If you feel a sense of panic set in as soon as you hear the word ‘marketing,’ you’re in good company! While marketing is one of the most important aspects of business, it’s also one of the most confusing, and stressful ones for business owners. Coming up with a strategic plan can be tricky, sticking to a plan can be challenging, and when something you dump time and money into doesn’t work, it can be crippling! Good news alert: marketing doesn’t have to be intimidating, and I’m about to show you how to change your mindset, so you can consider marketing more exciting and less exhausting!
The thing I love most about talking with business owners whose eyes bug out when I ask them about their marketing plans is that we often discover that the hangup is all in their head. Which means that by working on their mindset, magic can happen!
For many business owners, marketing is intimidating because it is confusing. There’s no one size fits all strategy. No magic spell that will suddenly turn you into a marketing machine. Success depends on hard work! If you’re spending your time marketing incorrectly, it feels like you’re spinning your wheels hopelessly.
Here’s the thing: marketing can be FUN.
Yes, you read that correctly, and no, I’m not drunk (I’m eight months pregnant after all, so I haven’t felt the joy of a wine glass in my hands for what feels like an eternity!).
The next time you feel your blood pressure rising when marketing is brought up, try looking at it from a creative standpoint! Gone are the days of newspaper ads, mailers, and stuffy networking events. Marketing is most effective when done in a unique way, and coming up with fun ways to creatively appeal to your ideal clients can be a blast!
First, you must be VERY clear on who your ideal clients are. Pssst- If you’re not sure and need a push in the right direction, check out my ideal client guide in my (mostly) $5 shop!
Once you understand who you’re trying to attract, you need to figure out how you can get their attention, what you want from them, and how to compel them to act upon what you’re offering!
Keep in mind marketing should be personal. Yes, you can get great ideas from other people, but if your ideal clients aren’t the same, the plan may fall short for you.
It’s kind of like skincare. You know when someone raves about a product that has changed their life, and you run to the store excitedly, only to try it for a few weeks and notice no change? It’s so frustrating! But, everyone has different skin types, so just because something works for someone else doesn’t mean it will work for you. Marketing is the same!
Make a list of four new ways to market to your ideal clients. If your ideas are ones you’ve seen done before or are ideas, you got from a blog, be sure you’re customizing them to make them work for your business. Think outside of the box and come up with a few ways to attract your ideal clients in ways that feel exciting to you. The more fun you make marketing, the more successful your efforts will be!
Once you have your ideas written down, take the time to create strategic plans for each one. Decide how your plan will wow your ideal clients! Make sure that for each idea; you’re creating plans that will resonate strongly with them. Elicit emotion through your copy, your images, and whatever delivery methods you’ll use.
In my opinion, referrals are second to none when it comes to new clients. By the time I was ready to retire from photography, my business was run 100% off of referrals. I didn’t do a single bit of marketing, but I had no shortage of inquiries.
Don’t forget that your marketing plan should extend to your current clients! Provide a rockstar experience, from start to finish. Ensure that they are raving fans, who shout your praises from the rooftops. When you’re only meeting expectations, you’re not giving anyone a reason to rave about you.
I assure you, marketing doesn’t have to be overwhelming or expensive. Remember, sometimes marketing is a slow and steady wins the race type deal! Don’t try something for two days and give up. Be consistent, and when you can say you gave it your best shot and it still didn’t work, don’t abandon your idea until you spend some time figuring out where you went wrong. Was something wrong with the execution? Did you target the wrong people? Were you offering something that just plain didn’t excite your ideal clients?
If you can’t figure out why your best efforts didn’t work, ask for feedback! Post what you did, in detail, in some Facebook groups related to your industry. Ask people you know who you would consider your ideal clients. Focus groups aren’t just for big brands willing to pay for feedback. Create a focus group of your own and invite past clients to spend a little time giving feedback. In return, give them something awesome! What that would be would depend on your business, your ideal clients, and how valuable their feedback is to you.
One of my favorite ways to jumpstart my creativity when it comes to marketing? I look at what my favorite brands are doing! Think about a few places you love to shop and examine their marketing efforts. What do they do to attract new clients/customers? Why do you keep going back there for more? In what ways do they separate themselves from similar businesses?
Next time you start thinking about marketing, I urge you to think outside of the box. Have fun with it!
Does marketing freak you out? Tell me about your struggles, and your wins, in the comments!
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