Jeannine Barcarse, a Los Angeles Marketing Consultant, says, “Business owners can easily be overwhelmed with the thought of marketing. There are so many sources (from their own mind, friends and family, marketing professionals, and gurus) chattering at them that they can easily fall prey to paralysis of analysis. When cultivating a marketing campaign, business owners need to do 3 things: keep in mind that, “All things being equal, people do business with, and refer business to people they know, like, and trust,” (Bob Burg), not over think it (KIS – keep it simple), and take action.”
In today’s technological landscape, there are so many platforms for a business owner to use to sell. That being said, because consumers are constantly being bombarded with buy, buy, buy tactics from direct mail, TV, radio, email, text, social media, and on and on, they have become quick to ignore the typical buying triggers. Therefore, it is even more relevant to make sure that the message being conveyed gets their target audience to “know, like, and trust” them.
One of the best ways for a business owner to do this is through content marketing. The Content Marketing Institute defines content marketing as the strategic marketing approach of creating and distributing valuable, relevant and consistent content to attract and acquire a clearly defined audience – with the objective of driving profitable customer action.
As international speaker and author, Casey Eberhart simply says, “Give, give, give, give, give, give, ASK.” By providing valuable and relevant information (information that provides a solution to a problem) without constantly bombarding people with buy this, buy that, one is establishing themselves and or their business as an expert in their field. It also allows the consumer to get to know them.
Some ways to deliver content are:
- Because most people utilize email on a daily basis, a business owner can simply email tips, tricks, and ideas that are relevant to their consumer. There are statistics out there that will say how ineffective email marketing is. But if an email campaign focuses on providing value – information that is useful to the consumer, rather than the hard sell, then success is inevitable.
- A newsletter is useful for those that tend to shy away from technology. It can simply be a word document that includes various articles that revolve around topics that interest one’s target audience. It can be delivered via snail mail or email.
- Blogging is very close to a newsletter. However, it requires a little formatting savvy. It is just an article usually accompanied by a picture that revolves around providing a solution to a problem. If coming up with the subject matter is a little difficult, one can curate content. For example, find another blog article, report, or even infograph, and summarize the content in your own words and utilize quotes from the original. Then provide a link to the source.
- If technology is not an issue, videos are another platform that can be utilized to deliver content. It can be as simple as taking a video camera on a cell phone, tablet, or laptop and shooting a quick 30 to 60 second video that answers frequently asked questions or should have asked questions. Or one can utilize other software to create animated videos which convey the same type of information.
For a business owners marketing efforts to be successful, Hank Yuloff, Targeted Marketing Tactician and author, states, “You have to be consistent and persistent in your marketing because one offs just don’t work.” So doing just one email, newsletter, blog, or video won’t cut it. Delivering content should be done at least on a monthly basis. Depending on the platform, twice a month, weekly, and even daily are better options for consistency. As an example, consider a well known brand. Whether it is a fast food restaurant or chain, a sports brand or clothing line, the one thing they have in common is that they are always putting themselves in front of the consumer even though they are easily recognized by a jingle or logo.
Providing relevant information on a consistent basis, allows the consumer to get to know a business which usually results in them also liking the business. Building trust can sometimes be a tricky concept for some, but it shouldn’t be. It is actually quite simple, tell the truth. Craig Valine, Marketing Performance Strategist and author, points out “Honesty and education breed credibility and trust.” Bottom line – make sure that whatever information is being shared is based on fact and not fiction.
With some strategic effort, any business owner can get their target consumer to “know, like, and trust” them. And with all things being equal, people will choose to do business with them.
To learn more, go to http://SoCalMarketingConsultants.com/ , email info@SoCalMarketingConsultants.com, or call (747) 333-6747.