You know when you are organizing a party there is a lot of preparation that goes into it? You plan, organize and get busy. Then even more effort goes into having the party itself. Sometimes the party goes well, other times you wish you had not bothered. Then you are left with the tidying up at the end. Sounds familiar?

Well having a party is a bit like a marketing campaign. Lots of work goes into the preparation…sometimes the activity is great but sometimes it resembles a damp squid. Either way there is one thing that should always happen and that is the tidying up at the end. In marketing speak this is evaluation.

What happened? What did you expect to happen? How much did it cost? How could you improve on it next time? What did the punters say? Was the response what you expected?

If the campaign or activity did not go perfectly, don’t panic. Just learn from the experience and vow to do better next time. Did the right people get attracted? Was the timing right? Could you run things more efficiently next time?

The best marketeers in the world are obsessed with evaluation because evaluation ensures that you are constantly moving forward and becoming better every time.

So please promise to spend time evaluating every piece of marketing that you do. This way you will get closer to your consumers and improve your results every time…..So how was this blog for you?

Questions have all the answers!

As a marketing consultant, I certainly get asked a lot of questions. What do you think my existing customers will think if I do this? What would new customers think if I did that? The answer is often very clear and simple. ASK THEM!

You see long gone are the days when you could tell your customers what product or service they should buy (oh how marketing must have been easy then!) Things have got more complex. We are bombarded with messages so the hard sell should be left in the used car sales yard.

Now we need to entice customers to us by firstly really understanding them and their needs. When you view marketing like this, it really is quite simple. You constantly ask for feedback then adjust you business accordingly. By doing this you are forced to keep on top of the game.

Constantly ask for feedback to your ideas, products and services. This way you will meet your customers needs which is the holly grail of a long term growing business.

I ask questions all the time and found that clients and contacts ask me frequently for free marketing tips so I did just that. If you would like free tips to keep you on the marketing straight and narrow, sign up by adding your name in the box on my home page.

Go on then!

Here is a simple question that you may struggle to answer. Who is your target market?

If you are serious about stepping up your marketing game, it is one of the most important questions to answer. The problem is when business owners answer this question with broad reaching statements such as “women in the UK”, “dog owners” or “businesses in the north”….THEY ARE ALL TOO BROAD!

The key benefit to identifying a smaller target market is so that you can get your message across in a clear way. If your target is too broad, your message will be scatter gun and un-focused. Less truly is more when it comes to targeting.

Imagine you have a high end service business. Your target market may just be a handful of customers. Focusing your effort with laser precision at these targets will do more for your business than generic broad marketing. Makes sense?

Imagine you are selling a new chocolate bar. Focusing your vision on a very specific target market within the multi-billion chocolate market will get you off on the right footing. Leave the wide generic targeting to the guys with £multi-million budgets.

So I leave you with this final question that will focus your business and also reap rewards if you spend some time thinking about it. Could your target market be more targeted?

Less is more. Fewer targets mean a more focused message and a more focused business that will convert more people to buy. Who said marketing needed to be complicated?  If you need help, click below.

Target Market

If I asked you who your core target market was, would you be able to answer it? I mean really answer it in detail? One of the most powerful marketing strategies on this planet is understanding who your key target is and being as specific as possible.

In marketing babble terms, it is about finding your “niche”. Finding where you sit amongst all your competitors and finding out what makes you different. The more unique you are and the more specific on who your target market is, the better. You will suddenly find that competitors are less of an issue and you have people coming to you rather than the other way around.

So worth investing some brain power on? I would certainly recoo-mend it!

Challenge yourself to see how well you know where your businesses niche is in the world. Write down the answers and then check that your whole business is geared up to fulfilling the needs of your particular niche. If you need help defining your target market, coo can walk you through it. It is one of the most powerful marketing principles if you can get it right.

I had a really interesting call this week….It went something like this….

“Hi Claire. I met you at a networking event. I would like to employ your services. How much will it cost and how long will it take?” Hmmmm…..I could have said “Lots and forever!” but I figured this may put him off…..

The thing with marketing that some businesses forget is that it should be an ongoing part of your business. Not a one off. It takes time and you have to be in it for the long term if you really want a sustainable growing business.

There are businesses that like to launch with a big bang & have glamorous launch parties then seem to disappear as quickly as they arrived. These are the businesses that treat marketing as a one off activity. “We will have a great big launch promotion then we will be on the map”. Sorry guys but this is just not good enough anymore.

Marketing needs to be chipped away at over time. You need to constantly be searching for solutions that will add value to your customers, not just putting your name out there and presuming that customers will flood towards you so in summary it is a marathon not a sprint.

Think about marketing like you do book keeping. It is something that needs to be done consistently and continually (unless you want to end up with a carrier bag of receipts at the end of the year and not enough income!)

If you would like coo marketing to help you on the marathon sign up for free marketing tips.

Do you know one of the simplest concepts that has built some of the biggest brands? Consistency. Do you think Coca Cola just can’t be bothered changing their font every so often? Do you think Virgin just love the colour red more than any other?

