Are Your Marketing Tactics Too General?
There’s no one-size-fits-all approach to marketing. If you try to adopt too many general marketing tactics, your strategy will fail. Instead, your strategy needs to be unique to your industry, your audience and your business model. Here are just several ways in which you can prevent your marketing tactics from being too broad.
Know what’s right for your industry
Certain marketing tactics are better suited to certain industries. While many companies have been told to embrace social media marketing in the last decade, not all companies are going to benefit from social media in the same way. A tattoo studio is likely to attract a lot of attention through Instagram, while an accounting firm is not. In fact, there are some B2B companies that benefit very little from social media besides LinkedIn (which is designed for connecting businesses to businesses).
Work out which tactics are actually worth investing in so that you’re not wasting money marketing via the wrong channels. There are marketing companies catered to specific industries – for instance, there are marketing agencies like Elite Lawyer Management that specialise in promoting law firms. Such companies are likely to know the best tactics catered to your company.
Find out who your key consumers are
It’s likely that a certain demographic of people is more drawn to your product. Even if your product has a general appeal, there are still going to be certain types of consumers that invest in your product more regularly. For instance, if you own a sandwich shop, you might get all kinds of people coming into your store, but working professionals on their lunch break are likely to make up a sizable percentage.
Do your consumer research to work out who your key consumers are. This could allow you to create focused campaigns catered to these consumers. On top of targeting certain people, you could find that there are certain times of the week or certain seasons when marketing certain products is more effective. For instance, a car dealership is likely to find that there’s a greater demand for convertible cars during the summer months. This guide at Kim Garst offers more tips on finding your key consumer.
Develop a USP
A USP is necessary for separating yourself from other companies within your industry. USP stands for ‘unique selling proposition’ – it is an aspect of your business that is unique. This could be a unique product that customers can’t get elsewhere, a unique theme to your products or a unique way in which you deliver or present your product.
For instance, an independent coffee shop might choose to offer unique coffee beans, it might market itself as being the only pet-friendly coffee bar in the area, it might offer a unique selection of vegan options or it might market itself as a ‘coffice’ by offering a quiet area for people to work. This guide at Sitepoint offers more tips on developing a USP.