set in stone. Based on
your budget, you can take some ideas and some may be left
out.
Once you have decided what your plan will entail, you may
choose have the marketing company execute the strategy, or
complete the footwork on your own. If your plan involves
regularly schedules news releases to be submitted, then you
may choose to write them yourself. You will also have to
find the right contacts at the media outlets to submit the
releases. If you decide to hire the marketers to do this,
they will have a local and national list of all the
publications that your target market might read. Carrying
out the details of your personalized marketing plan will be
completely up to you, based on how much time and money you
are willing to put into marketing your company.
----------------------------------------------------
Christian Fea is CEO of Synertegic, Inc. A strategic
Collaboration Marketing consulting firm. He empowers
business owners to discover and implement Integration,
Alliance, and Joint Venture marketing tactics to solve
specific business challenges. He demonstrates how to create
your own Collaboration Marketing Strategy to increase your
sales, conversation rates, and repeat business.
Contact: christian@christianfea.com
http://www.christianfea.com
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