5 Marketing Mistakes to Avoid
Posted: October 23, 2019 - By Elizabeth VelezMarketing can be one of the most rewarding investments of owning a business. You can develop your brand’s voice, look and feel, choose an audience you want to target, find the channels that work best for your strategy, and onboard tools that make the most impact to your bottom line.
Although it can be empowering to bring in prospects by implementing your own marketing strategy, the learning curve will inevitably be steep. Mistakes are going to be part of the process, especially in the beginning. But there are some marketing mistakes your business should without a doubt avoid, and we’re sharing five to get you started.
You click PUBLISH and expect immediate results
Building a website and starting a blog is core to getting your online presence geared up, as well as your brand’s voice and authority in your space solidified. But in terms of SEO, being in the top five of Google’s search engine results pages (SERPs) doesn’t happen overnight, or even over a year. You can, however, improve your SEO in that time as you post consistent content that’s relevant to your industry. Make sure the content is at least 1,000 words, which in turn gives your website the currency it needs to be linked to by reputable websites in your industry. Just as creating valuable content takes time, so does building trust from reputable brands and Google to display your website in SERPs.
It’s not a matter of writing a post or two and being done, it’s a matter of establishing a voice that people trust and want to share with others.
You’re using all of the different top marketing tools
Your marketing strategy spans across several different channels including email, social media, and customer information. But instead of signing up for Hootsuite and MailChimp and keeping customer behaviors and data separate, it’s more efficient to bring on a CRM that hosts everything in one place. Only 33 percent of small businesses are currently using CRM tools. The remaining 67 percent are leaving money on the table because on average, small businesses spend 23 percent of their workdays manually inputting data. A CRM can eliminate many manual processes like that – those that take costly hours from your short days. It’s also the most cost-efficient solution because you’re paying for your tools in one bulk price instead of a la carte.
Utilizing a CRM system to execute your marketing strategy will help you hone in on the prospects that are actually interested in your product or service, and put a spotlight on your customers that have the potential to become loyal, VIP buyers. It will also make which marketing channel you can attribute success to a lot more clear. Essentially, it turns off the noise, and places who to focus on and which channels to target on a platter.
You’re only focused on bringing in new customers
Yes, without a new customer base you’re not really in business at all. But once you’ve built a consistent customer base – don’t forget about them. It may sound more strategic to continue focusing on bringing in new customers, but it’s far more expensive. Actually, it’s almost 6 times more expensive to bring on a new customer than it is to cross-sell an existing one.
Focus your energy on giving your customers consistent service every time, demonstrating your appreciation. If you do, they will naturally repay you by referring friends and family to your business. Word-of-mouth marketing is the most authentic form of marketing, and it technically doesn’t cost you a dime.
Be sure to allocate a portion of your marketing budget to customer advocacy and retention, and in turn, the new customers will find you.
Your marketing copy is business-forward
Sometimes when you’re too close to your business and the products you’re selling, it’s easy to get caught up on what you offer versus the value it can bring. And although your product and services list is important, is it headline-worthy?
What gets most people through the door is a solution to a problem they have. In your marketing collateral copy, whether it’s a banner or a window decal, don’t say your product is the best. Instead, say why it’s the best. This can be something most of your customers say about why they love your business – whether it’s in person or in online reviews. At the end of the day, it’s all about what makes your business different.
You post on your social media pages infrequently
Or worse – you haven’t created social media profiles for your business. This means you have a small online presence. The first place most potential customers go when looking for a business is online, and social media is included in that search.
Consumers are using hashtags and search terms within their social media channels to find and buy products. On Instagram, 60% of users (that’s 600+ million people) sought out and discovered new products. They’re also leaving reviews about your business on platforms like Facebook, whether you have a Page or not!
But the algorithm is your enemy if you’re not getting a lot of engagement (compared to the number of followers you have) on each post. If you rarely post, your customers and followers won’t think to visit your page and like or comment on a recent post. That low engagement causes Instagram and Facebook’s algorithm to deem your post not worth showing in a followers feed.
The most simple recipe for engaging posts is a mix of posts showcasing your products and services, giveaways, videos that are either short and educational or simply appealing to watch, and important announcements or events where you can tag other businesses.
Remember, marketing your business is not a cost, it’s an investment. It’s important to avoid mistakes that eat away at your investment, and all of the work you’ve put into it.