Big brands know what little brands need to. Your brand can become your biggest asset therefore treat it with care.

Do you sometimes change the colour scheme of your corporate literature on a whim?
Do you know how to ensure your printing always looks the same?
Does your business look a bit schizophrenic if you put all the branded material in one place?
Does your writing style always feel the same?

Developing a strong, meaningful brand is a long term process but so many smaller brands treat it as if they are shopping for a new outfit…I think I fancy a purple one this time….

If you want your customers to take your brand seriously, you have to take your branding seriously too.

So….Once you have a brand that works, attracts the right customers and stands for something…don’t mess it up with inconsistency. Coo Marketing work with numerous clients to develop meaningful brand identities that are scalable and can grow. Consistency of branding is half the battle.

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There are so many things you can do to market your business. SOOOOO many….

The problem is that sometimes you end up doing nothing. You end up completely overwhelmed. Know that feeling? The other feeling that starts to creep in is doubt.

What if it doesn’t work?
What if someone thinks it is foolish?
What if I do it wrong?

Well the answer to these questions is that you will not know unless you give it a go! I am certainly not suggesting you suddenly go out there are create terribly unprofessional marketing materials and say “Coo Marketing told me to!” What I am trying to say is that we all are in danger of becoming a bit precious at times and putting things off. Here is the tip – no marketing is perfect. How to market your business is a journey with a road map that needs to be constantly updated. All you need to do is keep an open mind, not blow the budget on the new fad and keep learning from the marketing that you are doing until you get it nearer to perfect.

So stop procrastinating and worrying and start marketing. What’s the worst that can happen? You get inundated with sales? If you would like Coo Marketing to go through the process with you, just shout. It will nudge you a step further towards perfection…

Also, make sure you sign up for the free marketing tips on http://www.coomarketing.co.uk/ to keep you positive about marketing your business. Good Luck! X

Do you do much networking? It’s a strange old game….lots of people in a room smiling like nervous Cheshire cats & talking to strangers. I’m sure my mum once told me not to do that…

If truth be known, I quite enjoy networking. Well sometimes anyway. I get a strange buzz when going into a completely new environment & just seeing what happens. I have met some great people and learned so much about the problems that face a cross section of businesses so networking gives me food for thought to find solutions for them.

However…sometimes I feel like a microphone. You get an eager beaver who closes in on you then talks non stop so that they don’t have to suffer an awkward silence or worst case…be standing in the corner alone. They start talking….talking….talking and don’t even seem to need air. It’s all me, me, me & you feel like a human microphone that they are talking into. This is when networking is not working.

So to make sure your networking is working, here are Coo’s top 5 tips.

1. Only go to networking events that have your target market in them (unless you want a night out which is fine but then it’s “a night out” – not business!) It’s easy to feel very busy by going to lots of networking events but as with all marketing, you need to spend your time wisely.
2. Treat networking like market research. Ask lots of questions before wading in there with your turbo charged sales pitch. Believe me, they just don’t work!
3. People do business with people so be human. Be yourself, not a clone. Guaranteed to get more impact and much easier to do.
4. Follow up straight after with anyone you want to take things further with. Otherwise it will just not happen.
5. Remember that everyone is in the same boat. They don’t bite (generally) so go into it with an open mind rather than nerves because life is too short.

The moral of the story is this…

Networking is a way to promote your business so spend a little time planning to do it professionally. Measure the results and repeat what works. Simple.

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Do Your Cards Do The Business?

I am sure you are aware by now that everything you get printed, everything you say, everything that appears on the internet and everything you do reflects back to your business. No pressure then! There is certainly a lot to think about but lets firstly take a look at something simple. Your business card.

What I would like you to do is for 2 minutes pretend you have never met yourself (bare with me!) Imagine you know nothing about your business or what you do. Now imagine you are given your own business card at a networking event. What do you see?

What does it say about you? Is it clear what you do? Does it create a talking point? Is it in keeping with your brand? Does it have all the correct contact details on it? Does it make the most of the opportunity to be the only piece of communication the people you meet will walk away with after your name and face is a distant memory?

There is not a one-off blueprint that all businesses should follow but below are a few ideas to help you if your business card does not meet the first impression test:

• Could you use it to create a talking point such as asking a question on it?
• Could you use it as a promotion? Eg. “Ring this number for a free….” to encourage follow up.
• Would it help if you put your picture on it to help people remember you?
• Could you have different cards for people to choose from as a discussion point?
• Could it speak in benefits rather than facts about your business? Remember – you, you, you, not me, me, me!
• Could you use the back more effectively?
• Could it be used to tell people of your mission?
• Could you make it bolder, simpler and more eye catching?

Take a fresh look at your first branded impression you are likely to make at networking events and see if yours could be improved.  

A bit of extra care and attention can have a dramatic effect on your marketing. Step by step, you need to make the most of every opportunity you have to communicate with your new and existing customers so get that card out of your pocket and see if it needs a re-fresh!

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