10 Marketing tips to help get your message to the masses!

10) Who is your target market? Who is your message or product geared to?

9) Research the habits of your target market. When are they online, when are they not online? How old are they? Where do they live? What is their marital status, how many children do they have, does this matter to your business, the product you are selling?

8) Know your niche in the market.  It’s good to know your market, know their demographics; but you are not the only individual or business in that space.  What do you bring to the table that would be different than other businesses in your niche market?  

7) Font. Yes, it sounds nit picky, but even something as simple as the wrong font can turn off possible clients. If you are not sure, stick with simple and business-like, unless you know your market well enough to know they would not mind Goudy stout on every page of your website! And of course what type of font you use depends on the medium in which you use it. For example, you may not get away with Goudy stout on every page of your website, but you may get away with it on your business cards.  

6) Patience. Building your brand, learning your market, and realizing success in your business, takes patience, and passion.  Most people have enough passion inside them for their product.  But they may not exercise enough patience. Patience is key!

Courtesy Genta Mochizawa

5) Know your strengths…and your weaknesses. I am going to spend some extra words on this point because I believe this is very important! You cannot do it all, you will become a ‘jack of all trades, and a master of none.’ Some people agree with this quote, some do not.  And I believe in this age of technology and DIY—do it yourself programs, for building just about anything; many people can become proficient at several different things.  But in my humble opinion, there is a difference between proficiency and mastery.  You can become proficient at writing code as you DIY your business website, but the site will look proficient.  Believe me, when you are just starting out, money will be tight.  In fact, money will be tight for quite some time.  But before you assume that every web builder charges thousands of dollars to build a beautiful site, do some research.  Ask people whose sites you like, who built their site.  Ask the builder if they are willing to work on the cost with you, if you think they are charging too much.  This goes for every aspect of your business.  Remember, this is your passion. No one else’s.  No one else is going to ask the tough questions, go to bat for your business, feel slightly embarrassed about your lack of knowledge, and willing to always be on a learning curve.  Do what you can with what you have.  If you have a not so nice site, that’s fine.  But do not have a not so nice site because you did not ask around. 

4) Track your progress, aka metrics.   I never thought I would care about metrics because they were the bane of my existence when I worked in Corporate America. It was hard for me to treat human beings like numbers.  Now that I am working for myself, I use metrics to help direct me to what is working or not working for my business.  Should I continue to purchase advertisement space in a certain media space if I am not getting any leads or responses from that space? How many chances should I give that media space?  I am talking about media spaces such as print advertising, social media advertising, and word of mouth (which in my opinion is the strongest form of advertising), just to name a few.  You have to decide when one of these types of advertising mediums is not working for your business, but remember to give each some time. 

3) Know your brand…inside and out!   You have probably heard this before, but what is your elevator speech?  Do you have it memorized and ready to go at the drop of a hat? Many times, most times, you only get one chance to make a good first impression! I will not question your passion for your business.  And I know it is not good to assume, but I have to assume you are passionate about your brand, your business.  If you were not passionate about your business, you would not be out on a limb working well past midnight to build your company! If someone asks you what your business, your book, your message is about, you should be able to rattle it off in 20 seconds! You should know that 20 second speech so well you can say it in your sleep. You should also know how it can pertain to ANYONE you are speaking to. I will let you think about that.

2) Be prepared.  Everyone has their personal pet peeves.  I have a few, well several. OK, wait, this is not about me. Long before I obtained my masters in management with a concentration in marketing, this one issue bothered me.  When I ask someone for their business card and their response is, ‘I just ran out of business cards’.  Sorry, I know it’s not good to judge, but I just lost a percentage of confidence in your message, your brand, and your business.  No business person should ever run out of business cards.  They are just too inexpensive, no matter how tight your budget might be.  If you are worried about them not being as cool, classy, or cute as the next person's, you are worrying about the wrong things. However, things do happen, and if you did run out of business cards, you should have pen and paper on you at all times.  Another pet peeve. You are running a business, but you do not have one pen on your person.  I will tell you what is going through my mind at this point: ‘amateur’.  A little harsh? Maybe, but I am trying to help you.  Most people just will not tell you these things.  Get the best business cards you can afford. If they are not thick and expensive looking, make up for that with some nice graphics.  Graphics by the way that you can create on your own.  As your business grows, and your budget allows, get some nicer cards. Let your cards grow and evolve with you and your business.  Which leads to my final point.

