3 Reasons to Work on Your Marketing Strategy Now
What is your marketing strategy? I've been talking with one of my client's about their marketing strategy and in doing so, I was reminded that I myself, the marketing manager, do not have a marketing strategy for my own business! Terrible right? Probably a little bit but to be honest, I think I am like most businesses.
From my experience, most small businesses that I work with don't have a marketing strategy in place. They start their business, things take off organically and they get so wrapped up in running the day to day operation that they overlook any type of forward thinking. Is it the way you should operate? No, but it is not horribly wrong either.If you do not have a marketing strategy in place, I encourage you to work on one. Having a clear understanding of what you are doing, when and how much it is going to cost can have a tremendous impact on your business. Having a marketing strategy in place can help you do several things:
- Stay on Track - I hear so many owners tell me, "I didn't do any holiday promotions this year because I got busy and didn't have time to pull anything together." That's a lost opportunity and probably lost sales. Planning a head can help you stay on track and take advantage of sales opportunities throughout the year.
- Stop Wasting Time on the Wrong Customers - Many times when you go through a planning exercise you are forced to stop and look at your customers. Doing this can help you evaluate who your best customers are and who you rarely make a profit from. In doing this, you can focus your energy on those customers that bring you the most profit. Work smarter, not harder as they say.
- Set Goals - A marketing strategy will give you goals to work toward. If you don't regularly set goals for yourself, how will you ever achieve anything better than you're doing now? Sure it may happen on its own eventually but setting a goal to increase sales, increase your customer base or generate a specific number of new leads can be the catalyst for positive change in your business.
Don't let the term "marketing strategy" scare you. While there are many companies that pay thousands dollars to have a strategy created, as a small business you can start small with a document that just puts all your plans and ideas in one place. A simple Google search will help you return some ideas of what needs to be included in your marketing strategy and I am always available for consulting. Tell me, do you have a marketing strategy for your business?
