A-Z of Marketing Ideas Part 2

A-Z of Marketing Ideas Part Deux

K - Keep going

A marketing campaign has to be sustained to be successful, you can't do one thing and then expect people to flock to you (unfortunately). Your marketing campaign needs to reach the right people in as many ways as possible. One advert will not be enough, a monthly or weekly advertising campaign will have more success, but again don't expect people to be knocking down your door on the strength of one advert. Make a full plan with all your weekly marketing efforts mapped out and stick to it.

L - Learn from others

Go out and find out what others are doing and see what you like. See what style of marketing you enjoy seeing yourself, what adverts appeal to you? Why? What companies are memorable for you? What makes you remember them? Is it their way of making you feel safe and cosy when you see their adverts, how they make you desire something, how the colours make you feel happier when you see them? Try to pinpoint exactly what it is that you like and then apply the same sort of tactics to your own brand. Maybe you love the John Lewis adverts because they pull at your heart strings (I for one really enjoy watching them, they tell me a story and I like that), maybe the IKEA adverts make you laugh because they are wacky, maybe the more homespun adverts of McDonald's really do make you think the food has got more wholesome - you can learn from all these things. How do you want your customers to feel? Do you want them to be uplifted, feel safe, feel cosy and comforted, feel more efficient, more wealthy, more beautiful? Make sure you learn from the best and then put your own spin on it - ensuring that you always put the customers needs in the mainframe so they know why they should buy from you.

M - Make a name for yourself (not scuttle brains, that's a rubbish name).

Be an expert in your field and you will sell more because you have the credentials to go with it and this gives people confidence in you. In order to become an expert you have to soak up everything in your field with a vengence and remain at the forefront of knowledge - keep learning! You also need to show people that you have knowledge by being in the public eye a little. Write an article, start a blog, do a press release, offer workshops, offer to do talks, write a book, do what it takes and work hard at it. They say that it takes 10,000 hours of practise at something to become 'expert' at it. What have you already been doing for most of your life without realising it? Commenting on political matters, writing, being organised, planning for things, talking to people with confidence? All of these things are areas that you can help other people with and share your ideas and expertise. Obviously you want to make sure that they are connected with your field of business but no doubt they will be in some way because people tend to do things that they already feel passionate about, if you are passionate about it you have probably been studying it informally for years. Call up a radio network locally and ask if they would like you to come and answer some questions from their listeners on your subject, go to networking events and get to know people in the media who might want you to write a column or comment on a news feature that is in your area of expertise. Be bold and sell yourself!

N - Networking

Networking is something we do everyday without perhaps even realising it. When you drop your child off at school you are networking with other parents, the teachers, the children even (no one wants to be the mum that all the children call 'mean'). Networking is simply realising that you are always on show and that you need to reflect the best of yourself at all times (nights sobbing in a glass of wine with your best friend when you've had a bad day excluded). You never know who might be considering buying into your services or your products. I once was thinking of having my hair done by a lady that I met in France who was setting up her own salon, needless to say after I heard her bitching away about virtually all her clients to another lady I decided I didn't really want to become one of her victims...Be nice to everyone that you meet (you can take a day off now and again, its an exhausting task) and you might find that not only do you have a whole load more friends, contacts and customers but you also just find the whole task of 'selling yourself' easier when you realise that this is all that networking is about. Don't be scared to network, just chat, get to know people and let your charming personality take care of the rest...


O - Offer opinions (when even your phone has an opinion, it's time to step up)

Now this can be a bit of a risky one...but as long as your opinions are not offensive or just plain rude then go ahead and have a voice. Standing up for what you believe in can be a rallying call to action from those around you and if you really have something brilliant to say you are likely to find yourself admired by people who would not dare. Having an opinion does mean that you are going to have people who don't like it and will tell you as much so make sure that you actually really want to stand by what you say. If you feel that education needs a whole new direction and you have an idea that will give education a boost in the right direction then be loud about it and let people know your opinions, who knows, maybe they have been waiting for someone to say it first and now that you have they will tell all their friends that you are the person to listen to. Be positive in your opinions though, don't run other people down in your race to be right - offer another way, don't tell everyone its the only way (its not), don't spit all over the competition and expect people to like what you did. But you know that...you're fabulous and your opinions will light up the world with their wisdom because you have a dream and we all love someone who talks with passion about their dreams.


P - Provide a Hook

Ok so really this should have come under 'H' but...providing a hook for your customers is important if you want to grab their attention in a short space of time. Your hook has to be something that people see or hear or even feel in a split second that makes them come back for more. In an advert this means creating an interesting headline - think of some adverts that drew you in immediately with a question or an image that was compelling. Those who are drawn in are more likely to be the customers that you are looking for because it has spoken to them and therefore you can help. If you have been looking for a new job and see an advert saying 'Crap day at work?' you are more likely to think 'yup, really crap...can you help?' and look in more detail at what it has to say. Maybe its a beautiful image you use as a hook - that hotel room that everyone looks at and says 'oh how I would love to go there!' Or the amazing body that everyone wants to achieve and thinks they can by drinking Acai berry juice for a couple of days (that doesn't work by the way, I tried it). Maybe it's something that at first doesn't make sense and your brain registers that there is something amiss and looks further to find out what it is (A Giraffe wearing shoes...to advertise cool shoes for tall people for example). The hook could be a character that people are drawn to (or annoyed by, think of those bloody car insurance adverts), a song, a slogan (think of the political ones that we all remember...YES WE CAN!) It can be anything that makes people stop for a second and think. In schools we use a hook at the beginning of every topic to get the children engaged with what we are about to study, that's the aim of the game here, to engage your customers and keep them enthralled for long enough that you can teach them something about your business.


Q - Quitting 

So I started with Keep Going and now I'm talking about Quitting?? Well yes, because although you do need to keep up a marketing campaign consistently and over a long period of time, you also need to know when something is not working and quit doing it. If you find that no one is responding to your Giraffe in shoes image (see P) then change it! Make sure of course that you have given the idea a good run and that you have talked to people to find out what they think first (maybe it will take time, maybe its rubbish, you need to find out which it is). Don't keep flogging a dead horse as they say, no matter how much of a genius idea you think it is. Over time you will work out what is bringing in business, what is keeping your branding out there and what is simply not doing anything of any good at all. At this point don't be afraid to just drop an idea dead in the water and move on to something else. It might just be the timing is off, perhaps your idea clashed with someone else doing the same thing but with more cash behind the campaign, maybe your Jumping off a Cliff idea (see J) came at the point when someone really did jump off a cliff (you callous beast) or maybe people just don't get it. Try to ask around and get feedback from people who will be honest with you about why they think it's not working and then ask what they think would work instead. Your customers know what they like and hopefully they will be willing to help you out by telling you so that you can make it right.

Tomorrows post contains all the marketing ideas for R-Z! Sign up with your email address to get the post straight into your inbox. Don't worry I won't email other random stuff, just the blog. I won't share your address with anyone else either, I promise.

So what idea do you like the best? Want to offer an opinion and get your voice heard (remember I said be kind...*coughs*)?!!

Love Nova xxx