1) Change.  Do not be afraid to change.  As I mentioned in the point above, let your business cards grow and evolve.  Well, it is the same concept for the rest of your business, for every aspect of your business.  Your message and your brand are the back bone of your business.  Everything else that revolves around your brand should evolve.  Your business cards, marketing packages etc., should become nicer and more streamlined as you grow.  Do not allow yourself to remain stagnant.  You want to continue to be relevant.  You should remain relevant without changing your backbone, your foundation.            

Well, there are certainly more than 10 marketing tips to get your brand and your message out to the masses.  These are the 10 I believe are important especially as you start your business.  You know, I really enjoyed my marketing classes.  I learned so much about the psychology of people and the importance of branding.  I also realized the importance of remaining relevant.  I could not believe the elementary mistakes some of the largest companies in our country have made over the years, I believe out of sheer stubbornness.  Where is K Mart today?  How is Sears doing?  Why is JC Penney struggling off and on?  I find it difficult to believe such large corporations did not have a team of people who were employed solely to keep their ears to the ground, to make sure the company remained relevant at all times.  These companies are just a few examples of what happens when you do not remain relevant and do not market properly.

If you are a starter company, I hope these 10 pointers were informative and helpful.  If you have been around for some time, I hope it was a great reminder.  Either way, I hope this information will encourage you to continue learning all you can about marketing your business, and growing your business! 

$2.00

He walked between the idling vehicles.  Vehicles whose drivers I am quite sure impatiently waited for the light to turn green.  Everyone wants to reach their destination right?  He walked laboriously.  It made me think about how effortless it was for me to just get up from a chair and walk to another room, without thinking about it.  I could almost feel the pain he must sometimes feel, just to walk. 

He walked between the idling vehicles, but he was still slightly too far away for me to get his attention.  I assumed he would continue walking between the vehicles, toward my vehicle. I pulled $2.00 out of my purse, waiting for him to get closer, but just then he turned between two vehicles and stepped onto the sidewalk.  I was slightly disappointed as I put the $2.00 back into my purse, admittedly wondering what he would have done with the money. I also thought to myself, 'if he only knew how close he was to $2.00', especially as I seldom carry cash.  We sat at the light for another 15 or 20 seconds.  Ample time for him to have continued walking.  He had become discouraged and given up when he was so close.  Who knows how many people behind me may also have had $2.00, or more? 

As I sat waiting for the light to turn green, I thought about people in general, who had given up, not knowing how close they were to achieving their dream.  How many people had given up and walked back onto the sidewalk just before their $2.00?  I winced at the thought that it could be me!  Just then I said a quick prayer, ‘please God, don’t let me give up just before my breakthrough, before my $2.00.’  I put my purse back, thinking ‘if he only knew’.

That's the spirit!

Spirit.  This word is used to describe everything from personalities to apparitions.  People with spirit are typically described as having high energy, being the life of the party, and easy to get along with. Some people even call alcoholic beverages spirits.  Going just a little further, sometimes people use the term spirit as a verb. Example: 'the kids spirited away the chalk before the teacher came into the class room.'  

But what about you, your spirit?  When you listen to music how does it make you feel? What thoughts enter your mind?  Do you feel negative or do you feel positive?  Do the lyrics speak life to you, or do they speak death? What is the spirit of the music? When you read a book or watch a TV show or movie, how does the content make you feel?  Do you walk away feeling encouraged, discouraged, hateful?  What many people do not understand is how their spirit is negatively or positively affected by the things life presents to us.  Some people do not understand why they feel a certain way after walking away from a conversation, a movie, or a song they just heard. 

Job 32:8 says 'But it is the spirit{a)} in a person, the breath of the Almighty that gives them understanding.' (Biblegateway.com, NIV).  Some have argued that all sentient beings have a spirit and a soul.  Some believe that animals go to heaven when they die, like humans do.  I really do not know.  What I know is that we as human beings need to diligently guard our soul and spirit.  This means that we should make specific choices about what we choose to read, and what we choose to watch, and what we choose to listen to.  This is not about censorship, unless that is what you want it to be. This is about protecting your spirit.  

Think about it, we are all different and the same event can affect us differently.  We all like to think we are tough, and that not much can affect us, especially some book or some song.  But if you think about the last time an event, a book, or a song affected you for the good or for the bad; how long did the impression last?  How long did it 'weigh' on your spirit if it was negative, or lift your spirit it was a positive event?  Be honest.  When you honestly review what you are watching and listening to, all the world's negative assaults will quickly know their place in your life.  The good stuff will be just that, the good stuff.  The things that enhance your life and even help you through difficult times instead of making difficult times even worse.  Bottom line: protect your spirit.